Truths and Wine

“You’re unusually quiet tonight,” Demitri commented, swirling the wine in his glass. His tone was casual, but his eyes were sharp, observing Ashley as she stared at the liquid in her own glass.

“Maybe I’m just tired,” she replied, not meeting his gaze.

“Or maybe,” he countered, leaning forward slightly, “you’re avoiding talking about what’s really on your mind.”

Ashley sighed, setting her glass down on the table. “Fine. Let’s talk about the foundation then. It was a good event, wasn’t it?”

“It was,” he agreed. “But we’re not going to pretend everything is normal, are we?”

She looked up, frowning. “What do you mean?”

“You know exactly what I mean.” He leaned back in his chair, studying her. “This…thing between us. The silence. The unspoken words.”

Ashley scoffed, reaching for her glass. “You’re reading too much into it.”

“Am I?” He raised an eyebrow. “Because if I am, then you won’t mind answering this—why did you agree to marry me in the first place?”

Her hand froze mid-air. Slowly, she placed the glass back on the table and folded her arms. “That’s a question you’ve never asked before.”

“Because I was afraid of the answer,” he admitted, his voice quieter now.

She held his gaze for a moment before looking away. “Why does it matter now?”

“It matters because I’ve spent every day since you left wondering if I ever meant anything to you,” he said, his voice breaking slightly. “Was I just a means to an end for you, Ashley?”

Her chest tightened at the vulnerability in his voice, but she couldn’t bring herself to answer directly. Instead, she fired back. “Why did you give me a contract to sign on our wedding night, Demitri?”

He blinked, caught off guard by the question. “I—”

“Go on,” she pressed, leaning forward. “If you’re so desperate for answers, then give me one first.”

Demitri exhaled heavily, running a hand through his hair. “Elena,” he began, the name falling from his lips like a curse. “When she found out my parents were arranging a marriage for me, she panicked. She made me promise to keep it…strictly business. A contract seemed like the best way to honor that promise.”

Ashley’s heart clenched, but she kept her expression neutral. “And you agreed? Just like that?”

“At the time, I thought I owed her that much,” he said, his voice laced with regret. “But then you came along, and everything changed. I tried to keep my distance, but you…you made it impossible.”

She shook her head, letting out a bitter laugh. “You mean I made it inconvenient for you to stay loyal to her.”

“No, Ashley,” he said firmly, his eyes locking onto hers. “I fell in love with you. I just didn’t realize it until it was too late.”

Her breath hitched, but she masked it with a scoff. “Convenient timing.”

“I deserve that,” he admitted, nodding. “But it’s the truth. I was a coward. I couldn’t admit my feelings, even to myself, until you were gone.”

Ashley looked away, the weight of his confession settling heavily in her chest.

“What about you?” he asked after a moment of silence. “Why did you hide your identity? Why marry me in secret?”

She hesitated, her fingers tightening around the stem of her glass. “I didn’t think it would matter,” she said softly. “I thought it was just a way to hide from the world for a few years. Something that would end before it even began.”

“And yet here we are,” he murmured, his voice tinged with sadness. “Was it really just business for you, Ashley?”

She opened her mouth to respond, but the words wouldn’t come.

“I’m sorry,” he said suddenly, his voice breaking the silence. “For everything. For hurting you, for pushing you away…for being a fool.”

Ashley looked up at him, her walls crumbling just a little. “Apologies don’t fix everything, Demitri.”

“I know,” he said quietly. “But it’s all I have.”

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The tension in the room was palpable, the air heavy with unspoken emotions.

“Can we at least be friends?” he asked hesitantly, breaking the silence.

She blinked, taken aback by the question. “Friends?”

“Yes,” he said, his tone almost pleading. “If nothing else, can we try to be that?”

Ashley stared at him, unsure of how to respond. Before she could say anything, the sound of his phone ringing shattered the moment.

He grabbed the device from the table, but the name flashing on the screen made his face pale.

“Elena,” Ashley said flatly, her tone laced with bitterness.

Demitri looked up at her, guilt written all over his face.

Ashley stood abruptly, her expression unreadable. “You should take that,” she said curtly, walking toward the bedroom without another word.

Demitri stared after her, the weight of the conversation pressing heavily on his chest as the phone continued to ring in his hand.