Ashley's POV

I couldn't shake off the sick feeling in my stomach. I knew that something was going to happen today. Today was the day I tell Tristan the truth.

"Are you sure you really want to do this?" Ivy whispered.

I placed my bag in my locker.

"Yes," I answered. "I don't want to keep lying anymore." I closed my locker.

"I hope he never shows up, the same way he never showed up yesterday." She sighed.

Ivy pressed her back against her locker and started scrolling through her Instagram feed. She must have realized that I was a hopeless case by now.

As luck would have it, Marcus walked into the room. I swear this guy is following me.

"What are you two still standing around for? You have a job to do." Marcus yelled.

Ivy sighed as we both walked out of the room to return to our posts.

Yesterday, Marcus had made it official that I would be the one to clean Tristan's penthouse since he would be staying here a lot more often. Of all people, he just had to choose me. I still have other rooms to clean so if anything, I now have more work to do.

From what I heard from the security guards, Tristan wasn't here which meant I could clean in peace for a few hours before I was officially fired.

I took the elevator to his penthouse along with my cleaning detergents.

I stepped into his penthouse. It felt so quiet and peaceful.

"How are you feeling today?" A voice caught my attention.

I turned around to find Tristan with his back leaning against the wall. I hadn't even seen him there.

"I'm fine," I answered reluctantly. I was still trying to catch my breath.

"I'm glad you came here today," he said.

He approached me and grabbed my arm, causing me to drop the detergents I had been holding. He took my arm, guiding me further into the house.

"You know what? How about we start preparing the baby's room right here? It would be great, wouldn't it?" He paused. We stopped in the passage.

Without waiting for me to speak, he answered his question. "You know what, you are right. This place is way too small. How about we buy a new house instead? You can live there if you want, that way we can both look after our little pumpkin." He spoke.

He reached for his hand to touch my belly, but I quickly moved away.

I didn't know that my problem was this serious. He was already thinking about buying a house?

"There is something I need to talk to you about," I paused. It was best I ripped off the band-aid before this progressed any further.

"I know, but I have something more important." He cut me off. "I was thinking, I think you should just quit your job. This is not an appropriate environment for you considering you probably have to be on your feet the whole day." He spoke.

I stared at him dumbfounded.

"You know, it's probably not going to look right once people find out that you are pregnant and considering that you work here." He spoke.

I gripped his arm trying to stop him. I needed to tell him the truth before I changed my mind.

"I need to talk to you." I paused.

He sighed.

"You are right, I also think that we are way behind on planning for our baby's arrival. We should already be thinking about the schools to put our baby in." He continued walking me through the entire house.

"I need to tell you something," I said.

This time, I got his attention. He was no longer trying to sell me the idea of any baby plans he had.

I took in a deep breath as I tried to compile my words, this wouldn't be easy for a lot of people to hear.

"I know you are not pregnant," He spoke casually.

At first, I hadn't realized what he had said but then the realization hit me.

I nearly choked on air as my eyes widened.

"What...?" I finally managed to whisper.

I studied his face for a reaction. He didn't seem upset or anything, just simply amused.

"You didn't think that you could continue fooling me forever now did he?" He spoke.

He crossed his arms. "At first, I must say you got me, but I couldn't believe you for one second. I've never met anyone more dedicated to their lie." He continued.

I gulped as my throat suddenly became dry.

"Then why don't you just fire me so we can both just get on with our lives?" I asked.

"No sweetheart, that would be too easy for you. After you made me waste all of my time, I have better ideas for you." He smirked.

"What would I have to do?" I asked.

"I'll let you know when the time is right." He answered.

Something told me I had just unknowingly signed myself into a deal that would be difficult to bargain out of.

"I need you to clean this place up. I can at least trust you to do your job, right?" he asked.

He grabbed his jacket before walking out of the apartment.

I thought I'd be solving more of my problems today, but it seems like I only got myself into more problems.

*****

*NEXT DAY*

"Ten things I'm grateful for?" I whispered to myself.

"I'm still alive,"

"I still have a job,"

"I'm not sick in the hospital."

"You know that never works," Ivy interrupted.

"Shh, it was starting to work," I whispered.

Ivy and I were in the coffee room. I hadn't managed to sleep a wink last night. I just kept replaying every one of Tristan's words.

"I can't believe you told him the truth." She spoke.

"What was I supposed to have done?" I asked.

"You were supposed to have denied it with your life. He had no real proof that you weren't pregnant, and by acting the way that you did, you just proved his suspension." She answered.

"Well, it could have turned out a lot worse," I answered.

"Well, I hope you have a funeral policy," Ivy whispered. She shook her head at me. "You were so close to living in a mansion."

People in the room were now starting to stare at Ivy and me.

I was able to drink my cup of coffee in just one shot. I knew I needed to get out of here and start my shift before Marcus threatened to fire one of us.

Ivy and I stood up from our table.

I knew I had to start with Tristan's penthouse before starting with any of the other guest rooms.

Ivy and I parted ways as I took the elevator to Tristan's penthouse.

Walking into his penthouse, I was met by the sound of a woman's laughter coming from the living room.

Maybe I shouldn't be here. I didn't want to walk into anything I wasn't supposed to see.

Or maybe I was overreacting. Maybe it was just a casual business meeting. Either way, I had a job to do and that was simply cleaning.

I got my answer soon after.

Madison walked out of the living room and into the hall. What shocked me most was her appearance. She was dressed in nothing but an oversized shirt that was just above her knees. It was Tristan's shirt.

I couldn't help but stare as I was still processing the situation.

Madison paused as she noticed me standing in the hallway.

"What are you doing here?" Madison asked.

It was as if at that moment I had lost all ability to speak. "I..."

Just then, Tristan appeared in the hall. He was completely shirtless in nothing but his pants.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened.

"You are here," Tristan spoke. "You can start cleaning up the kitchen." He spoke.

I still found myself unable to respond. I was still processing the fact that those two had slept together. I guess Madison's plans were working.

But it didn't take Madison yelling to get me to respond. Instead, the door flew open as a middle-aged woman walked in.

She wore a black dress with a matching black coat over her shoulders. She wore sunglasses with bright red lipstick. Her hair was in loose curls, brushing over her shoulder.

She removed her sunglasses, staring at both Tristan and Maddison.

"Mother," Tristan whispered.

I noticed the tension in Madison's response.

"Didn't I tell you that I never want to see you anywhere near this woman?" His mother asked.

I think it was a pretty good time for me to leave right now. However, Maddison and Tristan were blocking my way in the front with his mother right behind me. Any move I made looked like it would anger either of them. I had to remain invisible.

"Ma'am I was just..."

"Could you just shut up and get out of here?" His mother demanded.

Madison remained unaffected.  

This was not a conversation I wanted to get myself involved in.

I tried moving away, past Tristan's mother but she blocked my way as she approached Tristan and Maddison.

"Do I need to drag you by your cheap hair extensions to get you out of here?" His mom shouted.

"Mother," Tristan spoke in a warning tone.

Madison was infuriated. She looked over at Tristan before storming out of the penthouse.

She didn't take any of her stuff. She was probably waiting for his mother to leave.

Tristan's mother crossed her arms as we heard a loud slam of the door.

"Didn't I warn you that I didn't want to ever see you anywhere near that woman?" his mother asked.

I was still standing in no man's land, quietly in the corner as I hoped that the ground would swallow me.

"No mother, you should be more careful of the way you speak to her. She is going to be my future wife." Tristan spoke.

My eyes widened. I couldn't imagine our lives here with Madison as the boss's wife. She already makes our lives miserable as a guest let alone as the owner. His mother was taken aback by his words too.

"You will marry her over my dead body. I don't know how it's possible that I could have given birth to a child this stupid. You are living proof that a person can survive without a brain." She spoke.

"You have no say over my life or any of the decisions that I make. "Tristan spoke.

"How can I not when you keep insisting on being stupid? All I asked for was that you settle down, get married and give me grandchildren. It's not that difficult. Instead, you are here with that bimbo." She continued.

His mother looked over at me. It was almost as if she wanted me to agree with her.

"She is not a bimbo," Tristan remarked. "I refuse to be tied down by anything or anyone," Tristan declared.

"So, you won't settle down?" His mom asked.

Tristan nodded crossing his arms.

"Well, I need you to know that whatever is about to happen, it's your fault." She spoke.

His mother looked at me while putting her sunglasses on before walking out of the penthouse.

It took a few seconds before we heard the door slam again.

I thought I had family issues.

"She forgot her meds today," Tristan commented.

He then proceeded to walk away. He locked himself in his office.

After that conversation, I was still hyped up about the whole thing. I felt like I had just survived the war and had managed to get out without a single scratch.

If his mother couldn't get him to settle down, there was no way my fake baby story was ever going to work.

I needed to get back to work before I lost my job for real this time.

I took a moment to analyze the mess in the house.

I started by picking up some bottles left on the floor and throwing them in the trash can.

His bed looked like it had been slept in. The bedsheets weren't as messy, with one side looking untouched. Considering the blanket on the couch, maybe they hadn't slept together after all.

I didn't see Tristan afterwards. I just heard murmurs from his office. It took more than five hours to get the entire place clean. By then I was just too exhausted and excited to finally take my lunch break.

"You!" Someone yelled stopping me in my tracks.

I turned around to find Madison behind me.

"Do yourself a favor and learn not to show up where you are not wanted," Maddison spoke.

She bumped into my shoulder before walking right past me.

I don't know what I had done to her, but something told me I had just made an enemy.

_____________________________

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please comment down your thoughts.

What do you think his mother is going to do next?

Please vote and comment and follow me for more content.