Ashley's POV

I nearly choked on my breath after Tristan's grandfather made the announcement.

By the looks of it, I wasn't the only one who was taken by surprise.

Tristan's eyes widened; Nicole spat the liquor back into her glass on the verge of choking.

Wife? What had I just heard?

Wasn't Madison trying to get Tristan to marry her not too long ago and now she was all of a sudden married to his grandfather?Had I missed something?

This had to be a joke. With the sinister look on his grandfather's face, we all waited for the moment he'd say 'I'm just kidding' so we could start breathing again, but that never happened.

Instead, she appeared more confident and proud, placing her hand on his shoulder to review the huge rock on her finger. This was really happening.

That immediately ruled out all theories I had formulated about her crashing the party. Finding out that she and Tristan had reconciledand invited her would have been a better alternative than this.

I still don't know what could have happened between Tristan and Madison, but he was never escapingher now.

Tristan was the first to say the one thing we had all been thinking. "You've got to be kidding me," he spat bitterly. He looked at the two of them in disgust. This only provoked Madison to wrap her hand around his grandfather's arm, a huge grin on her face.

"The two of us are very happy. I'd appreciate it if you fall in line." His grandfather answered. It didn't sound like a suggestion or even a request, something I've figured that they are very good at doing in their family. "Besides, you shouldn't get me started on all the things you should have gotten rid of long ago." He directed at me.

"She is old enough to be your granddaughter. Aren't you disgusted with yourself?" Nicole asked.

The comment didn't seem to affect Madison or their grandfather.

This conversation sounded like a private family moment. I probably had no business being here. It was best I slipped away and stayed away from all of this as far as possible.

"I don't care about whatever relationship the two of you have but she is leaving. I want her to leave my establishment." Tristan demanded.

"If you kick my wife out, you'll have to kick me out as well," his grandfather responded.

"Even better," Tristan replied, crossing his arms.

"You are willing to kick your own poor grandfather out?" He answered.

"You are not exactly poor now, are you? We all know she wouldn't have married you otherwise," Tristan answered.

"You should show us both respect," Madison interjected. "Now, I know it's a bit too soon and grandma makes me feel old and sounds old-fashioned. How about you call me Nana?" She smirked.

She was trying to provoke him, and sure enough, Tristan reacted.

Tristan now seemed more annoyed. He looked like he was ready to kick her out himself. This wasn't the time or place to start a fight. In any other situation, I would have been fine with seeing Tristan kick her out himself but this was not the place.

I wrapped my arm around Tristan's. He relaxed slowly, and his grip on my hand tightened.

I bet it's hard enough when your parents get married to someone your age, but even worse if it's your grandparent.

"What is this pest still doing here?" Nicole asked, pointing at Madison.

"That's a good question. I'll have security throw her out." Tristan answered.

Just when I thought my family was dysfunctional.

Tristan was on his way to the security guard at the entrance when his grandfather stopped him. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said. "You know how much influence I have? More than half of these guests are also my business partners. If I leave, they'll go along with me and we both know your little auction will never see the light of day again." He threatened.

Tristan froze. "What kind of person uses a charity for sick children with cancer to blackmail me?" Tristan asked. Tristan was taken aback by his threat.

His grandfather shrugged. "It's your choice. Are you really not willing to set your ego aside for all the people this event will benefit?" he challenged.

He knew he had him cornered, and I didn't blame Tristan.

A smile spread across Madison's face knowing she had won. "Sweetheart," Madison dragged out her words and turned, facing Tristan's grandfather. "I heard theyhave this gorgeous diamond necklace up for auction tonight. Will you buy it for me?" she pouted.

"Okay, my pumpkin sugar spice." He smiled back at her.

This was very disturbing.

****

I woke up to the sound of chirping birds as the sun spread through the opened curtains. The day seemed beautiful. I immediately lifted my head from the pillow in suspicion.

Why was it so beautiful outside? This day seemed too good to be true, not after last night.

As you may have imagined, the rest of the event didn't go smoothly. With Madison around, the news of her marriage quickly spread, becoming more popular than the event itself. Tristan wasn't taking it well.

It wasn't until the event was nearly over that we realized that having her around also meant staying under the same roof. It's scarier than it sounds. Who knows what she is planning next? After all, I was still on her enemies list. It's a miracle that I managed to fall asleep last night. Maybe it was wearing heels the whole night that worked like a sedative.

I heard a loud smashing sound in the living room. It sounded like stuttering glass.

Maybe Madison had sneaked in and bashed Tristan over the head with a vase.

I knew it, something bad had happened. This day started toogood to be true.

I quickly rushed out of bed, heading towards the noise.

The first thing I noticed walking into the living room was the stuttering water glass on the floor. I tried my best to avoid the broken pieces with my bare feet.

Tristan was a few feet away, already out of his pyjamas with his hair still messy. I sighed happily, knowing he was still breathing.

I noticed his hand was bleeding. Smears of blood were on the floor while he tried to stop his hand from bleeding with one hand.

"Are you okay?" I asked in a panic.

"I'm fine," he answered, his voice dejected. "You should move away from the glass before you get hurt," he warned.

I was still focused on his bleeding hand.

He moved towards one of the cupboards, pulled out the first aid kit and slammed it on the table. With one hand, he struggled to open it before taking out the bandages. He had little luck using one hand. I could tell he was probably still upset about last night.

I stepped away from the glass, walkingtowards him.

I grabbed the bandages from him, taking him by surprise.

"I can do it myself." He answered, his voice annoyed.

"Let me help you," I insisted. I looked at him sternly to prove how adamant I was.

He sighed, conceding to my demand.

I grabbed a cloth on the table and used it to stop the bleeding.

Luckily, the cut didn't seem that severe or deep.

"How did this happen?" I asked applying pressure to the wound. He jerked away in response.

"It's nothing, the stupid glass just fell." He answered dismissively.

The bleeding had stopped. I cleaned the wound before wrapping it in a bandage.

"Thanks," he muttered. He moved his fingers around, checking if he could still work with them.

I closed the first aid kit, returning it to the cupboard where Tristan took it out earlier.

He seemed very tense today. I couldn't help but think it was all because of yesterday. It's not every day that your grandfather announces he is getting married let alone to someone who tried to ruin your life.

I was itching to ask him how he felt but I didn't know how he'd react to the subject. If he was already this upset, he probably didn't want to talk about it either.

"Do you want to talk about what happened last night?" the words slipped out of my mouth.

"What about it?" He asked while running through some folders.

Was it that traumatic for him that he had erased it completely from his mind?

"You know.... About Madison, and your grandfather." I elaborated.

His reaction surprised me. Instead, he broke into laughter. "Why would I be bothered by that?" he laughed.So he wasn't upset? "If anything, those two deserve each other. The sooner they destroy each other, the better. It only means we get to read his will even sooner." He answered.

"Oh," I whispered. If he was upset, it was probably about something else. Maybe me?

"I'm fine, just stressed out about work. I have a lot to do," he assured. "I'm going to be busy throughout the day with work and it looks like we may have to return home even sooner. I've arranged for the driver to take you around the city anywhere you like. That way you don't have to be stuck with me the whole day." He said.

I smiled disheartened.

I knew he was here for work. I couldn't have expected him to travel around the city with me.

"Maybe I'll join you later. I just have some work to completefirst," he added. "You should probably get ready. The driver will waituntil you are ready." He kissed me on the cheek before answering a call.

I returned to my bedroom, then went to take my shower and got dressed.

Since the weather was lovely, I settled on a bright pink dress with sandals.

When I returned to the living room,the broken glasses had been cleaned up, probably by one of the maids.

Tristan was still occupied, pacing around the room while on his call. Tothose who said the rich had it easier.

The driver he had appointed came to fetch me and led me to the car. I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to Tristan.

We stopped at a couple of popular destinations. The driver explained each of the old buildings and chapels. The market was the highlight for me, interacting with different people and all the diversity.

If the driver wasn't following me around, I would have sneaked in some wine tasting. Everything I wanted but I couldn't help but feel Tristan's absence.

After hours of sightseeing, I finally decided to stop by and relax in a café.

I ordered a cup of coffee for myself along with some chocolate cake.

It's the first time in a while that I've just had time for myself to just think.

I couldn't help but stare at everyone else. They looked so carefree.

People go on vacations to relax while I couldn't escape my problems.

My phone vibrated on the table, drawing me out of my thoughts.

Without thinking, I answered the call.

"Hi!" Ivy yelled loudly.

I pulled the phone away from my ear to recover.

"Hi," I answered back. Relieved to hear her voice. "I'm not supposed to speak to you remember?" I joked.

"I wake up an extra hour before work and this is the greeting I get? Besides, I'm not afraid of him." She answered. "You didn't even tell me you wereleaving. I had to hear this from Katy." She added.

"Everything happened so fast," I remarked. "How are you doing over there?" I asked instead.

"My life is boring as always. I'm here to talk about you." She answered. "How is it going there? What are you doing?" She asked intrigued.

"Nothing much, I'm just sitting alone in a café," I explained.

She paused for a while, hoping I'd add to the story.

"And where exactly is your boyfriend?" she asked.

'We weren't dating, at least I didn't know.' I wanted to tell her that.

"He had to work, his been very busy lately," I replied. She could probably hear my disapproval.

"I'm sorry, did I just hear you try to complain about your rich boyfriend having a job? Why don't you try having a broke boyfriend and tell me if that is still romantic." She answered.

"I never said that," I replied.

"How are the living arrangements coming along?" she asked. I knew she was hinting at something else.

By the way she was interrogatingme. I'd say she wanted to write a book about me.

At least my story would serve as a life lesson for people.

"We both have separate bedrooms," I explained.

I heard Ivy choke as she gasped to breathe in.

I satup straight in full alert. Was she okay? Did I need to call someone to help her?

She continued coughing and gasping for a while, her breathing slowly returning to normal.

"You said what?" She asked, her voice distorted.

"We have separate rooms," I repeated hesitantly. I was worried she'd choke again and this time she wouldn't recover.

"How else are you supposed to get pregnant?" She nearly yelled.

That was her issue? I thought I'd already had this conversation.

"How will I explain why the baby is born more than five weeks later?I'm not about to dig another grave." I reasoned with her.

She sighed, she probably had her face in her palms right now.

"Ivy!" I heard a deep voice in the background.

Ivy fell silent. A few sounds followed in the background before everything fell to silence again.

"Who was that?" I asked intrigued.

"Nothing, it's no one. You must have heard the TV." She answered dismissively.

What were the chances that out of no way, someone from the TV would just magically say her name out of nowhere and then suddenly fall silent again?

"Are you hiding someone there?" I asked intrigued. I smile extended on my face.

"I think you are breaking up. I can't hear you clearly." She cut me off. "Hello?... I still can't hear you. I have to go now, bye." She cut me off.

Before I could respond, she hung up the call.

She really was hiding something. Why did she feel the need to cut me off?

I sat down for a while, trying to think of possiblereasons why Ivy would want to hide something from me. Either way, I'll probably find out soon.

My mind shifted to my BIGGER problem.

I was living in a fantasy and everything would continue to getworse unless I snapped out of it. I immediately had an idea.

I motioned for a waiter who arrived at my table in seconds.

"Can I get a pen and a piece of paperplease?" I asked.

He smiled before walking away to the counter. A minute later, he returned with a few pages and a pen.

Since I could never say it to him. I thought I'd write it instead. I owed him an explanation after everything I'd done. So many things had happened and maybe getting them on paper would be the only way to explain everything without him walking away. I didn't even know where to begin.

***

Hours passed by without me even noticing. It was already getting cold and I imagined that soon it would get dark.

I looked down at the two pages I'd written. So far I was able to cover just over half of what has happened. Writing it and seeing everything in someone else's shoes wasn't easier, there are many things I'd have liked to change.

I looked at my phone for any notifications. I hadn't received any messages from Tristan. I guess he couldn't make ithere. This trip here seemed more like my goodbye to him.

I folded the letter into a neat square before stuffing it into my dress pocket.

I got up to leave after paying the bill with the credit card Tristan's driver gave me.

I approached the exit. The driver had already been waiting for me. He jumped out of the car to open the door. I smiled, settling into the car.

The streets seemed more alive, with more people walking into clubs.

I fell asleep on the way back. The driver tapped me on the shoulder just after we parked inside the resort.

I just hope I haven'tdrooledover the leather seats.

Rubbing my eyes, I got out of the car.

I hadn't bought anything so I didn't have anything to carry.Katy was probably going to hate me for this.

"Thank you," I told the driver. He had taken it upon himself to be my tour guide for the day.

"It's been my pleasure ma'am." He smiled before returning to the car.

I rubbed my arms to keep myself warm as I tried to recall the entrance I'd used earlier.

"I'm surprised you haven't spent everything my grandson owns." I heard a voice behind me. I immediately recalled its source.

I turned around to face Tristan's grandfather. He had the same smug and condescending look from last night.

This was why everyone hated him.

"I'm intrigued by you and your presence in my grandson's life. How about some tea?" He offered.

Had he forgotten he insulted me less than a minute ago? Maybe he wasn't an awful person, he just had a serious mental problem.

Before I responded, he looked like he'd already decided for me.

He turned around, walking into the hotel as he motioned for me to follow behind him.

I was stuck in a predicament. I didn't know whether to follow him or find a way to dodge him.

Despite my better judgement, I followed him.

I was relieved to know we had planned ourmeeting in a more public space. We settled into a lounge just behind the hotel reception area. There were several spaces with brown couches, all surrounding several tables. The brown couches matched the wooden floor along with several parts of the ceiling. The place looked amazing. Surprisingly, there wasn't anyone else in the area.

We sat around a table. He kept his cold gaze on me as an intimidating tactic. I'm pretty sure I can say that I have been through worse.

All it took was a mare snap of his finger and the waiter came running to our table, a teapot already in his hand. He motioned to the waiter to fill our cups. He waited for the waiter to leave before beginning.

"I'd like to know what your plans are regarding my grandson." He spoke.

He picked up his cup of tea nonchalantly, pretending he hadn't just insulted me.

I should have known to prepare myself to be offended.

He hadn't given me the chance to respond before moving on to his next statement.

"What plans do you have for your life?" he asked next. "Did you even go to college or have a business?" he asked. He laughed sardonically, already prepared with his next response. "You are just a simple maid, right? People like you don't usually plan on doing anything with their lives unless it's using someone else to climb up the social ladder," he said.

"I can assure you, I don't have any of those intentions," I answered reassuringly.

He raised his hand to stop me.

He snapped his finger again. Another man approached us within seconds. This time it was a man dressed in a black tux and wearing black sunglasses despite being indoors.

The man handed a small piece of paper out of his tux. He then returned to his post where he was guarding the door.

"Let me get straight to the point." He continued. "I have many plans for my grandson and his future and you are not one of them. I'll give you two million dollars to stay away from my grandson." He spoke. He slid the paper over to me on the table.

I was taken aback as I stared at the two million dollar check on the table. Did he really want me gone that badly that he'd offer me that kind of money? Sure enough, it would solve all my problems, but I hadn't sunk that low. I wouldn't take it no matter how much he offered.

I slid the check back to him. "I'm sorry but I won't accept your money. I'm not for sale." I replied firmly.

"A smart businesswoman, I respect that." He smiled. "Of course, you would reject it, you'd probably make a lot more leeching onto my grandson." He retorted. "How would you like it if I added another zero to the cheque? It could change your life." He insisted.

I stood up ready to leave. I had a feeling he wasn't going to stop insulting me. From two million to twenty, how desperate was he? I was starting to think this was all an act to out me.

"I won't take your money for whatever reason. Goodnight sir," I said with clenched teeth.

"You don't have to pretend with me, I know exactly your kind." He insisted. He too was now standing.

"Did you hear her say she didn't want your money?" I heard Tristan behind me.

He took me by surprise, his voice almost sending shivers down my spine.

"I didn't raise you to be this dumb. Can't you see she is playing with you?" His grandfather answered.

Tristan stepped in front of him, blocking me from his grandfather.

"If there is anyone who is leaving my life it's going to be you. You stepped too far. I'll never allow you to talk to her like that again." Tristan answered.

"You'll surely regret it when you finally see what is in front of you,"he said.

"I hope this is the last time we'll see each other. We are leaving. You can enjoy this place with your new wife." Tristan answered. He took hold of my hand, intertwining it with his.

This was all my fault. Tristan was cutting ties with his family and I was lying to him all along. He really didn't deserve this.

My vision was blaring as tears piled up in my eyes.

Tristan's hand tightened around mine as he motioned for us to leave.

"You dropped something," Tristan's grandfather stopped us in our tracks.

I turned around to find him handing me the letter, the same one I had written earlier on. It wasn't finished but it had a lot of compromising things.

My mind instantly panicked. I could already imagine what would have happened if he got the letter before Tristan.

"Thank you," I replied, accepting the letter in his hand.

We turned around and made our way out of the lounge.

At least I knew we were finally returning home. This willend soon.

_____________________________________

A/N: Thank you so much for reading. A new update will be coming in a few days.