Something was different about Jeanine. She had something on her mind, and after everyone left, I still didn't know what it was.

“Are you ready to come to bed?”

“Not yet. I found out something that I wanted to ask you about. It came out of your jacket pocket, and I know that I shouldn't have looked, but you know how curious I can be.”

I didn't know what she was talking about, until I saw the small box in her hand. She opened her palm and it was nestled in there. I knew instantly what was on her mind, because it had been on my mind as well. That ring had been weighing me down, far more than the little bit of metal could. It was what it meant, and what I needed to tell her. After her finding out about my extra clients., I realized that I was going to have to be far more careful then I was before. She wasn't ready to know the truth, but what was I going to tell her?

“Yes, I got that ring before I realized how opposed you are to marriage. I thought you would be like most women, eager to be wed and start a family. I should have known that you'd be different Jeanine.”

“Are you sure that it is not already supposed to be on my hand?”

“What?”

Now my mind was reeling. What did she know? She had this look on her face that told me that she knew more than she was supposed to. Who had said something? My first guess was Lisbeth, she was still upset about her granddaughter. I had told her before that it wasn't going to work but she was still holding on to the idea that we would come become more than just friends.

“I asked you before if there was anything that you weren't telling me. I found out tonight that there is a lot you aren’t telling me Craig. You have been lying to me this whole time.”

She was getting upset, and I knew that she knew. I don't know how, but I was really starting to lean towards the maid. She was the only one I knew that would do something like this.

“Did Lisbeth tell you that?”

“No, she can't stand me. I'm not sure why, but she has given me dirty looks since I got here. Is there a reason for that? Did you date her as well?”

This was getting out of control very quickly and I tried to slow down the situation.

“Don’t be preposterous. Lisbeth is old enough to be my mother. I certainly wouldn't be with her. I was with her granddaughter for a very limited amount of time and she is upset about that it didn’t work out.”

It got really silent and I did not know what to say. She knew, and I didn't know what to say to her. It was a dumb thing to do, something I thought was going to turn out a whole lot differently. I never would have guessed she would be so opposed to it. But now I knew she was, and she was looking at me as if I had killed her best friend.

“So why is she so worried about if I am wearing a ring or not? What does it matter if I’m a foreigner? She keeps mumbling that under her breath.”

“She didn't want me to marry a foreigner. But it wasn't her place to say anything to you. Lisbeth doesn’t know when to shut up sometimes.”

“You mean to tell me that we were really married? I mean it is one thing to tell people that, but we were really married, weren’t we? You thought that you would just force my hand, whether I liked it or not?”

“It wasn't like that. I thought it was going to be romantic, but then you made it clear that you didn't want to get married, be here or be with me, so I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Why do you think I'm here? Of course I want to be with you. But how could you marry us and not even tell me? Who does that?”

“I really thought it would be sweet and romantic. I didn't think that you would take it this way. When I found out how you really felt, I was afraid to tell you because I knew you weren’t going to see it the way it was intended.”

“It feels like you just took advantage of my lack of Spanish knowledge. That’s all it feels like to me. You wanted something and didn’t even bother to ask me if I did as well.”

I wanted to be real and tell her that was the exact reason, but I knew better. I had to convince her that this was all a mistake. I knew that it was the only way at the moment. I didn't think that she would believe anything I had to say though. I had ruined her trust, something that I knew was a big deal with her. I’d really botched this all up. I had truly thought that she would want to marry me. Maybe that was the biggest fault of all. She really hadn’t.

“So, you aren't going to deny it?”

I could see a tiny bit of her wanted to believe that none of this was real. That she had somehow come to the wrong conclusion, but I couldn't.

“No, I'm not going to deny it. I was going to tell you, I promise I was. Lisbeth should've told you.”

“She didn't tell me. One of your friends congratulated me on the wedding. Said they were sorry that I didn't get to make it, but you didn't invite anybody. That happened the first day I was here didn't it?”

I felt bad for an instant that I had thought my maid had sold me out. She was pissed off at me, cussed me a couple of times, but I should have known that she wouldn’t do something like that. She was ever faithful, if nothing else.

“Yes, it did. Like I said, it was before I knew how you really felt about it. We talked on the phone, we had talked about getting married, we had talked about a lot of things. I didn't know that it was all just talk with you. It wasn’t with me.”

“Don't turn this around on me Craig. You married me without me even knowing about it. I said ‘I do’, not knowing that I was marrying you. I don't even think that is legal.”

I didn't like the sound of that. It sounded like she was already trying to get out of the marriage.

“It is legal. You are my wife and I'm going to do everything in my power to show you that I am sorry. I will make it up to you, I promise.”

She just shook her head and I could tell that she wasn't ready to talk about it. She didn't want to think of herself as married, that we were together, but we were. I just wanted her to know, that this marriage wasn't just some piece of paper. It meant something to me and whether she knew about it or not, I liked to think that she would have said yes anyways.

“I don't know what to say to you right now Craig. I really don't. I know that I don't want to argue, but I think I need to sleep somewhere else tonight. Do you mind if I stay in one of your other rooms?”

I didn't want her to, but I wasn't going to fight the situation either. If she needed a night to think about everything, I hoped that she would come to the same conclusion that I had. No matter how we got together, the end result was still the same. We were meant to be together, that much was clear.

Taking her to another room, I tried to give her a kiss goodnight, but she turned her face away. It was apparently too soon.

She still had the ring in her hand and she handed it back to me. “This is yours.”

“No, like you said Jeanine, this is technically yours.”

I left it in her hand and walked away. I didn't want to, but my wife needed some space and I was learning quick that space was something that was best to give her. I told myself that we would work it out in the morning, somehow.

Right now, it was just too soon.