Page 112 of The Guest Cottage
“Apparently so. It pleases me.”
“And Mr. Easton? He pleases you, too?”
“He pleases me the most.” For the first time since leaving everything and everyone behind, Marlow thought that she might enjoy peace with her in-laws. Not a close continuing relationship, but maybe a congenial one, without all the animosity. “Understand, Sandra, when I came here, I couldn’t have imagined getting involved again. My marriage with Dylan ended long ago. I just hadn’t realized it. Then the divorce dragged on . . .”
“And his death,” Sandra whispered.
Seeing it through Sandra’s eyes now, Marlow kept her tone soft instead of defensive. “All I wanted was to start over. To be free and happy again.”
Sandra straightened. “I know Dylan strayed.”
Just then, with uncanny timing, Herman returned to their table. He set out two tiny napkins and placed tall, icy cold drinks on them. From his tray, he retrieved two straws.
Again, looking only at Marlow, he said, “If you need anything else, anything at all, just give me a nod.” His gaze cut to Sandra, and then he walked off.
Marlow made a quick scan of the room and saw everyone ready to jump to her aid if necessary.
She was an authoritative woman who could navigate high-stakes situations on her own, yet it was nice to have others who cared. She smiled at Cort, and he smiled back.
Sandra had spoken her mind, so Marlow would do the same. “Yes, Dylan strayed.” What a vague way to say that her husband had repeatedly slept with another woman. “I found it unforgivable. He betrayed not only me but the life we had and the commitments we’d made to each other. He destroyed my trust.” And in ways that Sandra would never know, he’d been deliberately cruel.
“He apologized,” Sandra pressed, “and still you went ahead with the divorce.”
There was less accusation in Sandra’s tone and more of an appeal to understand, so Marlow tried to explain. “You know it wasn’t an amicable divorce. Not because he loved me and didn’t want to lose me, but because it angered him that I would dare call him out on his bad behavior.” Something his mother and father had never done. “He expected me to turn a blind eye, to accept his quickly given, offhand excuses. Not once did I think he was sincere.” Because he hadn’t been. “I was so angry and so hurt, I knew I couldn’t move beyond it, and that would have only made us both more miserable. Divorce was the only way.”
“It crushed him.”
“No.” She’d come to the realization that Dylan had never truly loved her. The bigger realization, however, was that she’d stopped loving him, too. He’d been angry, yes, but then so had she, and she’d allowed her anger to dictate her every move. “He was probably embarrassed because his friends found out. He didn’t like that he couldn’t control the situation. He was frustrated and furious that I wouldn’t relent.” She met Sandra’s gaze. “He blamed me for it all.”
Unable to hold her gaze, Sandra looked down at her hands.
“But never, at any point, was your son heartbroken.” That was the absolute truth. “I want you to know that.”
Sandra slowly nodded. “You still can’t forgive him.”
“And so you can’t forgive me?” Marlow saw the stiffening of the other woman’s shoulders. “Actually, I have forgiven him. Not necessarily because he deserved it, but because I do. He hurt me, Sandra, far more than I’d like to admit.” Largely it was her pride that was wounded, so in one way, she was no better than Dylan. “Now that I’m here, living in an entirely different atmosphere, I’m so content and happy that I realize I hadn’t been happy with Dylan, not for a very long time.”
Sandra looked aghast. “You can’t mean that.”
It wasn’t her job to convince anyone of her happiness, so Marlow didn’t try. “I forgive him, but I won’t ever forget.”
“I understand,” Sandra whispered. “Aston has strayed several times, too.”
Marlow went utterly still. Her mother-in-law knew about Aston’s affairs? She’d always assumed . . . But of course, she shouldn’t have. Sandra was a sharp-witted woman. In her position, she had to be. “I’m sorry.”
Sandra shook her head. “That’s what he always said. That he was sorry. Until I stopped mentioning it, and he stopped apologizing. Now that he’s older, I don’t think it happens anymore.” Her gaze lifted to lock with Marlow’s. “Life was easier when I just ignored his infidelity, so I couldn’t understand why you didn’t.”
Something wounded inside her own heart reached out to this indomitable woman who’d forged her own path in a shark-infested business world. “I couldn’t. It’s not in me to do that.”
Sandra’s gaze fell away again. “And yet, I did.”
“I wasn’t criticizing, I promise. Your marriage, your relationship with Aston, is your own business, not anyone else’s.” When that didn’t seem to reach her, Marlow tried again. “You fit in that world with Dylan and Aston, more than I ever could. I tried, and I think I was successful.”
“You did an amazing job, and we’ll always appreciate you.”
“Thank you, but it was never a part of me, not like it is with you. No one would expect you to give up that life, regardless of what anyone else does.”
Sandra’s hands tightened on the tabletop. “I made that business what it is today.”
