Larry had been carrying a secret ever since the cruise, and the weight of it was beginning to show.
He had tried to act normal around Bethany. He laughed when she expected him to laugh, answered her questions, and continued with his daily routine. But inside, his mind kept returning to the same woman.
Jade.
The memory of meeting her on the cruise had stayed with him. What had started as an unexpected encounter had quickly turned into something Larry could no longer ignore. Jade had kissed him, and instead of pushing the memory away, Larry found himself thinking about it more and more.
One afternoon, Larry met his longtime friend Rob at the gym.
They had known each other for years, and Larry usually felt comfortable telling Rob things he couldn't tell anyone else. After finishing their workout, the two men sat down near the gym's lounge area.
Larry looked unusually serious.
Rob noticed immediately.
“Something is going on with you,” Rob said. “You haven't been yourself lately.”
Larry hesitated.
Then he finally took a breath.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
Rob looked at him carefully.
Larry lowered his voice.
“On the cruise, I met a woman.”
“Who?”
“Her name is Jade.”
Larry paused before continuing.
“She kissed me.”
Rob stared at him, clearly surprised.
“You’re serious?”
Larry nodded.
“I know how it sounds. I know I’m married to Bethany, and I know this is complicated. But I can't stop thinking about Jade.”
Rob remained silent.
Larry continued, almost as if he had been waiting for someone to finally listen.
“I actually like her, Rob. More than I expected. I keep thinking about her. I don't know what happened to me, but something changed after that cruise.”
“And Bethany knows about this?”
“No.”
The answer came quickly.
“I haven't told Bethany. I don't even know how I could tell her.”
Rob leaned back, processing everything.
But Larry wasn't finished.
“There’s something else.”
Rob looked at him.
“I've started thinking about marrying Jade.”
For several seconds, Rob said nothing.
“You want to marry her?” he finally asked.
“Yes.”
Larry knew how shocking it sounded.
“I know it sounds crazy. But Jade has been on my mind constantly. I feel like I need to figure out what this is. I don't want to pretend I don't have feelings for her.”
“Larry, you realize what you're saying, right?”
“I do.”
“You're talking about your marriage.”
“I know.”
“And Bethany?”
Larry's expression changed.
“I care about Bethany. I do. But my feelings for Jade are becoming impossible to ignore.”
Rob didn't know what to say.
He had been Larry's friend for years, but he also had a relationship with Bethany. That made the situation even more complicated.
Larry eventually stood up.
“I just needed someone to know.”
Rob nodded.
“I understand.”
But as Larry walked away, Rob knew he couldn't simply forget what he'd heard.
He now had information that could completely change Bethany's life.
Later that day, Rob sat alone in his car, staring at his phone.
He had two choices.
He could keep Larry's secret and stay loyal to his friend.
Or he could tell Bethany the truth.
The problem was that Rob was also in contact with Bethany, and he couldn't bring himself to watch her continue living her life without knowing what was happening behind her back.
After several minutes of hesitation, Rob finally called Bethany.
“Hey, Rob. Is everything okay?”
“I need to talk to you.”
Bethany immediately sensed something was wrong.
“What happened?”
“I can't explain it over the phone.”
“Is Larry okay?”
“He's fine.”
“Then what is it?”
“I know something about Larry that I think you need to hear.”
Bethany went silent.
“What kind of something?”
“I don't want to tell you over the phone. Can you meet me for lunch?”
Bethany hesitated.
“Rob, you're making me nervous.”
“I know. I'm sorry. But I think you deserve to know.”
Bethany agreed.
She arrived at the restaurant soon afterward.
She looked around and spotted Rob sitting at a table near the window.
As she approached, she could tell from his expression that this wasn't an ordinary lunch.
Bethany sat down.
“Rob, what's going on?”
“There’s something Larry told me.”
“Is he in trouble?”
“No.”
“Did something happen on the cruise?”
Rob nodded slowly.
“Larry told me that he met a woman on the cruise.”
“A woman?”
“Her name is Jade.”
The name immediately caught Bethany's attention.
“Jade?”
Rob nodded.
“What about her?”
Rob hesitated before answering.
“Larry told me that Jade kissed him.”
Bethany stared at him in disbelief.
For several seconds, she couldn't speak.
Then she shook her head.
“No.”
“No, Rob. I don't believe that.”
“I understand.”
“You must have misunderstood him.”
“I didn't.”
“What exactly did he say?”
Rob carefully repeated Larry's confession.
“He told me he can't stop thinking about Jade.”
Bethany looked away.
Her mind was racing.
Then Rob delivered the part he knew would hurt the most.
“Larry told me he has started thinking about marrying her.”
Bethany froze.
The restaurant suddenly seemed strangely quiet.
“What?”
“He said he likes Jade and that he wants to marry her.”
Bethany stared at him as if she couldn't understand the words.
“You're telling me Larry wants to marry another woman?”
Rob nodded.
Bethany shook her head again.
“I don't believe it.”
She looked down at the table.
“No. Larry wouldn't do this.”
Rob spoke gently.
“I wouldn't have told you if I didn't believe you deserved to know.”
“Maybe he was confused.”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe he didn't mean it.”
“I don't know.”
“But you heard him say all of this?”
“Yes.”
Her expression changed from disbelief to heartbreak.
She remembered Larry's behavior over the past few days.
The distant looks.
The moments when he seemed lost in thought.
The way he sometimes became distracted whenever his phone rang.
Suddenly, those small details felt completely different.
Bethany slowly leaned back in her chair.
“I can't believe this.”
Rob reached across the table but stopped himself.
He knew this was something Bethany needed to process on her own.
“I know this is a lot.”
Bethany looked toward the window.
She wasn't angry yet.
She was simply stunned.
She had spent so much time believing that whatever problems existed between her and Larry could ev
 When Rob reveals Larry’s shocking secret about Jade, Bethany struggles to believe Larry wants to marry another woman behind her back.){kind=link}
0 Comments