Moments Series Book 3: "Moments That Bind..."

"More..."

Munchie:

"You have to take him!"

"Why?"

"Because he loves you!"

"He does not."

"What are you saying!"

"We've all seen what he did. He outright confessed his love for you to the entire planet out there. Drunk or not, he has humiliated me and our daughter, Reina."

"People do stupid things when they're intoxicated. His mind may have jumbled things up. He could've confused his emotions of brotherly love for something else that he thought..."

"Don't defend him!"

"I'm not Lorena. I'm merely trying to fix this. He's not himself. It could all be just a simple mistake."

"The mistake was mine."

"What?"

"He talks in his sleep, about a boy he lost and could not find. About a love that blossomed from friendship. About loving his wife, and still yearning for someone."

I was quite, unsure of how to proceed.

"I should've ended it right there and then. Or at the very least asked him. Instead I continued like it was just a stupid dream. For years I made myself believe that I was the only one he loved. The one he truly wanted. I was a fool to do so."

"Lorena, believe me. He does love you, very much so."

"But not as half as much as he loves you, Munchie."

Again I was at a loss for words.

"Take him. I can't bear to even look at him."

"You're mad, and hurt, these feelings will pass. If you truly love him..."

"You're doing it again! Defending him, as always. Taking his side. Am I not your friend too? Shouldn't you be thinking of what's best for me as well? Ending this charade will set me free from a lie that I've believed for so long. It will finally give me back my pride, my freedom, my self respect! You of all people should know the value of walking away from something, someone, who does not validate your worth."

"He has tried time and again to make you feel that he loves you. You were the one he chose to marry."

"Because you weren't there."

"Wrong! Because he cared for you more than his own happiness."

"Caring and loving are two different things!"

"But you cannot care for someone if you do not love them."

"Not the way he loves you." She whispered, and I realized it was a losing battle. Her eyes were opened now. She knows she's only getting a smidget of Riley's affection when she should be getting his entire heart.

"Take him. He needs someone to be there for him. I'm leaving. With Reina. I need time to rebuild myself. Away from him, away from this fake marriage, away from all these lies. I'll go to aunt Lucy's house, the one she left me after she died, for the time being."

I looked away, unable to tell her that Lucinda knew. I felt so responsible for breaking Riley and Lorena up.

"Oh god. She knew! She knew didn't she?"

I nodded.

"And she let me go through with the wedding? She didn't warn me?" She had fresh tears in her eyes.

"It was not her decision to make. She was afraid of getting involved so she left the decision to me."

"Afraid of getting involved? She was my aunt! She was already involved!"

"You were so happy. She didn't want to take that away from you."

"It was all a lie. Riley loves someone else, and yet she pushed him to marry me!"

"I will repeat this for the umpteenth time. Riley loves..."

"Not enough! He loves you more!" She placed her right hand on her forehead, as if a massive headache had begun. Then turned around to take her sleeping daughter from Tristan who was cradling her in a rocking chair in the pastor's office.

"Lorena, can we not fix this? Please?" I had to try, for the last time. For Riley.

"This is fixing it. Goodbye Munchie." She smiled at me, then gave Tristan a kiss on the cheek before opening the thick wooden door to leave... believing her freedom meant more than the heart of the man she now left in my care.

The sound of the door closing softly, was louder that the sound of cannons going off. I looked at Tristan, and he too had a sad look on his face. He came closer to me, and engulfed me in a warm comforting hug.

"I need to leave too." He whispered in my left ear, and I could not help but stifle a sob from escaping my pursed lips.

They were all leaving me, I've lost everything now.