“Look,” Zach said. “What you saw is…it’s complicated.”
“No shit. What about Donna?”
“It has nothing to do with her. I’m not cheating on her. We have an open relationship, have had for ages. This is not hurting anyone.”
Lydia’s forehead wrinkled. “An open relationship? So close to the wedding?”
Zach gave a shrug. “We’re adults. We often don’t see each other for months because of our jobs. We have needs. An open relationship has always worked for us. Until the wedding we both can sleep with other people.”
A puzzled expression appeared on Lydia’s face. “I don’t understand. If an open relationship works so well for you, why are you getting married and going exclusive?”
“For many reasons.”
Zach thought back to his conversation with Donna half a year ago.There had been no grand proposal. Neither he nor Donna was the sentimental, romantic type. They both were rational people, who loved each other and had known for ages that they would end up getting married eventually. They had simply sat down and discussed it. They agreed that it was the right time: they both had turned thirty that year, and it was probably time to settle down. Their families had been nagging them to tie the knot for years. Donna wanted kids. Zach wouldn’t mind kids, either; truth be told, now that all his siblings had moved out, the house felt too big for one man. Besides, Donna was getting a promotion soon and a desk job, so all the stars were aligned. The timing was perfect. There had never been a question that they would stop sleeping with other people after getting married. They both took marriage seriously—that was why they had been putting it off for so long.
Zach looked back at Lydia. “There are many reasons, but mostly, we believe in monogamy in marriage. This—this thing with Tristan isn’t hurting anyone and isn’t going to change anything.”
“Are you sure of that?”
“Yes.”
“All right. I’m sorry for jumping to conclusions, then.” She was still frowning. “It’s just…I can’t believe you’re jeopardizing your relationship for him.”
“I’m not jeopardizing anything. If Donna asks, I’ll tell her. I have nothing to hide. It’s just sex and sex means nothing.” If anything, Donna would probably find it funny and think he was having an early mid-life crisis.
“I didn’t even know you swung that way.”
“That’s the thing: I don’t.” Zach rubbed his eyes tiredly. “He just pushes all the right—wrong—buttons on me.”
She snorted. “He pushes all the wrong buttons on me too, but you don’t see me sucking his lips.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe you can be attracted to such a piece of shit. He’s actually threatening to ruin my career!” Her face turned red, her eyes flashing. “We’ll see about it!”
Zach tensed.“Don’t tell anyone he’s gay. You know that would destroy his career.”
She looked mutinous. “Good. That would serve him right!”
“You’re not that spiteful, Lydia,” Zach said calmly. “You’re better than that. Forget about his threats. He was just scared and wanted to protect himself. He didn’t mean it.”
Lydia stared at him as if she was seeing him for the first time. “Oh my God.” There was disappointment on her face. Disappointment, horror and pity. “Honey, get away from him before it’s too late.” And with that, she left, her heels clicking loudly on the hardwood.
It took Zach a moment to register her meaning—what she was implying—and he almost laughed. He followed her out of the house.
“If you really think what I think you meant, you’re being ridiculous,” he said when he caught up with her.
“Oh yeah?” Lydia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Before you know it, you’ll be saying what a nice person he is. Please. God, men. Is he that good at sucking dick?”
“Don’t be silly,” Zach said. “He’s definitely not the nicest person around. He’s a total brat, but it’s not a crime. I’ve met worse. I’ve had far worse clients than him. I don’t know why you hate him so much.”
“Why?” She stopped and turned to him. “Fine, I’ll tell you why. From the very first day he hired me, he has treated me like a slave who is there for his amusement. I’m not a person to him. I’m a punching bag for his temper when he gets tired of pretending to be the Golden Boy. He takes out all his frustrations on me. He has a very cruel sense of humor and he never gives a damn that he might hurt my feelings. And the worst thing is, I always have to suck it up and say nothing, because I need this job! I’m not like you—I’m a nobody—and I can’t quit just because I want to. I hate working for him, but I need the money, and I can’t just quit because he’s a rich prick who has everything so damn easy!” She looked on the verge of tears. Angry tears. “And it makes me sick that most people have no clue what a malicious person he is. I thought you could see him for what he is—I thought you were like me—but now he has you fooled, too.”