Lisa sat across the table from him, not knowing what to do. Should she hug him, agree with him, curse Heather − she didn’t know. She just sat there listening to him as he ranted and roared about Heather and the pitiful excuse of a note.
“I was going to propose to her tonight. Can you imagine if she had showed up and I proposed?” Tristan said, looking at Lisa. “What a joke, right?”
“Tristan. I really don’t know what to say. I knew that …” Lisa started to say.
“You knew? And not once did you ever think you should maybe tell me?”
“I didn’t know she felt that strongly about him. I knew he had kissed her, and that was it. She vowed to me she wasn’t unfaithful, and the kiss was him, not her," Lisa said, holding up her hands. “I begged her to tell you. She told me you were the most important thing in her life, and she didn't want to hurt you."
"Well, isn't that just fucking considerate of her. Well, guess what, Heather?” he roared into the air. “You fucking hurt me!”
“I’m so sorry, Tristan. You had so much planned for tonight. I don't know what to say," Lisa said, trying to control the tears that were forming in her eyes. She hated seeing him like this, and she hated Heather even more for hurting him the way she had.
Tristan looked over at her and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Lisa. I’ve been so angry and thinking of my pain; you must be going through it yourself. She was your best friend, and to just leave like that without a word …” his voice trailed off, and he shook his head.
Pursing her lips, Lisa looked at him. “I really thought she was going to work through it and settle down. Forget about Troy and concentrate on your relationship. You of all people don’t deserve this.”
Tristan reached over and put his hand on Lisa’s hand, giving it a slight squeeze. “Guess we both got screwed over,” he said. “Want a drink?”
"I'd love one," Lisa said, smiling.
Taking a bottle of wine out of the fridge, he turned and looked at Lisa. “Did you have plans tonight?”
Shaking her head, Lisa said, “Nope, just me and some leftover macaroni.”
“Spend the evening with me. I have all the food the restaurant packed up for me. We can reheat it and eat like kings. I don’t want to be alone tonight, and you and I can cry on each other’s shoulders.”
Lisa smiled. "Sounds like a plan," she said, smiling at him. As much as she thought she shouldn’t stay, her friend needed her, and she was always there for her friends.
Chapter 11
Tristan rolled over in bed the next morning, instinctively reaching over to the other side. Empty. Lifting his head, he groaned, remembering the night before.
Sitting up, he clutched his head. “Ohhhhh, too much wine,” he moaned as he suddenly remembered Lisa. He couldn’t remember if she had gone home or not.
Getting up, he walked downstairs to find Lisa sitting at the kitchen table, nursing a cup of coffee.
"Morning," she said, giving him a half-wave. “There’s coffee.”
Tristan looked blearily at her and shook his head. “Were you up all night?”
“No, I slept on the couch. I was in no condition to drive.”
“Did we … erm, do anything?”
Lisa laughed. "Oh, God, no. I don’t remember everything, but I know we finished three bottles of wine, ate all the food, toasted Heather and Troy several times, and finally, I said I was going to sleep on the couch, and you wandered upstairs."
“Wow, I didn’t even get you a blanket. What a great host. You could have taken one of the spare rooms upstairs, you know."
“Couch was fine. I was so drunk I could have fallen asleep on a rock,” Lisa chuckled. "The coffee is good, though."
Pouring himself a cup, he sat down, resting his head on his hand and looked at Lisa. “Do you have to work today?”
"Nope," Lisa said, shaking her head. “I already called in sick. There’s no way I could get through a day with only three hours of sleep.”
“Great. I have no appointments. Let’s spend the day together. Drive up to the coast, go swimming at Morraine Beach. Let’s do something crazy.”
“Morraine Beach is a nudist beach,” Lisa said, looking at him with her eyebrow raised. “No way.”
"Aww, come on. Haven’t you ever wanted to do anything crazy? Let’s at least go for the drive. We don’t have to take our clothes off, but we can bring our swimsuits just in case.”
Lisa looked at him and laughed. “What the hell,” she said. “There’s a first time for everything. I’ll have to run home first, though.”
“We can stop and get you a swimsuit on the way − my treat. We’ll stop and pick up lunch somewhere nice. I’ve got extra toothbrushes upstairs you can use. This day is going to be all about us because we deserve it.”
Lisa smiled and shrugged her shoulders. If Tristan wanted to spend the day with her, she wasn’t going to argue. “Let’s do it.”
The wind blowing through Lisa’s hair felt incredibly refreshing as Tristan drove the convertible through the winding roads along the coast, blowing away the fog left from the night before. It was a beautiful summer day, and despite everything that had happened to him, Tristan actually felt good.
“So, have you ever been up the coast?” he asked, looking over at Lisa as she admired the view with her mouth slightly open.
“Nope, never. I’ve wanted to come up this way but just never got around to it. It’s absolutely breathtaking,” she said as Tristan pulled the car over to the side of the road.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
"Giving you a better view," he said, pointing to a nearby lookout point. "From here, you can see the valley for miles."
The view was magnificent. As they stood looking at the vastness of the valley, the warm sun beating down on them, Lisa fought the urge to kiss Tristan. The sun shining down on his profile gave him a golden glow, and Lisa felt her heart beat faster. As much as she hated to admit it, she was in love with Tristan Darlington.
“Heather used to love coming up here,” Tristan said wistfully, interrupting her thoughts and bringing her back to reality. “She’d stand here for hours, just watching.”
Lisa smiled sadly, realizing that this wasn’t about Tristan spending a day with her. It was a trip down memory lane of places he had visited with Heather.
“Don’t tell me. You went to Morraine Beach with Heather too,” she asked, afraid to hear his answer.
“No,” Tristan said, still looking out onto the valley, but his eyes distant, clearly looking at something in his mind. “I wanted to, but we were afraid we would end up having sex in the water or on the beach in front of everyone. We used to laugh and laugh about it. This was her favorite area.”
Suddenly the thrill of spending the day with Tristan faded, and bile rose in Lisa’s throat. “Tristan. Would you mind if you drove me home? I’m suddenly not feeling very well. I think it’s all the booze last night.”
“Hmm, yeah, sure. I’m sorry you’re not well. We can do this another day,” he said as he turned and walked towards the car, oblivious to the fact that Lisa was trying to control the tears threatening to spill onto her cheeks.