Torn [SHAWN MENDES]

~35~

Taryn was standing at the kitchen counter chopping some onion for the pasta sauce she was making when Jules came in through the side door. "Hi," she said to him as she gave him a smile.

"Why are you standing on that ankle?" he questioned as he hung his coat on the hook.

"I'm allowed to walk on it! It's been three weeks since I broke it, and I'm doing great. You need to stop worrying."

"I can't do that because I love you."

Her heart wrenched in her chest. She still hadn't told him about the kiss, and each day that passed made it harder. This was hypocritical of her since she'd snapped at Shawn about not telling Yasmin, but she was going to confess eventually. It was just a matter of finding the right time.

"I'm making a bolognese sauce. Do you want spaghetti or tortellini?" she asked.

"Tortellini. Shall we open a bottle of red wine or do you have to go back to work later?"

"I'm home for the night so that sounds good."

While the sauce simmered, they moved to the living room and Julian turned on the news. When Shawn's face appeared during the entertainment round-up, both of them tensed up.

"Singer Shawn Mendes has announced that his next album, which he's producing through his own label, will drop early next year. He was recently spotted out to eat in Los Angeles with his wife, model Yasmin Fields."

The accompanying footage first showed the couple walking into a restaurant hand in hand, and then they were filmed greeting some fans on their way out. Yasmin was all smiles, and Taryn felt horrible knowing that she'd done something hurtful to her. She either had no idea that her husband had recently kissed his ex-wife, or she was really good at faking it for the cameras. Considering he said outright that he wasn't telling her, she assumed it was the first option. The need to share the truth with her fiancé was suddenly more than she could take.

"I-I need to tell you something," she blurted out before she could stop herself.

Jules pressed the off button on the TV remote. "Is this about him?" He hoped this guess was wrong, but given that Shawn was on the television screen moments before, he was pretty confident in the conclusion he'd drawn.

Taryn nodded. "I should have told you this earlier, but I didn't want to hurt you."

"What is it?" he asked as his heart started to pound in his chest.

"The day I broke my ankle, Shawn was here. I invited him over to see Hendrix again."

"Why didn't you tell me? I don't like the idea, especially after what he pulled last time, but I understand that he cares about his dog. I'm more upset about you keeping this from me than I am about him visiting."

"There's more to it. He was here when I fell and he helped me inside." She had to set her wine glass down because her hand was shaking so badly. "Then he looked at my ankle and we...we kissed."

"You kissed him?" he asked incredulously.

"Once. Yes. Then I told him to leave."

Jules stared at her in disbelief. He knew that she hadn't ever completely let go of that bastard, but he never thought the man would actually come between them.

"Please talk to me," she begged.

"I don't know what to say."

"If you're angry, then yell at me. Tell me that I'm a terrible partner. I'd rather you blow up than just sit there silently."