Torn [SHAWN MENDES]

~77~

"That was scrumptious," Patricia remarked after finishing her Chicago deep dish pizza. "I loved all the sauce."

"So did Piper," Shawn said with a laugh since the little girl's face was covered in marinara. "I think I'll give her a bath."

Once he'd taken his messy daughter into the bathroom and shut the door, Tricia moved closer to Taryn. "This is quite a twist of fate."

"It is pretty strange that we happened to get grounded at the same airport and that we ran into each other."

"You two are getting along nicely."

Taryn rolled her eyes. "Don't start!"

"I can't help it. You love each other and that's never going to change. Do you blame me for wanting my daughter to find happiness?"

"Sometimes love isn't enough."

The conversation ended there.

When Shawn and Piper came out of the bathroom, the sweet girl was bundled up in a fluffy white towel.

"I wish I had either pajamas or a change of clothes for her," he said.

Patricia stood up. "I bet I can find something at one of the gift shops. A walk will do me some good after all that pizza."

"You don't mind?" Shawn asked.

"I wouldn't have offered if I did!" Patricia took one of the room keys and headed out the door with plans to stay away for at least an hour.

"You get to watch a show on my phone since you've been so good," Shawn said to his daughter as he retrieved her small headphones from the diaper bag.

"Yay!" Piper responded excitedly as she clapped her hands.

Once she was situated on their bed, Shawn moved so that he was sitting next to Taryn in one of the two chairs. "This has been an exhausting day."

"I agree, but yours has been exponentially harder because you've got a pint-sized travel companion."

"True, but I wouldn't have it any other way."

Taryn smiled at him. "You're the best dad, and I don't mean that lightly. This is the role in life you were destined to have. Watching you with Piper makes me feel like everything happened the way it did for a reason."

"I'd do anything for her."

"I know. That's why the decision we made last year was a no-brainer," she said softly. "I don't hold it against you at all."

He wanted to ask why she hadn't responded to his letter, if what she said was true, but he thought better of it. "I know I made the right choice, even if Yasmin and I couldn't make it work."

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"Do you?"

"I mean...I did buy that magazine, so you already know I'm curious."

He looked over at Piper who was captivated by her favorite animated show. She couldn't hear much with the noise-canceling headphones anyway. "Yaz and I both tried hard because we were committed to rebuild our marriage, but no amount of effort was going to fix us. I'd pretty much resigned myself to staying together even if things weren't how they should be, but eventually she realized that it wasn't enough for her. I couldn't give her the one thing she needed."

"What was that?"

"True love," he said plainly.

"That's the one ingredient a marriage has to have."

He rubbed the back of his neck anxiously. "Though sometimes you can have it and things still don't work out."

"Did something happen that made Yasmin realize you didn't love her that way?" Taryn asked.

"Yeah, sort of. We had a disastrous weekend getaway, but all it did was confirm what she already suspected. I, um, mentioned that in my letter."

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"It's not your fault."

"I meant I'm sorry that I never responded to you."

"You weren't obligated to, so it's fine. I got the message and I respect it," he said.

"I wasn't trying to send you a message, Shawn. I just...I just couldn't open myself up to getting hurt again. I've wanted to call you. Look at how we've been today! I want us to be able to have this, but I know our feelings are too deep to just be friends. The second we're alone, something will happen."

Shawn's heart started beating wildly in his chest as it sunk in that she felt the same way he did. She still loved him! "Can't we at least try?"

"Try to be friends?"

"Yes."

"I don't think we can do that," she said sadly.

His instinct was to try to convince her that they could, but he shut it down. "Okay. If that's how you feel, I'll accept it. We're stuck here for the time being, so can we pretend like we're friends for now?"

"It's not pretending. You've always been my best friend. I know what you're saying, though. Let's forget this conversation and go back to how we were before it started. I want to hear about your dog. Daffy, right?"

Shawn proceeded to tell her all about the delightful Bernedoodle, though even as he spoke in a cheerful manner, his heart was hurting. He didn't even know where he'd expected the previous discussion to go, but he knew he wanted an outcome other than the one they'd had. They talked about other aspects of their lives, and Taryn shared how she'd been hounded to sell her businesses. She'd just finished when Patricia returned.

"I was able to find some pajamas. I hope you don't mind that they have the Chicago skyline on them. I also got Piper a long-sleeved t-shirt for tomorrow. I figured size 3T would fit her, though it might be too big," the older woman told them.

"You're a lifesaver," Shawn declared before changing his daughter into the pajamas.

"Book, Daddy," Piper requested.

"Let's brush your teeth first," Shawn said and then realized their toothbrushes were packed in their luggage. "Shit. We might have to skip that tonight."

Tricia walked towards the door for the second time. "I'm on it!"

"Why do I feel like she's leaving us alone on purpose?" he asked once she was gone.

"Oh she definitely is, though we're not exactly alone. Want me to read to Piper while we wait? I never finished the cute fox book and I'm dying to know if Fergie found their lost friend."

"I'm sure she'd love that."

Taryn got in the bed next to the little girl while Shawn got the book. As she read, Piper snuggled up against her, relaxing completely in the way only children can do. Once Tricia returned and the book ended, Shawn brushed her small teeth and then tucked her into the bed they were sharing. Within seconds, she was out.

"I guess we should turn in, too," Taryn said as she gazed at the sleeping angel.

"It's only eight," Shawn argued. "We can sit and talk. Piper can sleep through almost anything when she's this tired."

Tricia and Taryn took the chairs while he sat cross-legged on the floor. After an hour of chatting about various things, Patricia started to yawn. "I might turn in, too. Unfortunately I'm not as deep a sleeper as that cutie, so you two might want to go to the hotel lounge if you're not planning on sleeping."

Shawn looked at Taryn. "There's a bar there. Wanna get a drink?"

She stood up. "That might help me sleep, so sure."