Fix it

After hearing Maria talk about trust, it was Steve who let out a sigh as he wondered how he could defuse the situation from his side as well and take away the misunderstanding that was between them at the moment. He had no intention of accusing Maria of trying to cheat on him, but it somehow had come across as that. The person he didn't trust wasn't Maria. It was Jake and especially in a situation like this. One where he is feeling hurt, rejected and vulnerable. Who knows if those feelings won't make him shift his gaze to Maria and act on it, even if Maria does nothing to lead him on. At least nothing intentional. Because who knows what leading on looks like to a man like that.

In a much softer tone than before Steve said, "It isn't that I don't trust you. I just don't trust him. He is in a tough situation right now and a desperate man is a unpredictable man. With his past, I have no confidence that he will not cross any lines. And I think that my biggest issue is that you arranged and agreed to all of this without even consulting me. I thought that at least in a matter like this, I would have a say as well. I thought we were the type of couple that was able to discuss anything and the type of couple that did discuss everything. It is what will make and keep us strong enough to withstand the test of time. Heck, you could have even given my number to him, and let me be the go-between. That would have been a hundred times better than putting yourself in that situation. Imagine how you would feel if I did something like this without your consent. Would you be as understanding as you expect me to be right now?"

Maria, in hindsight, and after this conversation, could see that her hasty decision might not have been the best decision. She had been single for quite some time and wasn't used to keeping the feelings of a partner in mind anymore. Although she had thought about him for a split second in that moment, she hadn't fully thought things through or looked at things from his perspective. Because if he had done something like this, she too would have had a problem with it. Even if she did trust Steve to not step out of line, one spark can light an unexpected, destructive fire.

Having come to this conclusion, Maria dropped her defensive stance and looked at Steve with a feeling of guilt and regret in her eyes. She hugged him tightly before saying, "I am sorry." Steve let out a soft sigh before returning her hug and stroking Maria's head gently. After letting her feelings settle a bit, Maria looked up at Steve and apologized once more. This time it was more than just a 'sorry'. But Steve had already forgiven her after the first sorry and had returned to his affectionate self the moment he heard that soft, sweet voice say those three words and felt her arms around him. Causing him to interrupt her apology after every other word with words of reassurance and forgiveness while stroking her hair gently.

M: "I really am sorry."

S: "I know you are honey. It's okay."

M: "I should have at least called you before I agreed to do this."

S: "Yes you should have, but nobody is perfect honey. We are all human and we learn by falling and getting back up again."

M: "I should have taken his number and given mine only after you were okay with it too. I don't know why it didn't occur to me back then, but I think I just didn't see any harm in the situation."

S: "Don't beat yourself up over it. Men and women look at situations differently. We talked about it. You know now and next time you will be able to make a better decision in a situation like this."

With Steve forgiving her so easily and even comforting her as she tried to apologize to him, made Maria feel even worse for making him feel upset by being so insensitive to his feelings. All in order to protect the feelings of someone she didn't even care about other than maybe a fellow human being and as the person who was once very important to someone she cared a lot about. With a cracking voice and reddened eyes, and while holding on to him even tighter, Maria said, "But you are right, if the shoe was on the other foot, I wouldn't be able to accept it so easily either."

Then, as she gathered her emotions again, sniffling a bit as she fought back any tears of frustration at her own actions she added, "I think I just have to get used to having someone else that I have to take into account in my decisions. This was a good wake-up call for that. I can't change what I have done, but I will let you decide how we move forward with this situation." This last sentence made Steve raise his brows as he wasn't sure what Maria meant by her words.

After Maria saw the slight confusion in Steve's eyes she clarified what she meant. "What I meant was that if you want me to call Jake and tell him that I won't be able to do this, I will call him right now. If you want me to tell him that you will be the go-between, not me and block his number after I pass him yours, I will. If you say that we can carry on, but you want to be involved with each message and meet-up, then that is fine too. I am the one who messed up, so let me be the one to fix it as well."