Chapter 126 - Truth Revealed

Saphira

I bit my lip and contemplated the information. 

"So… he slept with another woman while we were together?" I spoke out loud. I glanced at the two man… Zachary would never do such a thing. I was the only one who was ever on his mind.

"Oh come on… " Jasmine started to say. "Did you never really think about the fact that the guy came to my house when the two of you were together?" She said meaningfully.

"I mean… the first time… He was just in Saudi for a few days and I refused to see him and the second time he had the audacity to barge into my house.. I mean… come on Saphira you are not that naïve to think that it just randomly happened that Daniel married my sister right…" She said bored.

I was racking my brain around this. "It was not the first time he came to see you?" I asked her. She shook her head 'no'. I was baffled. 

"Really?" I said skeptically. "Really." She assured me. 

We both crossed our arms and watched the guys play with the ball. "I don't want to fight with you Saphira…" Jasmine said abruptly. "As a matter of fact… I won't fight with anyone over any man." She said matter of factly. "Not even over the Sultan of Saudi Arabia." She winked at me.

"Benjamin and Zachary can the two of you please get over here?" She almost sang. I wanted to kill her, but they were already approaching us. 

"Zachary…" Jasmine said with a smile. "If you had to choose between Saphira and I." She smirked. "Who would you choose." She said and bit her lip playfully.

Benjamin looked at me, as if to ask me what was going on. "I would indefinitely pick Saphira, because I love her more than anything." He smiled back at her. "Although I do see why Benjamin took you as his wife." Zach said in a flattering tone. 

"Well… that is settled." Jasmine said clapping. 

"Now Benjamin…" Jasmine said cocking her head at him. She was utterly calm. She freaked my the hell out. "If you had the chance to do it all over again. Who would you pick." She said like the answer meant nothing to her. 

Benjamin frowned and then his eyes danced between me and her. Jasmine just smiled. Something was really wrong with her. "I am very much devoted to my wife." Benjamin said looking at her. 

"Fair enough." She nodded. "But Saphira hear seems to make the point that when you married me, you did not intend to live your life with me, but with the one who was then supposed to be tour husband." She said waving at me. 

"So…" She went on. "Just so everyone can move along with his life in whichever way one wants to… If you had to do it all again… would you turn our fake marriage into a real one… or would you have married Saphira instead?" She prompted like the outcome did not matter.

She had to have some feelings… She was pregnant. Zachary seemed irritated by this spectacle and he awkwardly twisted with his arms. 

Benjamin looked at me like he was apologizing and ran his hand through his hair. "I love you Jasmine." Was the only thing he said.

"I think what Jasmine here is trying to say." Zach said waving at her. "Is that you probably at one time… or still.. who knows… loved them both. So if you were given the change… right here… right now.. would you want Saphira back? Or do you want to stop being friends with benefits with your wife and be happy together?!" Zach said while he looked at Jasmine the whole time. 

"That was what you meant right?!" He asked. Jasmine nodded. 

"I mean…. Just so that it is for once and for all clear where everybody stands." She shrugged carelessly. 

Benjamin's eyes seemed locked with Jasmine. As if they were speaking without words. Benjamin sighed. "Saphira… you that when I met you I was not looking for anything… I mean I told you that." Benjamin said almost pulling his hair out. 

"I had met my wife, who was then not my wife yet and I… " He looked at her and then closed his eyes. 

"When I closed my eyes I could not see anything but her… smell anything else than her. At times it was like I could not breathe without her." Benjamin's voice broke. 

"I did not know that then, but Jasmine had really good reasons to try to keep me at bay… And when she told me she did not want to see me ever again…I… " 

"Saph." Benjamin said coming closer to me. He took my hands and tears started to flow down. "I never meant to hurt you." He whispered. 

"So where it all comes down to… is that it was all a lie!" I yelled through my tears. "No… no it was not. I did fall in love with you." He admitted. 

"How much could you have loved me if you went to see her… twice!" I said hurt.

Benjamin pondered that and his eyes glided to Jasmine, who still seemed untouched by this event. "To be fair, he did not see me the first time." She offered in his defense. 

"But you went for her… when was that?!" I murmured. Ben seemed to think. "When uhm… I think that was right after you almost drowned." He said looking at Zach.

"So you were angry that Zach came to visit me each day, when in reality you went to see another woman. Whether she wanted to see you or not." I cried.

Benjamin shrugged. "It was not really like that…" He sighed. "Raina said that she could be in danger." He said rubbing his head. "Why did you not tell me about that then?" I asked trying to make sense of him.

"Tell you about the woman I loved with all my being… that refused to marry me for whatever reasons she had… Tell you about the woman that took my breath and made me unable to breathe without her. What if I did tell you that I loved someone who did not love me back…" Benjamin said in all seriousness.

"Would you have felt better?" He pressed. 

"No. But it would be the truth though." I looked at Jasmine… who was playing with her curls. "So she was right then…" I said cocking my head towards her as if she was dirt.

"You love her more than you have ever loved me." I squeaked. Benjamin run his hand through his hair again and looked at me. "If we had met in a different universe, one where Jasmine did not exist, I would have chosen you." He finally answered the real question.

"Then what would of happened if you married her and married me as your second wife." I asked him thinking of her words. 

He looked up at Jasmine. "I have always wanted to be the kind of man that gave his love to one woman, or in my case just one wife… I fear that Jasmine…" He looked at her with so much love and I wanted to hit them both. 

"I don't think I could of ever let her go completely. Or at all really." He said scratching the back of his head. 

"I think the real question in this room is…" Zachary said approaching me. "Is whether you actually love me." He said meaningfully. "I do, but it is…"

"It's different." Benjamin and I said at the same time. "That is exactly it." Benjamin said. "But if you could choose, you would be with him and if he needed to choose, he would be with her." Zachary laughed out loud. And do you know what the funny thing is? He laughed darkly.

"That woman of there, did not even want to marry any man, ever and at all." He said smacking his forehead. 

"She is something alright." Benjamin agreed. 

"True…" Jasmine said. "But if I had to marry anyone… it would be him alone." She said almost inaudible. Benjamin's eyes lit up in response.

"It's like you have this spell over him." I told her. "You are like some kind of witch." I said frustrated. 

"I have heard that before." Benjamin smiled. "Daniel and I fought once, the night I decided to go see her that second time." He said looking at me. "He called you a witch as well." He mused at her. 

They both snickered. 

"Okay." She said and clapped her hands once. "Is it now all settled then?" She asked looking at each of us. 

"I guess… " Zachary said. "I will not be a second best though." He told me. "I know." I nodded. I hated her with everything within me. 

Zachary got out of the water, drying himself off. He was leaving the pool area and I did not want him to leave. Not like this.

I did love him, I think.. So I ran after him.