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But her husband was an entirely different matter.
Kyr had seen the way his young wife had gradually blossomed into womanhood, and even though he couldn’t admit it, seeing her grow more beautiful and sexier had put him on edge. He had become more determined to keep her chained to his side, and he had thought that because she was in love with him, she wouldn’t mind.
But he was wrong, apparently.
“I feel like I’m being interviewed for a job.” She blurted out her admission, hoping to make her husband laugh and perhaps lessen the tension inside Kyr’s office.
But her husband’s unreadable expression remained, and her nervous laugh died a quick death.
“Kyr?”
His voice was just as expressionless when he asked, “What kind of work are we talking about?”
She answered him nervously, telling him about this friend she had, a fellow parent from the twins’ school. Camille had seen the magazine spreads about her annual birthday parties for the twins and wanted to know if Pollyanna was interested in working as an event stylist.
“Because I have this friend in New York, and so far she hasn’t found anyone she likes to work with for her son’s party. I think you’ll be perfect for her.”
Pollyanna had told her new friend she would think about it, but even then she had already known she would probably do everything to clinch the job.
Like convincing her husband about letting her go to New York, she thought. Anxiety made her babble, and she found herself talking about the glories of modern-day motherhood, of the need to build her financial independence, and the importance of pursuing her passion.
She said everything except the truth, which was that she had been struck by a massive dose of insecurity when she had attended the twins’ PTA. At that time, she had been surrounded by working mothers, all of them happily talking about the pride and joy they felt of being able to take care of their children while doing a great job at the office.
If Pollyanna had been a little more experienced, she wouldn’t have even considered comparing her life to other women. But even though she was already twenty-five, and with three children with Kyr, the fact was that her entire life she had been sheltered, first by her parents and then her husband.
This had left her inadequately equipped to handle unexpected pressure from her peers, even when it was unintentional. For Pollyanna, hearing the other mothers’ accomplishments was immediately a negative remark about hers. And suddenly, all she had been able to think about was what had she done to make her children proud?
She didn’t care about making herself feel proud, but she did care about what her children would think of her when they were old enough.
She wanted them to look at her and think, ‘That’s my mom!’
She didn’t want them to look at her and run away the opposite direction.
With this thought foremost in mind, Pollyanna unthinkingly repeated everything she heard from the other mothers, and so determined was she to convince her husband to allow her to be a career parent, she failed to notice the way the billionaire’s face had become increasingly hard at her words.
The entire time Pollyanna was speaking, all Kyr could hear was Ana. Every word his wife dropped was terribly reminiscent of the way Ana had used to talk about going after her dreams, and the similarity left a bitter taste in his mouth.
What was it about him, he wondered savagely, that he always ended up attracted to women who believed their dreams were reason enough to destroy the people around them?
When she finished, Kyr didn’t even hesitate, shooting her plans down with a curt, “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Her eyes widened, and her lips opened and closed several times.
And yet, it was the first time Kyr did not find his wife’s comical look of surprise endearing at all.
Instead, his anger at the past made him hard, and worse than that, it made him blind and deaf to the insecurities that underscored his wife’s voice.
When Pollyanna finally recovered her voice, she could only ask, “Why?” She trusted her husband implicitly, and if he was telling her no, surely he had a good reason?
“Because it’s not worth it,” he said coldly. “Your skills are replaceable, but the time you lose when you’re away from our children is not.” The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted it instantly. But he couldn’t take it back.
For one moment, they stared at each other, both of them equally stunned at the harshness of Kyr’s words.
If the billionaire had told Pollyanna the real reason behind his reluctance to see her go, she would have understood. If she had told the billionaire the truth about her insecurities, he would have understood as well.
But neither of them had spoken the truth, and so pride had prevailed and love lost.
