Catherine's heart sank as Maximilian reached for the buttons of her blouse.
He paused after undoing the first one, looking directly into her eyes. He was giving her every opportunity to stop him. She knew that. If she asked him to, he would.
But she didn't.
They needed to have this conversation. Better now, while they were alone, than later, when the silence between them might become something harder to cross.
One by one, he opened the buttons.
"I did not sleep with him," Catherine said quietly.
The words came out more quickly than she intended.
She remembered what Maximilian had told her earlier. I'll always trust you.
So she trusted him enough to say it.
She wanted to look away, afraid that she might see something in his eyes she wasn't prepared for. Disappointment. Hurt. Doubt.
Instead, Maximilian simply said, "Oh, I know."
Catherine blinked.
