Give me some credit

Give me some credit
Suddenly, she heard a strange noise on the line and Guilherme's voice became distant, then the next thing she heard was Tabata's voice.
"What happened, Lina?"
"I messed everything up with Simon."
"Friend, answer me honestly: do you love him?"
"Yes, more than I could imagine..." she murmured, wiping away the tears forming in her eyes, opening her heart. "But I don't know how he feels about me."
"Oh dear, that man is crazy about you. If he hasn't said he loves you yet, maybe Guilherme is right and he's a jerk." She heard Guilherme's distant voice saying something indecipherable and Tabata affirming away from the receiver: "I still think he's wrong and exaggerating." Then her voice returned to being close. "As someone who almost lost the man she loves, go find Simon and get the answer to your question from him."
"It's not that simple..."
"Nothing is simple in love," Tabata replied kindly. "I'm rooting for you both and I want to be in the running for maid of honor."
Paulina laughed despite the urge to cry taking over and causing a burning sensation in her nose and eyes. She wanted so badly to tell the whole truth about her involvement with Simon, probably the advice would be different if Tabata knew how it all started.
Tabata handed the phone back to Guilherme, preventing her from telling more. He reiterated the invitation before ending the call.
She put the phone back in her pocket and prepared Simon's dinner on a tray. Even though he was angry with her, it was absurd to let him go hungry just to avoid her. She would bring dinner and gather the courage to follow Tabata's advice.
She entered the office and didn't find him, placed the tray on the desk, and was about to look for him in the suite when the sound of a new notification caught her attention on Simon's phone. The device was dangerously vibrating too close to the edge of the furniture.
Paulina picked it up afraid it would fall and was already placing it near the notebook when the phone vibrated again and she noticed that Simon had left a conversation open, the picture of a naked woman filling the penultimate message.
Paulina froze as she read the message below the image.
"I'm ready to meet you." 18:28
With her heart pounding in her ears and her hands trembling, she scrolled up the conversation with the woman named Fatima to the beginning of that day.
"I'm in town. Can we meet?" 08:45
"I bought some new toys. Can't wait to try them out with you." 9:14
"Are you home? Can I come to see you there?" 10:03
Paulina was boiling with anger and jealousy as the conversation went on and the woman shamelessly offered herself to Simon message after message, waiting patiently - and perhaps eagerly - for him to give her a green light to come over to the apartment.
It was obvious that the woman had been involved with Simon, and during the entire time she was being pressured by Simon's declaration to their parents, he was receiving sensual messages from the other woman.
"I'm with someone," he replied, and the tension around the phone eased.
"Can I join you guys?" she asked.
"I'm not going to meet you, and don't show up here," he responded.
After that, the woman continued to send messages even without a response, and finally sent a photo and an explicit invitation. Paulina didn't know whether to celebrate that he had refused to meet the other woman, or to feel insecure. The latter option was stronger.
Fatima had not an ounce of fat in the wrong place, she was sensual and extremely beautiful. Although he didn't respond, Simon had been reading the messages, maybe even planning to accept the invitation, which is why he left the office to get ready and meet her.
Paulina heard footsteps coming from the connecting door, and as soon as Simon entered the office, she turned the phone with the photo to him.
"She's quite attractive," she commented.
"Shit!" he muttered, approaching to take the phone. "I didn't encourage this."
"You slept with her," she remarked, feeling a sharp pain in her chest and lowering her eyes to hide the pain that was piercing her. "Are you going to meet her?"
"I haven't seen her in months," he said, holding her chin and lifting it to look into her eyes. "And I don't intend to."
"Do you want an open relationship like the one you had with her?"
"I introduced you as my fiancée to my family, give me some credit," he pleaded exasperatedly.
"Just because your mother caught us..."
"No! It would have happened sooner or later," he asserted, bending down to rest his forehead against hers. "I can barely keep my hands off you."
"That's just sexual desire."
"Do you want more than that from me?" he asked, pushing back her dark strands behind her ears, sliding his fingers to caress her feminine nape, and placing a loving kiss on her forehead covered by the bangs.
Paulina's mind screamed a resounding "yes," but her pride was greater.
"I just want us to know what to expect from each other," he said.
"I'm not interested in other women, and there's absolutely no possibility of sharing you with anyone," he assured her, rubbing his nose gently against hers. "If you give up on Nathaniel, I believe we have a chance."
"Yes... of course..." she murmured, caught up in the enchantment that always enveloped her when they were together.
"We'll make a good marriage," he assured her, cradling her body against his. "Accept, and I promise to do my best to make everything work out. I'll be faithful and take care of you."
This was the perfect moment to follow Tábata's advice.
"Marriage is a very big responsibility... It involves a lot of emotions..." she said, hoping he would say how he felt about her, in addition to wanting her physically.
"I respect you, and we get along well in bed and out of it," he whispered, brushing his lips against her blushing cheek and inhaling her feminine essence with pleasure. "Many couples come together without love and live together for years; some fall in love after getting married."
The alert sounded loud and insistent: Wrong answer, wrong answer! Paulina pushed him away, surprising Salvatore.
"I need time to think... Space..." she said, fearing to embark on his plan and suffer in the future. She wanted so much to accept, but a bond without his love seemed like a formula for failure. "I can't think clearly when you kiss and touch me."
Simon lowered his gaze for a moment, as if thinking about something, and then looked back at her.
"How long?" he asked cautiously.
"I'm not sure... Maybe a week..." she murmured, feeling her eyes burn and her throat tighten.
"Take all the time you need. I won't pressure you," he said, leaning in and planting a kiss on the top of her head. "Since you said you can't think when I touch you, I think it's better if we sleep apart until you make your decision." He went to the desk to get back to work, leaving Paulina disoriented by his quick acceptance. "I hope you think carefully. No regrets in the future."