Chapter 28

Bethany

It was a stupid decision to make, but after working with Kendal on Thursday, she finally caved and decided that a late lunch with Philip wouldn't hurt. Damon was still being an ass over things that were completely out of her control, and she was learning to leave him to himself when he was in one of his shitty moods. It still stung like a bitch, but she had a ring that said that no matter what happened while they were on their way to the altar, the plan was still to go.

"Hey." Philip stood and moved around to offer her a friendly hug. His hair was back to being the length it was when they first met before Damon had him cut it off. He looked good, almost too good. Broad shoulders and tanned skin, the man was every bit of California, and yet he was from Down Under. His accent left her heart fluttering, though it was nothing more than a silly infatuation like most women had for foreign accents.

"Hi. You look great. It seems like your new job is allowing you to work less and play more?" She smiled and took her seat across from him as the server approached. She ordered a Coke and pulled the menu toward her face, but kept her eyes on him.

"I quit." He shrugged and leaned back in his chair. "I know it's only been a week or so, but honestly, I worked as hard as I did in school to work for Mr. Bryant. I took the week off to lay by the beach and think through things."

"Kent or Damon?" The confession surprised her a little.

"Both, but originally Damon. He visited UT and gave a speech on being a young leader my freshman year, and something about the way he presented himself coupled with his success? I don't know. He intimidates the fuck out of me, and he's a total asshole, no offense if you guys are still dating, but I still want to learn from him."

"I get that." She played with the straw in her drink. "You don't have to love the people you learn to respect. Maybe you should ask for your job back. He offered it just before I left, right?"

"He did, but I'm not sure he was serious about it. He had an odd vibe to him that day. I guess it was because I was having lunch with the beautiful woman he was dating, but still..." Philip smirked.

"He got over it fast." She glanced up as the server approached.

"What can I get you guys today?" The girl looked between Bethany and Philip, an odd smile on her face.

"I'll take a turkey sandwich with fruit." Bethany handed the girl the menu, trying to determine if she was trying to hold back a knowing grin.

"Burger and fries, hold the onions." Philip handed her the menu and turned back to Bethany as he let out a short sigh. "So how do I go about this with Damon?”

"Wait a minute." Bethany held up her hand and kept her attention on the girl. "Do we know each other?"

"No. I was in the coffee shop yesterday. You're Dr. Tarrington's TA, right?"

Oh... that's why she's holding back her smile. She saw Kendal and me together.

"Yeah, he's a great guy. Crazy strict, but a good accounting teacher. Are you majoring in business?" Bethany hated to carry on the useless conversation but didn't want to look like an ass.

"No, I'm theater, but we all know about Dr. Tarrington. We're just hoping we're his next slip up." She snorted. "Don't tell him I said that."

"I don't even know your name." Bethany smiled and turned back toward Philip as the girl left in a hurry.

"Next slip up? What the hell was that?" Philip took a drink of his Coke and leaned in as if she were about to share a secret.

"Kendal dated one of his students six years ago." Bethany glanced over at the girl who couldn't be more than a freshman. "How she knows about that is beyond me."

"Rumors that juicy last forever." Philip shrugged. "Back to me. What do I need to do?"

"Just stop by the office and tell Linda you're there to see him. I would offer to get involved, but something tells me that he wouldn't appreciate me interfering. He's already leery of something happening between you and me."

"Why is that? Did you make something up to make him jealous? Full disclosure here. I'm walking into the hornet’s nest. Don't cover me in honey." He chuckled, and she did as well.

"No, it was a misunderstanding that's too embarrassing to rehash. Just stop by and talk to him. He owes you the job after he fired you for being a good employee. He overreacted. Take advantage of it."

"Are you guys not together anymore?" He lifted his eyebrow.

"We are, I'm just saying. This isn't too difficult of a situation. Own it." She shrugged and turned to let her eyes move across the girl again. Why in the world would people still be talking about Kendal's indiscretions six years later?

Why did she care?

***

Another night without Damon in her bed made it harder to fight against the nagging sensation that he was battling far more than he should have been where they were concerned. She tried to remain positive and convince herself that everything was fine. Matt had been a good cheerleader during the latter part of the week, but nothing was going to fully set her right but Damon.

She needed him to say that he was sorry, that he loved her and they would work through things. The nagging need to be constantly reminded of his feelings was a pain in his ass from what she'd overheard in Jamaica, but it was what it was. He was a dick half the time and therefore could make it up to her by being the kind of guy she deserved the rest of the time, which he was completely capable of.

After packing for their flight later that day, she drove over to Kent's house to pick up Matt and have breakfast with her parents. They'd gotten home late the night before, and yet still found the energy to text her that they were safe. She needed to remind Damon that a text took seconds and yet would mean the world to her.

The smell of bacon filled her senses as she walked into the large ornate mansion. The sound of laughter from the kitchen caused her to exhale in relief. Normal people with no agendas or chips on their shoulders. Just what she needed.

"And then I told Karen that calamari was squid, but she kept fighting me over it." Kent laughed loudly as Bethany's mom swatted him.

Bethany stopped by the entrance to the dining room and leaned against the frame, not wanting to disturb the story.

"I thought they were just little fish rings." She shrugged. "They make fish sticks. I thought the fried rings Kent likes to order were fish."

Kent laughed loudly again as Matt's smile widened. "So we get the platter, and the Jamaicans don't use the tentacles for the dish, but baby-"

"Octopus. With baby feelers and little heads." Her mom squealed and glanced over toward Bethany as her cheeks turned pink. "Oh my gosh. It was so disturbing."

"Did you eat them?" Bethany asked as she took the seat beside Matt.

He reached over and pulled her into a tight hug, shaking her a little. "You ready for this trip?"

"I didn't eat them. I just couldn't." Bethany's mom shook her head and snuggled up against Kent.

"I'm as ready as I'm going to be. I feel like we just got back from traveling." Bethany pulled out of Matt's hold and reached for the big platter of breakfast meats and scrambled eggs that sat on the table between them.

"We got back on Sunday. It's been a whole week back here, silly woman. Time to hit the road again. Besides, my future is riding on this one." Matt wagged his eyebrows and picked up his fork.

"Your future isn't riding on anything. It's in your control to do or be anything you want to," Kent threw in his two cents.

"I agree with that," Bethany added. "But, this is an important trip. Have you packed up your portfolio, or can I see it before we head to the airport?"

"It's in the bedroom down the hall. I'll show you, and then we'll bubble wrap it together. It's a bitch to pack up." Matt shoved half a pancake into his mouth. "Bring your running shoes. We're going to keep in shape while we're up there."

"This from the guy with syrup running down his chin and a full pancake in his mouth." Bethany tossed her napkin to him and smiled.

"Half. It was only half. I can fit a whole one. You wanna see?" He smiled and licked at his chin, trying to get his tongue to lap up the syrup.

"Matt. Jeez, son," Kent barked and tossed his napkin across the table.

"You guys are prudes. Except you, Karen." He got up and ran another pancake through the lake of syrup on his plate before leaning over and folding it up. "Dare me?"

She shouldn't have, but she couldn't help it. He brought out the kid inside of her. "Yep. Double dog dare you."

"Oh brother. Not you too." Kent laughed as Matt forced the whole pancake in his mouth and motioned for Bethany to join him.

She contemplated doing it too, but the look on her mom's face said - just no.

Laughter bubbled out of her as she moved down the hall to find her brother.

"My brother," she whispered, letting the truth of her statement sink in. She and Damon had a fucked up situation to face, but she and Matt had nothing but good, clean times ahead of them. Both relationships were worth every ounce of effort she planned to put into them, but the one with Matt was just so much more straightforward.

"In here, Miss Thang." He reached out of one of the bedrooms and grabbed her arm as she yelped and lost her footing. He caught her and turned her to face the bed.

A large portfolio lay open with some of the most beautiful paintings spread out before her. Everything from the mountains to the beach at sunset to a woman dancing in a bright red dress with long black hair and eyes that begged the man she watched to make love to her.

"Wow," Bethany breathed out and moved closer to hover over the top of the bed. "Matt... these are incredible."

She glanced up to find him nibbling on his thumb by the doorway.

"Thanks. I taught myself to paint years ago. It's always been a passion of mine." He shrugged. "I did a one-off picture of Damon about three years ago, but I've never shown him."

"Can I see?" She moved back, not wanting to touch the paintings in case she messed anything up. The weekend was a big deal to Matt, which meant it should be to her and Damon too. Supporting him needed to come first on their list of things to get done in Seattle.

"Sure." He moved up beside her and shuffled things around until the painting of a handsome teenage boy around fifteen or sixteen stared up at her. His eyes were locked on the camera taking the photo from what she could tell, his expression soft, and lips almost turned down. The sadness in his eyes was heart-wrenching. It was almost as if Matt had caught Damon at the moment of someone's death.

"When is this from?" She reached out and let her fingers hover above his cheek. "He's beautiful."

"It was the day after he caught mom with Barney, her work partner." He shrugged. "Fucking school pictures were the next day. He brought his home a few weeks later, and I gave him massive amounts of shit over this picture."

Bethany moved back as a hot lump of regret filled her chest. He wasn't an easy man to get through to, and she'd been treating him as if he were. She needed to do more than was expected of her to reach him. Waiting for him to reach out wasn't going to happen. It would do nothing but put large divots in the future they wanted together.

"Wow." She shook her head and turned her attention to Matt. "You didn't know."

"No, I didn't know for a long time." He shrugged. "I found the picture about three years ago and painted it with accents on his cheeks and eyes to show the pain I know he felt. It's not something he'd want to see, but it was my way of apologizing for not being there for him. I was dumb and high on the latest wave of reefer."

"You guys got through it though, and we're going to get through this weekend together. It's going to be great." She walked over and pulled him into a hug. "You're going to be great."

"You think so?" He smiled down at her, his blue eyes filled with the kind of hope that most people could only dream of.

"I know so."