Page 110 of Beach Vibes

“You need to talk to someone, and I can’t be that person.”

“But you’re hurting, too.”

“You won the coin toss.” He offered her a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll figure this out on my own.” He was retreating—at least emotionally. He’d done the same when Valonia had died. Teddy preferred to mourn in solitude.

“I want to help,” she said, unable to stop the words.

“Tomorrow, maybe.”

She went to him and hugged him. “I know she cares about you. I’ve seen it in her eyes.”

He stepped back. “Maybe we saw what we wanted to see. Maybe none of it was real. Maybe they’re exactly alike.”

She wanted to protest that wasn’t possible. Beth was great. She adored Linnie and brought Jana food every Thursday. Only she hadn’t wanted her dating Rick. At first Beth had been so against the relationship. At the time Jana had assumed Beth was judging her for her past, but what if it was something else?

Only if Beth had known about Rick’s cheating at the time, then she would have been protecting Jana by acting all bitchy. And if she hadn’t, then she really was a bitch.

“My head’s spinning.”

Her brother gently pushed her toward the back of the house. “Go wait in your room. I’ll distract Linnie so you and Dex can slip out.”

“He knows?”

Teddy nodded. “Not the details, but enough.”

She walked to her room and sat on the bed. Her chest was a little tight, and she thought maybe she was breathing too fast. Rick had another girlfriend. Galaxy something. The whole time he’d been with her, he’d also been with Galaxy. If it wasn’t so painful, it would be comical, she thought.

A few minutes later she heard the kids in the kitchen, followed by quiet. Seconds later, Dex knocked on her door, then opened it.

“Hey.”

He stared at her with a combination of concern and anger. She knew the latter wasn’t about her but was instead directed at the man who had hurt her. No matter what, Dex was going to be there for her. He was family, and he looked out for those he loved.

She crossed to him. He opened his arms, and she threw herself against his hard chest and hung on.

“I don’t know what to think,” she admitted. “I hurt everywhere and I’m so confused. None of this makes sense.”

“Let’s take a walk.”

22

They went outside and started down the street. Despitethe fact that it felt like days since she and Teddy had left the restaurant, it was only about seven thirty. The sun had set, but the sky hadn’t reached that night color. Windows were open in neighboring houses with the sounds of conversation and television spilling out.

For the first block, she didn’t speak, but then she started explaining about Galaxy and how she was the real girlfriend. “I was someone he was seeing on the side,” she said. “I can’t believe it. I’m the other woman.”

“You didn’t know. How could you?” Dex stopped and faced her. “Rick had a plan from the beginning. You think this is the first time he’s done this?”

“What? Of course. It has to be. He’s not…”

She pressed her lips together as she tried to comprehend Dex’s point. Rick was good at the game. From how bashful he’d looked when they talked to telling her she glowed, to how he’d had a string of dad jokes to make her laugh. He’d been adoring, and she’d fallen for the act like the idiot she was.

“He played me,” she said slowly. “We met so randomly. I didn’t have my wallet with me, and he was behind me in line. He bought my coffee. The next time I saw him, I paid him back, and we started talking.”

“A crime of opportunity,” Dex said lightly as they continued walking.

“But why?” she asked, breathing through the pain. “Why can’t one woman be enough?”

“Who knows. Power, maybe. The thrill of manipulating the women in his life. Or the knife’s edge of wondering when he’ll be caught.”

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