Page 116 of Beach Vibes

She sighed, not surprised but unexpectedly sad. “Because you wanted her to be clear. You wouldn’t just let it die on its own.”

She supposed it was the right thing to do, but it had to have hurt both of them. She knew how much her brother had cared about Beth. She walked to him and hugged him.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

She stepped back and looked at him. “It’s not. You and Beth were doing great. I feel like it’s my fault you’re not together.”

“Hey, no.” His voice was serious. “This isn’t on you. Not any of it. You’re the innocent party in all this. Rick is some kind of monster, and you got caught up in his twisted game.”

“Maybe I’m not the only one.”

Her brother stared at her. “You’re okay with what Beth did? She lied, Jana. She let you date her brother, knowing what he’d done.”

“I know. I’m still upset. She was wrong.”

“But?”

“I don’t know. Like I said before, seeing Rick for who he is kind of changed my view of everything. Beth’s a good person. I miss her. And I can see she was in an impossible situation.”

“Assuming she didn’t know what Rick is.”

There was that. “I can’t believe she did.”

“You don’t sound convinced.”

“From everything I’ve seen about her, she wouldn’t deliberately hurt either of us.”

He picked up his glass. “How about if we make a hard and fast rule? No dating brothers and sisters again.”

“I can drink to that.”

They touched glasses. She looked at Teddy.

“You need to talk to her.”

“I already did. There’s nothing else to say. I did the responsible thing and ended it in person. We’re finished.”

“But you’re in love with her.”

He flinched slightly. “I’ll get over it.”

“Don’t not be with her for me. I don’t want that responsibility.”

“What happened isn’t about you,” he told her. “It’s about what she did.”

“Maybe she didn’t have a choice.”

“I get that, but she hurt you, and that crosses a line for me.”

She glared at him, but he seemed unmoved.

“Relationships suck,” she said. “I’m done. Paul was a bully, and Rick is some kind of narcissistic sociopath. I have the worst taste in men. I was obviously not meant to be in a relationship.”

“That’s because you’re looking for love in all the wrong places.”

She frowned. “Wasn’t that a song?”

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