Page 14 of Jilted
“I think this is for the best.”
“Why?” Christ, this could not be happening. He knew things would change between them, but he did not expect this. There was no reason in hell that they couldn’t continue to work together.
“We both know how this is going to go. For a while, Vanessa will be fine, and she’ll even be okay with me hanging around. But then things will change. She’ll get upset, and she’ll want you to choose. I don’t want to put you in that position, Brett, so it’s better to distance ourselves now.”
Unfortunately, she was right. Brett’s track record when faced with having to choose between Amy and a girlfriend was consistent – he’d always chosen Amy. He knew he couldn’t do that this time.
Amy stood. “I’ll see you at the wedding on Sunday.”
“You’re leaving? I thought we were going to take a walk and talk.”
“We’ve said everything that needs to be said.” Without another word, Amy turned and left.
“Wait!” he called.
She stopped and turned back to look at him.
From where he stood, he could see her tears. He hated seeing her cry. “Please tell me the truth…are you and Craig…” He couldn’t finish the thought. It was too unbearable.
“Craig and I are friends, Brett. Same as you and me.” Then she turned back around and walked away.
This time, he didn’t stop her.
Friends – like him and her. That was a slap in the face considering he’d never thought of Amy as just a friend. And he was pretty sure Craig didn’t see her as just a friend, either. In fact, he was convinced his brother didn’t know how to be just friends with women.
Brett stared after her, unable to comprehend what had just happened between them. It hurt like hell, but as she disappeared around the corner, he knew that everything she said was for his benefit. It still hurt though. A lot.
His first instinct was to chase after her, to beg her to reconsider, and tell her that nothing would change between them. No, that wasn’t fair to her. He was sure all of this was just as hard on her as it was on him. Amy would see that things would be okay. Brett would show her.
With a sigh, he gathered their garbage, threw it in the trash can, and headed home. Vanessa would still be out with her friends, but that was okay. He wanted some time alone anyway.
Chapter Seven
Brett ducked before the glass vase made contact with his head. It shattered against the wall behind him. “Jesus Christ, Vanessa!”
“You spent the night with that woman?” Vanessa screamed. “How could you do this to me? To us?”
“Please, calm down.”
“I will not calm down when my fiancé spent his last night as a single man with another woman.” Vanessa paced around the living room.
Brett watched her closely to make sure she wasn’t going to throw anything else at him. “It’s not like that and you know it. I wasn’t with another woman. I was with Amy.”
“Amy’s a woman, isn’t she?” Vanessa snapped. She stopped pacing and crossed her arms over her chest. Her face was wet with tears; her cheeks were puffy and red.
“Well, yeah, but she’s just Amy. She’s my best friend, nothing more. You know that.” He slowly approached Vanessa, hoping she’d calmed down enough to let him touch her. All the progress he thought he’d made on the Amy front was gone, just like that.
“And I told you how I felt about your friendship with her. I don’t like it, Brett. I’m going to be your wife. I should be your best friend.”
“I know,” he whispered and pulled her into his arms.
She put her arms around him and rested her head on his chest.
He stroked her hair. “I’m sorry, Vanessa. I shouldn’t have spent my bachelor party with Amy. That was inconsiderate.”
Even as he said those words, he regretted them. Amy was his best friend, the one person in the world who had always been there for him. He shouldn’t have to apologize for that. It wasn’t fair. But he loved Vanessa, and he had asked her to be his wife. Her feelings had to come first now – no matter how much it hurt him to do so.
“All we did was eat a couple of tacos and talk. In fact, Amy and I have decided not to work together anymore.” That wasn’t the complete truth, but he didn’t think telling Vanessa that it was all Amy’s idea, and he didn’t agree would only make Vanessa angrier. “She’s opening a new studio and teaching there. I’ll continue to teach at the old studio.”
