Page 89 of Give Me a Reason

Once they caught their breaths, they strolled down to a popular oceanside restaurant with a cluster of outdoor tables covered with vibrant blue umbrellas. They sat down at one of those tables with twin groans.

“Dude, youreallyneed to get in shape.” Tessa glanced down at the happy-hour menu. “I can’t believe you lost a race to a wimpy programmer who hardly ever sees the light of day.”

“I told you I needed your help.” Anne bit her cheek to hide her smile. “So we’ll do this three times a week?”

“These happy-hour prices are great!” Tessa exclaimed, pointedly ignoring Anne’s question. “I’m going to get the quarter-pound burger with cheese. Wow, it’s only ten bucks. What a steal.”

“Ten dollars for a burger is a steal?” Anne peered down at her menu, distracted despite herself.

“In post-pandemic Los Angeles at an oceanside restaurant?” Her sister arched an eyebrow. “You bet it is.”

“If you say so.” Anne decided on the super greens with quinoa and grilled chicken. It was fortunate she actually loved salads. Otherwise, getting in shape for a film would be torture.

After ordering, she and her sister sat back in their seats, sipping their ice-cold hefeweizens. Anne sighed as the smooth wheat beer slid down her throat, and the tart scent of the orange garnish filled her nose. She technically should have been cutting out alcohol, but she wanted to enjoy this moment with Tessa.

“How’s Bethany doing?” Anne focused on her concern for her cousin, not the stab of jealousy. “You went to Imo’s house for dinner a couple of nights ago, right?”

“Mm-hmm.” Tessa put her beer directly on the table even though there was a coaster a few inches away. Anne resisted the urge to move the glass onto the coaster. “She’s doing way better than last week. She sleeps a lot and can’t spend more than a few minutes on her phone or laptop, but she’s practically back to her normal self.”

“She must miss her kids,” Anne murmured. “Do you think she might try to go back to work soon?”

“Have you met our aunt?” Tessa side-eyed her. “Imo is keeping her baby girl in bed for a full four weeks.”

“Poor Bethany.” Anne studied her fingernails. “She must be bored out of her mind.”

“She said her friends take turns dropping by.” Tessa leaned across the table as though she had juicy gossip to share. “And guess who else keeps checking in?”

“Who?” Anne choked out—wanting to know, not wanting to know. She didn’t want confirmation that Frederick had feelings for Bethany. That Anne had only been a warm body for him that night.

“Captain Frederick Nam.” Her sister smiled like the Cheshire cat, and Anne felt her blood leach out of her face.

“He’s been visiting Bethany?” Surprise and jealousy warred inside her. “At Imo’s house?”

She’d been afraid, but didn’t really believe, that he’d been seeing her little cousin. Bethany lived at home with her parents. Anne thought he wouldn’t want to see her aunt again if he could help it. But maybe Bethany was worth the discomfort.

Her stomach twisted, remembering how he’d walked out of that house on Christmas without a backward glance. Anne saw how much he’d been hurting when she’d shown up at his house later that night. Did he care about Bethany so much that he would return to her aunt’s house? Did heloveher?

“Nah, not so much in person,” Tessa continued, not noticing how still Anne had grown. “But he’s been sending her enough flowers to cover every flat surface in Bethany’s bedroom.”

“Ah.” It made sense that he didn’t visit Bethany in person, but he seemed to have found another way to shower her with affection.

Devastation crushed Anne’s spirit. The fact that Frederick had never called her, even though he’d promised, made everything hurt more. And it made her feel pathetic for waiting day and night for a call that would never come, when he’d been busy ordering flowers for his beloved Bethany.

Anne had hoped she’d jumped to the wrong conclusion about Frederick and Bethany. He was so attentive and sweet during lunch last week that she’d thought… What had she thought? That their night in Bosque Verde meant something to him? That he wanted more than friendship from her?Yes.She’d thought all those things, because she couldn’t stop hoping.

She needed to stop doing this to herself.And I will.Working on a new project would help distract her. Maybe she could give Andrew a chance. She would do anything to stop thinking about Frederick and Bethany. It tore her apart.

“You should go see her.” Tessa gave their server a distracted smile when he placed her burger in front of her.

“Thank you,” Anne said to him and placed her napkin on her lap, ready to fill the hole inside her with some super greens. God, she wished she’d ordered the burger. She reached across the table to steal a fry off her sister’s plate. “I know, but I’ve been so busy.”

Anne had actually been avoiding Auntie Sharon since Christmas. They had texted and chatted over the phone, but she couldn’t bear seeing her in person. Auntie Sharon had been so contrite over what had happened ten years ago and so worried about how Anne was doing lately, but Anne just didn’t have it in her to pretend that everything was okay. She was in no state to put her aunt’s concerns to rest, because she wasnotokay.

Anne was still in love with Frederick, but he seemed to be falling for Bethany. How would Auntie Sharon feel about that? Her daughter stealing the love of Anne’s life after she’d ripped them apart? A mother and daughter super duo.

She felt sick at her ugly thoughts. In the end, her aunt’s advice wasn’t what had made Anne leave Frederick. She’d left him because she’d convinced herself that it was for the best. As for Bethany, she wasn’t stealing Frederick from her. Anne had lost him all on her own.

“I can imagine. You have so much to do before you leave forEngland,” Tessa said with such sympathy that Anne felt guilty for using her work as an excuse to avoid Auntie Sharon and Bethany.

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