Page 39 of Travis

She comes in and closes the door.

“Did Travis send you in here?” I ask, not bothering to hide the sniffling.

She nods. “Yeah. He said that there was a little misunderstanding that upset you.”

“Yeah. It’s stupid. I know that Travis is going to see other people. I just didn’t think it would be so soon. And even though I know that he’s not, I also know that some day he will.”

“Sweetheart, Travis loves you way too much to be seeing other people, and you know that. He still hasn’t given up hope that you two will reconcile.”

I sigh, rolling my eyes. “Laura, I can’t. I can’t stand to go through the whole marriage and baby thing with him anymore.”

“But what if he doesn’t care about the having babies part anymore? What if he just wants to be with you, Becky?”

“Laura, you don’t understand. He’s said that he’d rather go without having a family if it means staying together with me, but I know that deep down, he’s always going to want to have them. Every time I got my period you should have seen his face. He was devastated. It got to the point where we hated making love together and that’s not healthy. We even tried taking a break from lovemaking for a while, just to see if we could rekindle the flame, and it just wasn’t there anymore.”

Laura is knelt down on the bathroom floor, so we’re eye to eye. Her hand holds mine. “Darlin’, I know it’s none of my business, and both Grayson and Travis would kill me if they found out I told you, but, honey, I know that you and Travis had a little thing not so long ago.” She says carefully, concern registered all over her face and in her voice, so it’s impossible to get angry with her. “Were things a little different then, darlin’?”

I swallow, thinking about it. “It was. But, Laura, we were both drunk. And it was so wrong. We were in Macey’s room. It should never have happened.”

Laura squeezes my hand. “It’s never a mistake if you love someone, Becky.”

I scoff, sobbing again. “No, you don’t understand. I totally fucked with Travis’s mind. Now he thinks that there’s a possibility of us getting back together. That’s what I mean by it being a mistake. I never meant to hurt him, Laura, I mean it, and the last thing I ever want to do is manipulate him.”

“You didn’t manipulate him, Becky. You didn’t mean for it to happen any more than Travis did. Now, quit blaming yourself, and just let it be what it was. And as far as Travis dating other women, well, he’s not ready for that any more than you are, so y’all don’t have to worry about that for a long time.”

I draw in a deep breath and let it out. She leans in and gives me a hug. As she rubs my back, she says. “Gosh, Becky, I’ve missed having you around here. I’m so glad that you could come and throw this wedding here. It’s so nice to have you again.”

“Thanks, Laura. Hands down, you are the sweetest woman I know.”

She pulls back and looks at me. “I know good people when I see ‘em, darlin’. Now, come on. Let’s get you cleaned up so you can come back out and watch Liam and Hanna get their pictures taken. They’re a beautiful couple, darlin’. But is there something wrong with Hanna? She seems to be a little nervous around Greg.”

I draw in a deep breath and widen my eyes slightly. “Oh, God, Laura, y’all don’t know the half of it.”

“So, that went well.” Greg comments, tentatively, as we arrive back at my place.

“You don’t sound very convinced.”

“Did you see how Chris kept eying Hanna?”

I knit my brows. “Geez, Greg. If I didn’t know you any better, I’d say that you still held a torch for her.”

“I do, kind of.” He shrugs. “Seeing her again after all this time, man, it does something to me.”

“Well, you better get over that, and fast, before Liam catches on. And Hanna doesn’t seem to acknowledge you, so I hate to say it, but you’re yesterday’s news, my friend.”

“She remembers me.” he says, as if convincing himself.

“Well, I thought you said that you were relieved when it seemed like she didn’t. Have you had a change of heart?” I ask, half teasing, half bringing him back down to planet earth.

“I’m still trying to pinpoint if she was with Liam yet or not.” He states, ignoring my comment. “If she cheated on him with me, then we may have a problem.”

“Well, we’ve got a lot riding on this wedding, my friend, so I suggest that you buck up and forget about that.” I start to wonder if Greg is putting his personal feelings ahead of the business at stake here. Thinking about having to fire him just two weeks before Hanna and Liam’s wedding makes my head spin. Plus, Chris is his friend, and if I fire Greg, I risk losing the engagement photos and having a photographer for the wedding. We have a contract, sure, but contracts can be broken, especially when Chris is one of the most coveted photographers in Dallas, and our only hope for this wedding. What doesn’t help is that he asked for a hefty deposit, so he can easily walk away and still profit very handsomely, without having to complete the job.

“I can’t forget about it, Becky.” He says. “I’ve got to figure it out. I need to know when her and Liam got together.”

“Why does it matter? Are you going to try to sabotage their wedding?” I ask, getting very confused and agitated.

He tries to change the subject, making me nervous. “What happened to you today? How come you flew into the house like a bat out of hell, and then, when you came back, you were all…flushed...like you’d been crying or something.” The way he asks it, it’s like he’s taunting me, trying to point out that I’m no perfect angel, either.

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