by Emily Minton
I want to argue with her and tell her all of the things I should have said when Dean first started coming around, but I can’t. I’m just not ready for that yet. Instead, I pull her into a hug. “I am so lucky I have you and Julie in my life. You two are the best friends anyone could ever ask for.”
“No, girl, we are the lucky ones to have you. We love you, okay?” She pulls back and looks me in the eye. “That’s it, enough of this lovey dovey stuff. Let’s get you ready for your hot date!”
Kristen and I finally settle on a cream colored peasant blouse paired with a blue flowing skirt, nothing green, and nothing to remind me of Brandon. After staring at my reflection in the mirror, I nod my head in approval, even though I think I look like a throwback to the hippy days.
Kristen assures me that I look great though, and to be honest, her persistence is exactly what I need because I would have never considered wearing this on my own. Finishing strapping on a pair of brown chunky sandals, I hear a knock at the front door. My heart immediately starts to race as I go to answer it. This is it. I cannot believe I’m going on a date, my first real date ever.
I take in a short breath before I open the door and see Shane standing on the other side of the threshold with a big smile plastered across his face. “Hey girl, you ready?”
I nod quickly in his direction and reach for my purse on the hook beside the door. “Yeah, I’m ready.”
Shane takes a moment to look me up and down, and I’m guessing that whatever he sees must make him happy because his smile gets amazingly bigger. “You look beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look prettier. I hope it’s all for me,” he says with a wink.
His words release the pent up butterflies in my stomach, and I can’t stop the heat of blush from creeping across my cheeks. Quelling my panic, I finally smile and whisper a polite, “Thank you.”
I look back and see Kristen nearly hidden against the kitchen wall. She sticks a finger to her mouth, the universal signal for shhh, and waves goodbye. I lift my hand and paste on a nervous smile before walking out the door.
We make small talk as we walk toward his truck. He opens the door and helps me in. I have to admit, I am a little surprised to see that Shane is such a gentleman. Jase is a nice guy, but I would never describe him as a gentleman. I just assumed Shane would be a lot like Jase, guess I was wrong.
It takes a few seconds for Shane to make it around the truck and climb into the driver’s side. “I was thinking we’d head to The Shack and get a bite to eat. After that, we can go to the movies or something. I heard they’re doing a special Twilight marathon. Being that you and Julie are always talking about how much you liked the books, I figured you’d probably like the movies too.”
Wow. He really has been paying attention to me. I nod and give him a small smile. “That sounds fun. I’ve seen Twilight and New Moon, but I’m dying to see Eclipse.”
“I haven’t seen any of them, so it’ll be a new experience for me,” he says with a chuckle. “But, I doubt we’ll make it in time for the first movie, so you better fill me in on what I will miss.”
I spend the next ten minutes giving him an in-depth description of the ins and outs of Twilight. Then, for some strange reason, I start explaining to him why I’m Team Jacob and why I really think Edward is a big douche. Julie has always been a Team Edward fan, and no matter how many times I’ve pointed out his many flaws, she refuses to switch teams. It’s caused many heated debates among us.
While I animatedly list off all of the reason why Bella chose the wrong guy, I notice every once in a while, Shane looks over and smiles. A few times, he asks questions or agrees with my points, but for the most part, he pretty much stays quiet. His well-timed nods tell me that he is listening, even when he isn’t participating in the conversation.
Before I know it, we’re pulling up to The Shack. I start to open my door, but Shane shakes his head. “I’ll get it.”
My eyes follow him as he jumps out of the truck and makes his way around to the passenger side and helps me out. “Thank you.”
As we begin to walk toward the restaurant, I hear him start to chuckle. I look at him and ask, “What’s so funny.”
He smiles back at me with a small twinkle of mirth in his eyes. “You’re really serious about your vampires and werewolves, aren’t you?”
I can’t help but blush again. I’m such an idiot for bringing out my inner Twi-hard on the first date I’ve ever been on. “I’m sorry. I really don’t know what came over me.”
Shane grabs my hand and gives it a light squeeze. “I do. You’re starting to feel comfortable with me, and to be honest, I like it.”
I smile, knowing he’s right. I have never felt more comfortable around a guy before. Well, there’s Jase, but he’s not like a normal guy. He’s the man who promised to protect me. He’s also the man who eventually saved me from Dean. Jase is truly my hero and a better brother to me than my own blood has ever been.
Shane and I finally make our way into The Shack, hand in hand. Something about having him touching me puts me at ease, but that feeling disappears as soon as I see Brandon and Becca sitting in the far corner, looking as if they were engrossed in a pretty intimate conversation. The sight of him with someone else makes my heart ache. I know I have no right to feel this way, but knowing it’s wrong doesn’t take away the feeling that has blossomed inside of my chest. Part of me is ashamed that I’m on a date with someone as nice as Shane, and here I am, jealous that Becca is the one sitting with Brandon, instead of me.
Shane tugs on my hand, causing me to break my stare at the cozy couple and look up into his smiling face. The first thing that registers in my mind is that his smile is completely different from the one I saw just moments ago. This one is forced. I immediately know he caught me longingly staring at Brandon and Becca. “I’m sorry. I was just surprised to see them here.”
“Yeah, me too,” he says with a curt nod. “You want to go somewhere else?”
I am tempted to say yes, but instead, I shake my head. “No, here is fine. I’ve been looking forward to their fries ever since you mentioned coming here.”
“Their fries? The Shack has the best burgers in all of Tennessee, and you’re looking forward to the fries,” he says with a deep chuckle.
“What can I say? I’m addicted to them,” I answer with a roll of my shoulders and quickly bat my eyes.
He chuckles again at my antics before placing his hand at the small of my back and leading me to a table that’s as far away from Brandon and Becca as he can get. As soon as we’re seated, out of the corner of my eye, I notice Brandon looking at us. I casually turn my gaze in his direction, and I swear he looks as if he wants to kill someone with his bare hands. The problem is I’m not sure if it’s Shane or me that he’s angry with.
“Are you going to look at him all night?” Shane asks in a tone of voice that I have never heard him use before. I look back toward my dinner companion and flinch when I see anger reflecting back at me in his eyes.
“I’m sorry. I just…” I take a deep breath and blow it out slowly to calm my nerves. “There is no excuse for being so rude. I apologize, really.”
“You don’t have to apologize to me, Bethany. Just tell me what’s going on between the two of you.”
I shake my head. “There’s nothing going on between us. I promise.”
Shane stares at me for a few seconds before he reaches across the table and grabs my hand. “There is something. You may not know what it is, but it’s something. Just tell me what happened. You said he hurt you. Tell me what he did.”
“I really shouldn’t have said that. He didn’t hurt me, honestly. He just said some things that had bothered me,” I try to explain.
“What things?”
I fake another smile and do my best to change the subject. “Nothing important. Now, tell me how do you know that The Shack has the best burgers in all of Tennessee? Have you been traveling the state, eating burgers on the sly?” I try to keep a light tone in my voic
e and pray that Shane just lets it go and gets back to his normally happy self.
Shane chuckles deeply as he releases my hand. He leans back in his seat and smiles at me. “I’ll let you play it that way if you want. We won’t talk about it, but if you ever want to tell me what happened, all you’ve got to do is the say the word. I’ll be all ears.”
“I’ll do that,” I barely squeak out as the waitress walks up to our table and takes our order.
As soon as she finishes, I excuse myself to go to the restroom, dreading the fact that I have to walk past Brandon and Becca’s table to get there. I do my best to avoid eye contact with either one of them as I scurry past them, and then breathe a sigh of relief when I reach the restroom door without any unwanted mishaps.
I’ve just stepped through the bathroom door when I feel someone walk in behind me. I don’t even have to turn around to know that it’s Becca. Trying to ignore her, I make my way to one of the stalls. I’m only a step away from it when she finally breaks the silence. “Just so you know Brandon and I are not here on a date. He had some questions about Logan.”
I jerk my head around and look at her, wondering what questions Brandon had asked her. I know I’ve wanted to ask, more than once, why her child suddenly appeared out of no-where and where he had been all these years. There is a lot of speculation about who his father is; even Jase’s name has been battered around. For me, it only took one look at the child to know his origins. I just wonder what will happen when Kristen realizes that she has a nephew.
“He would never go on a date with me.”
I shake away my thoughts before responding. “It doesn’t matter to me. He can date anyone he wants.”
Becca places her hands on her hips and smiles at me. “I know you care. It’s written all over your face. If it makes you feel any better, he is just as upset that you’re here with Shane as you are that he’s here with me.”
I almost smile at the thought of making Brandon jealous, but I catch it just in time. I’ve got to get over this attraction I feel toward him; he’s made it clear that he doesn’t want me. He’s proven that the man from Julie’s letters doesn’t exist. “It’s none of his business who I date.”
“That may be true, but it doesn’t stop him from wanting to rip Shane a new asshole,” she says with a laugh. “Men are that way. They can’t stand to see another man with the woman that they want.”
I shake my head at her. “Brandon doesn’t want me, far from it actually.”
“Sure he does,” she replies as she removes her hands from her hips and walks toward the mirror, then she pulls out her lipstick and starts reapplying it. “He hasn’t taken his eyes off of you since you walked through the door.”
“You’re wrong,” I say, trying to ignore how good her words make me feel.
“No, I’m not,” she says while finishing up refreshing her lipstick. “I also saw the way you were looking at him.”
I shake my head in denial. “I was not looking at Brandon.”
“Listen, I know you hate me, but I’m going to give you some advice anyway.” Becca sticks her lipstick back into her purse and turns to look at me. “If you have feelings for a man, being with another man isn’t going to change that.”
Deep down, I know she’s right. Even though I like Shane, being with him isn’t making my feelings for Brandon go away. “You’re right about that, but you’re wrong about the first thing you said.”
She scrunches her forehead in confusion. “What?”
“I don’t hate you,” I explain. “I don’t know you very well, but I don’t dislike you.”
“Well, you know, we could get to know each other,” she says in quiet voice. “I’ve talked to Julie and Kristen a few times lately. I don’t think they would be mad if we hung out sometimes. I could use a friend every now and then.”
“They wouldn’t be angry,” I say with a shake of my head. “Julie has forgiven you. At least, I know she is trying hard too.”
“I know. She’s being really great about it all. I wouldn’t blame her if she never talked to me again, not after what I did,” she says in a matter of fact voice.
I could tell that Becca knew she had really messed up big time when she slept with Jase, and I could also tell that she was truly sorry for it. “Everyone deserves a second chance. We all make mistakes.”
“Not like me. I ruined my best friend’s life. If it wasn’t for me, Julie wouldn’t have ever been with that rat bastard.” The pain I hear in her voice reminds me of my own pain.
“It isn’t your fault.” I reach out and touch her arm. “It seems like we’re all quick to take blame for what Dean did to Julie, but it wasn’t us that hurt Julie. It was my brother’s fault. You have to forgive yourself.”
If I could only take my own advice.
Becca nods. “You’re right, but it’s still hard to not feel guilty.”
Before I can respond, my cell dings with a text message. I pull it out of my purse and see that it’s from Shane.
You ok in there :)
I look up to Becca with a smile on my face. “I gotta go. Shane is wondering what’s taking so long.”
She smiles back. “Go ahead, but don’t forget what I said. You can’t replace one man for another. Shane is a nice guy, but don’t let him fall for you if who you really want is Brandon.”
“I won’t, I promise.” I nod and rush into the stall. By the time I’m done, Becca is gone. I wash my hands quickly and make my way back to Shane. I pass the table Brandon and Becca were sitting at and am relieved to see them gone.
By the time I get back to our table, our food is already there. “Sorry, I ran into someone in the restroom.”
“Yeah, I saw Becca walk in right after you. She didn’t upset you, did she?”
I shake my head. “No, she was really nice. I think we’re going to try being friends.”
A smile spreads across Shane’s face. “That’s good. Becca has made some mistakes, but I think she’s a nice person deep down.”
“Yeah, I agree,” I say before stuffing a fry into my mouth.
Our conversation slowly dies down, and we both eat. As soon as we’re done, we head to the theater. During the ride, instead of embarrassing myself with another werewolf vs. vampire debate, Shane tells me all about the car he’s rebuilding. I don’t know much about cars, but I do enjoy listening to his excitement about a project that’s near and dear to him.
We get to the theater just as New Moon is about to start. Shane allows me to pick our seats. I find us a spot right in the middle. As soon as Jacob shows up on the big screen, I point to him. “That is my man.”
Shane chuckles. “I’m not sure I can compete with a movie star, especially one with abs like that.”
I start to laugh, but the words Becca said earlier run through my mind. Shane is a nice guy, but don’t let him fall for you if who you really want is Brandon. I turn back to the screen and pretend to be engrossed in the movie.
Shane and I barely talk during the movies, but by the time Eclipse ends, I’m so tired that I am about to fall to sleep in my seat. As soon as the theater lights come back on, Shane grabs my hand and leads me out to his truck. He opens my door like the gentleman that he is and helps me into the cab before walking around to his side and gets in. We sit there in silence for a moment. I’m not sure what he’s thinking, but I can feel the tension rolling off of him. “What’s wrong?”
He looks at me with a sad smile. “I don’t know. You tell me. We seemed to be having a good time, all of a sudden, you froze up on me.”
I shake my head in denial, even though I know he is right.
He nods. “Yeah, you did, babe. You know you did. I made a joke about that dude’s abs, and then you turned into a block of ice. What happened?”
I know I need to tell him about my fascination with Brandon, but I hate to hurt him. I take a second and decide to take Becca’s advice. “I just don’t want to upset you.”
He gives me a perplexed look. “Why woul
d you upset me?”
I shrug. “I’m not sure. This is all so new to me.”
Shane lets out a long frustrated breath. “Bethany, you’ve got to tell me what in the hell is going on in that head of yours.”
“I don’t know how to tell you.” I don’t want him to lash out at me when he finds out that his feelings aren’t the same as mine.
He gives me a sad smile. “I like you a lot, but I don’t think you feel the same way about me as I do you. It’ll be a hell of lot easier if you told me now instead of later.”
I nod. “I do like you, but I’m not sure if I like you, like you. Does that make any sense?” Well, at least the cat is out of the bag.
“Are you not sure, or do you know that you don’t like me?” he asks in a hushed voice as he stares out of the windshield.
I decide it’s best to just tell him exactly how I feel. “I think you’re a nice guy. You’re incredibly handsome, and I could see myself having feelings for you.”
A true smile starts to spread across his face as he meets my gaze. “That doesn’t sound so bad, babe.”
I shake my head. “No, it’s not bad, but you were right about Brandon. There is something going on with him, though I’m not sure what it is. I’m attracted to him, and I think he may be attracted to me.”
I start to explain more, but a snort from Shane brings me up short. I look toward him and catch him rolling his eyes. “What was that about?”
“There is no doubt that Brandon finds you attractive. Shit! He finds you a whole lot more than attractive. He finds you damn near irresistible.”
“I don’t know about all that,” I whisper, afraid anything I say could hurt Shane’s feelings.
Shane nods his head. “I do. Bran wants you. He wants you bad.”
If Brandon’s behavior right after the wedding was anything to go by, then Shane is right, but there is no way I am going to tell him that. “I will have to trust you on that.”
Shane shoots me another small smile and grabs my hand. “Well, you’ve been honest with me, so now you don’t have any reason to feel guilty.”
“Can we still be friends?” I ask. My voice barely above a whisper.