by Parker, Ali
"Yeah. Come in."
Her friend walked in, closing the door behind her and sitting down on the edge of her bed. The look on her face let Bethany know that something was up. She figured Jake had probably had a breakdown over the situation Bethany had put him in, and now Krista was here to clean up the mess.
"So … last night was fun?" Krista started, and Bethany rolled her eyes.
"Stop beating around the bush. I feel like shit. Just tell me if he's okay."
"He's okay, but I need to tell you something."
"All right, tell me." Bethany sat up slowly, her head hurting so bad that dizziness swam around her. "Ugh. I hate this feeling."
"Jake and I are in love."
"What?" Bethany turned to her friend, horror washing over her. "You and Jake have something going on? Why didn't you tell me? I hit on him last night, for God’s sake."
"It's okay. You didn't know, silly." Krista reached out as Bethany slipped her hands over her face and let out a long sigh. Of course Jake was now dating Krista. That made everything perfectly shitty. It completed the shitastic circle and plopped the cherry on the shit-sundae.
Bethany let the news sink in, her heart hurting more over her actions than the loss of something she hadn't really wanted. She felt stupid and rather whorish, but other than that…. She slid her fingers down her face, her fingertips covered in black mascara.
"I'm glad for you."
"You're not upset, are you? We figured you tried to sleep with Jake last night just because you were drunk, not because you had actual feelings for him. He's been trying to get you to go out with him for the last year, and you've rejected him so many times."
"I what?" She stiffened in the bed. "I've never once rejected him."
"Oh. Does that mean you're interested?"
"No, I'm just saying." Bethany moved past her friend, reaching to grab a T-shirt and pulling it over her head. She pulled on a pair of pink sleeping pants and checked herself in the mirror. "I'm happy for you guys. I don't know what else to say."
"Did you want to sleep with him last night?"
"What? No. Jake's not my type at all. It was the liquor." Bethany turned to Krista, innocence layered in a perfect facade on her face. Jake wasn't her type, but the idea of sex had seemed more than appropriate for her graduation party.
"Oh good." Krista's shoulders visibly slouched as a smile touched her face. "I kept telling him that it was just the liquor. No way you'd just randomly sleep with someone. We all know how much of a prude you are."
"Prude? I'm not a prude." Bethany put her hands on her hips, the conversation going from bad to worse.
"I didn't mean it like that. I just meant that you're so beautiful and still aren't with anyone. It's not because guys aren’t trying …" She laughed, and Bethany realized that the conversation was better left alone.
"Who's cooking breakfast?"
"Oh hell! I am." Krista jumped up and ran out of the room toward the kitchen.
Bethany walked into the hall and grabbed a towel, her heart hurting and stomach jacked sideways.
No wonder Jake had refused her. He was in love with her roommate.
* * *
Her mother and Kent had arrived just before she lined up for the graduation march, her mother kissing her cheek. Bethany looked over at Kent, who moved closer and pulled her into an awkward side hug as he smiled down at her.
"Sure am proud of you, kiddo. Your grades and ranking today are something to be incredibly proud of." He squeezed her shoulder before moving back toward her mom.
"Yep. Nothing you can't do if you put your mind to it, I guess." Bethany smiled and waved, moving toward the line of people wearing the same heavy black robes that draped across her body.
She watched her mom and Kent, the older man extremely handsome and fitter than Bethany remembered from the last time they'd met. The kindness in his eyes as he looked down at her mother was also something new.
Her real father was nothing more than a bastard—a user. He only looked at you or spoke to you if he wanted something from you. She hated him more than words could express and was grateful when he left their lives around her twelfth birthday.
A tug on her sleeve had her turning to her left, Jake standing quietly with his eyes averted.
"Hey, you," she whispered, unsure of what to say.
"Hey. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Krista sooner. I didn't know if you'd be okay with it." He shrugged, his dark gown swallowing him whole.
"I'm fine. I just wish someone would have told me. She said I tried to sleep with you last night. I feel like a total ass." She forced a laugh, the memory of the night before pushing its way across her aching skull. She would never let him know that she remembered every moment of it, but the loneliness at his denial and the hour of crying herself to sleep was still very real as she stared at him.
"It's no big deal. A month ago I would have fallen over myself to get you in bed." He laughed, and the goofy sound caused her to smile.
He wasn't at all someone that she'd normally sleep with or try to start a real relationship with. The need to share her celebration with him had pushed her to want something more, but it would have ended as the sun came up. It was for the best.
"Enough of this. Congratulations." She reached up and straightened the lapel of his robe before turning and sliding into line as they were instructed to do.
She waited her turn, her mind wandering to the conversation her mother had hopefully had with Kent and how it might have gone. Would he be thrilled that she'd finally said yes to marriage? How soon would they tie the knot? Would he offer to help her with her master’s? She'd be more than thankful for a loan if nothing else. A grant from him would be blissful, but anything to keep pushing her forward would be a break in her rather painful cycle of poverty.
She glanced at her mother and hopefully soon-to-be-stepfather and waved, smiling as she slipped onto the stage as the announcers called out her name. The moment was almost surreal, the hope it planted in her blossoming as she took her diploma and shook the dean's hand.
"Great job, Bethany. Look forward to seeing you in the MBA program." He smiled, and she simply nodded, turning her head for the flashing light of the cameras. Her head protested at the attention, the dull ache still remaining from her night of almost fun.
She walked down to join her classmates in the hard-backed chairs, the energy palpable in the air. Their speaker had asked to go on after the names were read, which was odd, but she was degreed and couldn't care less about what came next. Sinking into her seat, her mind numbed at the monotone voice of their valedictorian, the message surely on success and their ability to do anything they wanted to do.
She scoffed internally, wanting nothing more than a cheeseburger, sex, and a nap. In that order.
* * *
"We're so proud of you, sweetheart. Let's grab some lunch. Kent made us a reservation at a restaurant here in town."
Her mother pulled her into a hug as she stood before Bethany, who was smiling with a sense of relief sitting lightly on her. It was done. The graduation was over, and she held her diploma in her hand.
"Quite the accomplishment, Bethany. Your mom tells me that you used grants and a work-study to make your way through your bachelor’s?"
She nodded and moved back, wrapping an arm around her mom's shoulders as they walked to the car. Various friends called out to her, and she responded in between talking with Kent and her mother.
"Yes. I was very lucky not to have to apply for loans during the last four years. A lot of my friends are leaving today with forty to eighty thousand dollars hanging over their heads. I can't imagine."
"Debt is the devil for sure." He smiled and held the car door open for her as she got in the back. He opened the door for her mother as Bethany relaxed against the new-smelling leather of his Lexus. She didn't know much about Kent, but what she had seen she liked quite a bit.
He was classy and old school, always holding the door open and shaking hands wi
th people. His smile was warm and kind, his eyes dark and full of mystery. He would take some getting used to, as the only man in Bethany's mother’s life had been her weasel of a father. Her mom had just about written off men for good until her older sister, Bethany's aunt, Patty, introduced her to Kent.
"Hungry, girls?" Kent turned and looked over at Bethany, his right arm extending to hold hands with her mom.
A smile touched Bethany’s mouth as she nodded. How nice would it be to find someone like him to take care of her mom?
How nice would it be to find someone like him to take care of her? She scoffed internally and engaged in the surface-level conversation as they drove to the restaurant.
Bethany sat up as the car pulled to the front of the large building, a valet rushing to open her and her mother's doors. She got out, and her mom looked over at her as Kent spoke with another valet.
"Kent's paying, so get whatever you want, baby. This is your day." She smiled and held out her left hand, a large engagement ring on her finger.
"Oh my God, Mom. He had the ring already?”
“He sure did, and I said yes. We'll get married on the beach in Jamaica in three weeks. We just want you and his two boys to come with us. You can each bring someone if you want, and if not, just come, and we'll have some family fun."
Bethany stood there, her mouth half hanging open as Kent walked around the car and put an arm around her mother.
"I see your mom told you the good news."
"She sure did. Congratulations! How exciting."
He smiled and moved them toward the restaurant. "It's given me a whole new outlook on life. But today is about you. We'll talk about the wedding next week. We want you to come spend the week with us, meet the boys and such."
"Of course. I'd love to."
Chapter 4
Bethany
At first, she was hesitant to order anything off the menu, the prices ridiculous for a simple graduation meal. Her mom ordered a salad for herself, and Bethany followed suit, but the bread bowl was calling her name. She waited until Kent reached out and took a piece, offering it to her next.
"So, Mom tells me that you're an accountant as well?" Bethany passed the bread to her mom, her eyes on the newest member of her soon-to-be family.
"I have a degree in accounting and a doctorate in law. It's a passion of mine, but my company is actually an accounting firm, which is something I wanted to talk with you about." He smiled and looked over at Bethany's mother as if asking permission for something. Her mom smiled shyly, and he reached over and took her hand under the table.
"Oh yeah? That's great news. I'd love to talk accounting with you; just don't tell anyone how nerdy I am. I keep that locked down most days." She smiled as her mother chided her.
Kent sat back, the look on his face giving her peace.
"Your mother tells me that you're headed to your master’s program in a month and are looking for some financial assistance."
She wasn't quite sure how to respond. His statement was completely true, and yet she felt like a beggar admitting that she couldn't pay her own way. She glanced at her mom, whose eyes seem to press her toward the message of honesty and transparency.
"Yes. My grants only cover a third of my expenses, and getting a job is my next step. I don't mind getting a job, but most firms would require me to work full-time. I could work somewhere non-accounting, that's part time, but I wouldn’t make nearly enough money to live off of."
Kent was nothing like she expected for a billionaire. Her mother might be aware of her new fiancé's wealth, but Bethany doubted it. She’d done her research, though, and knew that McKenzie and Bryant Accounting LLC was a cash cow. If Kent wasn't worth at least thirty billion dollars, Bethany would be surprised. Still, he was far too down to earth, far from what she expected a billionaire to act like. They were supposed to be greedy and self-serving, manipulative and spoiled.
Maybe he was exactly that, and they had yet to see it. Only time would tell.
"What about this—" He paused and sat up to the table, his eyes filled with something like excitement. "I'll pick up the tab for the funds that you're lacking, and you come work at M and Bs three days a week in the morning or afternoon, whatever your schedule allows you to commit to us."
Bethany sat in shock for a minute, his offer way more than generous. She looked at her mom, who was beaming like they'd won the lottery, and in a way, she guessed they had.
The smile on Kent’s handsome face caused Bethany’s lips to lift, and she nodded before she realized what she was doing.
"Deal. Would I be working for you?"
"No, your new brother, Damon. Smart as a whip, but you'll love him. The two of you have a tremendous amount in common. He's brilliant and driven, hardworking and very devoted to success."
"Sounds perfect, hmm, Beth?" Her mom beamed.
"More than perfect." She swallowed the lump in her throat, the bread from her plate helping to push down the feeling that perhaps she was making a mistake.
She hated spoiled, frat boy alpha males. Surely her soon-to-be stepbrother was more like his father and less like the image in her head. Of course, her mom had called him an ass, so maybe not.
"Good. You start on Monday."
* * *
Monday came far too fast. Bethany had spent the weekend packing up a few things to stay with her mom and Kent at his house for her week’s vacation. Too bad her vacation had turned into a new job and a possible asshole boss to deal with.
Her mom had taken her shopping on Sunday for some new clothes, Kent more than happy to lend his credit card to the adventure.
She finished buttoning the white short-sleeved shirt her mother had gushed over in the dressing room, her black pencil skirt accentuating the thickening backside she was starting to hate. Bethany growled and ran her hands over the curves of her rear, her hair long and loose around her shoulders, makeup light but still obvious. She had on black heels and various accents of crimson jewelry.
Her stepfather gave her the thumbs-up as she walked into the kitchen Monday morning. "Just let Martha know what you'd like to eat, and she'll whip it up for you. You look perfectly professional." Kent smiled and pointed to the kitchen, from which the smell of something delicious wafted toward her.
Bethany’s stomach growled in protest, and they laughed together as she turned and walked quickly toward the kitchen.
Nervousness sat heavy on her, her worry over meeting her new boss nothing compared to having to pretend to approve of her new stepbrother. She would play the game for a little while, but if he was a jerk like she imagined he might be, she would be more than happy to put him in his place.
After a quick breakfast of juice, eggs, and toast, she climbed into her small Honda, her mom blowing her a kiss from the front door.
Kent's house was a mansion three times over, the number of rooms making it feel more like a hotel. Her mom hadn't moved out of her own small, two-bedroom house on the other side of Dallas, and they had decided that, for the week of vacation, she and her mom would stay with Kent at his place. Good thing. Her mom most likely had stale cereal and low-fat milk as the most appetizing breakfast option. Bethany shuddered at the thought.
* * *
Bethany drove in nervous silence, the sound of the traffic around her offering a bit of balm to her beating heart. It had been a while since she’d had to try to impress someone. All of the professors in the business center knew her, and her reputation preceded her thanks to tutoring often and being part of the honors fraternity.
This was a whole new situation. She'd have to impress her new stepbrother, and something told her that would be more difficult than she wanted it to be.
Not having any siblings of her own, she wasn't even sure how to approach their new relationship but figured her best bet was to respect him as her boss, and if something familial grew from that, all the better. Forcing something wasn't her style at all, her heart set on impressing people with her intelligence and wit no matter t
he audience.
Bethany pulled into the visitor parking, an elderly cop moving toward her and motioning for her to lower the window. The large building above them reaching high into the sky, as most of the other buildings in the business district in downtown did.
"Where ya headed, miss?" He leaned down, a smile lifting the furry mustache on his upper lip.
"I'm starting my internship with McKenzie and Bryant today. I hope I'm in the right place." She looked around for a sign, nothing but plain concrete walls surrounding them.
"You're in the right place. Go to the fourth floor or above in the garage, and make sure you don't park in a reserved spot. Take the ticket the little machine up there spits out at you, and have the receptionist validate it for ya." He moved back and motioned for her to go on through. "Good luck."
"Thanks," Bethany mumbled as she rolled up her window, and the car crept toward the small ticket dispenser. Excitement mixed with fear rushed up her chest, her breathing reminding her of the need to exercise. She usually didn't get hyped up about things, but this was a whole new ballgame. Not having an interview with Damon left her without a clue of who it was that she would be answering to. Her mom's comments about Kent's oldest son left her stomach in knots.
She parked and reached in to pull her purse from the passenger seat, hitting her head on the rearview mirror and cursing at herself. She moved out of the car and walked quickly toward the elevator sign.
The heat in Texas in late August was painful. If she wasn't careful, her hair would turn into something Tina Turner might be proud to sport. Reaching up, she tugged her fingers through the silky strands and slipped into the elevator with the two million other people who were headed toward the large building above them. It looked like hell had opened its gates for a quick drink of ice water.
She filed out, people rushing around her and checking their watches. Bethany looked around, trying to get her bearings before noticing a large sign on the wall that displayed a map. She moved toward it, working not to get run over by the suits that filled the large lobby. McKenzie and Bryant was on the twenty-eighth floor, the view from their windows most likely incredible.