Bethany"And if I said yes?""I don't know. She's far more beautiful than me.""I wish you could see what I see." He kissed her nose before releasing her. He turned and pushed the papers off her desk, the heaps of files flying to the floor on both sides of the cherrywood structure. "No. We weren't together. She's into Matt, and I've never found her remotely attractive. She likes art for God’s sakes."Bethany took a step back before forcing a laugh. "Art isn't all bad.""Hush." He moved back toward her, pulling her close and leaning down to consume her mouth. He groaned softly, his arms so tight around her that it was hard to breathe. She pulled back a little as he licked and kissed her mouth before moving down to her neck."We are not doing this in here.""Yes, we are. I told you that night at the club that you had a choice.""Yes, and I went home with you. Being naked and shaking on my desk at work is not on my to-do list.""That's okay. It's on mine." He pulled back and smiled. "You

Bethany"I think that someone who's wanted love for a long time, and finally gets it, feels a sense of ownership over it. Sometimes to the point of it being unhealthy. It becomes more like an obsession.""And when that love is denied or taken away, they snap?" Bethany sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, her thoughts sliding from Krista to Damon. How long had he been opposed to loving someone?"Sometimes, but I think it depends on the person." Kendal moved to the edge of the stage again, squatting. "Take Damon for instance. He's had plenty of shallow relationships, but he's never, in all our years together, introduced me to anyone he called his girlfriend.""But what if something happened and he lost me? Would you think he would be violent?""Are you worried?" Kendal tilted his head to the side a little, his gaze inquisitive."No. I love him too much to think about a future without him. I don't think it's the situation with us, but I can't help but wonder.""That's natural. He loves

BethanyBethany slowed just before walking into the kitchen, heat burning her cheeks from her forward response. A smile lifted her lips, leaving her feeling fulfilled, happy. Her mother turned as she stood with Erica, Matt, and Kent."There you are. We were starting to worry." Her mother smiled.Matt walked toward her and pulled her into a big bear hug as Damon rounded the corner and moved to open a bottle of wine. "There's Sleeping Beauty. Damon and Dad working you too hard at the office?""They are slave drivers." Bethany laughed and walked toward the large platter of crudité. She picked up a carrot and dipped it in the creamy ranch sauce as Erica responded."Man, I remember when I started working for these two years ago. I took more naps than I care to remember." She smiled, and Bethany returned the gesture. "I would honestly go home feeling like my brain was bruised.""That's because you're creative, and they aren't. Like trying to teach calculus to Michelangelo." Matt joined in a

BethanyBethany turned and looked around the tiny garage, boxes piled high on both sides of her. There was no way they were going to be able to get her mother's place fully loaded up by nightfall. Why in the hell the woman would want to was the question. She had gotten a wild hair that everything needed to be moved out of the old house and put into storage before the wedding three days away.Letting out a long sigh, Bethany pushed her chestnut hair back, the messy bun at the back of her head not doing its job at all. Her mother walked in from the front of the garage, a few cars having stopped to see if they were having a garage sale."Go call Matt and Kent. Someone wants the washer and dryer.""Mom. We should just donate all of this stuff. There's no reason to sell it.""I am donating it. Go get them, sweet girl."Turning, Bethany checked her phone for the tenth time within the hour. Damon was at the office, holding down the fort so the rest of them could help pack. He was the only on

BethanyShe had gone through an array of emotions by the time she reached the campus. Parking the car, she rolled up the windows and sat in stony silence for a minute longer. She had promised Damon that she would give him time and space to work through some of the things that bothered her most about him, and she would. Forcing herself not to react was going to kill her, though. He was a different man at home than he was at the office, which made sense to some extent, but she belonged in both worlds with him. They would have to work through their differences of how they expected those worlds to look.Grumbling, she got out of the small Honda and slammed the door, the car groaning in protest. Damon was right about one thing, she needed to get a new car, but there were more important things nagging at her, like paying for her graduate program. The car hadn't fallen apart yet, and her plan was to pay Kent back with the money she was making at the firm and then start working to replace her