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“Then, I can make lemonade.” Always finding ways to do something which ultimately makes all the difference.
“That would be great.”
An hour later, my friends are gathered in the backyard. I introduce her to Danny and his wife Mia. Next Beth, “And her handsome husband is Tony who operates the grill.” I point at him right as he peels off the barbecue tarp.
“It’s nice to meet all of you.” Lenny hugs them and falls into conversation with Mia, Tony, and Danny.
“Of course I do, it’s California, and you’re a fool if you don’t. The waters are magnificent and the waves are sick if you know the right spots.” Immersed in her conversation, I leave her to it.
I knew those four would hit it off.
“If you’re looking for us we’ll be surfing.”
I salute my hand to the side where they can see, “Have fun.”
Heading inside the house to bring the lemonade Lenny made, Beth walks behind me. If there’s one thing I know about my childhood friend, she’s on my tail about Lennon and she’s going to be extremely verbal about it too. I, on the other hand, am not so happy about this upcoming consultation.
Skipping on the ball of her feet, “So…?” she tries to catch up to me but in two long strides I’m inside.
“So… what?” I retort without glancing at her, browsing the kitchen utensils and picking up the salad tongs.
She wags her index finger at me. “You and Lenny...”
I stretch my neck, “None of your business, Beth.” I reply in a lovely tone, rounding the island.
“Are you keeping yourself busy on purpose?” she halts. “Stop!”
Spinning on my flip-flops, a moment of an old Western film is crossing between us. Annoyed, I shove the bowl of salad into her hands. “I’m not.”
“I know you and I know that you know that I know you.”
Not even one muscle in my face moves when I’m projecting my stone-cold expression. “Are you done with your assessment?”
She grunts. “Stubborn as a bull,” she murmurs under her breath. “I love you, Dean. But there are days that all I want to do is shake you out of it.”
“I love you too, Beth.”
Slowly her features soften. “You run away from relationships like it’s the plague because the one time you permitted yourself to do that, she took advantage of you just to get ahead with her career. It’s been ten years, move on!”
“You know that I tried dating with other women and all they saw was my name, my money. They were completely blind to my soul and what I needed.” I tap my fingers on my chest.
“There are other women out there, who aren’t like that. You’ve been different for the past two months when we Facetimed. Your smile is different, your posture looks different, and you even walk differently.”
“Are you sure you don’t need to change your contact prescription?” I joke, yet I get her point. Everything she says is true. I can argue till tomorrow. The bottom line is that I wanted her and I was scared.
“See!” She squeezes my shoulder, “You joke.”
My hand crosses my chest as I feign offense. “Hey!” I did allow myself to be goofy and talk dirty with Lenny since our first online conversations.
“You know what I mean. You used to be before your heart was broken and kept everyone at a distance.”
Beth saw me at the bottom of the bottle. I used to stay at her parents’ house and spend many sleepovers there while my house was a shit show.
Then again after my breakup, she was once again my cornerstone alongside Danny.
When they got married, I hoped we would stay in touch, losing them would’ve been devastating.
They are my family.
