InHap*pily Ever After (Incidental Happenstance) (53 page)

            Her expression
remained cool, so he raised his voice. “Wes suggested that we hire security for
our reception, Lexi—security guards! What kind of shit is that? And people are
asking me to get them into Tia’s wedding, too. They’re asking if Dylan’s going
to sing at our reception, if he’s going to stand up…”

            He stopped for
a breath, and Lexi finally spoke, her voice sarcastic and condescending. “Poor
Ryan,” she gushed. “The universe isn’t revolving around you and you can’t
handle it. Am I supposed to feel sorry for you? You don’t think I’ve been
dealing with the same shit?” She took a casual sip of her water and turned to
him, her expression blank and uncaring.  Although she hadn’t had anyone offer
her money, she’d had a few clients hinting at attending her wedding, and the
girls from the snobby clique at work were still falling all over themselves
trying to get into her good graces. “I’ve gotten shit, too Ryan, but I’ve been
trying to balance it all so it fits into
my
life. Your response to it,
however, was to go sleep with someone else? That’s how
you
dealt with
it?”

            “It’s supposed
to be our day!” he howled. “They just got engaged, and they had to plan their
wedding for right before ours?  There are going to be more pictures of him in
our wedding album than there are of us, and no one’s even going to care that
it’s our wedding. Doesn’t that bother you? At all?”

            Lexi took a
deep breath and shook her head. “Dylan can’t help who he is, you pompous
jackass, and even you know him well enough to know that he doesn’t flaunt it in
anyone’s face. He’s my friend, and he’ll be my best friend’s husband, and he’s
a damn good person.” Daggers flew from her eyes.  “I can’t even believe you’re
trying to blame Dylan for you sleeping with someone else. For you lying to me!”

            He shook his
head. “I was overwhelmed, that’s all,” he tried desperately to explain. “Even
you’re out doing interviews, feeding off all the attention, and then there’s
me, sitting in the background; the asshole who’s not privy to all the inside jokes…I
feel like I don’t even exist when he’s around.”

            “I’ve gone out
of my way to include you, Ryan. I’ve dragged you to every party and watched you
mope around, scowling at everyone. Your piss poor attitude has sucked the fun
out of every event, but I never once complained. I tried to be understanding of
the fact that it was a bit of a mind fuck to suddenly find out that your fiancé
had a secret friendship with a bunch of rock stars; I tried to put myself in
your shoes and be patient, hoping you’d get over the jealousy and get to know
them like I know them…”

            “A
relationship is right!” he spat. “I felt the same way watching you with the
drummer as I did when I saw you in Miller’s arms—there has to be trust in a
relationship, Lexi, and you could’ve trusted me with the secret from the start
instead of spending months whispering on the phone and changing your stories
every time you told them. I knew you were hiding…”

            “You want to
talk to me about trust? How dare you?” She clenched her hands into fists and felt
the blood rushing to her face. “I never once did anything to jeopardize our
relationship, and my word should’ve been enough. You weren’t exactly a prince
to be around either, constantly questioning me about where I was going or who
was on the phone; tossing in your little accusations about me sleeping with
Dylan no matter how many times I told you it didn’t happen. And now you have
the audacity to talk to me about trust when you really are sleeping with
someone else?”

            Ryan hung his
head. He had nothing else, and he’d picked the wrong choice of words to try and
make his last argument.

            “So I ask
again,” she said steadily. “Instead of talking to me about it; trying to work
it out together; your solution was to go and get yourself a goddamn
girlfriend?”

            “Damn it,
Lexi,” he said, the desperation creeping into his voice, “I just didn’t know
how to handle it all. I made a stupid fucking mistake and I’m really sorry.
Please—we can fix this.”

            “Oh no, it
wasn’t a mistake, Ryan,” she said, with so much fake sincerity in her voice it
made his blood curdle. “Don’t you see? It fixed every one of your problems.”

            Now it was his
turn to raise his eyebrows in question. “What the hell are you talking about?”

            “Well, first
of all,” she said, “now you won’t have to worry about anyone trying to get an
invitation to our wedding, because we won’t be having one.” He winced at her
words. “Plus, you won’t have to worry about scoring invites to Dylan and Tia’s
wedding, because you won’t be attending.” Her words were like a slap. “And,”
she added, “you won’t have to worry about my imaginary desires to be a fame
whore anymore, because nothing I do will ever be your concern again.” His head
started swimming and he swayed on his feet. “You can just go be happy with your
new girlfriend, and forget all about me, Dylan Miller, and our relationship,
Ryan,” she hissed, looking him straight in the eye.  “You disrespected me in
the worst way possible, and I can’t ever forgive that. So,” she said, tossing a
quick glance at the door, “you should really just go now.” A small smattering
of applause rose from the small crowd and Ryan’s face burned red. “And you
might want to just stick with your new club and give up this one; especially
since by tomorrow every person here is going to know what kind of shit you
are.  I doubt you’ll enjoy your usual welcome.”

            He grasped for
something—anything—that might turn the situation around. “I still have stuff at
your place,” he whined desperately. “Let’s just go back there and talk this
through! Please, Lexi, we’ve invested five years in each other—you can’t just
walk away!”

            “Your stuff is
in the back of your car,” she answered. “And I have nothing left to say to you,
Ryan. Except that I’m glad I figured out who you really are before I married
you. Now please just get out of my sight.” She turned back to the bar and
calmly sipped her mineral water, willing her shaking hands not to betray her.
Defeated, and with dozens of eyes staring at him, he finally turned away and
slunk out the door.

            Lexi struggled
to open the door to her apartment, tears fogging her vision. She’d given Ryan
time to leave the club, maintaining her dignity and even getting some
reassuring remarks from some of the people who had eavesdropped on their
conversation. As soon as she got behind the wheel of her car, though, she broke
down, and it was at least ten minutes before she was able to drive home.

            It was a lot
to absorb, and she fell onto her couch and curled up in fetal position, hugging
a pillow and letting the tears come. Once a cheater, always a cheater—she
really believed that; which meant that there would be no going back. No
forgiveness, no second chances, and no reconciliation—life as she knew it was
over. 

            It was going
to take some serious effort to get used to not having Ryan in her life. She’d
been with him pretty much since high school, dating on and off for a few years
before eventually getting together for good after his second year of college.
She’d dated a few other guys along the way, but he was her only serious
relationship; they’d planned a future, and now the rest of her life suddenly
lay long and empty before her. As she had so many times in recent weeks, her
thoughts turned to what Tia had gone through in the past year. She remembered
how hard it was for her to start over after Nick died; how she found Dylan
because of her concentrated efforts to find ways to ease her way back into life
again. What was it she had said? Something about how she was going to have to
figure out who she was, just her, because she’d been half of “TiaandNick” for
so long that she didn’t really know anymore?

           
Oh God, now
that’s me
, she thought, her heart growing heavier in her chest. Not only
would she have to face those same issues, but she would also have to deal with
the fact that she’d been betrayed and face the likelihood of running into Ryan
out in public with his new girlfriend. At least the five years Tia had with
Nick were full of treasured moments and not a complete waste of time that left
scars on every memory. 

            Incidental
happenstance, she thought bitterly, a twisted concoction of coincidence and
fate. If Tia had fallen in love with anyone in the world other than Dylan…if
she’d never started the stupid fucking game with the ‘gimmes…’ if she hadn’t
told Ryan that Dylan was the one man in the world she fantasized about…would
things have played out differently? What were the odds that out of the billions
of people in the world, Tia and Dylan; an unlikely couple, anyway; would find
each other? There was probably a bigger chance of getting struck by lightning,
being bitten by a shark, and winning the lottery on the same damn day. Vegas
would have a field day with those odds.

            She also
couldn’t help the fact that the lawyer in her reared its ugly head and she
found herself arguing Ryan’s case. In some respects, she could understand where
he was coming from. Not the cheating part—she’d never get over that—but she
could see how any guy’s self-confidence might falter in a side-by-side
comparison with Dylan Miller. ‘Sexiest Man on Earth’ was just the tip of a very
big iceberg when it came to defining Dylan. First off, what guy hadn’t dreamed
of being a rock star at some point in their life; imagined being adored by
thousands of fans from atop a huge stage, women screaming their names and
worshiping them like gods? And then there was Dylan the movie star—his name in
lights on the big screen; playing roles opposite some of the most famous names
in the business; attending red carpet premiers and Hollywood parties. And of course,
there was Dylan the millionaire—his many talents earned him much more than a
comfortable living, and he’d never have to worry about money. He could afford
the very best of everything, travel first class, drive fancy cars, and own
multiple homes. Plus, Dylan was just a really good person. He treated everyone
with respect and never put himself above anyone else.  Even without the
accolades of fame he would stand out in a crowd. He tried hard to cast a small
shadow, but most people felt it looming over them anyway. Still, the fact
remained that Ryan had betrayed her in the worst way possible, and there was no
excuse in the world for that. 
The verdict is in, ladies and gentlemen of
the jury; he’s guilty on all counts of being a complete prick.

            The flip side
of Dylan’s situation; the side that Ryan and most other people would never
understand; were the sacrifices that Dylan was forced to make because of his
fame. She was one of the few people who knew how awkward Dylan’s celebrity made
him feel…who saw the lengths he went to in order to blend into a crowd, to not
call attention to himself. It bothered him that people focused so much energy
on his celebrity status, and very little on who he was on the inside. If Ryan
could see the internal struggle with which Dylan lived his life, would he still
feel the same way? Could he ever truly understand?

            Her phone
chirped, and she picked it up to see Tia’s number on the screen. She broke into
a fresh round of sobs as she realized that she could never tell her best friend
the real reason that Ryan had torn her apart.

            She went
through the rest of the week in a fog, avoiding phone calls from Ryan and
telling Tia only enough to keep her off her back, hoping that work would keep
her busy enough to divert her focus. Although she hadn’t intended on talking
about the break-up until she was sure she could do it without falling apart,
she had a major meltdown on Thursday when Candy started talking about throwing
her a shower one day after work. Lexi tried to push it off, but Candy wouldn’t
let up; asking what her favorite foods were, whether she liked white wine or
red, and if they should invite some of the  girls from other offices on their
floor. Lexi hid out in her own office, but when she ventured out to scrounge up
some lunch and saw the invitation; with her name spelled wrong once again;
hanging on the corkboard in the kitchen, she lost it. She tore it off the wall
just as Candy and her little posse of conceited paralegals walked into the
room.

            Candy looked
at her and winked. “Oh, I get it…we should do personal invitations, right? I
absolutely agree…I told Carlie not to put it there.” She put her hands on her
hips and glared at the brunette, who lowered her head and took the blame that
probably didn’t belong to her.

            Lexi suck in a
breath and yelled, “No, you
don’t
get it! First of all, we are not
friends,” she twirled her finger in the air around the little group. “You don’t
even know how to spell my name! Second of all, I’m not even with the bastard
anymore, OK? There isn’t going to be a wedding, so you can all stop pretending
to like me just so you can score some time with InHap.” She tossed the
invitation in the trash and pushed her way through the door, crashing into two
other attorneys who were coming in to see what all the commotion was about. She
ducked into her office and grabbed her purse, telling her secretary as she
rushed out that she was going home for the day and wouldn’t be in tomorrow.
Then she sat behind the wheel of her car until she was cried out yet again, and
drove home to get an early start on what was going to be a long and miserable
weekend.