Divorced! Now what?
Chapter 52

Theo

POV

Work was work. Sometimes, it is hard to put on a happy, friendly face, and today was one of those days. I had non-stop surgery and then follow-ups. It was the follow-ups that got me down. I was tired and wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep. Today, I was lucky; I managed to finish at the same time as Bethany. She is my breath of fresh air. Seeing her seemed to lighten my mood and put a smile on my face, making the day seem less tiresome.

We were having dinner, and the nightmare walked in. Her voice to me was like keys scratching down my expensive car; it hurt my ears and left me seething at the damage it caused. This woman has no shame. I am going to look into personal security for Bethany and myself. To keep her away, they need to be discreet; there is no need to have Bethany worry about how uncomfortable I am feeling about her sister. Also, a private detective will follow her around. I need some good dirt on her so that I can get a restraining order. 'Are you two dating?' Cynthia continued, her sickly smile never leaving her face. Luckily, she didn't try to sit at our table. Maybe she learned her lesson the other day. I looked behind her, trying to see if Bret was with her, but there was no sign of him in the place. Maybe she was doing this alone.

'No, we are not dating. We are just colleagues having dinner and discussing the day. Where is your date? It's not like you to go out alone.' Bethany was all too kind. She never raised her voice or showed that Cynthia was annoying her in any way. Her control of her emotions is a credit to her inner strength. Me? I was ready to call security to have her removed.

'Bret will be along soon, and we are dating!'

'Oh, before I forget, congratulations to you and Bret. When is the happy day?' Bethany's words confused me. Happy day! Where are these two getting married? If so, why was she trying to get with me? I was getting mixed signals. 'We are not getting married. What are you talking about?' Cynthia looked as confused as me.

'Mum said you were pregnant. When is the due date?' That made more sense, though I could not see a baby bump. What Cynthia was wearing left you with little to no imagination, and how tight it was showed that there was no baby bump.

'I lost the baby. Even I could tell that was a lie, there was most likely no baby at all, just another knife in the back. 'Sorry to hear that, Bret must be devastated.'

'Nope, the timing needed to be corrected. We decided to hold off on children.

'So, does that mean the wedding is off too?' So they were getting married. This roller coaster of confusion about this woman was giving me a headache.

'No date yet. Again, the timing is a little off. Maybe I will be ready to settle down in a couple of years! Cynthia seemed not to like being questioned like that. She kept flicking her eyes my way to see how I was reacting.

'Well, good luck. I hope you replace what you are looking for. Bethany stood up and started to collect her purse. I got the message and stood up, too.

'You are leaving? I have only just got here. I have loads to talk about. Cynthia put her hand on my arm, and I quickly brushed it off. Her face dimmed slightly before she placed her fake smile back on her face.

'Goodnight, Cynthia. I pushed past her and headed for the door, Bethany trailing behind me, with Cynthia still saying something as she followed us. I had tuned her out.

Leaving the food hall, I set a brisk walking pace. Bethany was beside me, saying nothing. At first, we could hear Cynthia's clicking heels on the pavement, but they soon fell back until we could no longer hear her footsteps. I did not think she could keep up with those very high heels. They were made to look good, not to walk fast, and still look graceful. I doubt you could run when wearing them.

When we reached home, I said goodnight to Bethany. She was quiet, and you could see she was in deep thought. Actually, she looked a mess, but I was not about to point that out to her. With the stress of work and, by the look and sound of it, some family issues

too.

At least Sunday was a great day, and her father was fun. I hope we have a day at our place and then the following at hers. This would make my Dad feel he is contributing more to sports day. He could not help but bring it up the couple of times I have spoken to him since that day.

The next day, I called a buddy of mine and told him about my problem. He was going to put a security team together for us, and a man to investigate Cynthia. It would take a little while to determine whether I needed a restraining order. He promised the men could not be seen or heard, and asked if that was enough. Were we in some danger? At that point, I could not see why we would be. But I would take advice after his men had a chance to follow us around for a few days, and when he had an opportunity to think what security measures I had now in place were enough, we could ramp it up a bit. He suggested that he put a tail on Cynthia for a little while, and I was okay with that.

I noticed Bethany was spending more time with the media representative, Saun. I am unsure if it was jealousy, but every time I saw her sitting with him and laughing, I felt like a giant rock sitting heavy on my stomach, and it was not a feeling I was used to. We have not known each other that long, for me to be so attached already. Surely not.

'Morning Bethany, I did not see you at the pool. Did you come in early?' I asked if I had missed Bethany that morning, but the floor was wet, so I knew she had been doing her laps.

'Yes, I met up with Saun to go over our next step, which is promoting the heart. It has been a week now, and Mr. Green is nearly ready to go home; he has greatly improved. Robson was pushing to get him out, start a life, and see how he copes with daily stuff. We have organized a physio person to see him each day and the usual nursing staff. Have you seen him today?' 'No, I was about to go over there now. Want to come with me?'

'Sure, I can sign the release from my side, and you can sign the discharge side of it when you feel ready. He has a good team to work with him at home, so staying there only makes him act like a caged animal. Now he is starting to move around!'

Bethany seemed to be in a good mood. She was wearing her heart scrubs, which had been a hit with the staff, who were pressuring Robson to make them our uniform. Bethany was the trendsetter, but it was not just the clothes but the whole happy demeanor that had all the staff wanting to be with her. She could make even the most grouchy patient laugh or at least smile.