by KB Winters
Grant.
He was always who I was looking for. At the office, in coffee shops on campus, and I couldn’t walk by the auditorium where we first met without a sharp sting hitting me in the chest. Ever since we met, it had been impossible to escape him. His dark eyes and devastatingly handsome face were always lurking somewhere over my shoulder, pleading with me to give into him and all the things he wanted.
That was the problem. Grant was only focused on what he wanted. Over the past few weeks it had become glaringly obvious that while he cared about me, and would never do anything to harm me, he was overly interested in his own affairs and the things in his path. He wanted me working at Timeless, part of which I knew was an excuse to see me and keep track of me, to have me at his beck and call. But what about what was good for me?
In that first conversation, I’d made it clear that I wasn’t a marketer and I wasn’t interested in becoming one. And yet, in the months that followed that was almost exactly what he’d turned me into. Sure, he used and appreciated my artistic skills—possibly more than anyone ever had—but what would he do if I took those skills elsewhere? I didn’t know how he would react if I told him about the job offer…or at least interview…with the art gallery. Would he even want me anymore if he couldn’t have all of me?
I shook my head. It didn’t matter what he’d want. I’d already made up my mind and I was going to stick to my decision to go on the interview, and if they offered me a job—I was prepared to take it.
A noise below dragged my eyes towards the window for one final glance. I saw Logan’s car speed through the entrance and I wrinkled my nose. I hadn’t believed it when he’d called and said he had something for me. I’d gone down to the parking lot—although I now had no idea why—and he’d been standing there with a coffee and a rose. He’d said it was a replacement for the one he’d made me spill. I was shaking as I’d told him off when he confessed to following me from campus to the hotel.
Seconds later, a black car zoomed through the main entrance, barely stopping at the street before peeling out and speeding off and out of sight. Grant. I released a slow breath and flung the curtains closed.
It was my time now. And if my future didn’t involve Grant—I would just have to find a way to be okay with that.
* * * *
The day I’d been dreaming off had finally arrived. I’d never been much of a morning person, but the day of graduation, I popped out of bed, untangled myself from the sheets, and hit the shower in record breaking time. There was a rehearsal in the morning, followed by a luncheon, and then some of the different pockets of students had group outings planned to pass the time before the graduation ceremonies began.
I’d been invited to a couple of different events by fellow classmates but had turned them all down. Originally, Taylor, Jeanine, Max, and I had all planned to go out to an early dinner at one of our favorite dives. But, that had been months ago. As I blow dried my hair, I had a brief moment of wondering if they would still hold to that plan. And if they did, would they miss me? Think of me? Talk about me? I stilled, considering my steam coated reflection in the mirror. In the end, it didn’t really matter. Jeanine had shown her true colors as a jealous, mean girl and Max had nearly attacked me. Taylor hadn’t done anything directly to upset me, but he hadn’t exactly gone out of his way to patch things up either. Douchebags.
I flicked the drier back on high, letting the buzz drown out my melancholy memories. Today was the day I’d been busting my ass for—for years—I wasn’t about to let anyone or anything ruin it.
Unfortunately, thoughts of Grant had haunted my dreams and were still clinging to the edge of my mind as I hurried across town. I made my way inside, ignoring the people around me, and keeping to myself as I followed the coordinators and school staff’s instructions as they worked to herd everyone to their places.
“Okay everyone, let’s get this going!” The main coordinator shouted over the dull roar of students as we all milled around the stadium where the graduation would take place. Everyone was buzzing with restless energy and excited cheers and squeals rang out as people bumped into familiar faces. It was like a flashback to my high school graduation.
I’d been alone then, too. I shrugged off the thought and did my best to keep my eyes on the coordinator as she worked to get us all into the right seating arrangement in the center of the field. Ahead of the seats, a large stage was erected, where the different speakers and presenters would be sitting throughout the event. And then, at the end, the moment I was looking forward to the most, we would each take our turn walking across the stage and receiving our diploma and handshake.
Freedom.
At last.
“Megan?” I cringed at the melodic sound of Jeanine’s voice as it filtered to my ears. “Megan!” She repeated, her voice higher.
I wiped the wince off my face and turned to see her barreling towards me, arms open wide. Before I could say a word, she plowed into me and wrapped me in a death grip embrace. “Jeanine!” I gasped out in a sharp breath, my ribs aching for release.
She let me go and took an abrupt step backward, as if suddenly embarrassed by her enthusiasm. “Sorry. Uh—how are you?”
I arched a brow at her, silently questioning if that was really a smart question for her to ask, all things considered. Her face was bright and easy, as if nothing had ever happened. It was like she’d just seen me yesterday and that we’d talked about our new favorite movie and the hot guy working the counter at the coffee shop. Had she hit her head?
She was still smiling, waiting for my answer, so I sucked in a breath and offered a brief clip of a smile. “Good, I guess. Just really busy.” I resisted adding, with my job at Timeless Timepieces.
Jeanine’s smile faltered a moment and then she nodded. “Yeah. Listen, Megan, I want to tell you how sorry I am. I acted like a complete bitch and you never deserved that.”
Her words, combined with the honest expression on her delicate face melted away the remaining traces of anger left inside of me and for the first time, I was hit by just how much I’d missed her. How much I’d missed having a friend. “What happened to us?” I found myself asking. There were dozens of questions, but that was the one that rose to the top.
“I don’t know. I was so stressed out about school and money and things with Taylor…” she looked away for a moment, her words getting drowned out by her own thoughts.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, setting a hand on her wrist.
She brought her eyes back to mine and they were glossy with unshed tears. She opened her mouth to speak but then shook her head. “No, not really,” she finally sputtered out. “Taylor was cheating on me.”
Both of my eyebrows shot sky high. Taylor and Jeanine had been together for a long time and had never seemed to have any issue bigger than what to eat for dinner. “Wow, Jeanine, I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks,” she replied, gulping back the lump in her throat. “We’re over, obviously.”
I nodded before casting a sidelong glance around the field, suddenly worried he was lurking nearby, listening to us.
Jeanine caught my glance and said, “He’s not here. He was expelled.”
“What?”
“Max too.”
My heart crumpled in on itself at Max’s name. I hadn’t let myself think too much about everything that had happened, preferring to keep that mess locked in a box in the back of my mind. I hadn’t told anyone except for Grant, and he’d never brought it up or asked further questions.
“Yeah, those two tool bags were expelled for…sexual harassment.”
All of Jeanine’s bombshell confessions rocked me, but the last one hit too close to home and tears sideswiped me, flooding down my cheeks before I could even register them in my eyes.
“Oh my God, Meg, are you okay?” Jeanine asked, her eyes wide.
The coordinator started calling people forward, and although I knew I should focus on what she was saying, I couldn’t get my emotions under
control long enough to pay attention. Jeanine glanced back at the stage and then hustled me away in the direction of the nearest ladies room. “We’ll figure it out later,” she said, sensing my question as we got father away from the rest of the students. “I mean really, how hard can it be to sit in a chair and then walk across a stage.”
We stepped inside the bathroom and Jeanine did a quick sweep to make sure it was empty before turning her attention back to me. “What’s going on, Megs?”
Her question blasted aside the last of my hesitation and the whole story spilled out…meeting Grant…getting the job offer…the night with Max…the fight with my dad and brothers…Logan…everything.
Jeanine listened, only interjecting to ask questions every few minutes as the recounting came together.
“Holy shit,” she said when I finally stopped speaking.
I nodded and a small, insane giggle burst from my lips. My tears were dry and I turned towards the mirror to fix the eyeliner smudges under each eye. “It’s been a little…much.”
Jeanine retrieved a wad of toilet paper and handed it to me as I dabbed away the mess. Her face lined up next to mine in the mirror and I saw the traces of her own tears return to the corners of her eyes. “I’m so sorry. For everything. If I hadn’t been so selfish…”
“Hey,” I interrupted, squeezing her hand. “It’s okay. I get it.”
She shook her head and looked down at her shoes. “I feel like such a bitch.”
“Well…” I teased, giggling again, this time the sound had more warmth and it felt good, like the first flash of happiness I’d seen for days.
Jeanine laughed too and although the damage had still been done, there was a moment of healing that bonded us back together again.
“So, what happened? With Taylor…and Max.”
Jeanine threw away the shards of makeup caked toilet paper and washed her hands, taking the extra beat to gather herself. “Taylor and I had a big fight because I’d found pictures of some chicks tits on his phone. He said it was a wrong number, he didn’t know her, blah, blah, bullshit. I kicked him out of the apartment so he went to crash with Max. They went to a party on campus and from what I’ve been told, they got a girl drunk, some freshman, and banged her. When she woke up, she said she didn’t want it, and threw all these accusations around. I don’t know. The school kicked them out and they’d probably both be facing rape charges if Taylor’s daddy didn’t have so much fucking money.” She paused to make a disgusted face. “I can’t believe I wasted so much time on him.”
Her eyes were fixed on her reflection but her eyes went dark, like she wasn’t really seeing herself. Her thoughts were pulling her somewhere else. I wrapped an arm around her. “It’s going to be okay.”
“Yeah.” She took a final swipe at her eyes and then turned to look at me. “Guess we should get back out there. Friends?”
“Friends,” I repeated.
We left the bathroom and found our way to our seats as the practice ceremony was wrapping up. The rehearsal concluded and Jeanine and I were talking lunch plans as we walked out.
“Here are your tickets,” a woman seated at a table called out as we strolled by.
Jeanine grabbed two packets and handed me one. Inside were ten glossy pages that acted as tickets for whatever family and friends we had invited to attend. When we had first received notice that we would get ten tickets, I’d been happy that I’d be able to invite Dad, all four of my brothers, and their families to attend my graduation. But as I stared down at the pages in my hands, I let myself wonder who would actually show up for the ceremony after everything that had happened over the past weeks.
Sensing my thoughts, Jeanine glanced down at the pages in my hand, “They’ll be here, Megs. Don’t think they would miss it.”
I smiled at her effort to cheer me up.
I hoped she was right.
* * * *
By the time I made my way to my seat, every muscle in my body was twitching with nervous energy. I couldn’t get my thoughts into a straight line. My stomach felt like a blender that had been permanently stuck on pulse. Jeanine and I’d ditched the student luncheon in favor of one of our favorite Mexican restaurants, and as I settled into my seat, I was regretting every bite of enchilada. From my place, I couldn’t see where Jeanine was seated. She was mixed in with the other marketing students. I looked around my section and although many of the faces looked familiar after spending countless hours in class with them, I was struck by how few of them I was on a name by name basis. Being an artist had always been a rather solitary life and other than my family and close group of friends, I’d never really needed anyone else.
Growing up, my brothers had been my friends, playmates, and occasionally enemies. I’d had a few friends, but we never seemed to have all that much in common. The types of games I grew up playing were all a little too rough and tumble for the girls in my neighborhood. When I got older, the girls around me were more interested in boys and shopping than anything else. I’d been to a few slumber parties and on shopping trips, but it had never been enough to hold my full attention.
The memories from my childhood stirred up other memories as well, and before I even realized what was happening, my thoughts were locked on Grant. I’d skipped out the last day of my internship, trusting that he would sign off on my work regardless of his prior threats. He hadn’t called me and I hadn’t called him either. From the outside, it appeared to finally be over. Over, over, this time. And for the life of me, I couldn’t decide how I felt about that new reality.
A soft music piped over the sound system once all of the students were seated and minutes later, the stadium seats above began to fill. I strained to look around, silently hoping that my family would be somewhere in those seats. After lunch with Jeanine, I’d gone home but had been met with an empty house. I dropped off the tickets on the table and called to leave a voicemail on my dad’s phone. In the hours leading up to the ceremony, I’d checked my phone compulsively, waiting for any indication that they’d seen the tickets and that they’d be there. I’d even called my oldest brother, Sam, to see if he knew what was going on, but had been put through to his voicemail too.
I sighed and leaned back in my chair, abandoning my search.
For the past year, I’d looked to graduation to be the day I could wipe the slate clean. I could set aside past mistakes and bad choices and move forward into the new life that I’d intended to build for myself. One that would help my family and could set me free from the tethers of endless school work to finally pursue my real dreams. A twinge of excitement gripped me as I thought about the job offer I’d accepted days before. I was on the threshold of my new life, and yet, the baggage from the past months was weighing me down and keeping me from feeling completely happy.
The ceremony began, and it became easier to shake off my negative thoughts and focus on the accomplishment of receiving my diploma. There were a series of speeches that celebrated hard work, dedication, and commended the student body as a whole for their achievements. By the time I was ready to take the stage, my cheeks were warm and my stomach finally released the nervous cramp in a flutter of excitement.
“Megan Louise Sinclair, Bachelor of Arts,” the speaker called out to the appreciative roar of the crowd.
I gulped back the rest of my anxiety and crossed the stage, my smile growing with each step. I took the hand of the president of the school and then posed for a professional photo as my diploma was handed over. As the flash went off, a loud whoop filtered into my ear and I glanced up at the source of the sound.
My heart jumped into my throat as I saw my brother Sam standing up with his arms in the air to get my attention. Tears filled my eyes and a stunned laugh burst forth as I noted my dad, Robbie, Phillip, Kevin, and my brother Sam’s wife and their two daughters sitting in the seats next to him. All of them were smiling, clapping, and cheering for me as I held the diploma up over my head.
As my eyes cleared from the flash spots, I sucke
d in a sharp breath.…
Grant was sitting to the right of my father, smiling and applauding just as hard as the rest of them.
I caught his eye and he gave a small nod before flashing one of his heart stopping, mind melting smiles.
I had no idea what he was doing there, or how he’d gotten in, but it felt right.
Chapter Ten — Grant
Megan was stunning. As she caught my eye, I held my breath for a beat, wondering what she was thinking. Would she be furious to find out that I’d wiggled my way into the ceremony? Or would she be happy that I was here to witness her big day?
If I’d learned anything about Megan, it was that she valued her privacy above just about anything else and I’d, once again, probably crossed the line.
I smiled at her and she returned it and even from the distance, I saw a twinge of pink flash across her cheeks before she turned to exit the stage as the next student’s name was called.
The rest of the ceremony dragged on, each minute proving to be a slow torture as I waited to get to her. Finally, the president gave the closing speech and the students were dismissed in groups.
Charles, Megan’s father, was still sitting, staring towards the now empty stage. “That was some ceremony, huh?” I asked, leaning over towards him.
He glanced at me and I noticed his eyes were shiny. “It was. I’m so proud of her. I hope she knows.”
“She does.”
Charles nodded but kept his head tucked and quietly said, “I just can’t help but wish Megan’s mother was here to see it.”
My chest tightened around my heart at his confession. I thought back to my own college graduation. It had been a day very much like this, and my mother and father had both been waving and applauding for me from their seats. My father had always been a fairly serious man, his mind always on the next business deal, but on that day, he’d set that all aside and I couldn’t remember back to a day where I’d seen him more happy. I understood the loss and grief in his words, even though my father had been at my graduation, there was so much that he’d missed, and things he would miss. I thought about Megan and what it would be like to take her to meet my mother someday, and what my father would have said had he been able to meet her.
