May the Best Man Win

by BJ Bentley

  I paused and waited for the applause to die down.

  “As of today, this university campus is powered by forty percent solar power which we will increase to sixty percent over the next two years!”

  The crowd went wild at my proclamation. People cheered as flashbulbs threatened to blind me. I had to fight the urge to glance in Sophie’s direction. She’d wanted to stay hidden under the awning, hoping no one would notice her or speculate who she was to me.

  Once the cheers died down, I waved Tanaka over to the podium. We posed for the gaggle of photojournalists in the front row, and I turned the microphone over to Roy, so he could say his piece. Once the spotlight was off me, I made my way back under the awning behind the makeshift stage where the crowd couldn’t see us.

  “That was...impressive.” Sophie’s face was split by a wide smile.

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah. Though, it’s really annoying just how charming you are. I kind of wanted to vomit a little.”

  “You say the sweetest things, doll.”

  “I’m a romantic at heart.”

  I was about to bestow a wet kiss on my romantic girl when I heard my name being called by a voice that turned my insides cold.

  “Damon!”

  I turned to face the bane of my existence. “What are you doing here, Georgia?”

  She sauntered up to me with a little too much sway in her hips, and it wasn’t because she was trying to be sexy. I took in her flushed cheeks, her glassy eyes, and her uneven steps. The scent of alcohol wafting off of her confirmed my suspicions.

  “Damon-” She planted her hands on my chest, and the smell of booze became infinitely stronger.

  “Are you drunk?” I hissed.

  “No! I jusst,” she slurred, “had a little nip to relax.”

  “Un-fucking-believable. What are you doing in LA?”

  “I came to see you. I have to talk to you,” she whined.

  “We can talk when you’re sober, but I can guarantee you’re not going to like what I have to say.” She’d blown off her time with Tierney and had the nerve to show up drunk to the biggest event in my career so far. Typical Georgia. Selfish, conceited Georgia. I waved the security guard over and pinned him with a glare. “I don’t know how she got back here, but she’s not welcome. Please make sure she makes it back to wherever it is that she’s staying.”

  “No! Damon, please listen-”

  “Georgia, you listen. This is your last chance to build a relationship with your daughter. Get sober and stay that way before you fuck it all up. Again.” I gave her my back just as she started to cry.

  “Damon, maybe-” Sophie began.

  “Do not ask me to show her any mercy right now,” I warned.

  “Okay,” she whispered with big eyes.

  “Damon!” Georgia was still wailing as the security guard led her away.

  Chapter 34

  Damon

  “I think I’m going to lie down for a bit,” Sophie said softly once the private jet was in the air.

  She’d been...off... most of the weekend, and it bothered me that she wouldn’t talk to me about what was going on in her head. I had a pretty good idea, but I wanted her to feel comfortable enough to broach it with me, and that was something she had yet to do. After everything else she’d confided, this should be a cake walk. Instead, she was hiding in the sleeper cabin, and I was stuck answering emails from Lydia and touching base with operations at Hatchling Tech. I already had multiple requests for interviews and T.V. appearances, none of which I was particularly interested in accommodating.

  On the bright side, the solar panel project unveiling had been a success and investors interested in future projects were already reaching out. The bad news was, I couldn’t give them my focus because I was too distracted by feeling like the woman I loved was still just beyond my reach. I dropped the tablet onto the seat next to me, and made my way to the bedroom at the back of the plane’s cabin. We were going to hash this out whether she wanted to or not.

  “Darlin’?” I called, opening the door and slipping into the darkened room. I could make out her silhouette, curled into the fetal position on the bed.

  She lifted her head at my call.

  I sat on the edge of the bed, near her hips, and brushed her hair back. “We need to talk.”

  “Okay.”

  “Let me rephrase. You need to talk to me.”

  “I know,” she sighed.

  “What’s going on up here?” I tapped her temple lightly, letting my fingers drift over her soft skin. Once I started touching her, I never could stop. She pulled me in like a magnet from the very beginning, and no matter how many jibes she threw at me, no matter how hard she pushed me away, her pull was stronger.

  “Just thinking.”

  “Tell me, Sophie. If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it together.”

  “I’m not trying to keep anything from you, Damon, I’m just...processing.”

  “Processing?”

  “Yeah. You know, it’s just a lot. You’re a lot.”

  “I’m a lot?” I didn’t know whether I was more amused by her wording or frustrated by her meaning.

  She sat up, dragging herself to the top of the bed to rest against the headboard, but if she thought she was getting space, she was sorely mistaken. I climbed onto the bed and settled in right next to her.

  “You and everything that comes with you. What it means to actually be with you. It’s always been intense with us, ya know? You’re intense. And you’ve got this whole world around you. One where you donate large sums of money to charitable causes and pull strings with your fancy friends to secure an art gallery for an employee who probably otherwise wouldn’t have the means to do it herself. You travel in a private jet and give big speeches and get your picture taken by the paparazzi.”

  I shifted uncomfortably on the bed. “I didn’t realize my money was such an issue.”

  “It’s not.”

  I still couldn’t see her very well since we were sitting in the dark, but I got the impression she was shaking her head.

  “It’s just that that’s your world while my world consists of teaching seven year olds how to count change and not pull each other’s hair. And apparently not to gamble,” she muttered, bizarrely.

  She thought we were too different. I’d figured that’s where her mind had gone, and now that it was confirmed, I could go about setting her to rights. “I played football in high school. And a little in college. I was nowhere near the star that Johnny was, but I still played.”

  “What does that-”

  “Just hear me out. I came from money; you know that, and I can’t help where I came from. But I still played football, drank beer when I was underage, and lost my virginity in the backseat of a car to a cheerleader who had given it up to about fifteen guys before me.”

  “Not sure I need to hear about that,” she muttered.

  I ignored her grumbling and continued. “In college, I partied a little too hard, and sometimes I think it’s a miracle that I passed my History of Film elective.”

  “Oh, my God, the one with Dr. Latham?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “I took that class because April recommended it. I hated it.”

  “Me, too. Anyway, not long after graduation, I knocked up Georgia, a woman I could never claim to love. And I became a dad, and it was the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, despite the circumstances and despite the hell that Georgia….” I cleared my throat. “I give money to charity because I have the means to do so. I support Lydia’s photography because she’s not just an invaluable employee, she’s my friend, and that’s what you do for people who mean something to you. My company strives to develop clean energy because I give a shit about the world, and I want it to be better. And I don’t want to be like my old man, hanging onto the old ways because I’m too afraid to forge ahead into the unknown and make my own way. What I’m trying to say is, I have a past that isn’t much diff
erent from yours. I’m still a regular guy who happens to be a business owner and a father. And I happen to be madly in love with this incredible woman who, despite being far more than she ever gives herself credit for, loves me too, but won’t admit it.”

  Her voice, husky with emotion, filtered to my ears. “There you go, making big, fancy speeches again.”

  I chuckled, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her into my side. “I’ve always been good at persuasive argument.”

  “Well, it was beautiful but unnecessary.”

  “Oh?”

  “I’d already come to the conclusion that despite how intimidating this weekend has been for me, I still want to be with you because whatever this is that we have is worth it. And when something is worth the fight, you give it your all, right?”

  “Right,” I mumbled into her hair, kissing the top of her head. “Go big or go home.”

  “I wanna go big.”

  I smiled. “There are so many things I could say to that-” My words cut off when she swatted my chest.

  “We were having a moment, and you just had to go and perv it up, didn’t you?”

  “What do you say we let Sexy Sophie come out to play for a bit? We have about thirty minutes before we land, and I bet I can make you come at least three times before the fasten seatbelts sign comes on.”

  “Only three?” she taunted me. Little minx.

  I grabbed her under the arms and pulled her with me as I rolled, stopping when she was planted underneath me. “Three, and I’ll throw in a bonus if you enjoy it enough for the pilot to hear you.”

  “Game on.”

  “That’s my girl.”

  ***

  Sophie was still straightening her clothing as we exited the car that drove us back to my place from the airport. I tipped the driver after he helped us carry our luggage inside, sending him on his way with a knowing look on his face.

  “He totally knows you fingered me in the backseat on the way here,” she grumbled.

  “Yup.” I was fairly certain my smile resembled that of the Cheshire cat.

  Pushing our luggage to the side, I closed the front door and guided Sophie to the kitchen where the aroma of garlic led my nose. Feeling pretty good thinking that I was about to stuff myself with whatever magical concoction Chloe was making, I didn’t even realize the disaster that we were about to walk into.

  “What the fuck?” I breathed. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’m sorry, Damon, I tried to stop him,” my mom said, wringing her hands.

  “It’s okay, Mom.” It wasn’t my mother’s unexpected presence that concerned me. “What are you doing here, Dad?”

  Teddy Hatch cleared twenty years worth of disapproval and self-righteousness from his throat. “Son, I’m sorry,” he mumbled.

  “I’m sorry, could you repeat that?”

  “Damon,” my mother gently admonished.

  I couldn’t help it. My father, stubborn asshole that he was, was standing in front of me offering an apology that I never in a million years would have imagined receiving. “Alright, fine.” I held both hands up in surrender. “Can I at least ask what brought this on?”

  My father took a deep breath and blew it out shakily. “Your mother. She’s been on my ass about you for years, but I was stubborn.”

  I quirked a brow at my mother who just rolled her eyes. “And after all these years, you finally decided to listen?”

  “Yes, well. It needed to be said.”

  I looked back and forth between the two of them. “You want her back,” I realized. “You want her back, and this was her condition, wasn’t it?” I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. “I bet you didn’t think she was serious about leaving you,” I crowed.

  “Damon,” Sophie chastised.

  “Well, better late than never, I suppose.” I never thought I’d see the day that proud, stubborn Teddy Hatch would bow to his wife and swallow his pride, but I wasn’t about to let the opportunity go. I wasn’t a stupid man, and I wasn’t a heartless one either.

  “That’s it? You’re going to forgive me just like that?”

  I shrugged. “Truth be told, Dad, my life is pretty fucking amazing. I’ve got my daughter, the love of my life, and my company. Frankly, I don’t have the time or energy to waste on grudges.”

  “I was expecting more push back from you.”

  “It’s not a fight, Dad. We’ve always been right here, waiting for you to get your head out of your ass. You were the one fighting it.”

  His face reddened, and he looked like he was gearing up to tell me off, but he caught my mom’s eye and the anger seemed to dissipate.

  “I do have a condition, though.”

  He straightened. “What’s that?”

  “You will acknowledge your granddaughter or you will get the hell out of my house and not return. Ever.”

  “Yes. Yes, of course. Can I see her now?”

  I looked to Chloe who was standing in the corner watching the whole exchange with wide eyes.

  “I’ll go get her,” she said, dashing toward the stairs.

  In the end, Chloe doubled up on her chicken parm recipe, and the six of us ate dinner together. Sophie didn’t balk at wading into a tense and awkward situation and regaled both my parents with stories about our weekend and the installation unveiling. She thoroughly charmed both of them, and they both wisely kept their mouths shut about her profession. I had already promised myself the second either of them made a comment about social status, their snobby asses would be out of my house. Thankfully, that didn’t happen.

  Tierney didn’t take to my father as quickly or as easily as she had taken to my mother, but she was still willing to give him a chance. I couldn’t have been prouder of my little girl. My dad was obviously impressed with her intelligence, but I wondered if he’d give her the same rapt attention if she was just an average seven year old. I supposed it didn’t matter, since she was far from average, and he was here putting in the effort.

  I wasn’t so naive to believe that the past was all water under the bridge, but him being here and apologizing was a hell of a start. I had no intention of making him jump through hoops to get in my good graces, but neither was I going to forget all the things that were said in anger or the fact that, up until now, he’d ignored his granddaughter. But, I was willing to play it by ear, and knowing that Sophie would be there right beside me made me look forward to whatever it was this dysfunctional family reunion might bring.

  Chapter 35

  Sophie

  Two weeks later

  There was only one thing that could have made this day any better- if Stella Starling slipped and face planted into that puddle of lava left over from Mrs. Cushing’s class’s vinegar and baking soda disaster. Their project turned out to be more of a tsunami rather than a volcano, the volatile mixture spewing several feet into the air and coating everything in its path on the way down. Stella managed to get some on her Manolos, which was a nice touch, but I’d have loved to see it in her silky smooth, perfectly coiffed hair.

  I knew having those thoughts made me a catty bitch. I knew it. But, I just could not find it in me to be the better person. The high road was a path intended for the morally superior, and I was about as deep in the trenches as I could get. Forget my criminal history of livestock theft and sleeping with my student’s father. I’d sunk much lower. When disaster struck, I did nothing to stop it.

  One hour earlier

  I watched Georgia and Damon speak in the far corner of the gymnasium. Damon was wearing his stoicism proudly while Georgia’s face was contorted in rage. Her flailing arms and shrieks of defiance only added to the spectacle.

  The science fair had only started twenty minutes ago and already it was a debacle of epic proportions. Kids were late, supplies were lost, experiments failed. Thankfully, my class’s robotic experiment went off without a hitch, and everyone from parents to teachers were impressed. Miss Sterling’s class’s presentation on bioluminescence
was actually pretty cool too, but we’ve already established that I’m too petty to admit that out loud.

  As Georgia’s voice continued to rise, Damon caught her by the arm and attempted to guide her to the exit, however the drama queen wasn’t having it. She dug her heels in, yanking her arm from his grasp, and nearly toppled over in her stilettos.

  I tore my eyes away as a group of parents approached our table. I wrapped my hand around the back of Tierney’s neck and gave her a squeeze. “Hey, kiddo, how about you demonstrate our energy experiment for the group?” I waited for her nod and then whispered in her ear, “I’m going to make sure your dad’s okay.” I signaled to one of the other teachers to keep eyes on my class’s table before making my way over to the far side of the gym.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” I murmured, stepping up to Damon’s side.

  “What is she doing here?” Georgia hissed at Damon, not bothering to address me directly, because why would she, right?

  I rolled my eyes even as Damon answered. “She works here, Georgia.”

  Georgia sneered. “Bangin’ a teacher, Damon? How lowly of you.”

  My spine stiffened but not because she insulted me or my chosen profession. She’d just insulted one of the best men I’d ever met in my life. Someone who consistently did what was best for the people he cared about. Someone who worked hard every day to do what was best for the general population and the environment. Someone who made difficult decisions concerning the welfare of his child because he wanted to do right by her even if it made things more difficult for himself. Someone who was noble and admirable and lovable.

  I loved him.

  I loved him.

  My stomach dipped at my realization. Holy shit, I was in love with Damon. Of course, I was! It was so obvious, and I was being an idiot. My thoughts were all over the place. What was I supposed to do now? Did I tell him? Here and now didn’t really seem ideal or even appropriate. Should I do something special for him and then tell him? Like cook him dinner? Or give him a blowjob? Whatever, I didn’t have time to freak out about it; I had a crisis to avert.