Just a Number(70)

Owen has company, and I just outed our relationship to him.

“S-Stephen,” I squeak, my knees threatening to give out. He’s looking at me, his eyes wide and full of shock, and my first instinct is to flee the room. To hide somewhere and tell myself this didn’t just happen. It’s stupid and obviously not the best course of action or even going to work, but that’s where my brain goes in the moment.

His eyes move from me to Owen, and then he gives his head a quick shake as if to clear it. “Wait. What’s going on here?” he asks, but before either of us can answer, he carries on. “You two?” He points at Owen. “You’re the older guy she’s seeing?” He looks back at me. “And you’re the younger girl?”

A part of me still thought Stephen had it all figured out, but as he continues to stammer and move his gaze between us, I realize he didn’t know any more than anyone else, other than Carla.

Until I ruined it all.

Again.

Owen and I remain silent. I’m honestly not sure what to do, not that it matters, because Stephen stands up. I fear what he’s going to say, especially given Carla’s initial reaction to finding out.

“Well, this explains a lot,” he says, running his fingers through his short blond hair. He surprises us both, keeping his composure and drawing our eyes to his. He fixes his gaze on mine again, and I grow nervous. “Have you told your dad yet?”

I shake my head, my palm starting to sweat around the hanger holding my dress. “N-not yet. We’re telling him in a couple of days.” Before he can say anything else, I drop my dress and Victoria’s Secret bag to the floor and start toward him. “Look, Stephen—”

Holding his hands up, he shakes his head. “I told you not to justify your relationship. That’s between the two of you.” He pauses. “I mean, yeah, I’m a little surprised I didn’t see this for what it was, but you’re both happier than I’ve seen in a while. Nobody can deny that.” This time when he pauses, the air in the room thickens and feels foreboding. “This isn’t going to be easy, though. You guys know that, right? Alan’s going to flip his shit. It was one thing when he thought you were seeing some older guy…but his best friend?”

I lean against the wall, unable to hold myself up anymore, and thrust my fingers through my hair. “We know,” I assure him. “It’s why we were waiting until after Christmas.”

“Look,” Stephen continues, “I love you both, and as unusual as your situation is, I can see that you make each other happy. But you need to come clean. Remember what I told you, Amelia.”

I nod slowly as Stephen turns to Owen with an awkward smile, picking up a large envelope from the coffee table. “I should go,” he announces. “I’ll have these sent to Gretchen tomorrow, but everything’s in order.”

“Right. Thanks,” Owen replies, not looking at Stephen, his concerned gaze fixed on me instead.

As Stephen vacates the room, the condo door closing behind him, I slide to the floor, my hands shaking as I run them through my hair again, frustrated. “I can’t believe I did that,” I mumble, dropping my forehead to my bent knees and groaning.

I sense Owen’s presence before I feel his hands on mine, gently freeing them from my hair and pulling me to my feet. “You didn’t know he was here, and I didn’t think you’d be home for a couple more hours, otherwise I’d have called.” Owen smirks slightly before adding, “So I guess it’s safe to say he didn’t know at Christmas, huh?”

“That’s not funny.” I want to mean it, but I fail at suppressing a smile.

“It is a little.” His eyes drift to my discarded bags, and I realize my new bra is half out of the bag. Owen picks it up and cocks a brow. “So, you had a successful shopping trip?”

My smile widens as I remember everything I got today, and the Stephen thing is momentarily on the back burner. “Actually, yeah. I found my dress—it’s perfect—and the mask is exquisite.” I snatch the bra from his grasp and pick up my other things from the floor. “I needed a new strapless bra for under the dress, so I made a quick stop before coming home.”

“Strapless?” Owen says, sounding a little dazed as his eyes light up with piqued interest. “Do I get to see it? The dress?”

Shaking my head, I step up onto my toes and kiss him lightly. Unlike the day Carla found out about Owen and me, I’m glad that my run-in with Stephen doesn’t seem to have affected us. Maybe it’s because, while somewhat surprised, he was more accepting than she was originally. Sure, she came around, but for the rest of that night, things between the three of us were more than just a little awkward.