“I promise, Lana, you’ll get used to it, and before long, you’re having a three way conversation and managing to keep up,” Tonya said.
Lana smiled at the other woman.
****
Kent tightened his grip on Lana’s shoulders. He felt her shaking from the nerves. His family were hard to deal with at first. Growing up with all of them made it easier for him to keep up with each conversation. It was one of the reasons he believed he was a good businessman.
Tonya’s advice was nice to hear. The other woman had stopped him from going inside the house along with his brother Seth. They were worried about him because of his lack of visits to the family home. He saw the love Tonya had for his brother, and after all this time he truly believed she loved Seth.
He couldn’t force Tonya to stop loving his brother. They were never meant to be. Kent understood that now. Running his fingers up and down Lana’s arm he felt at peace. Lana was meant to be here with him. Her place was by his side even though she kept trying to run away from him.
Before coming home, he’d phoned his parents to warn them about Lana’s insecurities. They were simply being themselves around her.
Lana picked up the cup of tea. She took a sip and winced.
“Oh no, too much sugar,” Sophie said. The cup was whisked out of her hands and thrown in the sink. He watched as Sophie then started to make another drink.
“Where are your men?” he asked.
“Football,” Dawn and Sophie said.
He turned to Eric. “My woman’s shopping with the kids. They need a new costume for some school play, and you know my woman. She needs to make it herself.”
Kent nodded. The few times he’d come home for Sunday lunch he’d felt sorry for his siblings. Their lives were constantly filled with the mundane crap that came with a steady woman or man and a family.
Now, as he stood behind Lana he saw something completely different. Kent saw himself from their perspective. He saw a lonely older man with nothing but work to keep him company.
Turning around he saw Seth rubbing Tonya’s shoulders as she helped their oldest son do homework. The connection among all of them made him feel lonely.
He watched as his dad moved to where his mom was peeling potatoes for dinner. Derek put his hands on Penny’s h*ps and was whispering against her ear. The love he witnessed startled him.
Kent didn’t have any of this. When they all went home, they had their partners, husbands and wives to wrap up warm to. What did he have? A beeping phone where he could call any woman and a black book filled with numbers of women he didn’t want.
His life was meaningless.
“Kent, why don’t you show Lana your old room?” Penny said.
Nodding, Kent took Lana’s hand and escorted her to his room. He had slept on the top floor.
“Wow, your family is huge,” Lana said.
“They’re a great bunch. Were you struggling to keep up?” he asked.
“I was getting there. It was pretty hectic.” She smiled. He kept a firm grip on her hand as they made their way up to his room.
He opened the door. The only other woman in his childhood bedroom was Tonya.
“You’ve got a lot of trophies,” Lana said. “You’ve gone all silent on me.”
“I’m just thinking.” He sat down on his bed, picking up the ball his mother had left there on his last day of college.
“What are you thinking about?” Lana tucked some stray strands of hair behind her ear. The glasses she wore made her look adorable.
Kent let out a sigh. “I’ve not come to a family dinner in some time. I’ve always made an excuse not to be here. Work, dates, my friends.”
“You were hiding from Tonya,” Lana said.
“I thought I was hiding from her. It’s insane how I’ve built this wall up between myself and my family,” he said.
She waited for him to speak. He tried to find the right words to say. “I was pissed at Seth and Tonya. I felt they’d betrayed me, but you can’t control the person you fall in love with. They’re in love.”
“I can see that.”
“I didn’t. I thought she wanted the older brother, the guy who’d inherit the real fortune from our dad. I’ve always wanted to go my own way. Dad let me do what I wanted.” He laughed thinking how silly his past thoughts have been. “When I came here, alone, I used to feel sorry for them all. They had family, responsibility. They weren’t free. I thought I had the good life.”
“You don’t think that?” she asked.
“I thought they were jealous of me because I didn’t have any responsibilities. They felt sorry for me because I have nothing.”
“You have something, Kent.” Lana nudged his arm.
Tears filled his eyes as the truth hit him square in the chest. “No, I don’t. What exactly do I have?” He stared down at the ball in his hand. “I’ve got a successful company and a lonely big penthouse f**king apartment. I’ve got friends who’ve settled down with a family.”
He wiped under his eyes as the real loneliness started to set in. “Like I said to you, I don’t have female friends I don’t f**k. I’ve got nothing. When I go home tonight I won’t be going back with a wife or girlfriend. I’ll be going home to an empty apartment. I’ve got a big f**k-off television to keep me company. Man, I’ve got a phone filled with lots of available women who’ll come and sleep with me. But what do I really have? I’ve got nothing.”
She wrapped her arms around him. Tears were streaming down her face. “You’ve not got nothing, Kent.”
“No? Then what do I have? Because right now I feel like a f**king waste of time.” Lana cupped his cheek and turned him to face her. “You’ve got me. I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter Ten
One month later
Lana placed the food down in front of her regular customer. She waited for them to ask for something else. When they ignored her, she walked toward the next customer. She checked the clock on the far wall to see how long she had left before it was time to start heading for her other job. Her time with Kent was the best part of her day. Their time at his family’s home had really cemented their friendship. After she’d promised to always be in his life, Kent had held her close, and their friendship deepened. They were no longer the billionaire business man and the cleaner in her mind. They were simply Kent and Lana, two friends who enjoyed spending time together. He was her first real friend, and she adored him. She checked the clock again to see if the hands had moved faster. This was how her life had become, clock watching.