15. The Boat Cruise.

TONY.

I was surprised to see Beth on the boat but I was happy to see her too. My father suggested that I go on a boat cruise to get my mind off Lara and the failed wedding. I was touring the boat when I saw her from afar so I decided to walk over to her. She apologized for things she had no control over and I told her it wasn’t her fault. But then she asked a question that made me sad instantly.

“So have you heard from Lara?” she asked.

I didn’t reply for a while because it was still a touchy issue for me. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the cool breeze as it blew on my face. When I opened my eyes, she was still staring back at me in eagerness. I sighed and replied, “I haven’t heard from her or seen her since she ditched me on the altar,” I responded.

Beth apologized again and I cautioned her once more, telling her it wasn’t her fault. “What about you? Has she reached out to you or any of the other girls?” I asked.

“No, she hasn’t. I’m really worried about her but the cops said they’ll find her. I just hope they do,” she replied.

“Yeah me too,” I said, beneath my breath.

I wanted to see her too. I deserved an explanation. It was embarrassing what she did but I wanted to hear her excuse because the letter she left me made no sense to me at all.

“That’s Jeremy, my boyfriend,” Beth said, pointing out in a direction.

I looked in the direction she was pointing and I took a good look at the guy she was pointing at. He was handsome for sure but for some unknown reason, I didn’t like him for her but I didn’t say anything, he just looked off and my instinct immediately didn’t trust him. He looked like he was looking for somebody.

“He looks nice,” I said instead.

“I think he’s looking for me. We’re having dinner in about thirty minutes at Arik foods; I have to go now Tony, but I’m sure we’ll see later. Right?” she said, with a beautiful smile.

“Of course we will, take care of yourself,” I replied.

She turned around and began to walk towards her so-called boyfriend. I watched her as she got to where he was standing and spoke into his ears. He replied her and with a smile, she walked off, probably to go to her room.

I turned around and decided to head to the bar to have a drink or a couple of drinks there. That’s all I’ve been doing since that dreadful day, drinking. I sat on the bar stool, taking my drink in sips, just watching people as they walked in and out. I didn’t know for how long I was there but I saw someone familiar. I looked closely and realized he was Beth’s so-called boyfriend. He was walking into the bar and he was not alone. He walked in with another woman and he had his hand around her waist. I watched them as they sat on two bar stools close to the one I was sitting on.

“So, did you come here alone?” I heard the lady ask him.

“No actually, I came with my ex. She wanted to get back with me but I refused. So she suggested we go on this boat cruise and that if after the cruise I still decide not to take her back, then she would back off,” the so-called boyfriend said.

“Urghh, how cheap,” I heard the lady say.

I was so angry I wanted to walk over to where he sat and beat the crap out of him but I held myself back. I got up, paid for my drinks and walked away. I needed to go have dinner with Beth because I knew she was probably at the restaurant, waiting for the scumbag she called her boyfriend. After freshening up, I wore a button-up shirt, a pair of pants and walked out of my room. I walked around until I found the restaurant. I walked in, scanned the room and saw Beth sitting at a table, far from the door.

Poor Beth, I thought. She was probably waiting for him like I had imagined.

She was wearing a navy blue dress and had her long, brown hair in a small bun on top of her head. She did seem like she was wearing makeup but it wasn’t too much. I just wondered how a woman as beautiful as her ended up with jerks as boyfriends.

“I’ll keep her company but I won’t tell her about what I saw. She looks happy; I wouldn’t want to ruin that,” I said to myself. I looked at her and she was checking to see what the time was. I took a deep breath and walked over to her table. “Hey Beth, we meet again,” I said.

“Hi Tony, take a seat. Well for now, only until my boyfriend gets here. He must be running a little bit late,” she said.

“Oh, don’t wait for him,” I said.

She looked at me confused, then asked,

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, I saw him at the bar some minutes back,” I replied.

“Oh, he must have forgotten we were supposed to meet here for dinner. I’m glad he’s having so much fun.”

‘Yea, right, if only you knew,’ I thought.

“But I will be happy to have dinner with you,” I said.

“Oh, you’re welcome to join me,” she answered, flashing me a warm smile.

“Thanks. Have you ordered anything?” I asked her.

“Not yet; I was waiting for Jeremy but let’s go head and order something then,” she responded.

We beckoned for the waitress to come and when she did, we placed our orders. We both ordered for steaks and I offered to buy a bottle of non-alcoholic wine. I asked the waitress to bring their best non-alcoholic wine and she brought the Stella Rosa wine and some wine glasses. Soon, the waitress bought our meals and we began to eat. I opened the bottle of wine and poured drinks for Beth and myself. After a while we were done eating and it was time to pay the bills.

“I’ll pay the bills; don’t worry,” I said.

“No, I invited you to sit with me so I’ll pay,” she said.

For a while we argued about who was going to pay and she won. “Okay but next time I will pay,” I said.

“Agreed”, she responded.