Page 115 of A Matter of Fact

CHAPTERTHIRTY-FOUR

BECKETT’S LIFE CHANGES

Beckett snuck through the crowd of his coworkers until he found Audra and Hunter gathered together in the back corner of the group. He joined them, left hand in his pocket, thumb tracing a worry line over the gold band Rhys had put on his finger the night before.

He was engaged.

He was going to marry Rhys St. George.

What a world.

“What do you think the meeting is about?” Audra whispered in lieu of a greeting.

“Maybe Heather has finally snapped and she’s going toInglorious Basterdsus back here.” Beckett glanced around the kitchen to assess potential exit routes.

“I bet the restaurant has been bought,” Hunter offered. “It was only a matter of time before a corporation came in and snatched it up.”

From the front of the crowd, Heather cleared her throat and everyone went quiet. She looked her usual horrible self, if not a little more tired. She was flanked by two men in suits who looked like they had a pressing engagement elsewhere. One of them muttered something to her and her face flushed. She cleared her throat again.

“I think it’s closer to Beckett’s guess,” Audra mumbled.

“Hey, guys.” Heather gave a weak wave. “Hi, everyone. Thanks for coming so early today. I wish I had better news, but I guess I’ll just cut to the chase. The owners, who aren’t even here, sold the restaurant.”

A rush of confused questions started to filter up from the rest of the staff, but Beckett remained silent, his heart sinking into his stomach. He had enough experience reading people to know that Heather wasn’t about to offer up a peaceful transition of ownership plan.

“We’re closed,” she said, diverting her eyes. “Effective immediately.”

“What thefuck?” Audra cursed under her breath.

The collective confusion turned to shock and anger, and then the two men in suits beside Heather took over.

“We have final checks,” one of them announced, holding up a stack of envelopes and waving them in the air.

“This is shit,” Beckett groaned. He knew he was lucky. His boyfriend—his fiancé—had just bought a multi-million dollar beach house for them to start their life in. His days of Ramen and celery were far behind him. The news of the restaurant’s closure hit him differently than it would have two months before, and he threw a quick glance at Audra, who stared ahead with pursed lips and a sour expression on her face.

“Are you gonna be okay?” he asked her.

She flicked her head toward him, not quite looking at him. “I’ll be fine. What about you?”

“Yeah.” He hadn’t told her about the proposal yet. “Rhys and I were planning on moving in together anyway.”

Her expression softened and she smiled.

“Good. That’s good.” Audra turned to Hunter. “You good with this?”

“I’ve been bartending at Lion,” he said with a shrug. “The tips are better there anyway. I’ll manage.”

“Good.”

One of the suits called Beckett’s name and he collected his check, then lingered in the back until Audra and Hunter had theirs. Together, they walked outside, the weekend sun bright and glaring. Beckett put on his sunglasses and folded his check, shoving it into his back pocket.

Hunter said his goodbyes leaving him and Audra on the sidewalk. She stared at the shuttered porch with the stacked tables and chairs, then gave Beckett a lopsided smile.

“We’ll get together after you’re settled in the new place?” she suggested, and he nodded, returning her smile.

“Sounds good.”

They hugged, and Beckett walked the long way around the block to his car, pulling out his phone once he closed the door behind him. It had been weeks since he’d tried to call his sister and weeks since she’d ignored him. That didn’t stop him from checking, and his heart still fell when he didn’t have missed messages from her, but a little less every time. He considered that progress. It was fine, or itwouldbe fine. Rhys was lucky that he was able to repair things with Sebastian, and he was thankful for them. Family wasn’t perfect, and now he could come to terms with the fact that his didn’t want him.