Page 114 of Balancing Act

Beth hummed, tucking a stray curl behind Jamie’s ear before kissing her temple softly. “In the time that we’ve known each other, Jamie, you’ve taught me something important—that showing up, even when it’s hard, is what matters.” Jamie exhaled, the anxiety loosening in her chest even if just for the moment as Beth laced their fingers together, squeezing gently. “You’ve got me. No matter what the results say, we’ll figure it out. Together.”

TWENTY-FIVE

BETH

The energy inside the arena buzzed with nervous anticipation. Beth sat beside Sarah, like she had done so many times before.

“Hello, hello,” a familiar voice said, and Beth looked up to see Sean, accompanied by his daughter, Dylan, and a burly man with dark auburn hair.

“What are you doing here?” She jumped up and hugged Sean first and then Dylan, noticing a folded piece of posterboard in her hands.

“We’re here to cheer for Lily! I made a sign and everything,” Dylan explained, showing Beth the handmade sign complete with glittery letters.

“Oh, she’s going to love that, Dyl!” Dylan smiled before scooting past Beth and Sarah to the empty seats on Sarah’s other side. “But seriously, what on earth are you doing here?” she asked Sean again.

“Amanda and I were chatting on our run the other day, and she was telling me about what a big competition this was for Lily. It just so happened that we all had the weekend free...”

“We?” Beth smirked as she looked between Sean and the man who hadn’t yet said anything.

The man reached past Sean, extending his hand first to Beth and then to Sarah. “Pat Fitz-Simmons. Sean’s boyfriend.” He smiled a familiar smile as he shook their hands.

“Fitz-Simmons?” Sarah questioned.

“Amanda is my little sister. She introduced Sean and me a few months ago.” His smile was sweet as he beamed at Sean with complete adoration. “It’s nice to finally meet both of you. I’ve been telling Sean we should have done this sooner, but you know how he can be.”

Sarah snorted at that, which she quickly tried to conceal with a cough.

“The mystery finally reveals itself!” Beth hugged Pat before allowing him and Sean to pass, joining Dylan. “You never mentioned how good-looking your boyfriend is,” she hissed in Sean’s ear, and when he pulled back, she was pleased to see the faintest blush on his cheeks as he nervously stroked his salt-and-pepper goatee, mumbling a word that sounded like thanks.

As they took their seats, Dylan scanned the competition floor, searching for Lily. “There she is!” she called, as she spotted her somewhere in the back, warming up. “When do you think she’ll see us?” Dylan whispered, gripping the railing in front of her.

Sean grinned. “Soon. Wait until she spots you. She’s gonna freak.”

Sarah leaned closer to Beth, her voice low. “How’s Jamie handling missing this?”

Beth smirked, checking her phone. “She’s about to call in, so you’ll see for yourself.”

However, before she could text Jamie, her phone lit up with a different name. Lane Walker was calling.

Beth blinked. And she had to read the name again to make sure she was seeing it correctly.

“Hold on,” she murmured, standing abruptly.

“You good?” Sean asked, glancing over curiously.

Beth nodded, already stepping into the aisle. “Yeah, just need to take this.”

She wound her way down the steps, weaving past clusters of parents and coaches before slipping into a quieter hallway outside the main arena doors. She pressed the phone to her ear.

“Lane?”

“Beth! Hey! I know this is last-minute, but I couldn’t wait—I have some amazing news.”

Beth braced a hand against the wall, heart kicking up a beat. “Okay, what is it?”

“I know it’s not LACMA, but you’ve been invited to the UCLA summer residency program!” Lane said, as if the words alone weren’t enough to thoroughly shake Beth’s foundation. “It’s a huge deal, Beth. Remember all those folks I had you meet when you were in LA a few weeks ago? Well, one of them was the residency director at UCLA and absolutely loved you! I’m so glad you put in that application after all.”

The residency? UCLA? She racked her mind, trying to connect the dots about what Lane was talking about, because Beth hadn’t applied. She remembered meeting the head of the UCLA artist in residency program, but that was as far as it went. No, that application was still sitting on her worktable in her studio. So, what was Lane talking about?