Page 69 of Balancing Act (Soulmate #1)

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?

“Beth?” Lane prompted, still buzzing on the other end.

Beth swallowed, trying to push through the fog in her head. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m here. Wow, Lane, I—I don’t know what to say.” She really didn’t.

“Say you’ll do it!” Lane laughed. “This is the kind of opportunity that changes everything.”

Beth let out a shaky breath. “Right. Yeah. I wasn’t expecting this.”

“I get it. It’s a lot to process. But listen, you don’t have to decide right this second. Think about it, okay?”

Beth nodded, even though Lane couldn’t see her. “Yeah. I will.”

She hung up the phone, still a little in shock, trying to piece together the pieces of the puzzle of what the heck Lane was talking about. Her hand instinctively ran through her hair, pulling slightly at the ends as she let out a sigh.

“Was that Lane?” Sean’s voice from behind her surprised her as she caught the excited look in his eye.

“Yeah. How did you...” She trailed off as his smile grew.

“I know I’m good, but I timed this perfectly. You’re welcome.” He beamed at her.

“What are you talking about, Sean?”

“The residency. I submitted an application for you, because imagine my surprise when I called to check up on things and was told they had not yet received your application.”

Beth blinked, gripping her phone a little tighter. “Sean, what the hell?” The words snapped out sharp and biting, but she didn’t take them back. “You submitted it? Without even telling me?”

Sean winced. “Okay, yeah, in hindsight, maybe not my best move. But, Beth, come on. You and I both know you wouldn’t have done it.”

Beth crossed her arms as she tried to process this. “Sean?—”

“I know, I know.” He held up a hand, cutting her off before she could say anything else.

“I should’ve talked to you first. And if you’re mad, I’ll take it.

But come on, Beth. This is huge . This is UCLA.

This is a chance to work with some of the best artists in the country. You belong in a place like that.”

Beth opened her mouth to argue, but the words stuck in her throat. Not because she was mad. Not because he was wrong. But because the truth was she didn’t know if she did want that anymore.

A few months ago, she would have said yes before Lane even finished the sentence. No hesitation. No second-guessing. But now?

Now, she had a life in Washington—a life she loved.

And yet, she couldn’t quite say no. Not yet.

She let out a slow breath, glancing away. “I just—I don’t know, Sean.”

His brow furrowed. “What do you mean you don’t know?”

“I mean I need to think about it,” she admitted. “I’ve got other priorities right now that are more important.” She trailed off, struggling to put it into words.

Sean studied her, his expression shifting into a thoughtful examination of her. “Okay,” he said, after a beat. “Let’s think about it now.”

A sad laugh left her as she shook her head. “It’s not that simple.”

“Why not?” Sean challenged. “Beth, this is your career . The thing you’ve worked so hard for. And don’t get me wrong—I love that you’re happy, that you’ve built this whole life for yourself that you love. But I think an opportunity like this warrants a little consideration?”

Beth looked at him, then down at the phone still clutched in her hand.

Did it?

She thought about UCLA. About what a summer there would mean. The connections, the exposure, the experience. But now, standing here, all she could think about was what leaving for the summer would be like—leaving Jamie, and more importantly, leaving Lily.

“Think about it, okay?” he said.

She nodded, and they made their way back to their seats as the competition was getting started.

Dylan nudged her excitedly. “Lily’s about to come out!”

Beth barely heard her, though. She was still stuck in that quiet hallway, still holding Lane’s words in her head like something fragile.

Before she could think too hard about it, Lily’s name was announced over the loudspeaker, and the crowd erupted into cheers. Dylan shot to her feet, waving her sign, and Beth latched on to the moment, pushing everything else aside.

Her phone buzzed as Lily stepped onto the floor. Jamie. FaceTime.

She answered immediately, angling the phone so Jamie could see the competition floor. “Just in time,” she murmured, with a weak smile.

Jamie’s face filled the screen, her expression brightening at the sight of Lily. “Hell yeah. Let’s go, Lils!”

Beth smiled, but Jamie’s eyes darkened, her brow furrowing.

“Wait. What’s wrong?”

Beth almost told her about the call from Lane, almost said, “I got a residency offer at UCLA. Sean applied without telling me. I don’t know what I want.”

But Jamie wasn’t here. She wasn’t sitting beside her in the arena or holding her hand under the railing like she had during Lily’s last meet. The words felt too big for a phone screen.

“Nothing,” Beth said, forcing her voice to stay light. “I’ll tell you about it later.”

Jamie didn’t push, but the crease between her brows didn’t go away.

As Lily prepared for her routine, Beth found her mind wandering to the offer from UCLA and the predicament she now found herself in.