Winning her back

18. Regret

Ben

Maybe this was a mistake. Maybe it was all a mistake. From my marriage to Lisa, to having her live with me.

I'll be the first to admit that I definitely rushed through the decision. I wanted to protect her. The thought of someone hurting her made my blood boil, even though I had committed the act myself not too long ago.

I should have thought it through. I knew living together wouldn't be easy, and I knew she would hate me for it, but I thought eventually her anger would fizzle out and we'd be able to start a new page, as friends and eventually more than that.

Seeing her with Clark made my heart split in two. I was Lisa's first. Her first love, boyfriend and husband. Even though we had divorced, I was hoping to her last. Yes, it was selfish of me to hope that she hadn't moved on, and maybe even a little bit naive.

The case being a suspected homicide surely didn't help things. What was I supposed to do? Who was going to protect her? As much as I wanted to dwell on these questions, my priority was finding out who was behind all this.

"Well look what the cat dragged in". I felt someone gently tap my shoulder before occupying the bar stool next to me. I thought coming to Greg's bar on a Tuesday morning would mean I'd get to have some alone time. I guess I was wrong.

"I didn't expect to see you here, or anyone as a matter of fact", I said honestly, glancing at my best friend Tom.

Tom and I were high school friends. He was what you would call 'my partner in crime'. He'd been through all of my low's and high's. He knew the young Ben with no morals and no compass. He was my best man in my wedding, and literally the 'best' man during my divorce.

"I could say the same for you brother", he said as he ordered the first round of scotch.

"Yeah well, things with Lisa have been complicated", I began.

He chuckled lightly. "Did you think they would be simple?".

"Not simple, but easier. Much easier", I said looking at my empty glass.

From the bottom of my eyes, I saw Tom signal for the bartender to give me a refill. I declined. I didn't want to get wasted. I just wanted to gather my thoughts.

"Benjamin Martinez, I didn't take you for a quitter".

"It's not about quitting", I said with a sigh. "I don't want to force her to be with me. That was never my intention, but things got complicated".

"How so?".

I debriefed Tom on the lastest informatiom we had on Lisa's case. From figuring out that she was raped to our latest encounter with the cops.

"Holy shit", he said, running his hand through his hair. "I thought it was a burglary or something. I had no idea".

"I can't really talk about it much since the investigation is still ongoing".

"I'm sorry man. If there's anything I can do -

I raised my hand for him to stop. He didn't need to continue. I knew Tom would have my back, like he always did.

"Enough about me. What are you doing here anyway? Should't you be with Lydia?"

A sigh escaped his lips. "Things haven't been going too well with us recently".

It was my turn to call the waiter for another round.

"We're at each other's throats, constantly. It's just not the same anymore".

I held him by the shoulder before saying, "If you love her, you'll make it work. Don't make the same mistakes I did".

"That's the thing", he replied. "I'm not sure if I do anymore".

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Lisa

I straightened my blouse and did a one-over in the mirror. Cool, calm and collected. I'd been repeating the same three terms since I walked out the door.

It was my first day at work at Clark's Research Hospital. I wanted to make a good first impression. Clark had pulled some strings to get me into somewhere local and nearby. I wasn't sure if he meant near my hometown, or near him. After all, it was a research hospital, one of Clark's main specialities, meaning he would be around often.

The elevator doors opened, I took a deep breath and headed to the HR section. The orientation was quick and simple, though there's wasn't much to learn. Instead of dealing with people, I would have to deal with a lot of laboratory work instead. Clark did mention a safer environment with minimal patient and staff interaction, I guess I didn't expect to have no interaction at all.

Soon enough, I was settling in my new office, or rather work station. I was sorting some paperwork when a knock on the door made me halt my actions.

"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. How's your first day going?".

I gave Clark a promising smile before saying, "Okay I guess, it's not exactly my line of work, but I'll find my way".

"I'm glad to hear that", he said.

I motioned for Clark to shut the door before standing up to meet his eyes.

"Clark, I'm sorry about last weekend, obviously I didn't mean to end our night so sudden".

"It's fine". He lowered his head and put both hands in his front pockets, a motion which didn't go unnoticed. "So, you and Ben?", he questioned awkwardly.

"It's not what you think. After the incident, Dr Rowland declared that it would be in my best interest to have someone live in with me. I forgot to change my emergency contact details at the hospital, so she assigned Ben to take care of me".

I took a deep breath before continuing. "There's nothing going on between me and Ben. Our relationship is strictly platonic".

A smile formed on his face. "Well that's a relief. Can't imagine you two are getting along".

"You have no idea", I scoffed.

"So um, my sister's getting married at the end of the month. It's a sort plus one thing. I know it's kind of intimate, but I was wondering whether you'd like to accompany me." He scratched the back of his head before saying, "I'd understand if you're not up -

"I'd love to", I said, cutting him off.

"Alright", he said with a chuckle. "I like where this is going Lisa. I guess we could both use a fresh start".

If only he knew the real meaning behind his last sentence.

I definitely needed a fresh start, one which didn't involve Ben.

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Sorry for the long wait. Luckily (although unlucky for me) I'm currently quarantined meaning I had some free time to finish this chapter and start  writing the next one.

Side note - Expect more drama in the upcoming chapters, and some steamy scenes 😉

Anybody else can't wait for 2020 to be over?