Somewhere To Begin Chapter 22, a twilight fanfic

Thank you to a team of wonderful ladies, Liz Vesper, Editor, Connie Sanders and BohemianRituals, our pre-readers…we can't thank you enough for how your suggestions and feedback add to the story!

Trigger Warning: Miscarriage is mentioned.

Chapter 22: The Past Is Present

Garrett

I would never say I was a perfect man.

A perfect husband.

Or a perfect father.

I've made mistakes and have regrets.

I know it sounds cliché, but if I could go back in time and do things differently, I would.

I can admit I took what I had, especially my wife, for granted, and my relationships with both Victoria and Alec drastically changed because of it.

And I'm so ashamed of that. That wasn't the man I wanted to be, the example I wanted to set for my son, not when I had an amazing father and grandfather.

When I think back to how it all started for Victoria and me; it saddens me to see where we are now, as a couple, as a family, and know it was all my doing.

Our relationship wasn't a love at first sight story and funny enough, I didn't really pay her much attention when we first met. Victoria was the director's assistant at the Boys and Girls Club of America, and I was the project officer. At first, we didn't interact much with each other, and I was fine with that because while she was gorgeous in every sense of the word the younger me thought she was uptight.

Okay, that's putting it nicely, but I really thought she had a stick up her ass. Now that I'm older, I realize how harsh that sounds, and later I found out how wrong I was.

Over time, it wasn't hard to figure out that she liked me. I knew. Hell, everyone did.

Fortunately—well, it felt unfortunate at the time—we had to work together for the annual fundraiser, and surprisingly, the more time I spent with her, the more she didn't seem so bad. I mean, I wouldn't say I liked her, but she was good at her job, and I thought that we could have been friends. Well, maybe friendly at least.

Months later, Victoria asked if I wanted to go to dinner at a local diner. I won't lie. I initially planned to decline her offer, but I figured what the hell, we'd been working together, so it couldn't hurt anything.

By far one of the best decisions of my life.

That night, I saw a completely different person; she wasn't the office Victoria… the rigid Victoria. She was much more relaxed; she laughed and made jokes. I saw a side of her I'd never seen before.

She had never looked more beautiful.

After the fundraiser was over, we kept in touch and eventually I asked her out on a date. We got to know each other on a more personal level that night. I told her about my family, and she told me about her childhood.

With her having been more open, it painted a clearer picture for me to better understand her better. She experienced some difficult things and because of that she was assertive and focused with everything she did. She had goals—to make a better life for herself, among other things—and wouldn't allow anyone to stand in her way.

The more I got to know her, the more I liked her, and ultimately fell in love with her.

We dated, she met my parents, and they loved her. I didn't get to meet Victoria's parents before we married. She said that they had a strained relationship. At first, I was persistent about meeting them, but the more I pushed, the more upset she would get, so eventually I left it alone. Sadly, when that meeting happened, it was at her father's funeral. Looking back, that was one of my regrets, not pushing harder on that.

Before I could blink, we got engaged. Everything happened so fast, but in the best way possible. I graduated from college and went back to law school. We got married in a cathedral with my family and over 300 guests in attendance. And once I graduated from law school and passed the bar, I opened my own law firm with the help of my father and grandfather.

Two years later we had Alec. Like all first-time parents, we had lots of sleepless nights. Of course, things weren't always easy with work and a newborn, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world. Alec was so small and quiet when he wasn't hungry. And Victoria was such a natural. She knew what Alec needed before he would even fuss. Even though things could get a little hectic, those were some of my favorite memories: when Victoria and I were in sync and when Alec would look at me like I was a superhero once he got older.

Before I messed up.

Years later, I participated in local politics and ran for Senator. I gained the support of party politicians and assembled my campaign committee. We bought our first home together and after being in it for a year we found out Victoria was pregnant with our second child, our daughter. We were really excited; we'd been trying for such a long time with no success. Eventually we went to doctors to see if there were any problems, only to find out that nothing was wrong with either of us.

Victoria didn't take that news too well. She never wanted to talk about it, but I knew it bothered her, more than she let on, that there was nothing that needed to be fixed. It was out of our control.

That was a tough time for us. It hurt me to see how much Victoria hurt, and I didn't know how to really comfort her.

At the time, I thought not pushing her was better. I didn't want to upset her more.

But then, finally, she was pregnant. The 'problem was fixed' and nothing else mattered.

Like her pregnancy with Alec, she glowed. She always had a smile on her face. She was happy, a happiness I hadn't seen since she was pregnant with Alec, and because she was happy, I was happy. We were in sheer bliss.

For nineteen weeks.

It was a placental abruption.

That event ripped my heart out of my chest. I wanted to yell and breakdown, but I couldn't, not then. I had to be strong for Victoria. I couldn't even imagine how she felt, physically or emotionally. One moment we're picking names and buying things to decorate the baby's room and then the next…

I took time away from my campaign to be with Victoria and Alec.

Alec was young enough that he didn't understand what happened, but old enough to know that his sister was in heaven and that his Mom was different. Not that I expected him to understand it; I was trying to figure things out myself.

That was an incomprehensible and heartbreaking time for us all.

I kept it together as much as I could, but to be honest, I lost some of my passion for life. Things seemed much grayer. I didn't even want to run anymore, I only wanted to focus on my family.

When I told Victoria that she was disappointed at best, and she made me promise I wouldn't quit.

Reluctantly, I went back to campaigning, and I shouldn't have. Even though I loved what I was doing, and still do, my head wasn't in it, not really. I was very concerned about Victoria. Some days it seemed she was doing better and then others—most of the time—she seemed not to be here.

I suggested therapy, and she was completely against that. I asked my parents what to do, and they helped as much as they could, but it wasn't something they had experienced. I asked my grandparents. My grandmother had also miscarried when she was pregnant with what would have been my uncle, my dad's brother.

My grandmother told me to be there for her, to give her time, that she had to learn how to live again while missing a piece of herself. From there I committed to let her grieve in her own way and even though I felt helpless, I would do all I could for her.

Another regret. I should have done more, a lot more.

Although it didn't really feel like it, time passed, and I was the Senator.

My wife was happy. My family—a long line of politicians, congressmen, and justices that sat on the supreme court—was proud. And for all intents and purposes, I should have been happy, too. I got what I wanted, and I was continuing the Scott tradition: holding a seat in the U.S. government.

Everything should have been great. Perfect even. But it wasn't.

Even as time passed, Victoria wasn't the same. Honestly, she was worse.

She closed herself off from just about everyone, including me. She never wanted to talk about Amelia, our daughter, and I didn't want to push her, but honestly, I was angry. I lost my daughter too, and I didn't feel like I had anyone to turn to. I wanted us to support and love each other through the loss of Amelia. Nothing I did seemed to work—and I tried everything—but it only ended with her shutting down even more.

And then one day she was just fine, like nothing had happened. She was back at the country club and attending events. Had I not known Victoria so well, she would have fooled me, too. She looked the same, sounded the same, walked the same, did everything the way she used to before Amelia, but I knew better. She wasn't herself at all.

She became cold with me and shut me out. I felt like I couldn't do anything right anymore; I felt unneeded… unwanted.

Unfortunately, that led to my biggest mistake, regret.

Leslie Cromwell was a popular campaign manager, we knew of each other and shared some of the same circles, but besides the typical, polite greeting we didn't really speak to each other, until I was at a rally supporting a friend, who was running to be the governor of Chicago. After the campaign we grabbed a bite to eat, and we talked. I couldn't describe how nice it felt to have someone actually want to talk to me about anything.

By no means am I trying to insinuate that what I did was right, or somehow justify what I did. It was a mistake… a choice, the wrong choice.

As we spent more time together, I considered her a good friend, and I liked to think she thought the same of me. Leslie shared with me that her and her fiancée, a man she had been with for a long time, had just called off their engagement and how she was struggling with it, and I told her about the problems Victoria, and I continued to have. That was the turning point for us and at the time I didn't know when we had crossed the line… became too comfortable with each other and too intimate. Looking back, I can see how we were both in a vulnerable space and really had no business trying to comfort the other.

Of course, it would have been great if I had that revelation before I cheated, but I didn't. Even though it sounds like an excuse, and another cliché, it really did just happen. It may sound hard to believe, but we didn't love each other.

We were the epitome of friends with benefits. She made me feel wanted. I'm not sure what void I might have filled for her, but in some twisted, skewed, selfish way it worked for both of us.

I would love to say I came to my senses and didn't see Leslie again after the first time, but that wasn't the case. Our relationship… no, arrangement, went on for much longer than it should've, and I know it sounds terrible and it was wrong, but it wasn't just about sex, it didn't start that way and I felt horrible about that.

I wish I would have told Victoria about what I had done, not that it would have made it any better, but she should have heard it from me. The look on her face when she confronted me killed me. It was the most expressive she had been with me since before Amelia. I didn't have the words to explain, and if I did, it wouldn't have mattered. I messed up. What I did was wrong. She didn't trust me. I hurt her, embarrassed her, and she was angry. And she had every right to be.

I didn't think she would forgive me, but she did. That didn't fix things. Of course, I cut off all communication with Leslie. There was nothing to be said.

There were a lot of frosty nights in our house, especially between Victoria and me, and things became even worse between Alec and me.

Alec.

Things haven't been right between us since he was a teenager.

Long gone were the days of admiration and the excitement to spend time together. Hard, cold stares and silence replaced them whenever we were in the same room together. He barely talked to me and when he did, they were one-word responses.

I wasn't even aware he knew about me cheating until he blurted it out in an argument. An argument that only started because I'd told Alec that he had to be more respectful and, in his words, 'he didn't have to respect a cheater.'

Needless to say, our relationship had been rocky for a while, and we still didn't have the best relationship.

I think he resented me; I think they both did, honestly. And I couldn't blame them.

STB

"He's late." Victoria mumbled as she repositioned herself in her seat… again.

I glanced down at my watch; it was only ten after five. "He probably got stuck in traffic, he's coming." She huffed and turned her head.

I reached across the table and placed my hand on top of hers. "You look beautiful tonight."

She turned back to me, and I smiled at her.

She bit the corner of her lip as she looked at me, teasing a small smile. "Thank you." She whispered.

I squeezed her hand. "How was your day?"

While we were talking, the sommelier came by and recommended the best pairing of wine for our meal.

Just as he walked away, I saw Alec walk through the door.

"Hey." Alec breathed once he was close enough to the table. He kissed Victoria on the cheek and plopped down in the chair that was across from us.

As usual, he ignored me.

"Hey, Alec." I sighed. "How are you?"

"Fine." He shrugged one shoulder.

"You're late." Victoria crossed her arms. "You know how I feel about that."

"Sorry." He sighed and rolled his eyes.

Victoria narrowed hers.

I cleared my throat. "We're all here now, let's just enjoy our evening."

"So…" Alec breathed out as he sat back in his chair. "What's going on? Why did we need to meet?"

"Nothing's going on." I frowned. "We just wanted to spend some time with you."

"Wait, so is this is supposed to be family time?" Alec raised a single eyebrow.

"Yes." Victoria said curtly.

He blew out a breath through his nose.

"How has work been?"

"Great." He said in a bored tone.

I waited to see if he would say anything else.

That was riveting.

"Okay, that's… great." I nodded my head. "How is Aiden doing? I haven't seen him in some time."

Alec looked around the restaurant. "He's doing good."

"How would you know?" Victoria turned her head in Alec's direction. "You don't even see him four times in a week."

"Here is your wine." Our waiter placed them on the table before he turned to Alec. "Would you like me to have the sommelier come over to recommend a beverage?"

"No, thank you. I'll have a Johnnie Walker Scotch, please." Alec said.

"Okay, I'll bring it to you shortly." The waiter said before he walked away.

"Don't start this again, Mom." Alec sat up in his seat. "I'm doing the best I can, considering the situation. Bella says Aiden is having some issues adjusting with everything and—"

"Oh, please, Alec," Victoria scoffed. "I don't care what Bella said. She is keeping us all from Aiden, and that is just unacceptable. You are his father, and we are his grandparents." Her nostrils flared slightly.

I let out a heavy sigh. "Bella isn't keeping Aiden from any of us."

Victoria's head jerked back, and she slowly shifted her eyes in my direction.

We stared at one another, unblinking.

"Don't you dare sit there and defend that… that…" She waved her hand, looking for the right insult.

"Victoria, stop. There is no need to be rude, that is our grandson's mother, you need to be more respectful so just stop."

"I will not stop." She said through clenched teeth. "She has been trouble since the moment she walked into our lives. Look at what she's done to Alec and Aiden's relationship." She threw her linen napkin down on the table. "For goodness' sake, who does she think she is to tell Alec, his father, that he has to have boundaries with his own son. Boundaries!" Her eyes widened. "That is ridiculous, and you know it."

Actually, it wasn't. Alec did what he wanted to do, and he had to deal with the consequences, good or bad. And if boundaries are what Aiden needs, I'm more than fine with it.

Also, what she overlooked was her mistreatment of Bella. I don't even know what word to use to explain her hate for Bella.

Alec and Bella had known each other since they were kids, and Victoria never liked her. Something I didn't understand in the slightest. I always liked Bella. I thought she was a lovely person. Since I'd known her, she had always been kind, considerate, and respectful.

When they started dating, I never saw Alec smile or laugh more. He just seemed so carefree. She made him happy. I saw the kid that he used to be. I was in full support of their relationship. Not that he cared too much for my opinion, especially during that time and anytime thereafter.

And he really didn't want to talk to me about their divorce.

"Here's your drink, sir." The waiter said as he sat Alec's drink down. "I believe you all will enjoy Chef Sandoval's selections tonight." He smiled.

"I'm sure we will." Victoria smiled as the waiter walked away before she turned back to Alec. "If you had just listened to me, you wouldn't be in this mess. You could have been The Chief Justice, or Chief of Staff, or even the Attorney General." She was getting red in the face. "You could have been political gold, married to Tanya, had your children and built your legacy. But no, instead you're an anchorman who can't control your relationship with your child or put Isabella in her place." She finished, finally taking a breath.

"There is nothing wrong with his career choice or who he married, Victoria. You need to apologize—"

"What are you expecting me to do?" Alec clenched and unclenched his jaw. "What do you want from me, huh?" There was an edge to his voice.

Victoria chuckled humorlessly.

This night was going downhill, and fast.

I looked between the both of them. "Why don't we all just rela—"

"More. I want you to do more. To do better." She blinked at him. "You need to think about your image. It's bad enough that you didn't follow the family tradition—"

"Victoria, I think you've said enough."

"No." She looked at me. "I haven't." She took another breath before she turned back to Alec. "You need to listen to what I'm saying. I've let you live your life and have your fun, but it's time to do it my way now. You will not embarrass this family any more than what has already been done." She looked at me from the corner of her eye.

Alec scoffed. "I've listened to and done what you wanted for most of my life—"

"Alec." A soft voice said.

We all turned in that direction. "What?" He said sharply.

The small blond women's eyes widened. "Baby, are you okay?"

Baby?

I looked at Victoria who was frowning; she looked just as confused as me.

We watched as Alec and this woman continued to stare at each other. Her eyebrows pulled together while Alec quietly stared and rapidly blinked.

This was awkward.

"Alec." Victoria looked the girl up and down. "What is this?"

He said nothing, but his fingers tapped against the table.

I cleared my throat. "Hello." I smiled. "Is there something we can help you with?"

"Oh, no." She took her eyes off of Alec and turned to me. "I just wanted to come over and say hi before I left."

"Well, you've done that." Victoria smiled tightly. "Goodbye."

"Oh, um." Her forehead wrinkled.

"Victoria." I muttered. She shrugged half-heartedly, and I turned back to the blonde. "Forgive me, but I don't recognize your face. What's your name?"

She moved her purse to the front of her body and clenched her fingers around the strap. "It's Chelsea."

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Victoria barked a low laugh.

Alec groaned and covered his face.

She looked at me, gently bit her lip, and seemed to hold her breath.

"Chelsea, Garrett." I raised my eyebrows, and Victoria rolled her eyes. "You know, the other woman."

Oh.

Oh!

He was still seeing her?

"Right." I nodded my head once. "Chelsea, uh, it's nice to meet you."

Victoria snorted softly. Thankfully, I don't think Chelsea heard her.

"Thank you, it was nice meeting you too…" she trailed off, waiting for me to give my name.

"Garrett. I'm Alec's father and that is Victoria, his mother."

"Really?" Her eyes widened. "Oh, my god." She looked at Alec. "If I'd known I would have been meeting your parents, I would have dressed better." She held her hand out. "It's so great to meet you finally."

I smiled and shook her hand. I didn't know what to say.

She moved to put her hand out to Victoria, and she just stared at it.

Oh God.

"Well, I can't say the same. Not that I would want to, anyway." Victoria said.

Chelsea's jaw dropped, and she slowly lowered her hand.

I closed my eyes, taking a breath. Now, I know my wife, believe me, I do, but even I wasn't expecting her to say that.

"Chelsea." Alec finally spoke. "What are you doing here?" He said in a carefully controlled tone.

"I think that's something we'd all like to know." Victoria tilted her head to the side.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was supposed to meet Jessica here, but she canceled on me last minute. I was about to leave, but then I saw you—"

"And you just had to come over, right?" He lifted a single eyebrow. He looked like he didn't believe her.

No one said anything.

"Chelsea, I apologize for our rudeness. You caught us in the middle of a conversation." I gestured to the empty seat. "Would you like to join us?"

Her face lit up "Yeah, sure. I would love to."

She moved around the table, to the seat in between Alec and Victoria, and removed her coat. While Chelsea did that, both of them gave me varying looks of annoyance.

I widened my eyes and shrugged my shoulders. What else was I supposed to do? I didn't want to be mean to her. She was just standing there.

I picked up my glass of water and took a sip while I surveyed the room.

Victoria pursed her lips, Alec stared at the table, and the other customers looked happy as they talked amongst themselves.

Hopefully, we could salvage the night.

We sat in silence again. No one seemed to move a muscle.

"So, Chelsea," I sat up in my chair, "tell us about yourself: what do you do?"

"I don't think that's necessary." Alec cut in.

"I would agree." Victoria nodded her head.

She gave Alec a hard smile before she turned to me. "I'm a model."

"Of course, you are." Victoria grumbled, not too quietly.

She cleared her throat. "I work with Donatella Versace."

"Oh, that's great." I said.

"Yes, very impressive." Victoria sipped her wine, but you could practically hear her eyes roll.

"Do you travel often?" I asked, completely ignoring Victoria.

"Yes, I recently went to New Zealand for a shoot. It was amazing."

Alec snorted and shook his head.

Chelsea quickly turned to him.

The displeasure was clear to see on her face—and his—as they had a silent conversation.

Victoria chuckled and continued to sip her wine.

I put my arm over her chair and rubbed her back as I leaned into her ear. "Give her a chance. Please stop with the rude comments."

She placed her hand on my leg and kissed my cheek. "No."

"So, Garrett, what do you do?" Chelsea asked.

Before I could open my mouth to respond, Victoria spoke. "You don't call him that. You can refer to him as Senator Scott or Mr. Scott." She held Chelsea's gaze.

Chelsea swallowed. "My apologizes, I didn't mean to offend."

"No need to apologize, you didn't do anything wrong." I squeezed Victoria's shoulder. "You can call me Garrett."

She nodded her head and glanced at Victoria. "O-Okay."

"I'm a Senator."

"Oh, I've never known anyone who worked in politics. What does a normal day look like for you?"

"Not that you'd understand it, anyway." Victoria whispered.

"To keep it brief, I meet with my staff a lot to discuss legislation and constituent issues. However, one of the favorite parts of my job is personally speaking with the citizens about their concerns or issues, among other things."

"That sounds like a lot of work, but it's good that you love it. What about you?" She looked at Victoria and hesitantly smiled. "What do you do?"

Victoria tilted her head. "Why do you need to know?"

"I-I-I just thought it would be nice for us to get to know each other." She said as she glanced between Alec and I.

Alec gulped down his drink.

"You thought wrong."

Her chin dropped; I could see her cheeks were flushed.

"Well, I think we should get to know each other, that's a great idea." She looked up at me, a slow smile taking over her face. "Are you from Chicago?"

"No, I'm from Oregon, but I've been here for a while."

"Do your parents live here as well?" I quickly asked to keep the conversation going. I didn't want to leave any room for extra comments.

"No." She bit her lip. "They don't."

"Are they back in Oregon?"

"Uh, I." She paused. "I actually don't know my parents; I grew up in a group home."

Victoria clicked her tongue and let out a heavy sigh. "I'm so sorry to hear that, I apologize for even bringing it up."

She shook her head. "It's okay, really. I didn't let that get me down. It was kinda hard when I was younger not having anyone to turn to, but I was determined to make my own way."

I nodded. "Determination is always good."

"Thank you, Mr. Scott, I couldn't agree more." She smiled and placed her hand on Alec's arm before she leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Determination and love." She said before she turned back to me.

Alec coughed.

Victoria's body jerked.

"Um, yes. Love is great."

"It is." She sighed. "And I just want you two to know that I really do love your son." She placed her hands on top of Alec's. "We've been together for a while now and I can't imagine my life without him I hope we will move in together soon; I've been looking at houses in the Lincoln Park area. Actually, I found the home of my dreams, but before I could tell Alec about it, it sold. It was kind of expensive but," she waved her hand, "I'm sure we will find something else we like, or better yet maybe we can even find something closer to you guys." She trailed off, seeming to be lost in her own world.

Alec's face was red.

I could feel the anger radiating off of Victoria.

And I just didn't know what to say.

"Sorry, I was rambling." Chelsea shook her head. "My point, Mr. and Mrs. Scott, is that Alec is part of my future, and I can't wait to see where it takes us." She let out a soft sigh.

I still didn't know what to say. And don't think I missed the irony of the situation. Me, a Senator, someone who has to be a quick thinker and be able to communicate well, was speechless… stumped.

"Future?" Victoria said so softly you could almost miss the edge in her voice. Almost.

"Yes." She looked Victoria in the eye.

They stared at each other for a few moments.

Alec pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's enough Chelsea, we need to—"

Victoria barked out a laugh, and Chelsea shrunk back in her seat.

I glanced at Victoria. If looks could kill…

"Garrett." A voice called.

It was Mayor Daley and his wife.

Victoria put a smile on her face and stood. "Richard and Margret, it's so great to see you."

"We saw you two on our way to our table. We thought we'd come over and say hello." Richard said.

"It's always good to see you, Richard." I stood up and shook his hand and then his wife's.

Margret pulled Victoria into a hug. "How have you two been?"

Victoria stepped back, and I put my arm around her waist. "We're doing good how about you?"

He looked at wife and smiled. "We're doing great."

"Glad to hear that." I smiled and turned toward Alec, and he stood. "You remember my son, Alec."

"Of course, I do. Good to see you, Alec." The Mayor said as they shook hands before he turned to Chelsea. "Hi, I'm Mayor Daley, and who might you be?" Chelsea abruptly stood from her seat.

"Oh, that's just a frien—" Victoria started.

"Chelsea." She quickly cut in. "Alec's girlfriend."

Alec's jaw clenched.

"Nice to meet you, Chelsea." Richard said.

"Hi, I'm Margret." She shook hands with her and stepped back to stand beside her husband.

"Nice to meet you both." Chelsea smiled.

Victoria moved to stand in front of Chelsea. "Margret, we must get together soon."

"Yes, we must. Call me so we can set something up." She turned to Richard. "Honey, we need to get going, our table is ready." Margret said.

"Alright, Sweetheart." He smiled. "You all enjoy your night."

"Thank you, you do the same." I said before they walked away.

As soon as they were no longer in view, we sat down. Victoria looked around the room for a few seconds before she turned in Chelsea's direction, and her face instantly hardened.

"Who do you think you are? She scowled.

"What are you talking about?" Chelsea frowned.

"Don't play stupid." Victoria pointed. "Introducing yourself as if you're someone important…"

Chelsea flinched back. "I am someone important; I'm his girlfriend."

"Girlfriend." Victoria scoffed. "That's cute." Her tone was condescending.

"Are you going to let her talk to me like this?" Chelsea turned to Alec. "She's been rude to me all night."

"Of course, he is." Victoria sat up straighter. "You're the only one who thinks you matter, which is very amusing. You're nothing but a low-class, poor, orphan, wannabe model who has nothing going on for yourself and latched on to the first person who brought relevance to your pathetic life." She chuckled.

Chelsea looked a little pale, but as she opened her mouth to say something, Victoria kept talking.

"And you have the gall, the audacity to sit here and talk about a future? I don't even know why he entertains you. Isabella was better than this." She turned to Alec; he wouldn't meet her eyes. "I didn't think you could do any worse, but this?" She waved her hand in Chelsea's direction.

"You're such a bitch, and you will not talk to me like that." Chelsea eyes were watery, and Victoria smirked. "I do matter, and I would never latch on to anyone. I'm with Alec because I love him, and he loves me." She sniffled. "I am a part of his life, and you have to accept that." She swallowed.

"The only person who has to accept anything is you." She smiled. "But I guess that's hard for you to do when you don't know your place, so let me help you. You are a whore, a little girl, trying to be a woman. Actually, it's worse than that, you're worse than that. You are the dirty little secret who didn't know how to keep quiet." Victoria tilted her head and stared blankly.

Chelsea looked to Alec, but his eyes stayed glued to the table.

I saw a tear roll down her cheek.

"I don't feel too well, please excuse me." She got up from the table and headed to the bathroom, just as our food arrived at the table.

A/N: We apologize for the delay with this chapter; however, we were dealing with some RL things in our family. We appreciate your patience, words of support, reviews, follows and favorites. Please know we have read every review and cherish every one of them!

Well, that dinner was a little tense… so how do you feel about Victoria now? Did she go too far?

Since you've finally heard from Garrett, got his side of the story, how do you feel about him?

What are your thoughts on Alec's input in the conversation or the lack thereof?

Do you feel Chelsea got what she deserved?

RECS: The Silver Lining, by Kimpy

The Nightingale Journals, by Kimpy

Deceit and Destiny, by Sukiethree (WIP)

See you next update!