Wine After Whiskey

"So basically what you’re telling me is that James has all of a sudden reappeared back in your life, and you’re having an internal struggle between your vagina and your brain as to if you should sack him again?” Colette, Tessa’s sister, snorted between stuffing a piece of bread into her mouth.

Aubree was having a daddy/daughter afternoon with James, and Tessa decided to spend her free afternoon with her younger sister who was currently mocking the current issue she was having. Tessa pulled her hair over her shoulder, tying it into a ponytail and rubbing her temples with her hands, sometimes Colette could be really irritating.

“No, that’s not my issue,” Tessa tried to explain, taking a sip from the glass of wine she had ordered to go with their lunches at the quaint little Italian restaurant in town. Colette pursed her lips with a deceptive grin, she knew Tessa was lying right through her teeth.

“Sure, Tess. What is it, then?”

“I don’t love him anymore. I told him I didn’t. He believed me, like he should. There isn’t an issue. I just don’t want Aubree to get hurt. She means too much to me, it doesn’t matter about me anymore, it’s about Aubree now.” Tessa shrugged, ripping part a piece of Italian bread and taking a bite of it.

Over the past week- since James had made her promise that she would think about ‘them’- Tessa had barely slept. Her mind was having an internal conflict. She wished so badly that she was able to forget about everything he had done, just like that. But she knew it wasn’t right, for both her and Aubree, to just forgive him like that and pretend that she hadn’t been hurt by him.

“Why don’t you give him a chance? Cant he prove to you he’s changed, that everything’s different? Or are you going to let the rest of your life be ruined by a stupid mistake? He owned up to it, he’s back.”

“It’s not that easy, Cole. You don’t understand it. You don’t have a child, you’re not a mother--”

“But I am a person, Tessa. And damnit, you were in love with James. You planned on marrying him. Marrying; spending the rest of your life with him. He made a stupid mistake by leaving you. Nobody forgot that because you spent four goddamn years of your life griping, and bitching about it. But we were all here for you; Mom, Dad, Bill, and Laura, even Josh was here for you, and you know he doesn’t do shit for anybody. You didn’t let any of us forget that he left you. Now he’s came back, on his own, and obviously wants to make it right. I think it took balls for you to take the high road and let Aubree know that he was her father, that after he let her know you sat down and explained it to her too. That was good. But the fact that is, whether you like it or not, you’re still in love with him. Ever since you came over to mom’s that night with Aubree crying and sobbing that James was drunk out of his fucking mind, and you let him stay on your couch, you had that look in your eye again. That ‘I will lie to you through my teeth all I can, deny it till the cows come home, but I’m in love with him again.’ We’ve seen it these past few weeks that he’s been here. Don’t deny it, just accept it.”

Tessa scoffed, as much as what everything her younger- and obviously more wiser- sister had just said was true, she didn’t want to admit it. She had to put up that brick wall of emotions, and she refused to let anybody break it down, especially James Neal.

“Take him out on a date, wine and dine him, see what happens. What you feel. If you don’t think it could potentially work out again, don’t utter another word about it. But if you believe, and honestly give it some thought, that possibly something more could happen again, give it a chance. You have a daughter, who I am sure wants both of her parents together… Or at least will one day, when she’s older. Maybe right now she doesn’t understand it, but I know one day you will regret it if you don’t attempt it.” Tessa groaned at her sisters pushy ways. In a way, she knew Colette was right. What would it hurt? A nice steak dinner, and no feelings hurt if it didn’t work out.

“I guess.” she sighed.

Cole and Tessa finished their meals, and began out towards Tessa’s car so she was able to drop her baby sister back off at her mom’s house, and go to pick up Aubree.

“Give it a try, sis. See what happens, you never know…” Colette grinned as she hugged her sister, and got out of the car. Tessa rolled her eyes, she knew it was at least worth the try. It wouldn’t hurt. Right? At least give it a try, anything could happen, maybe something good would end up happening.