A Beautiful Mess

Chapter 20

Sydney hardly slept that night, and when she did, she dreamed of Cole's kisses. She woke early and dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a t-shirt before wandering downstairs and into the back garden. She sat herself at Aunt Viola's table and listened to the birds singing their morning song.

She was still confused about why Cole had shared so much with her the night before; she had a feeling that he didn't do it often. Could that mean that there was a trust developing between them since he was willing to share as much as he had? She guessed that it was due, in part, to the fact that she had come clean about why she was on the dig. Although, she had to admit that she was curious about who was demanding that she stay for the entire summer, that had been news to her. She was sure it wasn't her father, and she doubted that it was Paige's.

She had been sitting, lost in thought when Theresa joined her.

Theresa cast a derisive glance over her clothes. "You could put a little effort into your appearance."

"Why? We only have a car ride and a day of work ahead of us." Sydney still hadn't made her forty hours, so she had to go back to the site and work.

"How are you enjoying working weekends by the way?" Theresa gave her a smug smile. "I mean, it's not like you have much else to do since no one seems to care enough to invite you anywhere."

Sydney's eyes narrowed as she looked at Theresa. "I enjoy them, but not as much as I think you enjoy keeping me away from socializing with everyone. You don't like me, do you?"

"No, I think you're trying to trap Cole. So does he," Theresa said bluntly.

"Is this something that he told you?" Sydney felt her heart drop.

Theresa grinned believing that she had finally gotten under Sydney's skin by making her think that Cole didn't like her. Theresa didn't realize that Sydney already knew Cole didn't have a very high opinion of her.

"No, I overheard him on the phone one day in his office. He was talking all about you." Theresa shrugged away the fact that she had been eavesdropping.

"So, you're making my life harder on his behalf?" Sydney was amazed. It was kind of loyal in a misguided and immature way. "Don't you think Dr. Easton can fight his own battles?"

"Why don't you leave? You're not wanted on the site, and no one likes you." Theresa didn't attempt to sound sorry as she said it.

"Which is all your doing," Sydney agreed. "It's only ten weeks, half of which are already gone, why does it matter so much?"

Sydney watched Theresa, who remained stubbornly silent as long as she could before she broke. "My job is to make his life easier, and he trusts me to do it." She emphasized the word trust. "You're just after his money like all the girls."

"No, I'm just after his body, who cares about the money." Sydney watched Theresa as she turned red either in anger or embarrassment. "Trust me, it's a body that's worth it." She leaned in and whispered the last part and Theresa jerked away, her eyes growing wide in speculation.

Let her think about that, Sydney thought as she leaned back in her chair with her own smug smile. At least now Sydney knew that Cole hadn't talked about her to Theresa, but he had talked about her to someone.

"What are you two whispering about?" Aunt Viola asked as she and Cole joined them.

"Just girl stuff," Sydney said with a smile. "Good morning, Dr. Easton," she purred watching Theresa turn a brighter shade of red.

Aunt Viola looked as if she was going to burst at the change in Sydney, and Cole appeared wary as he glanced from Sydney to Theresa.

"Good morning, Miss. Mitchell, Theresa," he greeted, helping his aunt take her seat before sitting next to Sydney.