The Matchmaker

Chapter 18

For Shannon and Amy, the next month was full of action. Shannon submitted their rental application and they were approved within a day. A week later they excitedly moved in together. Neither of them had much in the way of furniture and kitchenware so they enjoyed the excuse to go shopping and spend big on the things they needed. It didn’t take them long to get settled and they enjoyed the freedom. They got on even better living together and it was a perfect situation for them. Shannon missed her father but he, along with Justin and Nathan, became frequent visitors.

As much as Shannon enjoyed her newfound freedom, every day was still a struggle for her. The nightmares were there but tolerable but her feelings for Brian were not going anywhere. She missed him and still felt guilty for all that had happened. She managed to get through each day though and regardless of all that happened, she felt the happiest for the first time in many years.

The other upside was that she had started her new job and it had been a huge hit. Her assumptions about Jim were correct. He was in his fifth marriage, he liked the ladies young and he was a flatterer no end. On her first day he had tried to hit on her but she had made it clear that she wasn’t interested. He took it well and they had since become close friends.

What surprised her most was that she didn’t take offence at his actions. Usually she would but she began to understand why he was like he was. He had confided in her during a recent conversation and admitted that he was lonely. It was an old habit to hit on women because he hoped that one day he would find ‘the one’. Shannon didn’t see the sense in it but she could see that it made sense to him and she didn’t want to argue with that.

It turned out that his first marriage was to his soul mate. They had a happy 25 years together but his wife had died of cancer. He missed her and couldn’t bear the solitude so remarried as soon as he could. His business brought in a decent income but he also received a hefty life insurance from his wife so finding women was not difficult. He didn‘t like being in loveless marriages but they gave him companionship so he put up with it. Yes the divorces costed a fortune, as did the upkeep of the women, but while he could afford it he kept doing it.

Shannon couldn’t help but feel pity for him and was glad to have been able to provide him with friendship. They often joked about ‘the time he tried to pick her up’ and they shared a good laugh. He had proved to be a great person to work for and she enjoyed it. He had proven true to his word and taught her some basic skills in photography. She had purchased her first camera and required equipment and made an effort every day after work to go out and practice taking pictures.

At first she decided to start off with the basics like landscapes, nature and plants. She didn’t want to practice on people until she had more experience. Amy enjoyed coming along with her so they usually met up after work, went on a photo shoot together and made it home by six thirty to organise dinner. Their new lifestyle worked well and suited both of them. They were happy.

That night John, Justin and Nathan were visiting. While Amy kept Justin and Nathan occupied, Shannon decided to spend a few quiet moments with her father. They hadn’t seen each other for over a week and to Shannon it felt like a lifetime.

They sat on the porch of their house with a beer.

“It’s good to see you happy again.” John observed as he looked at his daughter.

Shannon looked at him and smiled. “I am happy, Dad. But -” She waved a dismissive hand and trailed off.

“What’s on your mind Shannon?”

Taking a deep breath she tried to sum it up in as few words as possible. “I miss Brian.”

At that moment Nathan walked out onto the porch and heard what Shannon had said. He felt a surge of guilt rush over him. He had been in constant contact with Brian and had tried to get him to talk to Shannon but he wouldn’t relent. He wanted to tell him about Shannon’s mother and how she felt about him but it wouldn’t do any good. Brian would accuse him of blackmailing and he didn’t want to cause any other problems. He still felt guilty though because he couldn’t help her.