Bad Karma (40 page)

~*~

After work, Cassie met Darla and Chloe at the Solis condominium. The two friends were waiting for her in the workout room. Darla had spread out the mats and done some stretching to warm up.

Cassie removed her cross-trainers and walked to the center of the mat. She ducked her head and did a forward shoulder roll, releasing a primordial yell as she struck the mat with her fist and sprang to her feet, then repeated the act using her other shoulder. She motioned to Darla. “Come on, Grasshopper. Show me what you learned.”

Chloe and Darla exchanged a glance.

“
I don’t like that look in your eye,” Darla said. “I think I’m in trouble here.”

“
Are you all right, Cassie?” Chloe asked.

Cassie drew a deep breath and blew it all out. “I’m fine. Javier broke up with me, but I’ll live.”

Darla and Chloe rushed to surround her, showering her with hugs and well meaning words. She didn’t hear them.

“
I’m okay, really. He said he loves me, but he doesn’t want to be with me. I didn’t tell him, up front, that my brains are bulging out my ears and he’s acting like I deliberately lied to him.”

Darla brushed the hair off Cassie’s forehead, her big, brown eyes filled with compassion. “Oh, honey. Men get some of the strangest, bull-headed notions sometimes. I’m sure he’ll get over it.”

Chloe smiled at her. “If it’s meant to be it will work itself out. Look at Raffy and me. We broke up and got back together.”

A flutter of hope leapt in Cassie’s chest. Maybe she could work it out with Javier. Maybe he would come back to her. “You and Rafael are one of the happiest couples I’ve ever known. If the two of you got back together, maybe there’s hope for Javier and me.”

Chloe nodded and gave her arm a squeeze. “Don’t you go running off though. That’s what I did and it took us seven years to get back together.”

A giant claw imbedded its talons in Cassie’s gut.
Seven years? I can’t bear the thought of not seeing him for a day. How can I hold on for seven years?

“
Hey! Don’t tell her that!” Darla frowned at Chloe. “Now you’ve gone and scared her.”

Cassie tried to calm the nerves gnawing her from the inside. “No, I’m alright. It’s just...Seven years?”

Chloe shook her head. “Entirely my fault. There were... circumstances. I ran away and left him. He was just a kid too. He joined the Navy when he figured that I wasn’t coming back and I settled in Tucson and had Lacy.”

Cassie frowned, tilting her head to one side. “So, Lacy isn’t Rafael’s daughter?”

Chloe shook her head. “He says she was my gift to him. My dowry.”

Darla grinned, emitting a little chuckle. “He treats her as though she’s his.”

Cassie swallowed. She hadn’t imagined that complications like these could arise between two people. “How did the two of you get back together?”

Chloe shrugged, massaging the back of her neck as though some bad memory haunted her. “My father’s funeral. I came back for that and, when we saw each other, it all fell into place.”

Cassie nodded slowly, confused by the tale and trying to find some comfort in it.

“
This fight you had with Javier,” Darla said. “Is it something that can be fixed with an apology?”

Cassie drew a deep breath. “I don’t think so. But, it goes to prove what I’ve always known. Hot guys don’t like brainy girls.”

~*~

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Revocation

Zach seemed oddly preoccupied when he picked her up. Not exactly upset, but more than a little edgy.

Sky felt the tension gathering in her own stomach. She didn't need any more bad news. She'd already had her share. There was a storm out in the Gulf and a stalker trying to kill her, but now she had a brand new hunky fiancé who wanted to marry her, so things hadn't been quite so bad on that particular day.

He parked in front of his house and led her up the steps. She managed to take a few steps like a normal person, using the handrail to pull herself up. When she reached the top, Zack held out his hands to her and she placed both hands in his. His brow cleared and a grin split his face, like a rainbow after a storm cloud.

"Is everything all right?" She hoped his mood swing meant that he had good news. "Please tell me something good."

"How about this?" Zach’s eyes were shining when he reached in to his pants pocket and drew out a small velvet box. "I was going to wait for a more romantic moment, but I just can't stand the suspense." He opened the top of the box and offered the ring to Sky. “Do you like it? If you don’t, we can take it back and you can pick out another one.”

Her eyes teared as she wrenched her gaze from his anxious face to the ring he extended to her. A single brilliant stone sparkled in the center of a pristine platinum setting. She felt as if a swarm of butterflies had been released in her chest. “No, Zach. I love this one. It’s beautiful.”

He looked pleased. “When I saw it, I thought it would look pretty on your finger.”

She eagerly stuck out her hand, fingers splayed to accept the ring. When Zach slipped it on her finger, she couldn’t speak. She grabbed him and hugged him so tight her arms hurt. “This is the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen, but you didn’t have to buy this. I would have been happy with a plain little wedding band.”

He embraced her, swinging her around several times. “You deserve so much more. This is for keeps, you know?”

“
I know,” she said softly.

He set her on her feet and kissed her. “Are you happy?”

“
No,” she said. “I’m ecstatic.”

He grinned at her. “I made arrangements for us to be married aboard the Island Princess. It sails out of Galveston. The Captain can perform the ceremony at sea. The cruise lasts two weeks, but if Rafael hasn’t caught the stalker by that time, we can stay in some exotic port and fly home later.”

She gazed up at him, surprised by his resourcefulness. “You seem to have it all planned out.”

“
That’s the idea. Are you okay with all of this?”

She nodded. “Yes, it sounds wonderful. It’s just that...I’d always thought that Cassie would be my Maid of Honor and that my father would walk me down the aisle.”

He stroked his hand over the side of her face. “You can still have that later. Do you imagine that a Bailey can get married without a priest and all the trimmings?”

She shook her head, grinning through a pang of regret. She felt almost guilty for being so happy when Cassie was so miserable.

He pulled her toward him, pressing his cheek against her temple. “We’re going on our honeymoon, and we’ll get married. The most important thing is that you’ll be safe. When we come home you can plan a big wedding with all the family and friends you can fit inside the church.”

Sky nodded and slipped her arms around his neck. “That sounds perfect, Zach. I can’t wait.”

“
Did you get your time off from the hospital?”

“
Yes. They weren’t too happy about it, but after tomorrow, I’m officially on leave.”

~*~

When Cassie got home, she was thrilled to see the ring Zach had purchased for Sky. He was the perfect man for her sister. He was steady and true. She knew their union would last forever.

And she loved the Bailey family. Sky would be taken to their heart and enfolded in a safe, warm bubble. At least, Cassie hoped they could keep her safe.

Today, Darla had entertained her and Chloe, keeping them in stitches, telling them about the bully who had dogged Zach when he was in the seventh grade and Darla had been in eighth.

Calvin had graduated the previous year, leaving the less beefy of the Baileys at the mercy of this antagonist. True, the aggressor was a ninth grader, but Zach had been as tall, though not as heavy as his assailant.

One day, after school, Darla had searched for Zach, who hadn’t shown up in the bus line. Returning to the halls, she’d heard a scuffle in the boy’s rest room. Darla had thrown down her books and kicked open the door, finding Zach on the floor and the older boy on top of him.

She had beaten up the tormentor and kicked him into a toilet stall. The Bailey kids weren’t bothered by bullies after that. She’d told him, “The only one who beats my brothers up is me.”

There was a new sheriff in town and her name was Darla.

While Cassie had laughed at the story, one part of her was concerned that Zach, the gentle giant, might not be able to defend Sky, if the need arose.

Cassie glanced at them, curled up together in Zach’s ancient papa-san chair, looking like a couple of love-struck teenagers. He kissed her temple and stroked her hair. Sky rested against his chest, talking in low tones.

Cassie was considering making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and retiring to her room to allow the newly-engaged couple some space, when the alarm was triggered, setting off the deck lights and a warning beep inside. The hair on the back of her neck stood at right angles to her body and she could hardly breathe.

Zach stepped to the entry and after checking on the cause of the uproar, opened the door to Woodrow and Warren.

“
Come on with us, Cassie,” Warren called out. “It’s party time and your presence has been requested.”

She grinned as the boys hooted and hollered. “What are you talking about?”

Woodrow motioned her toward the door. “Calvin is throwing a bash at the Bait Camp. He sent us to get you.”

“
Me?” She grinned and cast a glance at Sky. Something in her smile let Cassie know that this impromptu invitation had been planned. Of course, the betrothed couple would like to spend some time alone. She swallowed the lump forming in the back of her throat. “Let me change.”

“
Come as you are,” Warren said. “Shorts are the uniform of the day.”

“
Are you sure?” She glanced down at the rumpled cotton shorts and sandals.

“
You look perfect. Do you like Reggae music?” Woodrow held the door open for her.

“
I guess.” She gave Sky a last glance and stepped through the door.

The twins were driving Calvin’s bright yellow four-wheel-drive truck. Cassie sat between the grinning duo. A momentary sadness overcame her as she realized that they were trying to help her recover from the loss of Javi.
Sweet
.

As they pulled up to the Bait Camp, she heard music blaring from inside the bar. The place had been built on concrete pilings and had wide wooden planks for steps that lead up to an open air deck. She heard voices and laughter and the clink of glassware.

A churning in her gut reminded her that this was not her milieu, never having been the party girl in college.

She took a deep breath.
But, that doesn’t mean that I can’t become the party girl here on the island.

She grinned at the boys and took the arms they offered, striding up the wide steps to enter the din.

Inside the bar, a strange amalgam of the local population was jammed into coexistence. Crowded tables hosted shrimpers and business owners, surfers and shop girls.