Chasing Cassidy (23 page)

“So what do you want to do today?”

“Movies?” she answers, yawning. Her nightmares must have disturbed her sleep more than I even realized.

“Sure. Why don’t you go pick out a few and I’m going to call Ry and Nick so I can get this out of the way and relax with you the rest of the day.”

“Sounds good. Remember to be nice,” she scolds gently and places a sweet kiss on my lips before going inside.

When I pull my phone from my pocket, there’s a text from Ry.

Please don’t be mad

Instead of responding, I just call her back. “Hello.” Her tone is soft undoubtedly because she’s afraid of how I’m going to react.

“Hey, Ry, I’m not mad at you… Well, not much, anymore, but I
am
hurt you kept this from me.”

“I’m sure you are and I’m sorry. What was I supposed to tell you? ‘Hey, I hooked up with your best friend last night when I was drunk?’ Somehow, I don’t think that would have gone over very well.” Something else is going on with her.

“Talk to me, Ry, you can tell me anything. Something is making you sad, I can hear it, and I’ve been uneasy all morning. I thought it was because of Cassidy’s nightmare, but now I think it’s got something to do with you.”

“Zack, it seems endless. I’m going through these photos for you and it’s killing me that we even have to do this for Cassidy. She’s the most amazing person I’ve ever known, and the fact that her parents and our mother took away her self-esteem bit by bit is heartbreaking.”

“She’s better, Ry. Being here is helping her. I’m hoping the nightmare was just a fluke and she won’t have any more. What else is wrong? I know you, baby sister, and you’re not being completely honest with me.”

“I’m worried about Mom and Dad. I’m sorry she got my phone, and I can’t believe she went through it. Well, yeah, I guess I can, but I realized I forgot it maybe ten minutes after I left and by the time I got back it was too late.”

“Well, her email said she snooped so she at least owned up to it. She’s coming tomorrow and I’m assuming she’ll go straight to Dad, but she did say she wants to talk to Cassidy and me.” I’m dreading the thought of even seeing her. I know she’s my mom but I don’t know if I can be forgiving like Cassidy.

“Are you going to hear her out?” Ry asks, suddenly sounding like herself.

“I suppose, but I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive her.”

“Yeah, me, either.” Again with the solemn tone.

“Spill it, Ry. Talk to me about Nick.” It’s the only thing we haven’t talked about and it’s got to be what’s bugging her the most.

“Nick is Nick. He’s up for a good time when it happens, but I don’t think he’ll ever be ready for anything long-term. It’s just being with Nick… don’t get mad, but being with him is good. We have fun together and when we’re intimate it’s incredible.” Thankfully, she’s holding back the details but I can clearly see why Cassidy feels like there’s something between them.

“It’s just been the two times, though?”

“Well, technically? As far as sexual encounters, yes, but we’ve hooked up a few times and not had sex.” This is really not what I wanted to hear.

“Does Cassidy know?”

“No, I didn’t want to put her in an awkward spot. I already knew she was having issues keeping the sex a secret from you. She always wanted to tell you, Zack.” So the secret keeper is keeping secrets from Cassidy now.

“You know I have to tell her, right, Ry?” I’m not being a dick to her but I am being firm—I’m not playing this game with her.

“Yeah. I know. It’s okay, this all needed to come out eventually.”

“What do you want to do? Do you want a relationship with Nick? If that’s what you truly want, I’ll give you my blessing. I want you to have the kind of happiness we do, Rylee, and if that’s with Nick there’s nothing I can do about it.”

She’s laughing on the other end of the phone. “All this time I thought you were going to freak and here you are being more understanding than I deserve.”

“Oh, I freaked this morning, little sister, but I’ve calmed down. You’re not a teenager anymore. I can’t tell you what to do or who to date. I’m still going to have words with Nick because he violated multiple man codes, but I’ll leave him in one piece.”

“Honestly, I don’t know what I want. Nick’s a player and always has been. I’m looking forward to meeting Pete when I get there. I think being with Nick makes me realize I’m tired of being alone. I’ve never gotten the impression Nick wants anything more so I’m going to see what my options are.”

Nick better not fuck with my sister’s heart. I will kick his ass if he does, and it kind of sounds like he already has. I’m about to end this now.

“Okay, Ry, I’m going to call Nick. I wanted to talk to you first and then I’m spending the day with my soon-to-be wife. I’ll see you Friday. Love you.”

“Love you, too, big brother.”

It shouldn’t surprise me that Rylee is looking to settle down but it does. It makes complete sense. She’s always commenting on how romantic I am and how lucky Cassidy is. I never paid attention to the longing tone in her voice because she’s always seemed so happy to date. I have to wonder if that’s because deep down inside she’s been pining away for Nick.

After pulling him up on speed dial, I count to five and hit ‘talk.’

“Hey, Zack,” he answers sullenly.

“What are your intentions with my sister?” I demand from him immediately. I sound like a dick but I don’t care; he deserves it and a swift fucking kick in the balls, too.

“What… I… uh…” He’s tripping over his words and I don’t have the patience for it.

“Did I fucking stutter? What the hell, Nick? What are you doing with my sister?”

“I don’t know,” he replies feebly, and it kicks my temper into overdrive.

“You don’t know? Well, you better figure it the hell out! You’re so unbelievably stupid! Did you really think you could have sex with my sister twice and have random makeout sessions whenever you feel the need and I’d never find out about it? Exactly how long have you been stringing her along? How many times have you ‘hooked up’ other than sex?”

I’m fuming. He’s my best friend—this kind of stuff should
not
be happening.

“It was just that one night in high school at first, but we’ve been hanging out a lot since college. We’re both single and weren’t looking for anything serious and it just kept happening.”

“And you didn’t think to mention it to me? At what point would you have come to me and fessed up?”

“Probably never. You know as well as I do that I’ve broken a lot of friendship rules with this one.” He sounds sincere, maybe more sincere than I’ve ever heard him.

“You think?”

“Look, there’s not much you can say to me that I haven’t said to myself again and again. I fucked up royally.”

“Yeah, you did, so what are you going to do about it? It’s time to man up, Nick. My sister is coming here on Friday and she’s got a date on Saturday.”

How far do I want to push this with him?

Far enough to know what he’s thinking. “She does? With who?”

Hmm, he didn’t blow it off like it wasn’t a big deal; he’s genuinely interested.

“She has a date with Pete. Cassidy thinks they’ll be perfect together.” There’s a crash on his end of the line and it sounds like he kicked over his waste basket.

“Why are you telling me this?” he asks, his voice pleading for mercy.

“Because I want my sister to be happy, and believe it or not, I want you happy, too. If you want my sister for more than a random hookup you need to piss or get off the pot. But if you’re just using her to pass the time, like every other girl since we were sixteen, then it stops here.”

“Did you for one minute even consider the fact that I’ve been using girls to pass the time because I have feelings for your sister and couldn’t act on them?”

Is he being serious right now?

“No, I didn’t, but if you’ve had feelings for my sister for ten years and didn’t act on them because you were afraid to talk to me about it… if that’s the case then you’re a fucking pussy.” How can you have feelings for someone for ten years and not do anything? If I’d missed ten years with Cassidy I’d never forgive myself.

Nick’s quiet for a long time before speaking again. “You’re right, I
am
a pussy, but you are the closest thing I’ve ever had to a brother. You guys are my family, all three of you. If I had acted on my feelings for Ry and fucked it up before I was ready, none of you would have forgiven me and I would have lost you all. If I had come clean to you and you forbade me to date her, it would have put us in an even worse position. I’d lose your friendship and your relationship with her would be broken if we’d dated. Or if we didn’t date and I stepped back, our friendship would have been strained and your relationship with your sister would still be broken.”

Well, hell.

“I’m only going to say this once, Nick, so listen up. You’ve got my blessing to date my sister but you better be damn sure this is what you want. If you break her heart, I’ll kick your ass and our friendship will likely suffer.”

“Seriously? It’s that easy?” he asks, awestruck.

“No, it’s not easy, Nick, but after talking to you and my sister, I think you guys have something and like I said before, I’d like to see both of you happy. But I think she’ll really like Pete and you might just have to fight for her if this is what you truly want. If you can get time off, I’d strongly suggest flying up and booking a room at
Turtle Bay
. Cassidy is going to marry me next week, she just doesn’t know it yet. I’d like you to still be my best man. I’m pissed at you but I love you more.”

“Yeah, let me see what I can do. Thanks, Zack, I owe you.”

“Just make my sister happy, Nick, and we’ll be good.”

After my talk with Nick and Rylee, I felt better. Cassidy and I started watching
Armageddon
and she fell asleep in my arms. When she woke up, we watched
The Breakfast Club
and had a late lunch. After lunch, she did some reading and I took care of some wedding details. I’ve got a bakery on stand-by that will bake us a cake with twenty-four hours’ notice. Rylee is bringing Cassidy a dress and a local restaurant has signed on to cater dinner for us.

It’s going to be simple and small, just like Cassidy wanted all along. I’m hoping she’ll agree to marry me in the next day or two, I just need to find the right moment to ask her. Until then, I’m just trying to keep her moving forward. This entire trip has been a relief. Things are falling into place better than I could have ever dreamed. Once I finished and went upstairs to check on her, she was sleeping in one of the reading chairs. I hope she’s not getting sick—that’s her second nap today.

I decide to let her sleep and go to the gym downstairs and get a good workout. It feels good to get all of my earlier aggressions out of my system. By the time I have showered and changed, Cassidy has dinner ready and waiting.

“How are you feeling?” I ask, placing a kiss on the top of her head as I sit down at the table.
“I’m fine, why do you ask?”

She’s radiant and looks happy and healthy. Maybe she did just need to catch up on some sleep.

“I just thought maybe you weren’t feeling well since you took a couple of naps today. I’m glad I was wrong. I’d hate for you to be getting sick.”

“You’re sweet but I think the stress of the last few weeks just finally caught up with me. When do you have to leave?” Glancing down at my watch, I realize it’s later than I thought and confirming that is the ringing of the doorbell.

“About now. That’s got to be Pete.” With a light laugh, she stands to go get the door.

“Hurry up and finish eating. I’ll go let Pete in.”  I feel bad about interrupting our dinner but this appointment is important.

“You better go or you’re going to be late,” Pete says as he sits down while Cassidy makes him a plate. I look to her to be sure she’s really okay with me leaving.

“Go. Pete and I are going to get to know each other over dinner. I’ll see you when you get back.”

“Are you going to leave some Post-its out for me tonight?” I tease and she blushes furiously.

“Maybe, if I have time.” She tries to cover gracefully but her red cheeks and my laughing are a dead giveaway. Pete’s wearing a big smile and I’m sure he’ll ask me about this later. Hell, he’s pretty blunt, he may ask her.

“See you guys later. Pete, no one gets in tonight while I’m not here.
Especially
my mother.” Turning to Cassidy, I address her, too.

“I mean it, Cassidy. If she shows up, she can wait until I get home, or preferably until tomorrow. I don’t care if my dad is with her, either. If I’m not here, they
don’t
get in.”

“Zack, I can’t be rude and turn them away.”

“You don’t have to. Pete, have Mike turn them away. If they still insist,
you
turn them away. This is what I’m paying for and I’m not messing around about this.” I know Pete won’t let them in but I also know Cassidy has a way of getting people to do things they normally wouldn’t.

“I understand, boss,” Pete answers back, all business, keeping the personal out of this conversation.