Owen winces and clicks his tongue. “Hate to break it to you, but it sounds like you’re the other guy.”
“What?” I look to Rex, my levelheaded boarding school counterpart, and shake my head, just waiting for him to side with me, but all he gives up is a shrug.
“She does sound dicey. What does she mean by low-key? Does she make you take her to dimly lit restaurants and wear disguises when you’re out in public? Now, that would be a dead giveaway.”
The three of them belt out a laugh at the thought. It does sound comical, but I’m not laughing.
“We’ve got a class together.” I shake it off. “We’ve been seen in public before.” Once, right here at the Black Bear.
“So, have you gone out?” Owen’s not laughing anymore. In fact, he looks downright concerned.
“Not anywhere in particular.”
“Sounds like not anywhere,” he counters. “Dude, you’re like a magnet for crazy chicks. You’d better ditch this one, too, before things get out of hand. Piper has a cool roommate. You should let her hook the two of you up.”
“The last person I want to date is Piper’s roommate. Sorry, not happening.”
Piper bursts into the room and tackles Owen, landing over his back, causing him to take out Jet and Rex with his pool stick. The party quickly disbands as Owen and Piper take off for part two of their evening. I spot Wyatt at the bar just as I’m about to take off myself and head on over.
“Good show.” I nod over to the stage where Blake is screaming himself hoarse.
“Nothing but the best.” Wyatt pulls me into a quick man hug. Even though our father wasn’t around all that much, Wyatt has managed to remain a constant part of our lives. “Did Owen tell you he’s throwing Pipe a birthday party at my place?”
“Sure did. You know I’ll be there with bells on, whatever that means. You need me to do anything?”
“Nope. Marley and her pals are putting it together right now.” He nods over to a table where Marley sits with a small crowd of girls.
“What are you looking at?” Holt comes up and swats me over the shoulder with a towel. “That’s Izzy over there with the dark hair and pink top. She’s my fiancée. Next to her is her sister, Laney—married. And that’s Baya next to her, Bryson’s wife. You know Annie.”
“I guess all the good ones are taken. You just put a tear in my beer, man,” I tease.
Cole comes over and pushes a beer in my direction. “Here’s that drink you’re missing. I don’t see any tears either. That means there’s a girl.”
“There is. And I think I’ll pass the beer to my brother. I’m taking off.” I slap Wyatt over the shoulder again.
Cole repositions the drink, and my brother gladly accepts. “Word to the wise, Cade, if you see a redhead named Roxy, steer clear. Not only is she taken, but she bites and kicks like a son of a bitch.”
“Will do.” I shake my head. “You didn’t leave much for me, did you?” I try to keep a straight face, but that goofy grin of mine floats back to my lips because I already have everything I need.
A blonde moves swiftly toward the exit, and my heart stops as if it just malfunctioned.
“I’ll catch you guys later.” I make a mad dash for the exit and cut her off at the pass, panting wildly through that smile I can’t seem to shake.
“Well, well, here she is. Live and in person,” I muse.
Cassidy Clayton looks up at me, head slightly positioned to the left just enough to hide any idea of a flaw that might be present, but she doesn’t have any flaws, so it’s all for nothing. The way my heart is trying to fist pump its way out of my chest lets me know that Cassidy is the embodiment of perfection.
A giant grin spreads from ear to ear on that precious face of hers, and her eyes sparkle like twin glaciers.
“Cade James, are you stalking me?” She gives a nervous giggle, glancing over her shoulder a moment.
“You were leaving in a hurry.” My affect starts to flatline. “You didn’t see me at the bar, did you?”
Her eyes widen a moment as if she were caught, and my heart thuds to a finish. Could Cassidy really be seeing someone other than me? It’s obvious she’s not loving the limelight shed upon the two of us under the bright lights of the exit, so I do the only thing I can—gently wrap an arm around her waist and walk her backward to the dark corridor leading to the restrooms.
“Is that better?” I whisper over her lips before stealing a kiss. “I don’t think anyone can see us here.” There, I’m calling her out, sort of.