Chapter 22 - Cayden
I placed the last dish onto the drying rack and grabbed the dish towel, drying my hands. "Okay, does anyone have any dishes that need to be cleaned? I would like to drain the water if I'm done." I asked, glancing over to Thomas and Lucas sitting at the island. Lucas was working on a mug of coffee, and Thomas was flipping through his phone.
"Nope."
"You're cleaning that mug," I told Lucas as I turned, finding my phone was ringing. I glanced at it, seeing it was April. After I got Riley's messages worried about April, I sent her a message that we needed to talk. I knew my sister was going through a lot, but she didn't say anything about it. She kept saying she was fine, but I didn't feel that was true.
"I got to take this," I said, taking my phone and turning to take the stairs down to where the fire trucks were.
"Hey, you're alive still," I said as I answered my phone.
I heard April sigh. "Jesus, you sound like mom."
I stiffened, not realizing I had, but I remembered Mom saying those words growing up. When you arrived at the house late, she stood in the doorway with her arms crossed. She'd shake her head and sigh. "Well, glad to know you're alive and not dead in a ditch somewhere."
I shook the memory off. There weren't a lot of fond ones I had with my folks. "Sorry. It's just been a while, and Riley said you sounded off the other day."
"I was just in a hurry. Everything is fine."
I could tell she was lying, but I didn't know if she was just saying the words or trying to convince herself that she was fine. Either way, she wasn't fine.
"April, I know that you're not okay, and I'm not going to press you on the issue, but don't lie to me. Don't tell me that everything is okay when it isn't."
She fell silent for a moment before she sighed. "You're right, I'm sorry. I just….I want to make sure that Riley is okay, but I can't juggle everything at once."
"I'm aware. And I have her. She's fine. But she's worried about you and said you were coming down, and now you aren't?"
"I'm coming down later than I expected. I'll explain everything when I get there. I figured out some things, and I will be there tomorrow."
I perked up at that information. Riley was going to be excited to have April back, and I looked forward to knowing what was all going on.
"Do you mind if I stay with you when I get there? I know it might be crowded with April, but I can take the couch."
"Of course, we have the space. We can figure something out when you get here."
"How has Riley been doing since we last spoke? I was a little short with her on the phone."
"She's been doing great. She's loving her new job, and she's good at it. She's been getting along with the girls really well and making friends. She's settling down extremely well, and I'm proud of her. You'll be proud of her."
"Good, she deserves to have all of that after Brad. I'm glad she's finding herself."
I ground my teeth together, wondering where the fucker went. We hadn't seen him in town or heard about him, and it wasn't because of the lack of trying either. I'd been taking extra boarder walks to see if I could catch him. And if anyone found him, they all knew I wanted to speak with him.
"You promise me that you're okay? Because I don't want any more surprises like I had with Riley. Don't tell me you're fine and then later find out you've been getting the shit beat out of you."
"I'm okay. But I really do need to go. I'll tell you everything that's been going on when I get there."
I nodded and ended the line. I took a deep breath and sighed, leaning against the fire truck. I was worried about April. It was a good thing I was going to see her tomorrow, or I'd be even more uncomfortable.
The rest of the day went by quickly, and I arrived home for dinner. Riley was unboxing Chinese on the island and smiled when I walked in. "Hey, you're home earlier than I thought."
"We had a shorter day," I said, slipping my shoes off and hanging my jacket up. "Did you pick up dinner after work?"
She nodded. "I did. I got out a little earlier than expected and decided I would buy dinner. You always cook or bring it home, so it only seemed fair."
"You didn't have to," I told her, taking everything in. The kitchen smelled amazing, and my mouth watered.
"It was only fair. You've done most of the cooking, and you pay for everything. I can pay for some things." She took a seat and tilted her head. "Do you want me to pay for anything?
I smiled at her. "Riley, you're figuring your life out. It's not about being fair. You need time, and I'm letting you have that. I'm certainly not going to take your money during it."
She shrugged. "Either way, I want to pull my own weight. If you don't let me pay for things, I'll do some extra cleaning." She started to dish up two plates, and I sat beside her.
"Fine, just pay for dinner occasionally, and we can call it even."
She snorted. "That's not even, but I'll take it."
I watched as Riley started to pop an eggroll onto her plate, and I smiled. "I spoke with April. She's supposed to be getting in tomorrow."
Riley's head turned to me quickly with wide eyes. "She is? She told me she wouldn't be here for a while longer because her credit cards were frozen. When did that change?"
She hadn't told me that. Why hadn't she told me that? How was she affording the flight down?
These were all questions that I knew Riley wouldn't have an answer to, so I might as well ask my sister when she got here.
"Well, she must have figured something out. She said she is going to be here tomorrow."
"I'm glad. I've missed her. It feels so weird not seeing her like I did when I lived in town."
"Did you see her often?"
She nodded. "Yeah, we did dinner at least twice a week. Sometimes, more when Brad and I weren't getting along. "
I swallowed, and she tensed up at his name. She sighed. "Honestly, I never realized how different the town was until now. How…everyone was so toxic. I see why you left."
She glanced at me, and I thought back to that night. How my parents and I were yelling at each other about her and how I'd had enough. I couldn't take it anymore.
I remember my folks pulling me into the kitchen. My dad had his arms crossed, looking irritated.
"Have you done it yet?" he asked, his foot tapping on the ground.
"No," I said, stopping a few feet from him.
My mother paused as she stopped next to my father. She frowned. "Sweetie, what are you waiting for?"
"She's fifteen," I said, glancing between the two of them.
"And at what age are you going to quit dragging your feet? Is she old enough when she's twenty? When she's thirty?"
"She's April's age," I snapped. "Would you want April fucking around at this age?"
My mother frowned. "It's not about age. It's the fact your mates. If April knew who her mate was, then yes, she would probably be married."
I felt like someone had punched me in the gut. They couldn't be serious.
"Cayden, you need to settle down. You're old enough to be married with children, and you've done neither."
"I'm nineteen! What about college? What about having a life before being strapped down with children."
"This is about what's best for the pack!" My dad yelled back angrily. "This isn't about you!"
No, they had made that perfectly clear. For years, they have always wanted what is best for the pack. What about my needs? What about April's needs? What about Riley?
“Why don’t you take her out for dinner? Maybe go for a run? You guys just need to let your wolves take over, and before you know it, you guys will be…”
I shook my head, not wanting her to finish the sentence. I had wanted so badly to have Riley. I wanted to bury myself in her for years, but I’d resisted. I’d held back, and this…this was too much.
“Stop.”
My father sighed loudly. “You need to get this going. No more waiting around. We’re tired of waiting. The pack is tired of waiting.”
I ground my teeth together. "You know what, I'm done."
My mother looked confused. "What do you mean you're done?"
"I'm done. I'm leaving." I turned, and my mother hurried after me. "Cayden! What do you mean?"
I hurried out, grabbing my jacket and yanking it on.
"Cayden, think about this. We just want what's best for you. This is about your future."
"No," I snarled as I looked back at her. "You want what's best for the pack. Not me. Not April. And not Riley."
My mother looked like I'd hit her. She pulled her lips in, and her face darkened. "If you leave, you're not welcome back."
I paused at those words. She crossed her arms. "Think about this."
I looked past her, spotting Riley and April. They looked confused as they looked at me. My eyes paused on Riley. She was still so young and had so much growing up to do. I needed to do this.
I looked back at my mother. "Fine, I won't come back."