Chapter 10
My Fair Wyatt
Wyatt
If anyone ever told me I would find a Jag, an Alfa Romeo, and a Triumph all in the same day and end the day wretched, I would have never believed them.
But there I was driving Caroline home from the Norland Estate sale, utterly dejected.
She had just agreed via text to go to dinner with Ed and his stupid fancy watch.
“You were right,” she announced, all chipper. “He asked me out.”
“What did I say?” I tried my best to sound casual. “And???”
She took a minute to reply. She tapped away on her phone. “And what?”
“What did you say?” I clarified.
“I said yes, of course. No harm in a first date. And he seems nice.”
“Yes, very nice—and very rich.” I shouldn’t have said the rich comment, but I did.
“What are you saying, Wyatt?”
“Just pointing out one of Ed’s many attractive qualities.”
“Are you calling me a gold digger?” All her cheeriness turned to anger. “How dare you! You know I wasn’t marrying Greg for the money.”
“You certainly weren’t marrying him for his charming personality.”
“True!” Caroline snort-laughed. Normally, I adored her laugh, but at that moment, it was lemon juice on my road-rashed heart. “But I really did love Greg,” she continued.
“I know. But I also know that given the choice between a rich man and a poor one, you’d choose the rich guy every time.”
“You’re probably right,” she said. “But it’s not all about the money. I’m looking for stability. That’s why I can’t ever choose the bad boy.”
“Bad boy? Are you talking about me?”
“Not exactly, but kind of.” Was this Caroline’s way of letting me down gently? Because it felt like a slap. “You know, the shaggy hair, the partying, the dropping out of college.”
“Dropping out? What are you talking about?”
“Didn’t you?”
“I hate to disappoint you, Your Majesty, but I got my degree in engineering and followed it up with my MBA. I went to six years of college and graduated Magna Cum Laude all while working part-time at my dad’s garage.
” I rarely mentioned my good grades. But I was incensed at being passed over by Ed and then being called a college dropout.
“I had no idea! Why did Greg call you a dropout?”
“Why do you believe anything he told you?”
“Because I was an idiot, okay!” Caroline practically yelled at me. “Obviously, I have terrible taste in men. That’s why I said yes to Edward, okay, he seemed safe and stable. It’s not like I’m in love with him.” She was practically crying.
“Sorry! I shouldn’t have made the money jab.”
“It wasn’t nice.” She folded her arms across her chest. “But I shouldn’t have called you a ‘bad boy’—especially when you’re a really nice guy.”
“Ouch! Friend zone and nice guy all in the same day.”
“If it makes you feel any better, you’re as sexy as a bad boy,” she said, smiling through her tears.
“You’re the bad boy with a heart of gold.
” That comment would have made my day, except Caroline had just agreed to go out with Ed Frechette, and nothing could cheer me up.
He would sweep her off her feet, I knew it.
I had no chance against a guy who wore dress shoes on a Saturday morning. All hope was lost.
“So why did Greg call you ‘the dropout’?” she asked after blowing her nose.
“Why does Greg do anything?” I asked. “To make himself look better. I’m guessing he called me a dropout because I decided not to go into the family business. My grandpa wanted me to become a lawyer and work for his firm. Instead, I studied electrical engineering.”
“That’s hardly ‘dropping out.’”
“I know. But it irked Greg that I always did better in school and had a higher SAT score.”
“So I’m guessing you also never did drugs?”
“What the hell?”
“Greg always called you his ‘stoner’ cousin.”
“No, Caroline, I didn’t do drugs. I partied some in college. But those days are well behind me.”
“Oh, wow! I feel dumb,” she said sheepishly.
“You should.”
“But I swear I never held that stuff against you.”
“How very generous of you. You didn’t hold things that weren’t true against me.” I turned up the radio. I was too upset to talk the rest of the way home.
***
I drove from Caroline’s straight to my dad’s.
What I really wanted was to talk to my mom.
She was the one I spoke to about girl problems. She was also the only other person who knew about my crush on Caroline.
But she was gone, which left my dad, who wasn’t really one for relationship talk. But he was all I had.
He answered his door in a T-shirt and boxers.
“Wyatt! What are you doing here so late?”
“Late? It’s 8 p.m. Why are you answering the door in your underwear?”
“Oh, this?” He looked down at his striped boxers. “These are my pajamas.”
I followed him inside, straight to the kitchen.
“I knew I was fine answering like this,” he said as he got two beers out of the fridge. “Because I saw your car. Let me guess, is this about Caroline?”
“Yeah...” My shoulders slumped. “How did you know?”
“I’ve known that you had a thing for her since she first showed up at the family reunion.” He popped the lids off our drinks and handed me one. “It’s a nice night; let’s sit outside.”
“Was I that obvious?” I asked, settling in a chair on the back patio.
“No, your mom told me. And after that, it was hard to miss. Like New Year’s Eve, when she got engaged. You were a wreck.”
“I was. I am.” I stared up at the dark, leafy trees. “I’ve liked Caroline for years now. Is it time I give up?”
“Of course not. Why do you think I hired her?”
“I have no clue. She said it was to get the car back.”
“I would like to get my car back. But that was just my cover story. My main reason to hire Caroline was to get you two together.” I nearly spit out my drink. I couldn’t believe my dad had gone to such lengths to play matchmaker. It was unbelievable. Also, it was pretty solid of him.
“You’re kidding!”
“Not one bit. And from what I can tell, my plan is working.” He wasn’t wrong. Since that little barbecue in my dad’s backyard, Caroline and I had become almost friends. She invited me to a family dinner. Today, I was one millisecond away from kissing her.
“It was working. Then enter Ed Frechette.”
“Who’s Ed Frechette?”
I told my dad about the estate sale and Ed’s role in it. He was sidetracked by the cars I purchased, and so we spent some time discussing them. But then I returned to Ed asking Caroline out.
“He’s everything she wants,” I bemoaned. “He’s rich, he’s reserved, he dresses as if he were in a Gucci photo shoot. And the worst part is: he’s a good guy.”
“But he’s not you,” said my dad.
“For Caroline, that’s a bonus.”
“I doubt that.”
I took a swig of my beer and gazed up at the night sky.
Sometimes I thought Caroline did return my feelings.
She would have kissed me at the estate sale if Ed hadn’t walked in.
And there was one thing she said on the drive home that I couldn’t get out of my head: That’s why I can’t ever choose the bad boy.
She sounded like she was giving something up.
Something she wanted. Was I delusional in hoping that something was me?
She had already said that I was the bad boy.
Maybe it was a long shot. But I was willing to take it.
Caroline had tortured me for years—perhaps unwittingly.
It had been agonizing to watch her devote herself to my worthless cousin, knowing that he was cheating on her—to be dismissed and ignored while she lavished him with love and attention.
And now to stand by and watch her date someone else.
.. I wasn’t willing to do that again. I sent Charlie a text.
***
Charlie and Jane arrived right on time.
Jane peered out my living room window with the view of trees and the creek. “Wow! This place is amazing!”
Charlie handed me a bottle of whiskey.
“Caroline said this was your favorite. I hope she’s right.” I glanced at the label and was impressed. It was my favorite, though I doubted I’d ever told her. She must have asked my dad. It cheered me slightly that she had taken the effort.
“I thought maybe Caroline would join us,” Jane asked a little too innocently.
“Um... no.” I tried to maintain a neutral face, but there was no fooling Charlie. After working with him for a couple weeks, I had begun to suspect that what Caroline referred to as his incredible luck was actually finely-honed emotional intelligence.
“Is this about my sister?” he asked.
There was no reason to hedge. I had invited Jane and Charlie over specifically to discuss Caroline. But how to begin.
“Cut the crap,” said Charlie. “It’s obvious you’re crazy about her, and she’s into you. What’s this about?”
“She started dating someone else,” I admitted.
“What are you going to do about it?” he asked.
“I don’t know. That’s why I invited you over.”
“And here we were plotting ways to casually bring up Caroline,” Jane said as she set a pie on my kitchen counter. “Charlie lives to play matchmaker.”
“What kind of pie is that?” I asked, happy to be distracted from the awkward conversation by the delicious-smelling pie.
“It’s blackberry,” said Jane. “We picked the berries from the side of the road.”
“I hope you have vanilla ice cream to go with it,” added Charlie.
“Always,” I answered.
“And that’s why I want you for a brother.” He slapped me on the back.
“No pressure there,” Jane said.
“I appreciate your confidence. But I really don’t think Caroline’s on board.”
“She has to be,” said Jane, beaming. “You two are so adorable together. Who’s this interloper?”
“Let’s discuss it over dinner. It’s all ready. Shall we?”
“Yes, I’ve been on my feet all day,” said Jane, taking a seat.
“Jane’s a wedding planner,” Charlie explained with pride as he sat next to her at the table set with my mom’s dishes. She owned so many dishes. It was easy to stock my kitchen.
“Is that so?” I asked as I brought the food over.
“Yes. And one of the weddings I’m currently working on is one of Charlie’s successful matches.”
“My best friend, Liam’s,” he said.