Chapter 26
26
KAISEN
S unday night, after spending half the day with Dorie, I called her. The phone rang and rang, but she didn’t answer. I sent her a text, hoping to get a response.
Hey, just checking in. Had a great time today.
I waited an hour and still didn’t get a response. Still, nothing. I told myself she was probably busy, that she’d get back to me later. I didn’t want to hound her. She had all the wedding stuff to deal with.
Besides, my hands were full with Liam and Marcus. I wasn’t sure how I landed on babysitting duty but it kept me surprisingly busy.
By Monday, I was starting to get antsy when I didn’t hear from her. Not even a return text or a like on the messages I sent. I called again, left a voicemail, sent another text.
Still nothing.
Tuesday came and went the same way.
By Wednesday, I was officially worried, though I tried not to show it. I had Cullen and the guys to deal with, after all. Golf, wedding prep, and all the other nonsense that came with being the best man. But my mind kept drifting back to Dorie. What had I done wrong?
I thought about going to the bakery, but something told me she wouldn’t appreciate that. If she wasn’t returning my calls, I doubted she wanted me dropping in on her. It was pretty clear she didn’t want anything to do with me.
I knew she wasn’t in the hospital or anything. If there had been an emergency, Cullen would have told me but I’d heard nothing about her. And I was too much of a chicken shit or maybe too proud to ask him directly if he knew what was going on.
Now it was Thursday morning, and I was on my way to the airport with Marcus and Liam. This was supposed to be a fun weekend. But I couldn’t stop staring at my phone.
The sleek black car pulled to a stop just outside the private hangar, parking alongside the jet waiting on the tarmac. Marcus and Liam were already piling out of the car, laughing about something I hadn’t been paying attention to. My phone was still clutched in my hand, the screen dark and unresponsive. I’d sent Dorie one last text before we left to let her know I’d see her this weekend.
I assumed that was still the plan.
“Hey, Kaisen, you coming or what?” Marcus called over his shoulder, already halfway up the steps to the jet. He was grinning, clearly in high spirits for the trip. Liam was right behind him, pausing to take a selfie before climbing the stairs.
“Yeah,” I muttered, shoving my phone into my pocket and following them. The interior of the jet was all plush leather seats and gleaming wood accents. I had chosen every detail when I bought it a few years back.
I slid into a seat by the window, my mind still stuck on Dorie. What had gone wrong? Things had been good. More than good. She’d seemed happy when I left her on Sunday. Or at least I thought she had.
The first stop was New York. We had a final tux fitting today before the wedding, and then it was off to Atlantic City for the bachelor/bachelorette weekend. But I couldn’t focus on any of that. All I could think about was Dorie.
I typed out another text, my fingers hovering over the screen. What did I do wrong? I hit send, but I already knew I wasn’t going to get a response. I’d been ghosted before—hell, I’d ghosted plenty of people myself—but this felt different.
This hurts.
And I hated that it hurt.
Cullen plopped down in the seat opposite me. “This is really awesome,” he said. “Thanks for letting us tag along on your fancy plane.”
“Of course,” I said with a smile I only half felt. “All part of my best man duties. We travel in style.”
“More like you don’t want to fly commercial,” he joked.
“No one wants to fly commercial. Anyone with a choice would pick this.”
He gave me another look. “What’s your deal, man?” he asked. “You look like you took Old Yeller behind the barn. Are you sick?”
“I’m fine.”
“Are you sure?”
I shook my head and leaned back in my seat with a sigh. “It’s nothing. Just work stuff.”
Cullen raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it. “Work stuff, huh? You’ve been staring at your phone like it’s about to explode.”
I didn’t answer. How could I explain that I was confused, hurt, and completely out of my depth? How did I admit I might have feelings for her, real feelings, and that I have no idea what to do about it? Instead, I just shrugged, staring out the window as the plane taxied down the runway.
“Alright, alright, but you’re not allowed to sulk at my bachelor party,” he said. “Please. If you start crying, I’ll start crying, and then no one will have any fun.”
I smirked. “I promise no tears.”
We were soon in the air and Carol, the flight attendant, came around. “Gentlemen, would you like to start with a drink?”
Marcus leaned forward, his grin widening. “Is it too early for champagne? I mean, it’s a celebration, right?”
Cullen glanced at me, eyebrows raised in question. “What do you say, Kaisen?”
“According to sky law, it’s never too early for champagne,” I said, nodding at Carol. “Break out the good stuff.”
She smiled and nodded back. “A round for everyone?”
“Please and thank you,” I said.
She made quick work of the task and handed out champagne flutes.
“Feel free to pour one for yourself, Carol,” I said. “Or take a bottle home with you.”
“You’re the boss.” She smiled and headed back to the galley.
“Hell yeah,” Marcus cheered, addressing us. “This is what I’m talking about. Private jets and champagne on demand? Kaisen, you’ll spoil us.”
Liam held his glass up in a toast. “Here’s to living like billionaires for the weekend. Cheers!”
I raised my glass and clinked it against theirs, but my mind was still elsewhere. The champagne tasted like nothing as I sipped it, the bubbles fizzing against my tongue but failing to lift my mood.
Cullen nudged me with his elbow. “You’re supposed to enjoy this, man. Don’t be a downer.”
“Just taking it all in. Got mental checklists and all that.”
“Taking it in? Dude, you’re zoning out like you’re at a funeral,” Marcus quipped, leaning back in his plush seat. “This is supposed to be fun. Bachelor party prep, remember? No moping allowed.”
Thankfully, they all got to talking about some new movie they wanted to watch. I turned my attention to the window. There was nothing to see but endless blue sky.
This was why I vowed to never fall in love. It was never reciprocated, was it? I just proved myself correct. Love was bullshit. Cullen got lucky, but that was basically asking lightning to strike the same place twice.
It just wasn’t going to happen.
I was happy for Cullen. But he and I were very different. Cullen was the type to settle down and have three kids that lived in a house with a white picket fence and a golden retriever.
That was not my style.
And it never would be.
The flight to New York was short and easy. An SUV was waiting for us. The four us of piled in, with me taking the front passenger seat. I knew it wasn’t exactly normal, but I didn’t want to be in the back being forced to make small talk.
We headed straight to the tailor for our tux fittings. The tailor greeted us warmly as we walked in.
“Right on time, Cullen,” he said. “Let’s get you fitted first.”
Cullen followed him into the fitting area, leaving Marcus, Liam, and me to wait. Marcus was already flipping through a catalog of cufflinks, muttering to himself about “upgrading” his look. Liam was scrolling through his phone, no doubt posting something about the trip.
I sat down in one of the plush chairs and debated pulling out my phone. Part of me didn’t want to see the empty notifications screen again. But another part of me—the part that refused to give up—hoped there would be something from Dorie. A text, a call—hell, even an accidental butt-dial would’ve been something.
Not surprising, there was nothing.
“Kaisen, you’re up,” Cullen called out.
I moved to the back. Cullen was standing on a round pedestal with a younger tailor pinning his pants. I took the tux and went into the dressing room to put it on. Marcus and Liam were in the waiting area bullshitting.
The tailor moved around me, tugging this and pulling on my sleeve. His fingers deftly adjusted the fabric as he muttered measurements under his breath. “Shoulders are perfect,” he said, more to himself than to me, as he stepped back to survey his work. “But we’ll need to take in the waist just a touch.”
I stood stiffly on the pedestal, arms slightly out, feeling like a mannequin. I glanced at the mirror, trying to picture myself at the wedding. Sharp, polished, confident. The kind of guy who didn’t get ghosted by women he cared about.
As I stood there, letting the tailor adjust the fit of my jacket, I overheard a conversation between Marcus and Liam. Their voices were low, but I caught Dorie’s name.
I listened closer.
“You think you can get into her pants during the bachelor weekend?” Liam said. “Dorie’s hot, but she’s way out of your league. I don’t think she likes you.”
“Nah, man.” Marcus laughed. “She’s just a small-town girl. Bet she’d be into it if you played your cards right.”
“You’re saying you don’t mind if I take a shot?” Liam asked.
I clenched my fists, my jaw tightening as I fought the urge to say something. Dorie didn’t deserve this. No woman did, but especially not Dorie. I didn’t care that she was ghosting me right then.
“Fuckers,” I hissed and jerked my arm away from the man with needles coming at me.
But before I could intervene, Cullen was already making his way into the waiting room. “Knock it off,” he snapped. “That’s Eliza’s sister you’re talking about. Show some damn respect.”
The guys mumbled apologies, but the damage was done. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of them talking about her like that. Like she was just a piece of ass. Someone to use once and then discard like trash. She was so much more than they realized. They had no idea she was way too good for any of them.
Apparently, she was too good for me as well.
Cullen changed out of his tux and came out of the room holding his phone. “Eliza just texted,” he said. “She and the girls made it to Atlantic City. Dorie’s driving up tomorrow, though. Something came up with the bakery.”
“Really?” I asked. “I thought she was taking her car to the shop?”
Cullen shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Her car is a piece of shit,” I muttered. “She shouldn’t be driving that thing three blocks, let alone fifty miles.”
Cullen chuckled. “Dorie is a very practical person. I don’t think she’d buy a new car even if she won the lottery.”
“It sucks she didn’t get to go with the rest of the party,” I said.
“Yeah, but something tells me she might not be all that sad about it,” Cullen replied.
I finished my fitting and went back to change.
Should I go back to Cape May and talk to her?
I hated to think of her sitting there all alone. She was a big part of this wedding, and she was stuck in Cape May while everyone else was going to be partying.
But she obviously didn’t want to see me. Or talk to me.
I didn’t know what to do, and the uncertainty was driving me crazy. I had never been uncertain about a woman.
Marcus and Liam were taking their turns on the pedestals. Cullen was standing nearby, keeping an eye on them. I liked that he stuck up for her. Someone needed to look out for her.
Why couldn’t it be me?
I pulled out my phone and quickly pulled up the number.
“Hey, It’s Kaisen. Got a minute?”