Chapter 14 Marcus
I’m determined to make this week a good one.
There will be a beautiful wedding. An incredible resort. Plenty of things to do. Plenty of people to meet.
And, of course, there’s Cassidy.
I’ve thought about her every single day since the last time I saw her, and I’ve been restlessly waiting for the day that I get to see her again. Finally, it’s today, and my nerves are through the damn roof.
It seems like Jackson is set on acting like Las Vegas didn’t happen, and I can never tell what’s actually going on inside Tyler’s head under all his jokes. But I’m hooked on Cassidy in a different way than they are.
I’ve been in love with her for years. Now, we’ll be stuck in the same place together for a whole week.
Maybe something will happen. Maybe something won’t.
I’m just going to be open-minded with no expectations.
Or I’ll try to.
“Finally. I’m starving,” Tyler mutters once I join him and Jackson in the lobby after taking a shower and getting dressed for the welcome dinner.
“Ready?” I ask them.
I don’t even have to specify what we’re ready for.
“Behave,” Jackson warns us. “We’re here for Ryan. Not for Cassidy.”
Tyler rolls his eyes but nods.
I know Jackson won’t budge until I nod, so I do it just to satisfy him. I’m not surprised that he’s going to be a hard ass about this, but he should watch how gruff he acts around Cassidy. That could draw Ryan’s attention too.
“I know we had a good time,” Jackson says, keeping his voice low as strangers walk past us. “But we have to be responsible now. Can we all be responsible?”
“Such a buzzkill,” Tyler mutters.
Jackson narrows his eyes. “I’m not fucking around, Ty. Vegas was a mistake. The sooner you get that into your head, the better.”
“We got it,” I assure Jackson. I’m probably listening as much as Tyler, but I don’t want Jackson to lose his damn mind before we even get to dinner.
Jackson huffs and shakes his head at us. “Ryan has been our friend forever. Remember that.”
I share a brief look with Tyler, the amusement fading from his face. I don’t want to lose Ryan as a friend.
Him, Jackson, and Tyler are the only family I truly know. Without them, I have no one.
I shouldn’t play around so much, but that’s one of the many things that’s easier said than done.
Together, the three of us walk into one of the resort’s fine dining restaurants, the smell of spices lingering in the air.
Ryan waves us over from a long table where the rest of the wedding party is also seated.
It takes me a second to see Cassidy on the left side of the table. Her eyes lock with mine for a second before she busies herself with drinking her glass of water.
I figured things would be kind of awkward at first.
Ryan gets to his feet once we approach and embraces us, patting our backs. “Glad you guys made it.”
“This place is awesome,” Tyler tells him.
“Just wait until you see the pool,” Ryan replies before motioning for us to sit down.
There are empty seats scattered around the table. Two are on either side of Cassidy, and one is directly in front of her.
Jackson sits across from her, and Tyler and I flank her.
“Cass,” Tyler greets her casually as he shrugs off his navy blue suit jacket.
“Nice to see you again,” she replies, giving him a stiff smile. If she tenses up anymore, she’s going to shatter like glass.
“I see you’re already getting a tan,” I comment.
Cassidy lets out a dry laugh as she looks down at her faintly red arms. “More like a burn.”
There’s that smile.
My eyes roam over her for a moment while Ryan and Jackson talk. She’s wearing a thin-strapped, white sun dress with a V-neck, showing a little skin while still being classy.
“You look beautiful,” I whisper to her when no one is looking.
Her face flushes. “Marcus…”
“I won’t say any more. I just wanted you to know that,” I reply, our eyes meeting.
She chews on her bottom lip for a moment, making me want to kiss her even more. I meant what I said.
Though, now that I’m really looking at her, I notice the dark hue under her eyes. The heaviness of her lids. She looks like she could pass out in bed in under a few minutes.
The maid of honor responsibilities must be exhausting her.
“Want a glass of wine?” Tyler asks her as a waiter comes by with a bottle.
Cassidy shakes her head. “No, thank you. I’m fine with my water.”
Tyler flashes me a confused look. She wasn’t turning down any drinks in Las Vegas.
“Wine gives me a headache,” Cassidy explains.
“Do you want something from the bar?” Tyler asks her.
“I’m fine,” she assures him before looking across the table at Jackson.
When he only glances at her for a second, she deflates a little.
He needs to stop giving her the cold shoulder just because he’s afraid of getting hooked on her.
“Jax, did you tell Cass about that little boy you saved from that house fire?” I ask him.
Jackson’s jaw tenses as he passes me a hard look. He knows what I’m up to.
“Really?” Cassidy says, her eyebrows lifting. “What happened?”
“There was a young boy hiding in his bedroom closet. The fire was spreading fast, and the parents weren’t able to find him and carry him out with them.
So, I crawled through the upstairs bedroom window, found him, and got him out of there,” Jackson replies, speaking casually like he’s talking about the weather.
“You don’t get scared while doing things like that?” Sarah asks him.
“It’s my job,” he says. “I’m used to it.”
Ryan chuckles. “Stoic as ever.”
“He can handle a fire, but he can’t take a compliment,” Tyler laughs.
Jackson smirks and shakes his head. “Whatever.”
“You’re a hero, Jax. You deserve the compliments,” Cassidy tells him.
Jackson holds her gaze for a moment before nodding and sipping on his wine.
Cassidy frowns when he doesn’t speak a word to her.
“You’ve been at the resort longer than us. Anything special we should check out?” I ask Cassidy, resisting the urge to kick Jackson’s shin under the table.
“They have a really nice coffee shop here,” Cassidy says. “There’s a lot of different teas, and it smells so good in there.”
I lower my voice. “We should get a cup of coffee sometime.”
The sides of her mouth turn up a little. “Are you an early riser?”
“I can be.”
Air puffs out of her nose. “We can always do decaf later in the day.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I say, eagerness filling me. It’s just coffee, but it’s better than us not spending any time together.
It won’t look that suspicious either. We’re just two people who have known each other forever getting a cup of coffee.
After we all order, our entrees come out about twenty minutes later. Plates and plates of expensive steaks, pastas, and seafood fill the table, and everyone is quick to dig in after all our long flights.
“That’s probably the best sirloin I’ve ever had,” Tyler says, gesturing to his steak with his knife. “I should’ve come here way sooner.”
I chuckle. “For what purpose?”
Tyler shrugs. “To just be at a luxury resort. If I had enough money, I’d just live here.”
An amused smile crosses Cassidy’s face as she digs her fork into her bowl of handmade pasta. She twirls her fork and takes a bite of the tightly wound Fettucine noodles, chewing slowly.
“Is yours good?” I ask her, unable to tell from the stiff expression on her face.
“Yeah, it’s good,” she replies quickly before grabbing her napkin and wiping her mouth. She swallows hard and clears her throat before taking a sip of her water.
Maybe she hates it, but she doesn’t want to seem ungrateful in front of Sarah and Ryan. They’re paying for pretty much everything all week long.
“I hope a promotion is in your future, Ryan,” I tell him. “This is pretty luxurious.”
Ryan grins as he takes Sarah’s hand. “Well, about that…”
Tyler’s eyes widen. “No shit. You got a promotion?”
Ryan shrugs. “More like a $20,000 pay increase for all the work I’ve done for them.”
Sarah smiles and kisses him on the cheek. “He deserves it. He’s the hardest working person there.”
I look over at Cassidy, expecting to see a proud expression on her face. Instead, she looks pale. Even paler than her brother.
“Are you—”
“Excuse me,” Cassidy says as she stands from the table. She walks away in a hurry, leaving her half-eaten pasta behind.
I look over my shoulder, watching her disappear into the women’s bathroom. It takes everything in me not to walk after her and check on her, but that would probably be too much.
She needs space, and I need to give it to her.
Especially when her brother is watching.