Chapter Fourteen
Mikayla
Have you ever felt so comfortable with someone that it made you uncomfortable?
Caine is… well, simultaneously unsettling and comforting. It’s very confusing. I’m not exactly sure how to feel.
I’m having a difficult time defining what the deal is between us. We don’t know each other yet, but at the same time, he feels very familiar. And the way he held my hand in the car… I just stare at my hand as I remember the warmth of his simple touch. It comforted me. Yet, it also did other things.
The reason the conversation upset me when he asked about my car is that it was due for service the day my father passed away.
It’s a strange thing to recall. But a reality that I can’t ignore. It’s odd that it makes me sad, and now every time I think about my car, I think about my dad. Not that I need another thing to make me think of him. He’s never far from my heart.
But Caine sensed my sadness and held my hand. I know it was nothing more than an empathetic gesture, but even after the moment passed, he kept my hand in his. Every time his thumb skimmed over my knuckles, tingles moved up my arm, giving me goosebumps.
It doesn’t matter what my body feels for this man because it can’t be anything. He made that abundantly clear at dinner. I don’t know what happened in his past to make him so adamant about wanting to be alone, but if a woman as beautiful as Pamela couldn’t sway him, my big ass certainly won’t.
Not available, I remind myself.
I pick up my phone and call Jack, since that’s what I’m supposed to be doing… Caine is certainly bossy. He has the big brother… do what I say thing down pat. I picture him shaking his finger in my face and giggle.
“Hey, Micky!” Jack says excitedly into the phone when he answers.
“Hi! How are you?” I ask, matching his enthusiasm.
“I’m good. Work has been crazy this week. But whatever, how did the NCLEX go?” he asks, brushing his shit aside like it doesn’t matter.
“The test went well, I think. What’s wrong at work?” I ask, my brow furrowed in worry.
“We just have a lot going on now, but it’s fine. Really! It’s just work, you know? Where are you now? On your way to California?”
“Jack, are you sure?” I ask, frowning.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s really not serious! And if it helps you feel better, I haven’t spoken to Mom for two days now. She calls about twenty times a day though, but I’m actually sleeping, which is definitely a plus,” he says. “Now tell me where you are.”
“Well, I kind of ran into some car trouble,” I begin.
“Are you okay?” he asks worriedly. “Where are you? Shit! Do I need to come get you? Shit! Shit!”
“Jack, chill out! I’m safe,” I tell him. I raise my hand like he can see the stop-sign gesture I’m making with it.
“What? Where are you?”
“I’m at a friend’s, in…” I place my hand over the phone and look at Caine. “Where are we?”
“You don’t know where you are? A friend? What friend?!” Jack yells so loudly I have to pull the phone away from my ear.
“You’re near Crystal Falls,” Caine whispers. “Want me to talk to him?” He waves at me, his palm up.
“Mikayla! Who do you know in Crystal Falls?” Jack yells into my ear. Clearly covering the phone doesn’t mute the sound.
Being the coward that I am, I hand my yelling brother over to Caine, who seems unfazed by angry Jack.
Caine presses the speaker button on my phone and places it on the counter, leaning over toward me. His biceps bulge in his t-shirt, and my eyes can’t help but take him in. The man is sex personified.
Our eyes lock for a moment, and he tucks a lock of my hair behind my ear. I’ve never wanted a man to kiss me as much as I want Caine to, not ever in my life. It feels like I can’t breathe. My skin practically hums from that little touch behind my ear.
But the moment is shattered when the shrew on the other end of the phone yells, “Mikayla!”
“Jack?” Caine says. “I’m Caine Montgomery.”
“Who?” Jack says rudely.
I roll my eyes. Too bad he can’t see.
Caine chuckles, seemingly unaffected. “I met your sister a little over three months ago in New Mexico. Mikayla had dinner with me and my brother at the steakhouse you recommended, Shirley’s…
on her birthday. She called me when her car broke down.
I towed it to my ranch and will have it looked at in the morning.
In the meantime, I put her in my spare room. ”
“Your ranch?” Jack asks incredulously.
“Yes, the Montgomery Horse Ranch. You can even Google it,” Caine says, still being kind, though do I detect a little sarcasm?
My brother is silent, so I’m assuming he’s actually Googling the name.
“You ride bucking broncos?” my brother asks excitedly.
“I train riders and horses now. But yes,” Caine says.
“What are bucking broncos?” I ask. I know next to nothing about horses.
“Like the most dangerous kind of riding in a rodeo,” Jack says, his voice full of awe. “Remember that movie with Luke Perry… 8 Seconds?”
I have no idea what he’s talking about, but my stomach flips at the word “dangerous.” And I feel my face fall.
“I don’t ride anymore, sweetheart, don’t look so worried,” Caine says. He reaches over and caresses my cheek.
“Sweetheart?” Jack asks pointedly.
“Jack, now you know where I am and who I’m with, okay?”
“Fine, but you better keep me informed about what’s going on with your car. And don’t fix it if it’s more than its value. I’d rather buy you a new car than have you waste money on an old one that won’t last anyway,” Jack tells me.
“Alright, I’ll keep you informed,” I say annoyingly. “Love you, bye!” I add quickly before hanging up.
Caine smiles at me as I stand. “Your brother loves you,” he says, his head tilted as he regards me. He looks so serious.
I can’t help but smile because it’s true, and I feel so lucky that my relationship with Jack is finally healing.
“I’m heading to bed, sweetheart. I wake up early. But you have my number, so if you need me, call me. Make yourself at home,” Caine says as he walks out of the kitchen.
My phone indicates twelve o’clock. I feel exhausted. So, like Caine, I make my way to my room and get ready for bed.