12. Casey
Casey
O nce I’ve calmed down enough so that I don’t nut punch Brady, I head back out so I can take their orders.
They’re at their usual table, getting ready to take a seat.
Caleb takes the hem of his shirt and wipes his face with it…
and have mercy…those washboard abs of his are an instant reminder that Brady is right.
I do need the ‘D.’ More than that, I need the ‘O.’
Frustrated, I take their orders with barely a word to any of them. After turning it in to Marlene, I start refilling ketchup bottles. Marlene brought their food out for me, knowing I want to avoid Caleb. I’m halfway through when Lilly approaches.
“Brady can be an ass,” she comments.
“I’m well aware of that. He even smells like one today.”
“I’m afraid I do too. I didn’t realize cleaning could be such hard work and make you smell like rotten garbage.”
“Cleaning?”
She glances over at the table before continuing. “Avery and I are working on cleaning out this old house. Getting it ready for a renter. It’s like a charity thing.”
“Whose house is it?”
She shrugs. “Some old man Brady knows. Thought we’d help him out since he finally rented the place.”
“Yeah, sure. I’ll help. Anything to stay busy.”
“That bad, huh?”
“I honestly thought it’d be easy being around him again. He’s a constant reminder of what happened between us, though. And he acts like nothing happened. That we weren’t even a couple.”
“That’s what you want, right? To move on?”
I nod, my gaze flickering over to him. “That’s exactly what I want.”
“So, I’ll text you the address,” she says and then makes a face. “I really need to go home and get a shower.”
Brady approaches and wraps his arms around Lilly, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “What’s this about a shower?”
He gives her this cocky grin, and her cheeks flame red before they walk off. Great. They’re going to go have shower sex. Reminds me of the fact that I haven’t had shower sex in…well…a long time.
“I suppose I need to go shower, too,” Caleb says when he reaches the bar. “You okay?”
Even better. All I can do is picture him in the shower. The water cascading over his muscles and down to his…
“I’m fine.”
He furrows his brow as though he wants to say more but doesn’t. Instead, he lets me know he put the cash on the table and heads out. Damn, his ass looks fantastic in those jeans.
Shaking my head, I remind myself that I hate him. That all the years we spent together were for nothing.
He hooked up with another girl, and I lost so much because of that. Forgiving him is impossible. And even if he deserved it and I was somehow willing, it wouldn’t change what happened. Some things just aren’t forgivable.