Chapter 28
CASSIDY
Tingles shot through my arm, as if a thousand needles pricked beneath the skin. Prying my drowsy eyes open, I inhaled slowly and was met with the beautiful sight of messy, blonde hair that had definitely ended up in my mouth a few times while I’d been asleep.
The television no longer played whatever western film we’d finished watching hours ago, and Briar snored lightly, her face buried against my chest, laying on the very limb that was asleep. But I didn’t want to move for fear of waking her up and no longer holding her. This couch would be my bed for the night, and I was not upset about it.
I was holding her. That was all that mattered.
Things may have not gone as far as they’d almost ended up earlier in the day between us, but there wasn’t a whole lot of movie watching that happened either. And shamefully, I’d used the lack of conversation as an excuse to not explicitly state that she was mine, that I wanted her to be mine exclusively, and I was regretting it. Especially knowing that the moment the sun rose and I was required to leave this house, everything would be about Weston and Tenley and their new baby.
Not that that was a terrible thing, but Briar was the only one really on my mind.
“Are you just going to keep staring at me like that?” she suddenly mumbled against my chest and slowly lifted her dream-filled eyes to mine.
“Shush and go back to sleep,” I replied and gently pushed her head back to my chest.
“Cassidy, I know your arm has to be asleep by now.” She cuddled in tighter, despite her rather defiant response.
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean—”
“So, let’s go sleep in your bed. Besides, as comfortable as your couch is, your sheets were so nice…” Her voice slipped away, rather otherworldly.
“Ah, I get it. It has nothing to do with the fact that I was in the bed and everything to do with my nice, clean, silky sheets,” I teased and could feel her roll her eyes against my chest.
“Yes, that is the only reason I want to go sleep in your bed, dummy,” she muttered.
“Fine,” I grumbled. “Let’s go so you can enjoy the only reason you want to sleep in my bed.”
“Can we shower first?” She pushed away from me, inhaling deeply. “You stink like you wouldn’t believe!”
“Excuse me? You’re not supposed to ever say that I smell bad! You’re supposed to like my man musk!”
She blinked at me as if I was insane. “Normally, your man musk is fine, but not when my face is buried in your armpit for hours at a time!”
“How rude.” I pursed my lips.
She giggled, and a gentle smile caressed my lips. “You should probably change the bandage on your stitches anyway.”
“You sure you don’t want to just ignore all of this and go back to sleep? The sun’s gonna be up in a few hours anyway, and that sounds like a lot of work.” I tightened my hold around her body, and she sighed.
“Can we just skip the morning? Your family is all back, including Cash. He can handle morning chores. Just this once…”
I exaggerated my gasp. “Are you, Goldie Kensington, asking to play hooky?”
She giggled and, for whatever reason, bit down on my pec through my shirt. “No,” she muttered through her teeth.
“First off, Ow,” I stated, acknowledging her nibble that didn’t actually hurt. “Second, you totally are.” Shivers ran up my spine from how gentle and easy everything seemed right now.
She released the bite. “And so what if I am?” Another giggle brushed against my chest. Everything felt so calm and perfect. I would be willing to play hooky, or do anything she asked to get just one more second like this.
“My girl wants to break the rules,” I teased, not quite realizing what I’d just said until her laughter cut short.
“Your…Your what?” she whispered.
The world squealed to a stop. Time blurred. A solid wall of reality crashed into me, and I squeezed my hands tighter against her back, keeping her face tucked against me. My heart hammered in my chest, ready to bust through my ribs. I’d said it. Unintentionally verbalized something that while to myself was true, my ego had kept to myself in fear of her denying it.
“Cassidy, what did you just say?” she asked again, squirming against my hold.
I slowly released her, and she pushed frizzy hair from her face, sitting up onto her knees on the edge of the couch.
Clenching my jaw, I pulled myself upright and gently slid a leg onto either side of her body, trying to not touch her for fear that I might shock her system even more.
“I said ‘my girl,’” I repeated, though not as confidently as before. Anticipation tingled in my toes, knowing that right now was pivotal. Either she would accept it and we would continue doing whatever dance this was, or she would reject it and I would go into my bedroom by myself with my tail tucked between my legs.
Her gray eyes studied me, emotions that I could not decipher flickered across her face. Everything lingered stiff in the air, hanging by a thin thread that could so easily snap at any moment.
Everything was up to her. Her response would determine where we went from here. It was as simple as that, and as the seconds ticked past, I began to wish that I’d not said those words. The unknown that we’d be swimming in seemed safer than the sharks that were circling now.
“Your girl,” she whispered.
I blinked rapidly, darting my gaze around the room, hoping to find mercy somewhere as my bones trembled. “I mean, only if you’re okay with that. It just kinda came out, and I get that we’ve really only been on one date that wasn’t even a date to you. But I mean, we’ve kinda—”
“Cassidy Duke, stop your rambling and kiss me, please,” she cut me off. My eyes screeched back to hers.
“Did you just say yes?” I gasped.
She rolled her eyes. “Obviously, dummy.”
I grabbed her cheeks and planted my lips against her.
This was different. Not just in celebration of the fact that there was no confusion between us about her feelings toward me, but because it solidified that whatever I was doing was enough for her. And as she sealed our kiss, my promise earlier to give her more became as urgent as the need to get the proof that Wayde was behind everything.
Her lips pressed tighter against my own, simple and gentle but firm. Despite my best effort to focus on the fact that we were kissing, giddiness because of her agreement to be my girl pulled a smile on my lips.
She giggled against the kiss, feeling the movement. Ending it but not moving away, I tightened my hands on her beautiful face.
“I’m going to go shower now,” she whispered.
I nodded, brushing my lips up and down across her mouth. “Alright.”
“With you,” she added. My stomach flipped, thunder crashing against every cell within my body, sparking excitement like I’d never experienced before. Slowly, she backed out of my hold, sliding down from the couch. My hands remained in place, cupping cheeks that were no longer there. Coated in disbelief, my body refused to move.
“Come on, Casanova,” she said, slowly backing up toward the hallway. Her gentle coaxing tugged me out of the sludge that held me bound to the couch.
“Yes, ma’am,” I managed to say, nothing on my mind but thrilling anticipation for what was going to occur, and somehow my feet found their feeling. I jumped up from the couch, followed her into the bathroom, and kicked the door shut behind us.
∞∞∞
Leaning back against the wall of Weston and Tenley’s bustling home, my eyes tracked Briar. She was talking softly with Trixie of all people, though Trixie’s mouth moved way more often than Briar’s. A gentle smile rested on my girl’s lips. Lips that I desperately craved to feel again, yet knew that right now, disappearing from this little party to do so was completely inappropriate.
Glancing around the living room and kitchen that was filled with my entire family plus Tenley’s, I couldn’t help but smile at all of the love and care that was shared in this one moment. Tenley lounged in a recliner, with her mom sitting close by. Weston stood in the kitchen of his house, newborn in his arms, stealing another snack while Remington chatted with him.
For a moment, everything felt as it should be, in a way I’d never experienced before.
A shrill whistle pierced the low buzz of chatter. My dad silenced us with one sound while seated on the couch. Tenley stood up from the recliner as Weston walked over to the fireplace and stopped in front of the mantle, holding his daughter, who was wrapped in a cow-patterned blanket.
“I know everyone’s been asking about our daughter’s name,” Weston began, glancing down at the tiny human that literally turned such a massive grown man into a sap. “We’ve had it picked since we found out Tenley was pregnant.”
Tenley smiled and ran a finger over the little girl’s cheek; a single tear slipped down her own face. “One of them is for the man who may be gone, but now will never be forgotten. He shaped me into the woman that I am today and loved my mom in a way that helped me strive for the husband that I have now. He was strong, smart, and kind. All of the things that I want for this little girl,” Tenley explained and looked up, connecting with her mom. Rooney stood behind Rosemary and placed his hands gently onto her shoulders. She patted his weathered touch, tears brimming in her own eyes.
Weston then continued the explanation. “The other name is for my best friend. For someone who sacrificed more for me than was necessary but never once complained about it. It’s for the person who’s always been by my side, dedicated and loyal and passionate to everything this person sets their mind to. Things that I want for and in my daughter.” He then took a step away from the fireplace. His footsteps echoed loudly in the silence that laid upon the entire house like a warm blanket in the middle of winter.
Rounding the couch, his blue eyes locked onto mine. He wasn’t wearing a hat, so there was no mistaking who he was looking at. A smile spread across his face, one that I’d only seen since Tenley started coming around, but this time it was directed at me.
He stopped in front of me and held out his newborn. “Meet your niece, Cassidy Charlie Duke. CeCe for short,” he said.
I stared at my brother through a blurry haze that couldn’t be tears. Nah, there was no way. There was another reason for the wet trail that I quickly brushed away from my cheeks. “I’m proud of you,” Weston quietly added as he slipped his daughter into my arms.
Inhaling a shaky breath as I blinked back tears, I looked down at the warm, sleeping baby. She already had some dark hair like Weston, but as she squirmed and stretched, blinking her eyes open, I was met with the same green shade as Tenley’s eyes. “Hi there, CeCe,” I whispered, adjusting the soft blanket that brushed against her chin.
Weston placed a hand on my shoulder as I blew out a heavy breath trying to stop the tears, but it was useless. “She’s so beautiful,” I added, glancing at my brother—who was also silently crying.
Weston gave me a crooked smile and nodded once. Suddenly, he pulled me into a hug, careful not to squish the infant that cooed in my arms. “Tenley and I know why you weren’t there at the hospital. Whatever you need, whatever Briar needs, we’ve got you,” he whispered in my ear, squeezing my shoulder once, and then let go.
“Thank you,” I said, looking into my brother’s gaze. “For everything, really. Especially this, but everything else.”
He used the back of his hand to wipe away his own tears and looked off to the side, landing on Briar. My gaze followed and landed on that beautiful woman who was crying herself. “Now, don’t be stupid and mess things up. I like what she’s done to you,” Weston added, and I chuckled as Tenley joined our little private circle and chatter resumed.
“And you’re the only thing that makes sense to her right now,” Tenley said.
Pulling my brows together, I wiped away the lingering tears and looked at my sister-in-law. “What?”
She sighed and shook her head. “You are the only constant in her life. The only thing that hasn’t blown up in her face yet. She just found out her mom is still alive. After everything else that’s going on—which yes, we know all about that—the one thing that should’ve never changed, did. So, you, Cassidy, are the only thing that’s steady for her right now.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked.
“So you don’t screw it up, you big oaf,” she added and patted my cheek.
“Thank you for that. Weston, will you rein your wife in?” I turned to my brother and lifted a brow. He merely smiled and looked lovingly at the woman beside him.
“Never,” he answered as a ringing ended our conversation.
Balancing the newborn in my one arm, I dug through my pocket and pulled out my phone. The contact on my screen set my entire heart into the red zone.
“I need to take this,” I said, staring at the word “Doc” on my screen. “It’s gotta do with what’s going on with Briar.” Tenley gently slipped CeCe from my arms and nodded.
“Go on,” she said.
“We’ll make rounds with CeCe. No one will notice you disappearing,” Weston added in reassurance.
And as soon as they were back to the center of the room, I slipped out of his house.