I’VE NEVER BEEN MORE GRATEFUL THAT OUR FAMILY DRINKS WAY TOO MUCH
I’VE NEVER BEEN MORE GRATEFUL THAT OUR FAMILY DRINKS WAY TOO MUCH
PAIGE
This had been a weird weekend. Yesterday felt like it was three days long between the conversation with my mom and the date Cash planned. We stayed at the lake for hours just talking and laughing. It was nice to have some time alone for just us.
Away from the chaos.
Away from the lies.
“Knock, knock,” Cash said as he appeared in the doorway of my office.
“Hey, you.” I smiled up at him. “What are you doing here?”
Cash pushed off the door frame and sauntered over to my desk. He stood behind me and leaned down to place a kiss on my head.
“I should be asking you that question.”
“I was just uploading some of the pictures I’ve taken so far.”
Cash encased me, leaning his palms on the desk as I clicked through the photos. There were candids of Cash riding, him getting ready at the gate, him surrounded by people, him accepting awards. If you didn’t know that this was my job, I would have looked like an obsessed stalker.
“These are amazing, Pip, but I think you need to be featured in a few once we go back out there.”
I laughed. “Thank you, but I’m much better at taking the photos than posing in them.”
“Not a shot, you’re gorgeous and sexy, and I want more photos with you.”
I felt the blush creeping up my neck as Cash’s kind words sank in. This man made me feel so loved and valued that it almost made me forget this was all a ruse.
This last week was getting to me. I needed to keep my head on straight and remind myself that Cash didn’t choose me or this marriage or this life. He was playing along and enjoying us fooling around, but this wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
“Hey.” Cash put two fingers under my chin and tilted my head up. “Where’d your mind go?”
I smiled up at him, pushing my intrusive thoughts away. “Nowhere, I’m good.”
He scrunched his brow at me but didn’t make a comment before leaning in and placing a light kiss on my lips.
I couldn’t tell him how I really felt—that I was helplessly in love with him and currently on a freefall that would leave me splattered on the ground. Cash had love for me, I knew that, but he wasn’t ready to give up his lifestyle. He wasn’t ready to be what I needed. We were just playing house.
It was a fantasy.
A really great fantasy.
But it would end.
“Owen just arrived so we’re all lighting up a fire out back to have some drinks,” Cash said against my lips.
I groaned. “I’m good right here.”
“Nope, you’re coming. No more avoiding.” Cash grabbed me by the elbow and pulled me to stand, completely ignoring my pout. He placed his hands on my shoulders and pushed me to start walking before slapping my ass, eliciting a giggle.
We stepped out of my office and into the middle of the administration building. Cash stopped abruptly and caught me by the hips before pulling me into him for a kiss. I molded my body to his and snaked my arms around his neck.
“Wait here for a second, I just have to grab something from the patio,” he said against my mouth.
“Hurry back,” I said as he confidently sauntered out the back door, closing it behind him—which was weird.
I heard the front door open and whirled around to see Owen and Lottie stumble in connected by the mouth.
Owen pulled back and looked at Lottie with pleading eyes.
“Please don’t hate me for this,” he said, glancing up at me.
“What?” Lottie tracked his eyes over her shoulder and her brows shot to her forehead when she spotted me. “What’s going—” She turned back to the sound of the front door locking. Owen stood on the other side of the glass.
“Owen Kelly, let me out right now!” she yelled at him through the door.
“Work your shit out,” Owen simply said.
Axle appeared next to him and handed him a beer.
“Are you kidding? I’m going to fucking murder you! I’ll be a widow before we even get married!”
I rolled my eyes and turned to make a swift exit out he patio door. I stopped short when I noticed Cash, Reid, and Walker standing behind the glass. Cash just shook his head slowly and motioned for me to turn around.
I crossed my arms and pinned him with a glare. Those fucking assholes planned this.
“Well, this is fucking great.” Lottie scoffed before facing me.
“You’re not getting out until you work out this fight,” Reid said, cracking open a beer and taking a seat on the outdoor couch that surrounded the fire pit on the patio.
“You guys are going to pay for this,” I shouted through the door.
I sank down on the sectional in the middle of the room and crossed my arms tighter. If we were going to have it out, I wasn’t starting the conversation. Lottie started pacing the room with her hands on her hips.
“Can you just say something so we can get the fuck out of here?” Lottie said in a harsh tone.
“Me?” I placed my palm on my chest and snorted.
“Well, I don’t know what to say.” She stormed to the kitchen and tore open the fridge. “Oh, thank god,” she muttered before pulling out a bottle of wine. She uncorked it and took a swig before placing it back onto the counter. “I’ve never been more grateful that our family drinks way too much.”
“Your new family probably doesn’t,” I muttered under my breath, my gaze locked on the ugly floral area rug beneath my feet.
“What was that?”
The fire in my chest was threatening to make me burst. I wasn’t normally afraid to speak my mind, but Lottie intimidated me—as much as I hated to admit it. Normally, I never stood down from a fight, and I didn’t intend to start now.
“I said, your new family probably doesn’t.” My voice was louder and had a bite to it.
“What the fuck is your beef with the Kellys?”
“I don’t have beef with the Kellys. I love the Kellys.” I did love them. I’d had nothing but positive interactions with them in the last year that Owen and Lottie had been together.
“Okay, then what is with the comments?” Lottie asked.
“You still don’t even get it.” I moved to the back door in frustration. I grabbed the handle to unlock it, but Cash showed up on the other side of the door.
“Don’t even think about it,” he said, blocking the locked door.
“She’s unreasonable,” I barked at him.
“I’m unreasonable?” Lottie laughed behind me. “You’re the one who stormed out the other night like a child.”
I whirled around. “I removed myself because I was over being insulted and steamrolled by you.”
“I wasn’t steamrolling you!” she shouted.
“You called my husband a manwhore!” I shouted back.
“You got married during my bachelorette weekend!”
“You called me selfish!”
“You said I didn’t care!”
“You left me behind.” My voice lowered to a whisper as I dropped my eyes.
Lottie paused and looked at me with sadness etched into her face. “I didn’t leave you behind, P.”
I could feel the pressure building behind my eyes but I refused to cry.
“You did.”
“I’m sorry I freaked out about Cash, okay? I was in shock, and you never even hinted that you and Cash were together.”
“You knew I was in love with him,” I said, wiping at a stray tear.
“Sure, I knew you had a crush, but you guys tortured each other. Then suddenly you were married. I was thrown off and hurt.”
“You never asked me,” I pushed.
Lottie laughed. “You know, your whole argument is that you think I have this whole new life that I left you out of, but in reality you’re the one who had an entire life you left me out of.”
“What was I supposed to do? Call you up and say I’m dating the guy you know drives me insane?”
“Yes!”
“It wasn’t that simple.”
“It was, though, P. I have always struggled with having distance from the ranch, from you and the boys. And then I find out my own sister couldn’t even bother to call me to tell me she has a boyfriend, let alone a husband? Why would I come back if no one wants me here?”
“We all want you here, Lo.”
“When I was sent to California, I thought my world was ending. I felt disconnected from the entire family and I fell down a hole of anxiety and depression. Owen dragged me out of that hole. He became my rock—my entire world. Sure, we talked on the phone, but it wasn’t the same.
I didn’t ask about you because you didn’t seem like you wanted to talk. ”
“I didn’t talk because I wanted you to ask. Plus, my life seemed so boring compared to yours. I didn’t measure up.”
“So you get married?” She raised her brow at me. “That seemed like the logical fix to your problems?”
“We got caught up in the moment.”
“Must have been some moment,” she scoffed.
“It was,” I said with a sweet smile.
Lottie plopped onto the couch with the bottle of wine. “I’m ready to hear the story then.”
I sat down next to her and took the bottle from her outstretched hand, taking a long pull straight from the bottle.
“Cash has always been there for me. When I couldn’t call anyone else, I could call him.
Always, even if we were fighting or down each other’s throats.
In Vegas, when we went to that night club, a man got handsy and scared me.
I ran out of the club and called Cash. He immediately dropped everything and came to find me.
To cheer me up, he took me to a country bar and spun me around the dance floor until I was smiling and giggling.
We just decided to be spontaneous at that moment.
On that dance floor, I felt the happiest I had felt in a long time. ”
Nothing I said was a lie—I just left out a lot of truths.
“I just wish you could have told me how you felt about him.”
“I didn’t feel like anyone would have cared.”
“You need to stop saying that. You are part of this family. We all care about you, and your life, and your choices.”
“I never meant to steal your thunder. I never meant to make this all about me. I wasn’t even going to tell anyone for months just to keep you from being mad at me. That reporter went and screwed it all up,” I said truthfully.
“I never would’ve wanted that. You deserve to celebrate your love just as much as I deserve to celebrate mine.”
Tears started falling down my face as I looked at my sister. “I missed you.”
Lottie scrunched her nose as a stray tear fell down her cheek. “I missed you, too.”
“Also, I really love the Kellys,” I cried as she pulled me into a hug.
“I’m glad, because they love you. And they do drink too much,” she said as she choked on a sob.
We both burst into laughter as the doors unlocked and the boys hesitantly filed in.
“Is it over?” Reid asked, partially hiding behind Cash who rolled his eyes.
Lottie and I turned to the boys who all looked a little sheepish. We stood shoulder to shoulder with our arms crossed. All of the tears dried as we honed in on our mutual enemies.
“Who’s idea was this?” Lottie asked.
Cash, Walker, Owen, and Axle all pointed at Reid. The guys threw Reid to the wolves without hesitation.
I locked eyes with my sister before we broke into a run for our youngest brother. Reid shrieked and bolted out the back door as Cash grabbed me around my waist, lifting my feet off the ground.
Owen caught Lottie in the same fashion, both of us kicking and fighting against them.
“Run, you little wimp!” she shouted after Reid.
Cash and Owen laughed as they carried us out to the patio.
“Put me down,” I scoffed.
“Not until you promise to not make your brother bleed,” Cash said with an entirely too satisfied smile.
“He’s not in physical danger, but we’re better with psychological warfare anyway,” Lottie said as Owen placed her back on her feet.
“Don’t we fucking know it,” Owen muttered before placing a kiss to her cheek.
“Can we have a bonfire now?” Axle asked, cracking open a beer. He was completely unfazed and enjoying the entertainment.
“Absolutely,” I said, grabbing his beer and brushing past him with a shoulder check.