Chapter Four
DYLAN
I can’t believe her saying it was all my fault that night, and she was completely innocent and wasn’t acting like a nutjob at the reception. It was our last night together, and she ruined it.
Dylan quit pacing and took a long drink of water. Calm down, dude. Take a breath and chill. This is ridiculous. She must still have feelings for me, or she wouldn’t have acted crazy today. We can work this out, and since she’s living next door, she will have to deal with me—a lot. I’ll make sure of that, and we’ll be back to normal before she knows it. I need to be patient . Dylan finished his water and grinned. No problem.
The Ohio State Buckeyes’ fight song sounded, signaling that someone was at his door. Dylan opened the door to find Casey in a forest green dress that showed off her slim curves and deepened her emerald eyes. Her hair was curled, her eyes looked huge and sexy, and her lips gleamed with a rich red stain.
Dylan’s eyes widened. I’ve got this. It’s not going to be an issue , he lectured himself.
Casey smiled at him. “Hi. I just wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier. My mind was on my date this evening, and I was surprised to see you. I didn’t know you were back, and obviously, I didn’t realize you were our new neighbor.”
Is she batting her eyes at me? And why is she playing with her hair?
“Anyway, welcome home, Dylan. It’ll be nice having someone here to watch over the place I can trust.”
Casey stuck out her hand.
“You seriously want to shake hands? What are we, business acquaintances now?” Dylan scowled at her. “We’re still friends, Case. We can at least hug each other. And what do you mean, someone watching that you can trust?”
Casey frowned, then turned as a car pulled into her driveway. “Never mind. Jason’s here. Welcome back, Dylan.” She smiled, then turned and walked to her side of the townhouse. Dylan could swear she was putting more swing in her hips than usual.
Dylan crossed his arms and watched as a dude stopped and took in Casey’s gorgeousness, kissing her hand before he opened her door. Dylan saw Casey’s face light up and her smile bloom as she slid into the passenger seat. Just then, Casey looked up at the porch, and her eyes met Dylan’s.
Dylan shook his head, walked inside, and slammed the door.
What the hell was I thinking? This is a huge problem.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Dylan stared at his computer screen, willing his brain to engage.
“Happy Monday, Bro. Glad to have you back in the office.” Colin sat down across from Dylan’s desk and handed him a coffee. “Thought you might have missed your favorite blend since you’ve been living in the land of tea drinkers.”
“I did learn to enjoy a strong cup of tea, but I can’t lie. I missed Sherry’s coffee and her brownies.” Dylan took the lid off and enjoyed the strong, smoky aroma before taking a sip.
“Today’s your lucky day because she was taking out a fresh batch of her double caramel brownies while I was there.” Colin laid the small box on the desk.
“What’s the catch? This usually means you want something.” Dylan took a bite of brownie and then pointed it at his brother.
“I’m just welcoming you back.”
“I know that look, Colin. Something’s up. Spill.” Dylan eyed Colin over his half-empty cup. When Colin continued to stare at him wide-eyed, Dylan grabbed the remaining brownies off the desk.
“Hey, those are for both of us,” Colin said, frowning.
“Not unless you tell me what’s going on.” Dylan took another one, closing his eyes and sighing over the warm caramel and chocolatey goodness.
“Okay. Just put the brownies back before I’m forced to hit you on your first day back in the office.”
Dylan snatched another brownie, smirked, and placed the box on the desk.
“Rachel is worried about you and Casey living next door to each other and wanted me to check on you. There, are you happy now?” Colin stuffed a brownie in his mouth.
“I’m good. It’s no big deal.” Dylan hoped his smile was convincing.
Colin observed him. “Uh-huh. Try again. But this time, attempt to make your smile look less like a grimace.”
“Fine. It’s only been two days. Casey’s ignoring me, other than when she came over for a few minutes on Saturday before her date arrived.”
“Date, huh?” Colin smiled into his coffee.
“Quit being a jerk. She can go out with whomever she wants. I don’t care.”
“Again, with the grimace. Makes it difficult to believe what you’re saying, dude.”
Dylan rubbed his neck, glanced at the ceiling, and then back at Colin. “I thought we’d hang out a bit and then slide back into our relationship. No problem.”
“That means you haven’t actually talked to her,” Colin concluded.
Dylan put his palms out. “I tried.”
“So, that’s a hard no.”
Dylan grabbed the last brownie and glared at him.
“Your scowl doesn’t work on me, remember? I’ll tell Rachel you’re working on it.”
Dylan exhaled heavily and nodded. “Why is it that you’re the one who got married, but I’m the one getting nagged.”
“What can I say? They’re women. They demand details.” Colin sat his coffee down and moved in. “There’s something else, though, and it’s serious. Have you heard anything about Casey’s new job?”
“No, why?”
“Aunt Bebe helped Casey—”
“Hasn’t she done enough to disrupt Casey and Emily’s lives?” Dylan shook his head.
“Apparently not, because she arranged for Casey to interview at GR Shipping & Supplies with Greg. And Casey got the job.”
“Wonderful. Aunt Bebe’s finally using her powers for good.”
“Not so fast. Evidently, Greg has been losing money, and he wanted someone unknown to come in and be the business manager while simultaneously trying to figure out who is siphoning money and how they’re doing it.”
“This might explain a weird comment Casey made to me once she was over the shock that I was her neighbor.”
“What’d she say?”
“Something like…being happy to have someone around that she can trust.”
“That doesn’t sound right.” Colin frowned.
“Exactly. But Greg is a good man. He’d never put anyone in danger.”
“Agreed. But what if the problem is worse than he realizes?”
Dylan reclined back in his chair. “Then I guess it’s good that I’m the new neighbor.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Dylan grabbed a beer on his way through the house to the back deck.
I missed this. I enjoyed the pubs. But I missed sitting on my deck and kicking back after a long day at work . Dylan stretched his feet out on top of the ottoman. I c ould get a pup. It would be nice to have someone happy to see me when I get home, and I could take it to the job site, even the office—something easygoing, like a lab. I could check out the shelters this weekend. That’s what I’m missing—a cuddly, happy dog, not Casey.
The flash of a baseball hat caught Dylan’s eye, and he bent forward for a better view of Casey’s backyard.
They’re not home yet. Why is someone in their yard? Dylan stood and let himself through the low gate that connected the two yards.
“Hey, you,” Dylan yelled as the short, muscular guy rounded the corner. When the man didn’t respond, Dylan jogged to catch up. “Hey.”
The man turned and smiled. “Yes?”
Dylan took in the khaki-colored uniform and the name Bob stitched over the left breast pocket. “Bob?”
“That’s me. I’m from the cable company. Can I help you?”
“I’m wondering why you’re here when no one is home?”
“We got a complaint that the cable isn’t working. They sent me here to fix it.”
“Don’t you need to get inside to do that?”
“Nope. Not in this case. The problem was on the outside. Otherwise, I’d have to come back when somebody’s home.”
“Handy.”
“I’ll say. I was just about to leave a completed service note on the door and head to the next address.”
“Okay. Thanks, Bob.”
“No problem. I’m glad to know the neighbors are watching out for each other.”
Dylan let himself back through the gate. As he finished his beer, he heard a car pull in next door. This time, instead of letting himself into their yard, he went through the house, rinsing his bottle and dropping it in the recycling bin before heading out the front door.
“Can I help you with those?” Dylan called as Casey pulled groceries from the back seat.
“Am I going to have to talk to you every time I’m outside?”
Dylan saw the frustration flash through her eyes. “I’m just offering to help you bring in the bags. What’s the big deal?”
“The deal is I’m willing to be around you at family functions, but that’s it. I had no idea you came with the house when Aunt Bebe gave us this rental.” Casey narrowed her eyes, holding groceries with one hand with another on her hip.
“I just wanted to tell you that the cable guy was here and said he fixed whatever the problem was.” Dylan gave Casey his most charming smile, hoping to soften some of her anger.
“Yeah, right. If you are going to make up reasons to talk to me, at least make them believable.” Casey turned and stomped off towards the door.
“I’m telling the truth, Case. He said he would leave the service paperwork in the door.”
“Uh-huh. Then why isn’t there anything in the door?”
Dylan caught up with her and took her by the arm. “I’m telling the truth.”
Casey glanced down at Dylan’s hand before looking up at him. “Nice try, Einstein. But we don’t have cable.”