Inevitable (30 page)

“That makes me the handsome one,” Caleb said, placing his arm around Hilary’s waist.

We stopped in the field off to the side, but we were still close enough to see the screen, and I pulled out a large blanket from my tote. Luke helped me lay it out, while Hilary and Oliver played with the very energetic puppy, and Caleb went over to the concession stand to purchase snacks.

“Hey, buddy. I got you some hot cocoa and extra butter on the popcorn.” Caleb waited for Oliver to sit down crossed-legged on the blanket before handing them to him.

Frosty the Snowman
appeared on the big screen first and silenced the yapping of the crowd instantly.

I smiled, sitting beside Oliver and watched Scout snuggling against his ankle. Caleb sat on the other side of him with Hilary between his out stretched legs, her back pressed against his chest. I noticed his hands resting on his own legs but his thumbs caressed her outer thigh.
Definitely more than friends.

“So, you go to my brother’s bar much?” Luke asked in a hushed whisper as he scooted closer beside me.

“More for the restaurant side than the actual drinking in the bar.” I tossed a small handful of popcorn in my mouth and held the bag out to him.

Luke took a few pieces and smiled. “Well, maybe I’ll see you there some time.”

Oliver raised his finger to his lips, shushing us with narrowed eyes.

I gave him an apologetic smile before turning back to Luke who held his hands up in defeat.

We both stifled a laugh and turned our attention back to the giant talking snowman dancing across the massive screen.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Pillow Talk

A
s the second film began, I asked Hilary to keep an eye on Oliver for me while I excused myself to use the restroom.

I weaved through the clusters of people resting on blankets and folding chairs when I heard a muffled voice calling my name in the distance. I turned, hesitantly, unsure if it was meant for me and saw Mark standing on the other side of the massive lawn right beside a scowling Mackenzie.

The blood drained from my face, my stomach churned. Whipping back around I tried to push myself faster through the crowded area without tripping over the dozens of limbs laid out on the grass.

I didn’t want to deal with him, and by the look on his face, I had a feeling whatever he wanted, it wasn’t good.

“Cassandra!” his infuriating voice blared louder.

He was catching up to me. Adrenaline began coursing through my veins. My head began to throb
. Why did he want to talk to me all of a sudden? And why the hell was he with Mackenzie and not Julia?
I’d spent countless hours debating why it was best to keep my mouth shut and not say anything to Julia about my past with him. Mark may have cheated on me, but I wanted to hope, for her sake, he wouldn’t do the same to her.

I quickened my pace so much that I was sprinting, my heart beating erratically. I sucked in a giant breath; mere feet from the bathroom door, and blew it out in a giant puff as relief washed over me. I rushed inside.

The first open stall was all I could see—everything else was a blur. I made a beeline straight for it and slammed the door. With trembling fingers, I slid the bolt in place.

While struggling to catch my unsteady breath, I dropped my head, and rested my hands on my hips. Seeing Mark while around Julia and Logan was tolerable, but this was different. There was no one here for him to put on a show for and try to impress.

“Cassandra?” His voice filled the restroom and my head shot up.

I heard a woman complain about it being the ladies’ room, but then the main door creaked shut.

I took a small step away from the door. The back of my knees bumped into the porcelain bowl.
Damn it! What did he want?
As quietly as possible, I bent down and peaked under the door, staring straight at a pair of size twelve combat boots. They stood sorely out of place against the dull-pink floor tiles.

I inhaled sharply. “Go away!”

“Cassie, we need to talk.”

“Then you should have tried at the farm…while your girlfriend was around.” I hissed through the door.

I was no longer his naïve little Cassie. I watched his feet step closer, stopping directly on the other side of the stall door.

“Why the hell are you hanging around with her brother? I’ve heard all about him.” He snorted. “Logan’s only using you for sex, you know.”

My blood boiled.
How dare he?
“Go to hell!”

“Look, I like Julia, all right. And having my ex-girlfriend hanging around just because she hopes she can fuck my girl’s brother into monogamy is kind of a bitch.”

 “How did I ever love you?” I muttered, feeling more sad than angry. Was I really that blind?

“Can we just come to an agreement on this, already?”

“Agreement?” I snapped. The anger rushed back through me as if it had never dispersed.

“You do whatever you want with Logan, I won’t get in the way, but can you just not hang around when Julia and I are there?”

“Screw you!” I thrust open the lock and pushed the stall door open, smacking him hard in the chest with it in the process.

With tightly pursed lips and squinted eyes, I stalked toward him. I felt my nostrils flaring, blood pounding in my ears, ready to let him have it when a loud pounding on the restroom door rang out.

“Did you lock the door?” I gasped, staring at him wide-eyed.

“I just wanted to talk to you, damn it.” He ran his hands through his hair, groaning. “I loved you, Cassandra, I did, but I fucked it up.” He stepped closer, his expression softening. “I just want us both to move on and be happy. Julia’s a sweet—”

The pounding on the door vibrated through the room louder than before, followed by Luke’s voice calling my name.

I narrowed my eyes at Mark, too angry to form any further words. Instead, I brushed past him and unlocked the door.

Luke was on the other side, his fist mid-knock—more like pound—and his eyes full with distress.

“Is everything all right?” Luke stared warily past me, to Mark.

“Yeah, thanks,” I grumbled. The weight of the situation left me exhausted.

Luke gave a threatening glare back at Mark before placing his hand on my back, and leading me away to our spot in the grass.

Once we neared the blanket, Oliver resting his head against Hilary’s legs as a pillow, I slowed and turned just enough to give Luke a small appreciative smile. No words were needed; he returned the smile with tenderness in his eyes and watched me sit back down beside Oliver.

Hilary leaned over and whispered, “We saw Mark follow you. You want to talk about it?”

I shook my head. “No, there’s nothing to say.” I kept my gaze straight ahead on the Bumble and Rudolph flickering on the big screen.

With Scout snuggled tightly in my arms, I walked beside Luke who had a sound asleep Oliver slung over his shoulder. Six whole cartoons held the young tot’s attention and it was just past eight, the sun setting for the older movies to begin. Oliver had passed out during the final film, which was a relief.

Luke walked around the car and placed him in the backseat in the booster Logan placed in my vehicle. Once he latched the seatbelt around Oliver’s waist, Luke shut the car door and looked over the top where I was standing on the other side.

“Thanks for helping me get him back. I couldn’t bear to wake him up. He was exhausted,” I said. I leaned down, placed Scout in the backseat with Oliver, and shut the door.

“He had a lot of fun,” Luke said walking around the car. “Caleb tells me he’s the son of one of your friends.”

“Yeah, his dad had a business trip tonight.” My stomach knotted as he stood there smiling, his hands in his pockets. Thinking of Logan sent a sudden, distressing wave of worry through me.
Did he make it to New York safely
? I hadn’t checked my phone. I then began to wonder what he would have to say about my incident with Mark.

Surprisingly, I would rather talk to him about what happened than Hilary. He always listened to every single word I had to say, no matter how much rambling I did, and he never showed even the slightest bit of judgment in his eyes.

“I’m glad I came out today,” Luke’s gruff voice pulled me from my thoughts of Logan.

I nodded, smiling awkwardly, dangling my keys through my fingers. “Yeah, it was fun. I’ve haven’t watched
The Little Drummer Boy
since I was a kid.”

Luke leaned forward, and opened my door for me.

“Have a good night, Cassandra.”

“You too, Luke.”

I climbed inside, giving him one last friendly smile before waving once to Hilary and Caleb across the street, their hands intertwined.

Once I was home, I carried a sleeping Oliver inside the house and placed him softly on the couch. Scout jumped up beside him and cuddled into his side while I covered them both with a warm blanket.

I couldn’t help smiling, looking down at them. They were absolutely adorable and perfect. With a silent yawn, I walked down the hall to my bedroom and yanked my sweater over my head, tossing it into the hamper. Opening my dresser drawer, I reached in and randomly pulled out the first pajamas my fingers touched.

It was a long-sleeved white button-up sleep shirt. It fell just past mid-thigh, but was warm against my chest and I hated wearing any type of pants to sleep.

My hands ran down the front of the thermal material, quickly closing each button as I wondered what time Logan would be landing.

After washing my face and throwing my hair in a loose ponytail, not caring how I looked, I put on some moisturizer and grabbed my blanket and pillow from my bed. The recliner, which I rarely used, would work fine and I could better keep an eye on Oliver if he awoke. As I curled into the overstuffed chair and draped the blanket over my legs, I grabbed the remote and flicked on the television.

Logan walked across the living room, his chest and feet bare and jeans riding low on his hips, unbuckled. I stood from the recliner, dropping my blanket, confused by the determined look in his eyes.

He was in front of me instantly and pulling me into his arms with a low throaty growl. My insides shuddered, awakening a primal need I’d kept buried for far too long. I waited for him to speak, to say anything, tell me what brought this on, but his lips were sealed.

I glanced across the room to the couch and saw Oliver was gone, as was Scout.
Did Logan take him home already?
Before I could ask, his hands snaked up my back, through my hair, and cupped my cheeks. His thumbs smoothed the wrinkles I felt on my brow at my bemused expression.

“Logan—”

He leaned in, my heart pounding, blood racing through my veins as I inhaled his fresh clean scent. His lips scorched my skin when he placed a fiery trail of blazing kisses from my ear, down my cheek to my jaw. Before I could comprehend what was happening, he claimed my lips.

I gasped, and he used it to his advantage, darting his tongue inside my mouth, battling with mine. My entire body surrendered to him, giving into the desires I’d tried to keep at bay for months. A shiver raced up my spine, wrapping around my neck, and sending my body further into overdrive.