Chapter 24

CHAPTER24

“Son of a bitch!” came the pained shout from her best friend that she should probably look into, but…

She had other things on her mind at the moment, Cayley thought, biting back a sigh as she continued nibbling on the delicious gingerbread cookie that she’d hoped would help her figure out what was wrong with her, only to sigh when Johnny plucked the cookie out of her hand and finished it in one bite as he made his way to the kitchen to find out what was going on. Biting back a sigh, Cayley selected the sugar cookie with green frosting and white sprinkles and sighed when Brian plucked it out of her hand as he followed his brother, leaving her sitting there, staring down at the piece of fudge that she’d managed to grab before they’d devoured the entire platter and found herself once again sighing when Craig plucked the paper plate out of her hand and joined his brothers in the kitchen.

“Stupid James brothers,” Cayley mumbled sadly, only to frown when a plate overflowing with delicious treats was placed in her hands.

Frowning, she looked from the plate filled with all of her favorites up to see Mr. James joining her. “Any idea why Bryce is beating the shit out of my youngest son?” he asked, not really sounding all that concerned as he sat down next to her.

“I have a few theories,” Cayley said, helping herself to a piece of fudge off the plate while he did the same.

“Any of them involve revenge?” Mr. James asked, looking lost in thought.

“A few,” Cayley murmured absently as she found herself thinking about that beautiful office he’d built for her, how much she liked spending time with him, the way that he’d held her at night, and-

She had no idea what she was supposed to do, Cayley thought, swallowing hard as she watched Bryce walk into the room, his intense green eyes searching for something as he slowly took in the large living room filled with partygoers until they locked on her. She watched as his jaw clenched tightly, his gaze never leaving her as he leaned back against the wall.

“You terrify him, did you know that?” Mr. James asked, making her frown as she glanced back at Mr. James to find him watching his son.

“What are you talking about?” Cayley asked, watching as Mr. James plucked another piece of fudge off the plate and popped it in his mouth.

“He’s a good man,” Mr. James said as she found herself glancing back at Bryce to find him still watching her.

“Yes, he is,” she murmured absently, even as she had to admit that was an understatement.

Bryce was so much more than a good man. He was kind, loyal, sweet, and just…

He was everything that she’d ever wanted and that terrified her. For years, he was just Sean’s older brother that was obsessed with glaring at her and now, after barely two weeks, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. The way that he made her feel, it was…addicting, Cayley thought as she watched Bryce.

“Do you remember the first time that your father dropped you off at my house after your mother passed away?” Mr. James asked, drawing her attention to find him watching her curiously.

“No, I’m sorry. I don’t. It was so long ago,” Cayley said, wishing that she had more than old pictures and home movies to remember her mother by. She wished that she had at least one memory of her mother, but there was nothing but the memory of the pain of suddenly losing her.

Nodding, Mr. James murmured, “I didn’t think you did. It’s probably one of my best memories of you when you were a little girl. You were such a shy little thing, always had been, hiding in your mother’s arms or behind your father’s legs, except when Bryce was there. Then, you couldn’t seem to move fast enough. You’d grab his hand or crawl onto his lap and if anyone tried to take you away, he’d tighten his hold on you and glare.”

“He does seem to love to glare,” Cayley murmured.

“It’s a family trait,” Mr. James said, shooting her a wink that had her lips twitching.

“I can see that,” Cayley said, nodding solemnly.

“That day, you wouldn’t stop crying and your father was just…he wasn’t doing well. You just sat there, your little lip trembling, tears rolling down your face, looking absolutely lost. I had no idea what I was supposed to do with you. I sat down with you, put your favorite movie on, held you, but nothing seemed to work, but the moment that Bryce came home from preschool, you came alive.”

“Before the first sob broke free, Bryce was there, pulling you into his arms and held you long after you stopped crying and finally fell asleep in his arms. When I tried to take you, he refused to let you go. He held you all night, making sure that you were safe, and when you woke up in the morning crying for your mother, he told you that everything was going to be okay and promised that he would always take care of you,” Mr. James said as she glanced up and found herself unable to look away from Bryce.

“He always watched over me,” Cayley murmured with a sad smile.

“Which is how I knew that he was the one for you,” Mr. James said, making her frown as she looked back at him.

“Bryce?” Cayley asked, even as she had to wonder, “Not Sean?”

Shaking his head, Mr. James said, “I have other plans for him,” as he stood up, taking the plate from her.

Before she could ask about that, he said, “I heard that your cousin is looking to have The Firehouse renovated.”

“She’s been putting off having the diner renovated, hoping for an opening with Rerum Highland Construction, but they’re booked solid for the next two years,” Cayley explained as she once again found herself watching Bryce.

“Tell your cousin to call me. I might know someone that can do it,” Mr. James said, and before she could respond, he was making his way across the room, only to throw, “I’ll see you Sunday,” over his shoulder before walking away, leaving her confused.

Sunday dinners were for family only.

Even when she was little, she wasn’t invited and that hadn’t changed over the years. It never bothered her because she knew that meant that she got one day a week where she didn’t have to worry about Sean stealing her food. Although he did make up for it during the rest of the week, Cayley thought absently as she watched Bryce, noting the way that he watched her and found herself wondering how much more she was willing to lose.

* * *

He hatedwhen the little bastard was right, and right now, as Bryce stared up at his bedroom ceiling, there was no doubt in his mind that his brother was right.

She was pulling away from him.

He’d felt it happening on the drive home and he’d been helpless to stop it. While she’d quietly sat there, staring out the window, he tried to think of something to say to stop it from happening, but he had absolutely no fucking idea what he was supposed to say to her. By the time Bryce walked her to her door, he knew that it was already too late. Cayley barely looked at him as she thanked him for taking her home as she let herself into her apartment while he stood there, resigned to watch her go.

For the past four hours, Bryce told himself that Sean was wrong, but when an hour passed and Cayley still didn’t walk into his room so that she could take over his bed, he knew that he’d fucked up. He considered asking his brother how to fix this, but the little bastard wasn’t talking to him at the moment, which meant that he was on his own.

“Fuck,” Bryce said, rubbing his hands roughly down his face as he debated going over there and trying to fix this, but he had no fucking idea what he was supposed to say to her. He-

“I terrify you?” came the curious question that had him glancing at his bedroom door to find Cayley standing in his doorway, watching him curiously.

“Yes,” Bryce found himself admitting, swallowing hard as he watched her as she stood there, thinking it over and-

“Good to know.”

-narrowed his eyes on the little brat when she turned around with a satisfied sigh and walked away, leaving him lying there, seething as he watched her go. Her father should have spanked her ass years ago, Bryce thought as he shoved the covers aside, more than a little fucking tempted to spank her beautiful ass.

She really was a pain in the ass, Bryce thought as he made his way into the kitchen and-

“That’s far enough,” the beautiful woman that was clearly fucking with his head said as she settled more comfortably on his kitchen island.

“You want to tell me what’s going on?” Bryce asked as he forced himself to stay where he was as he watched her, taking in her light pink tank top, the white cotton shorts, and her adorable feet as they hung above his kitchen floor.

“That’s what I’d like to know,” Cayley said as she crossed her arms over her generous breasts while she narrowed her eyes on him.

“Meaning?” Bryce asked, leaning back against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest as he waited for her to get to the point.

“I have questions,” Cayley said with a firm nod.

“Of course you do,” Bryce said, sighing heavily as he gestured for her to get on with it.

“It’s not going to be that simple,” Cayley said with a sad shake of her head and a heartfelt sigh as he reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose as he muttered, “Of course it’s not.”

Clearing her throat, Cayley continued, “Every time that you answer a question, you may take one step forward.”

“I see,” Bryce murmured as he considered her. “And what happens when I reach you?”

“Well, that really depends on your answers,” Cayley said, shrugging it off while he stood there, running several possibilities through his head, only to sigh heavily as he pushed away from the wall.

“That’s really not going to work for me.”