Chapter 4

Cassidy

Idon't know how long we kiss, but by the time he pulls back, we're both panting and breathless.

"Damn," he says.

"That's a good word right now," I reply, grinning.

"I'm going to go before I can't," he states.

I can still feel him against me, and my hoo-ha wants to invite him inside so we can get better acquainted with what he's packing.

"Okay." I try to keep the disappointment from my voice but fail.

"Not before I kiss you again," he whispers, before capturing my lips in his once again. Long minutes pass as he owns my mouth and when I pull back so I can breathe, I see a look on his face that I can't decipher.

"Jared?"

"Shit, Cass, I'm trying to take this slow, y'know? I mean, we've known each other forever, but not as adults, so I want to pace things. But kissing you makes that hard for me to remember," he admits. I grin at him because I feel the same damn way!

"I hear you, Jared. I'm in the same boat, to be honest."

"Go on inside, baby, and lock up. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Good night, Jared. I had a really good time." Understatement of the century, that's for sure.

"I did too, Cass, and can't wait to see what happens next."

I unlock the door and he watches until I close and lock the door. A few seconds later, I hear his truck start up and sigh. Who would've known that Jared would knock me for a loop tonight? I walk into the kitchen and grab a drink before heading to my bedroom.

Jared

"So, you're going after sloppy seconds, huh?" Cade asks as I walk into the house.

"Excuse me?" I honestly don't know what his issue is; he's the one who threw the best thing he ever had in his life away.

"Cassidy. Y'know, little brother, didn't think you were so hard up as to chase after my leftovers."

I clench my fists to keep from knocking him out. He has no idea how close to death he is right now, and I actually consider myself somewhat of a pacifist. But where she's concerned, I would slay anyone who dared to disparage her in any way.

"Watch how you talk about her, Cade," I warn.

"Oh, you've got it bad, I see," he mocks.

"You're an asshole, you know that?" I question. "She's a good girl, woman, and wouldn't be caught dead with someone like you." Right now, I wish my house was finished because I'm not sure how much shit I'll put up with when it comes to him. "Think you should move on; she sure the fuck has."

"Oh, that's rich coming from you! She wouldn't give you the time of day if she knew that you know about those girls from back then."

Ha, the joke"s on you, fucker.

"She knows, Cade. She's known for a long ass time, as a matter of fact," I fire back. I laugh out loud at the expression on his face. "So, if you're thinking of barking up that tree again, you can forget about it. If you were the last man on earth and she was the last woman and it was up to y'all to repopulate the Earth so that it would survive, well, it wouldn't." With that parting shot, I head to my room, wishing that I hadn't had to waste the last few minutes of my life dealing with his assholeishness.

Once in my room, I decide that working out in the gym we have in the basement is an excellent way to blow off steam. Changing quickly, I make a detour into the kitchen to grab a couple of bottles of water, then go downstairs. My dad put in a home gym years ago and when I was a teen trying to bulk up a little, I found that I enjoyed pushing my body. It sure helped me on the field, as well as during my wrestling matches. The results haven't hurt me any either, since despite having a sedentary job as a lawyer, I am in shape. I slip my earbuds in, hit shuffle on my playlist, and start running once the screen lights up with a path. Dad put in a state-of-the-art treadmill that faces a projector screen. I can run the trails of the Appalachia, or alongside the beaches on the coast. Sure as hell beats just running to nothing. I enjoy running outside as well, but not at night, so this'll work.

While I run, I think about Cassidy. All the times we spent together as teens seeing movies or going fishing, I was trying to distract her from the fact that Cade had blown her off. Oh, he talked a good game and I'm sure his experiences out West have given him a panache that he didn't have when we were younger. I just hate that he ever had his hands on her, no matter how innocent. Then again, she must have realized that something wasn't right because she never caved and slept with him.

Thank God for small miracles. He might have been her first kiss, but I'll damned sure be her last!

I catch something moving out of the corner of my eye and pull my earbuds out. "Hey, Mom," I say, panting. Sweat is pouring down my face and I can feel how slick my skin is right now.

"So, you went out with Cassidy Smith tonight?" she asks. I can't quite get a read on her, so my response is somewhat cautious.

"I did, yes."

"I always liked her for you, Jared. Cade wasn't good enough for her. He's too much like your uncle and not enough like your father. I don't know where we went wrong. He thinks it's okay to use and discard women like he does."

"Mom, I have no clue, because neither me nor Lachlan would ever treat a woman the way he chooses to. I bet that's why he got divorced."

Man, when that news hit the household, I thought my mom would lose her ever-loving mind! Knox's don't divorce. Oh, sure, some of my family members are barely civil to one another, but they don't divorce. Ever.

"Actually, he divorced her when he found out that she had an abortion, not a miscarriage all those years ago," Mom replies. Her response is so surreal to me that I stop running and get off the treadmill, grabbing a towel to wipe the sweat from my face.

"Are you serious?" The girl he married six months after leaving for college was apparently pregnant which was why he married her. To hear that she had an abortion is devastating, because despite the circumstances and what it did to Cassidy, my folks were excited to become grandparents.

Mom nods. "Apparently, she decided that she wasn't ‘mother' material and that a baby would cramp her style. She had it done while he was at some conference, then when he called, she told him she'd had a miscarriage."

"How on earth did he find out now after so many years?" I question. My heart hurts that none of us ever had a chance to get to know this child. I might despise my brother, but am not the kind of person who would take it out on an innocent child.

"He was packing for their move and came across some medical records. When he confronted her, she admitted to everything. While I know that no one in our family has ever gone through a divorce, when he talked to your father, they both decided that it would be for the best. He's got issues, Jared, and I'm more aware of them than anyone, but he did do the right thing by her."

"If he had remembered he was seeing someone none of it would have happened," I remind her. "I mean, Cassidy was here waiting on him, remember?"

"Do you want my opinion? I think he knew you were interested in her and asked her out first so that you couldn't. He's always been jealous of you, Jared."

I shake my head in puzzlement. "But why? We're brothers."

"Because the two of you had a lot more in common than he had with her."

I think about her words and realize that she's right. Cade hates movies and Cassidy didn't like going by herself if Mags wasn't available, so I would go with her. She loves being outdoors and he wouldn't know how to bait a hook if his life depended on it, so she and I would go fishing. Hell, he doesn't know how to change the oil in his fancy car, and for sure, he'd have never been interested in fixing up an old truck.

"I guess you're right, Mom."

"I'm always right, don't you know that by now?" I laugh at her words because she's telling the truth. "Anyhow, I know things are tense between you two, but I also know that you and Cassidy are starting something, so I'll run interference any way possible."

"Thanks, Mom." I lean down and kiss her cheek. "I'm gonna go up and shower then hit the hay. Got court in the morning."

"Good night, Jared. Just remember, he's got issues," she replies.

"As long as they don't touch Cassidy, we're good," I state.

* * *

Freshly showered, I hit the bed and think about the day. Reconnecting with Cassidy took what was a shitty start and turned it around. I don't care for my father's receptionist, well, our receptionist, all that much. She's always been a bitch, but he feels she's good at what she does, so he won't fire her. Just another reason for me to branch out on my own. As I drift off to sleep, I make a mental note to discuss that with my father; my new house is a county over and I wouldn't mind being my own boss for a change.