Chapter 14

Meli

He wasn't coming.

I'd woken early this morning, head aching from the way I'd cried last night. My chest felt empty too.

I suppose it's lucky I didn't have far to go to get to work. Once downstairs, I put the coffee on, and I'll admit that when I realized I didn't have a Milky Way bar to drop in, the way Cairo had taught me, I felt like crying yet again.

He'd been my fake boyfriend for a little more than a week, and here I was acting like my heart was broken.

You can fall in love in a week. You did fall in love in a week.

Ignoring my stupid subconscious, I got to work.

By mid-morning, all the cupcakes were decorated and ready to be delivered. They looked amazing, frankly, and I was glad Jess would be in charge of transporting them to the beach; Sweetcheeks was still in Cairo's garage.

Peggy had arrived to seal the baggies with the cookies. She'd be the one manning the store this afternoon while I entertained my family, and although she didn't know it, my plan was to give her a big bonus on top of her salary today. She deserved it with the way she'd been stepping up to help while I dealt with my mother's inability to understand I ran an actual business with actual business hours.

Still, by lunchtime, I felt drained. The parade had gone past an hour ago, and as I waved goodbye to Peggy on my way to meet my family for lunch, I realized I was dragging my feet.

Cairo wasn't coming, was he? I had this yawning pit in my stomach, but somehow, I knew. No matter how closely I peered into the crowds, I didn't see him. I saw Sakkara—with Emmy perched on his shoulders, silently enjoying an ice cream cone—and Giza and Lux, as well as Karnak and Jess and a few others I was coming to know…

But no Cairo.

I didn't have the heart to ask the guys if they'd seen him.

I wasn't sure I wanted to know.

Lunch was barbeque, of course, and I kept my focus on the food. Mom and Harper and Simon talked about the wedding—all about the wedding. I mean, honestly, who gave a shit about the different shades of burgundy or how many roses should be in each bouquet? My father, the barbeque fanatic, did his best to include me.

But I didn't want to be included. I didn't fit into this conversation.

All the way to the beach, he kept trying to draw me out, but it didn't work. I was still raw from yesterday, and the realization he didn't think Cairo was good enough for me.

"Meli, darling," Mom called out, "keep your cover-up on. We don't want to scare away the competition, we want to win fair and square!"

She and Simon laughed as Harper sent me a sympathetic wince and settled into her allotted square of sand.

I found mine…and Cairo wasn't there. Surprise, surprise.

He didn't show up before the contest began.

He didn't show up as I did my best to use the bucket and tools they gave us to pile up a bunch of damp sand, like he showed me.

He didn't show up when I struggled to "carve" away at the sand to create a cupcake with an elaborate swirl of frosting, either. That had been my plan all along, to sort of highlight the bakery, but I was much better at icing cupcakes than I was at chipping away sand.

And when the whistle blew, indicating the end of the contest, Cairo still wasn't there.

I'd given up trying to keep my heartbreak from showing, and the way Harper hugged me told me she knew.

Harper and Simon had managed a pretty accurate topographical representation of the state of Florida—I'm assuming because their wedding was taking place in West Palm Beach. And by "topographical" I mean that it was flat. Because Florida is flat.

My father, on the other hand, had kicked so much ass. His Falcon-9 rocket was not only accurate, but huge. And beautifully presented. My mother took credit for the three flower buds sitting off to one side that had nothing to do with the overall theme, but I knew it was all Dad.

And sure enough, the judges were really impressed when they got to his spaceship.

They were merely polite when they got to my cupcake.

"Wow, Meli, I didn't realize you'd tried your hand at sand-sculpting," said Mrs. Albee, the town's only full-time librarian. "I've never seen you out here before."

My smile was wobbly, I knew. "This is only like my third time trying. I had a partner who is way better, but he…couldn't make it today."

Mrs. Albee offered a sympathetic pat on my shoulder, then made a note on her clipboard. One of the other two judges was Geoffrey A. Harrison, the asshole member of the town council who was running for mayor, and he sniffed derisively at my attempted cupcake as he followed Mrs. Albee on his way to the next entry.

What a jerk. With him on the judging panel—and his history with my bestie Jess—I knew I didn't have a chance.

As they deliberated, I desperately craned my neck to study the crowd, hoping for a flash of green skin.

Why bother? Cairo walked away, and he didn't bother showing up again.

Swallowing, I did my best to turn back to listen to the judges' announcement.

"Honorable Mention goes to Brownie Girl Scout Troop 002 for their sculpture of a nesting sea turtle," called Mrs. Albee. "We thought the theme was wonderfully appropriate and would like to remind everyone who lives near the beach to turn off their outside lights at night so as not to confuse the hatchlings!"

The applause was long and sustained, and I had to admit, the sight of all those cute little girls jumping up and down and cheering was enough to lighten my heart.

"Believe it or not, we had a tie for second and third place, so we're going to announce both at the same time…" Geoffrey was a smarmy git, but he knew how to hold a crowd, pausing for anticipation at the right moments. "Mr. Miller for his traditional sandcastle with an impressive spiral staircase, and Stephanie Ortiz for her waving mermaid!"

Another burst of cheers, and I joined in the clapping. I'd seen that mermaid; it was impressive.

"And finally, the moment you've been waiting for…" Mrs. Albee grinned. "Our grand prize winner, and the person who gets the five-thousand-dollar prize…is Richard O'Donnell, for his remarkable spaceship!"

Even I joined in the cheering for Dad. The librarian was right; it was remarkable. But then, that was my dad for you. He was smart and artistic and could look at a lump of sand and see the Falcon-9 rocket just waiting within.

Just like Cairo.

My mother was waving and smiling, calling, "Thank you, thank you!" as she accepted the winner's certificate from the judges, as if she'd just been awarded the Miss Universe crown. Dad, for his part, smiled humbly and nodded with a grin.

Harper startled me when she put her arm around my shoulders. "I liked your cupcake, little sis."

I managed a smile. "Thanks. I liked your Florida."

For the first time, I saw her grin tighten a little. "Thanks. It was Simon's idea. He insisted."

He didn't let his fiancée choose? Or even have input? I knew I didn't like this guy.

His brother's probably worse.

Yeah, that's a good reminder. Whatever happened with Cairo, at least I got out of having to date Jacob.

"Hey," Harper said under her breath, "where's Cairo? I thought he was supposed to be your partner."

"Yeah. Me too."

Mom must've heard me, or maybe her "adoring crowd" experience was over, because she stepped up on my other side and laughed loudly. "Oh, darling, I knew you couldn't trust that monster."

My mouth dropped open as I swung on her. "Mom! I can't believe you would say that!"

"I can," muttered Harper under her breath.

My mother was clearly riding high on her win because she laughed breathlessly. "Melinda, honey, he seemed very nice, but he's not like you—like us. I'm sure he realizes that." She pulled me into a sweet-smelling hug. "I'm certain he's not here because now that he's seen the kind of person you're meant to be, he's backing away."

Behind me, Harper made a choked sound. "You think Cairo's breaking up with her? So…what? So she doesn't have to break up with him?"

"He's being kind," Mom agreed. "He understands our Meli is worth more—"

"People like us? The person I'm meant to be?" I choked out, pushing away from my mother and glaring at her as I repeated her words. "What I'm worth?"

"Darling, he's just a mechanic—"

I stepped back from her, and for the first time, ignored my instinct to swallow down my anger around her.

For too long, I'd allowed her to think wrongly about me. But I wasn't going to allow it about Cairo.

"Mom," I began in what was probably a deceptively low voice, "Cairo isn't just a mechanic. He is every bit as smart as Dad." When she scoffed, I hurried on before she could interrupt. "Can you imagine what it must've been like for him, to have never seen a car or a microwave until you were an adult?"

My mother looked over my shoulder, shocked, and I twisted around to see my dad. "Daddy, you grew up knowing what you wanted to be as an adult. Cairo had to figure it out, and it was all new to him. And just like you, he can fix any damn thing!" I was definitely getting worked up in defense of the man I loved. "He's smart and methodical and has this awesome, dry sense of humor that makes me laugh."

And he treats me well. He thinks I'm special. He touches me like I'm the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. He knows my value.

But I didn't say those things because I wasn't sure how.

I swung back to my mother—who was looking at me as if I'd had the audacity to wear blue eyeshadow with black lipstick—and took a deep breath.

"Mom, Cairo isn't just a mechanic. He's the guy I love. He chooses to work here on Eastshore, he doesn't have to. Sure, he's not a podiatrist, thank God, but he has plenty of money—investments, just like you and Daddy." I should not be telling her this sort of thing, but I couldn't seem to make my mouth stop. "But that doesn't matter! He works hard, and he takes care of me." I turned to glare at my father. "He takes care of me in a million small ways, like fixing stuff and buying my favorites and—and—Gah!"

Throwing up my hands, I glared at Mom again. "My point is, there's nothing "just" about Cairo. He's an amazing guy, and I wish you'd give him a chance. He likes it here on Eastshore, and I do too."

Finally my mother—still gaping like a dying fish—finally managed, "You love him?"

Harper snorted quietly. "Uh, kinda obvious."

"But darling, Eastshore is so small—"

"And I'm okay with that!" I snapped. "I love Eastshore, and I love Cairo, and I love that we've both made a home for ourselves here. If you can't see that…"

I was going to cry.

Dammit, I didn't want to cry. I wanted to be strong and angry and stalk off majestically, maybe kicking a few stupid sand sculptures on the way.

But I was going to cry, and I was in no way majestic, even if I was at my best. So I sniffed, and turned around, and managed the haughtiest retreat anyone can while wearing flip-flops in the sand.

My tears were blinding as I stumbled forward…which is why I didn't see him until I smacked into Cairo's chest.