To her surprise, Daphne immediately burst into noisy tears.
Shit. Kylie awkwardly patted her on the shoulder while everyone in the bus stared at them. As Daphne continued to sob, she hunted down a packet of Kleenex in her purse and handed it to her. “You okay?”
“No,” Daphne wailed. “Cade was here and I ignored him?”
And you almost went down on some guy in front of him, Kylie wanted to tell her, but she didn’t. Across the aisle, Ginger was giving them both odd looks. Kylie just shook her head. “Let’s just say you were partying pretty hard.”
“Oh my God,” Daphne sobbed. “He’s going to hate me.” She buried her face against Kylie’s shoulder.
Kylie stroked her hair, wincing. “I’m sure he doesn’t hate you. He’s a nice guy. I bet he doesn’t hate anyone.” God, why was she trying to make Daphne feel better about the fact that she’d thrown him away last night? Especially after Kylie had scooped him up?
This was bad. If Daphne found out that Kylie had slept with him she’d be fired for sure. She’d have to make sure Daphne never found out. She needed this job. Needed the money it brought in, otherwise she wouldn’t be able to afford Nana Sloane’s nursing care.
“Cade’s my oldest friend,” Daphne said, continuing to cry huge tears. “God, those drugs were so awful. I can’t believe I didn’t realize he was here. I’m never doing drugs again. Never. Never.”
A few feet away, Ginger rolled her eyes and went back to her knitting.
“Where’s my phone?” Daphne yelled out. “Snoopy? Where the fuck’s my phone? Get Cade on the line. I need to talk to him ASAP.” She staggered out of the bus seat and into the aisle.
Kylie breathed a tiny sigh of relief as Daphne left. The whole situation was terribly awkward. It was clear that she couldn’t say a thing about her own hookup with Cade last night. Not if she valued her job. To make matters worse, it didn’t sound like Daphne was resolved about things after all.
And didn’t that just make everything even more awkward now that Kylie had slept with her man?
She sucked in a breath as Daphne leaned back over her chair. “Thank you, Fat Marilyn. You’re the best.” She reached out and pinched Kylie’s cheek and winked at her. Then she turned and bellowed at Snoopy again. “Why do I not have my goddamn phone already?”
Kylie shrank down in her seat. The urge to hide her face underneath the newspaper was overwhelming.
“Cade, huh?” Ginger said from across the aisle. “Old friend of Daphne’s?”
“Sounds like it,” Kylie said, trying to keep her voice nonchalant.
“Someone in lighting told me you headed out last night with a blond guy in a suit.”
She could feel her cheeks burning. “Ginger, please don’t—”
“I won’t,” Ginger said, looping her yarn over her needles and letting them clack again. “But if you value your job, don’t say anything to the boss. She’s very possessive of her toys . . . even the ones she throws away. Understand?”
“I got it,” Kylie said, and turned toward the window to stare out at the highway. Talk about a messy situation getting worse.
But she tried to look at the bright side. It had only been a one-night stand. Nothing would happen again. And hey, if Daphne was going to swear off drugs now, that would be a good thing, right?
—
Cade put off calling Audrey Durham for as long as humanly possible. And when he could delay no longer, he picked up his phone . . . and called Reese, Audrey’s husband, instead. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to Audrey. Audrey was efficient, practical, and nothing like her twin.
But, she was also six months pregnant and prone to tearful outbursts due to hormones. When in doubt, test the waters with the husband first.
“Hey, my man,” Reese said as he picked up. “You have perfect timing. I just got out of a meeting with a few of the CFOs. We’re about to go public with Celebrity Cruises.”
“That’s great. Congrats.” He stared out the window of his hotel room at the Chicago skyline. “You have a moment to talk about nonbusiness things?”
“Oh shit,” Reese teased. “Did you get someone pregnant?”
Cade flinched. That was hitting a little too close to home at the moment, considering he had an unused condom in his wallet. “It’s not about me. It’s about Audrey.”
Reese got quiet. “What about Audrey?”
He could just picture his friend’s shoulders locking straight, his defensive side rising to the forefront when it came to his wife. Reese was a flirt and a player, but when it came to Audrey, he was all business, and he was extremely protective of her. “It’s Daphne,” Cade told him. “There are . . . problems.”
“Fuck,” Reese swore. “How bad is she this time?”
“I saw her last night and she was blitzed. And she looks worse than before.” Mentally, he pictured her skinny arms and hollow eyes. “Probably worse than before she went to rehab.”
“Goddamn it, she just got out not four months ago. What’s wrong with that girl?”
Everything, Cade wanted to say.
“So it’s not just alcohol?”
“When I left last night, she was begging someone for another hit of the good stuff.”
Reese swore again.
“I need to tell Audrey,” Cade said. “So she can step in if she needs to. I just wanted to let you know first so you could be there to support her.”
“Hang on,” Reese said. “You’re not telling Audrey anything.”
Cade frowned into the phone. “What do you mean?”
“I mean my wife is six months pregnant and under pressure over both her baby and preparing Logan’s office for her impending maternity leave.” Audrey was Logan’s long-time assistant and invaluable to their friend. She refused to quit her job, despite being married to an extremely wealthy man herself. “We both know Daphne’s toxic,” Reese continued. “I don’t want her stressing out Audrey any more than she already is. You know she’s been sick constantly with the baby, right? It hasn’t been an easy pregnancy for her.”
He knew that. “But Daphne—”
“Daphne’s a mess, I know that. Here’s the thing, though. Daphne’s always a mess,” Reese said. His voice was cold and unforgiving. “I’m not going to have my wife losing her mind wondering if her sister’s out of control again. Go talk to Daph’s people, if you have to. Talk to Daphne yourself—we both know if she listens to anyone, she listens to you. But don’t involve Audrey, all right?”
Cade was silent. He knew Reese was being protective, but it didn’t feel right to him. “What if something happens?”
“Then I’ll take full responsibility,” Reese said, voice heavy. “She can’t handle more stress right now, all right? She’s barely sleeping as it is. Her headaches are crazy and she vomits at the drop of a hat. Her doctor’s worried she’s going to develop preeclampsia and so he’s got her on this crazy diet that makes her stomach even more upset and she can’t take prenatal vitamins because they make her puke so she has to go and get shots and she cries all the damn time and . . .” He sighed. “Just. Please, Cade. For me, all right? I know Audrey’s Little Miss Capable but for a few months, can we take one thing off her plate?”
Cade suddenly felt guilty. He had no idea Audrey was under so much duress. She was always so in control when he saw her. She and Reese looked so happy. “I didn’t know.”
“Audrey doesn’t like sharing her problems. We both know that.”
They did. “You do realize I didn’t understand half of that pregnancy jargon you threw at me?” Cade made his voice light, because now Reese was sounding strained, too.
On the other end of the phone, Reese chuckled. “I wish to God I didn’t know about it, either. Let me tell you, I have learned way more about babies and childbirth than I ever cared to. Don’t even get me started on mucus plugs.”
“Jesus, I don’t even want to know,” Cade said quickly.
“You don’t. Trust me.”
He
rubbed his still-aching forehead. “Okay. I won’t say anything to Audrey, then. But if something changes or gets worse—”
“I know, I know,” Reese said. “Just call me and let me know and I can break the news to Audrey gently, okay? In the meantime, can you talk to Daphne’s people? She’s got to have fucking people looking out for her, doesn’t she?”
“You would think.” He had his suspicions they were the ones providing her the drugs, but what could he say? “All right, man. Will keep you posted.”
“Thanks, Cade,” Reese told him.
“No sweat.” He hung up and headed out onto the balcony. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes, lifting his face to the breeze. Reese had one thing right—Daphne always seemed to carry trouble with her.
And for once, he was really and truly tired of it.
It surprised him to realize that. Cade headed to the edge of the balcony and leaned over the railing, gazing down at the trickle of cars on the streets below. Kylie had loved this balcony last night, he remembered. His memory was full of holes, but he did recall that part, the way her face had lit up at the sight of it.
She still appreciated things in her life. She was still full of joy.
He couldn’t say the same for Daphne anymore. The teenage spitfire he’d loved so long ago, who charmed with her witty comments and her wry attitude? Cade didn’t even know if that girl existed anymore. Maybe he’d been holding on to an image, a dream, for the last ten years.
And Cade was finally ready to move on. Last night with Kylie had been eye-opening. Not only because she’d been sexy and beautiful, but because she’d been kind and generous, and thoughtful of his feelings.
He’d forgotten what that was like—to be interested in someone that gave a damn how you felt.
And he realized he was truly mentally done with Daphne. The door had closed. The girl he’d wanted for so long had turned into someone else, and she wasn’t the person he loved anymore. It was refreshing to realize it. As he stood on the balcony, the breeze ruffled his hair and he felt light and clean and whole again.
He felt like a new person.
Strange how holding on to an image of who Daphne used to be had made him feel so weighted down. He should be sad that he was finally giving up on her, but instead, he felt . . . good. He felt free. Maybe he’d never loved her after all. Maybe he’d just been focused on how he thought things should go instead of letting them take their natural course.
Either way, he was done.
Now, he just needed to see Daphne to firmly close the door on things . . . and he needed to see Kylie again.
His phone buzzed with an incoming text.
Cade pulled it out of his pocket, hoping that maybe Kylie had decided to contact him after all.
Hey!! Heard u were here 2 see me! Sorry I missed u. Call me back????
Daphne.
That sour feeling immediately returned to his stomach. Cade stared at the text for a long moment, and then deleted it.
He was done with her. Done with her games, done with her mood swings, her drug use, everything. He tucked his phone back into his pocket, gazed out at the balcony, and smiled.
EIGHT
Why on earth had she taken this job again, Kylie wondered as she hauled her makeup case into the greenroom backstage. Daphne had been like Jekyll and Hyde for the last twenty-four hours, alternately raging at everyone and then acting clingy. She had decided that Kylie was her new best friend, and spent half the day in her makeup chair, just chatting and then alternately weeping.
Marco, he of the “good drugs,” was in the doghouse it seemed, and all of the dancers were giving Daphne a wide berth, unsure of her mood. She didn’t seem to be partying, but Kylie wasn’t sure if that was due to being between shows, or if she was really and truly trying to clean up.
Kylie was just glad the next concert had begun and Daphne was finally on stage and occupied with something. At least for a few hours, there would be a reprieve from her mood swings. She hauled her four makeup cases, each one stacked on top of the next.
“Let me help you with that,” a familiar, warm voice said, and someone lifted the cases out of Kylie’s hands.
Oh, sweet baby Jesus. Her face turned bright red and she stared in a mix of surprise and horror at Cade Archer as he took the stack from her and set them down on the lit makeup table.
He turned to give her a gorgeous smile. “Hello again.”
God, he was so good looking. It was unfair. He wore a dark button-down shirt, slightly open at the collar, with a white undershirt underneath. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and an expensive watch decorated one wrist. And he wore slacks again. No jacket this time, but he still managed to look delectable and wealthy all at once.
Kylie blinked repeatedly, but he didn’t disappear, wasn’t a figment of her imagination. Well, shit. So much for her one-night stand thing. “What are you doing here?”
“I had to see you again,” he told her, those blue eyes focusing on her face.
“You did?” Her initial bubble of pleasure popped as she realized there could be another reason why he was here to visit her. He had to? There were only a few reasons why a man would have to see his one-night stand again . . . and none of them were good. “Oh God, you’re not clean, are you? What do you have?”
His eyes widened and then he laughed, a smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. “I don’t have an STD, Kylie.” He grimaced. “Though I really do need to apologize.” He leaned in. “I’m normally the kind that wears a sock.”
“I’m not normally the kind that goes for a one-night stand,” she murmured, still in a daze.
“Me either,” he confessed. “Which is why I had to see you again.”
“But why?” Her brows furrowed. “I thought it was supposed to be wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am. I wasn’t expecting anything—”
“I know,” he told her, his beautiful mouth quirked with amusement. “I think that’s one of the things I like about you. But maybe I wanted to see you again for myself? I thought we could talk. Maybe over dinner?” He gave her an inquisitive look.
Her initial shock at seeing him gave way to horror. “You what?”
“I just asked you out,” he told her, a sheepish look on his face. “I’m sorry, are you already seeing someone?”
“I, what? No!” She shook her head. “I’m not seeing anyone.” She looked around the greenroom, and was chagrined to see that Ginger and Snoopy were both watching her talk to Cade. It was going to get back to Daphne for sure. She grabbed his arm and dragged him toward one of the couches set up for Daphne’s guests. “Daph’s on stage right now,” she said loudly. “But when she’s done, I’m sure she’ll be glad to see you.”
“I’m not here to see Daphne,” he said, taking her hand in his.
Oh boy. Kylie closed her eyes, willing herself not to panic. “Cade, you can’t imagine what trouble this is going to cause.”
“Trouble?” His blond brows furrowed and he glanced around, as if just now noticing that several people were watching them. He leaned in. “Can you not talk here?”
“Understatement,” she told him with a faintly apologetic look.
“Then come to dinner with me,” he said. “We’ll talk there.”
“I can’t,” Kylie said automatically. “That would be very, very bad.”
“Worse than talking here?”
He had a point. She looked around, biting her lip anxiously. The crowd began to roar, a sign that Daphne’s show had just started.
“I’ll have you back before curtain call,” he promised.
God, she was so weak. “Come on, I’ll show you out,” she said loudly. If she left her purse here, no one would notice she was gone, right?
Cade grinned, and her heart skipped a little beat of happiness at the sight of that. “Thank you.”
When they got to the front of the concert venue, he raised a hand and a limo driver at the curb nodded at him and moved to open a door. “After you,” Cade said.
> A limo? “Why is there a limo out front?”
“Because everyone thinks that a limo belongs at the front of a concert instead of waiting in the parking lot,” he said with a devilish grin. “Hop in.”
This seemed like a spectacularly bad idea, but she seemed to be running low on spectacularly good ones.
So she got into the limo, because it was either that or have a messy confrontation back in the greenroom, right?
Cade got in after her. “Closest restaurant, please,” he told the limo driver. Then he turned and looked at Kylie for a long moment. “I have the most intense urge to kiss you hello right now.”
Oh. She clamped her thighs together, willing her pulse to stop beating in her girl parts. “You can’t kiss me,” she told him desperately. “We shouldn’t even be seeing each other. Daphne—”
“I’m not interested in what Daphne’s doing or saying,” he said, his voice curiously flat.
“No, you don’t understand,” Kylie said. “She was on some bad drugs the other night. She didn’t even remember you were there. When I told her, she got really upset and started crying. She still wants you and I know you want her, right? She said she was going to give up the drugs.”
“Kylie,” Cade told her softly and leaned in closer. “I’ve known Daphne for years. Ask me how many times she’s promised to give up the drugs.”
“How many times?” she asked, fascinated by the tanned skin of his jawline, his firm mouth so close to her own. They really, really should have been sitting further apart.
“Dozens,” he told her. “Now ask me how many times she’s actually given them up for good?”
“How many?”
“Never.” He shook his head. “It’s always promises with Daphne, but she never follows up on them. Never. And I’m tired of waiting for a day that will never come.”
“How do you know it’s not different this time?” Daphne had seemed sincere to Kylie. In fact, she’d cried for hours and had been so miserable that Kylie couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.
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