The Golden Boy

by J Darcy

  “Cade,” She began slowly, moving until she leaned against the armchair in her living room, “What are you doing here?”

  He continued to stare at her, his smile wide. “I came to talk to you.” He explained casually, his voice slurring as the sentence reached completion, “I wanted to see you.”

  Kellie cleared her throat and lowered herself in the chair, still watching him. “Ok. But…You’re drunk. How did you get here?”

  “I took an Uber.” He supplied, leaning closer to her as he spoke. Boy, did he reek of liquor. “My driver had a Jeep. What kind of car name is that? Jeeeeep. Jeeeeeep.” He continued to drawl at the ‘e’ sound, his shoulders shaking with laughter.

  She cleared her throat. “Ok. That’s good.” And it was. She didn’t think Cade would ever drive while intoxicated, but people weren’t known to make the best decisions while drunk. It was precisely why he was currently sprawled across her sofa. “But… Why are you drunk?”

  Cade just shrugged. “I went to a bar with Dean.” Kellie assumed he meant Dean Chambers, the director of their upcoming film. She knew Cade and Dean were close friends outside of this film, and while she had met Dean on multiple occasions before, she didn’t know him all that closely. From their interactions, he was polite and seemed to have a good head on his shoulders.

  Usually, she’d think he was a good influence on Cade. But, given that the man was currently struggling to remove his sneakers while drunk on her couch, she wondered if that was truly the case.

  “Right… So, you went to a bar with Dean. You got drunk. Then, you took an Uber to my house to talk to me about…?” This was the question that was really eating at her. Based on his most recent admission to her, she thought she may know why he was there.

  Then again, Cade was anything but predictable. If he was easy to read—and it was easy to anticipate his actions—they probably would not be in such a complicated relationship. So, she had no choice but to ask, especially since he was yet to be forthcoming about his reasons for showing up.

  “I wanted to tell you how pretty you are.” He explained, his voice slurring the vowels in ‘pretty’, “And that you smell really good.”

  Kellie cleared her throat and shifted in her seat. Well, despite his current state, it was nice to be flattered. “What exactly do I smell like?” Given their most recent interactions, which were exclusively surrounding constant exercise, she couldn’t imagine she smelled all that great.

  Or, looked that pretty, all things considered. Constant sweating did not do wonders for her hair. Or her skin.

  He leaned forward, the blanket dropping from his shoulders to the surface of the couch. His gaze was relentless. “You smell like strawberries.” Even though his words were casual—silly, even—he looked incredibly serious. “Like fruit and stuff. I dunno. Just really good.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh. She wasn’t sure if it was at the absurdity of his words, or the entire situation, but she laughed. The minute the sound escaped her lips, Cade was smiling and laughing too. She didn’t want to be mad at him while he was drunk, and well, the change in attitude was rather refreshing after the unending tension in their relationship for the past many months.

  When they finally stopped laughing, Kellie left Cade in the living room and strolled into the attached kitchen, intent on getting him some water. He needed to sober up before she felt comfortable enough to either drive him home or send him along in an uber. In fact, she was opening a cabinet to grab a glass when she sensed a presence behind her.

  She practically screamed when she turned around to discover Cade standing behind her. He was a large man, and for the life of her, she couldn’t figure out how he moved from the sofa to the kitchen without making a sound.

  “Cade! You scared the crap out of me!” She shrieked, before angrily pressing the glass against the water dispenser of her refrigerator, “Why the hell are you just standing behind me?”

  He shrugged, as if his appearance was the most casual thing in the world. “I’m hungry. Do you have food?”

  “Do I have food?” She repeated the question, practically sounding the words out. She waved around her kitchen. “Obviously, I have food.”

  Apparently, drunk Cade didn’t need further approval to do anything. Just like he entered her home, he began to dig around in her cabinets and drawers, until finally producing a bag of pretzels and a jar of peanut butter. Kellie watched as he perched himself up on a stool at her island—wobbling in the process—and settled with his snacks.

  As if the most natural thing in the world, he dug into the bag, watching her as he dipped a pretzel stick into the jar. Kellie cleared her throat and set the glass of water in front of him. She leaned against the kitchen island, studying his calm eating.

  “You should drink some water.” She said, after watching him eat for a couple of minutes, “It might help lessen any hangover you’ll have in the morning.”

  Cade grinned and took a gulp of the water, his eyes not leaving her face. “You’re so smart,” He explained, setting the glass down with a thud, “You have the best pretzels, too.”

  She laughed gently, still watching him feast on the salty snacks. “And apparently I smell good.”

  “Taste good, too,” He added casually, his eyes lighting up mischievously, “Everywhere.”

  Kellie flushed and shifted on her feet, her body still pressed against the wooden island. Even when Cade was drunk, he was still a charmer, and a dangerous flirt to boot. She had no idea what to say or to do with him regularly, let alone while he was drunkenly snacking on pretzels and peanut butter.

  “You’ve got soft skin,” He continued to ramble on, pausing only to chomp away on another pretzel rod, “Like, so soft. Like silk or something. I dunno. And your hair is so pretty. It reminds me of…” He closed his eyes, clearly trying to think of a comparison, “Leaves.”

  She pursed her lips, desperately trying to hold in her laughter. “My hair reminds you of leaves?” She figured he was alluding to the red and orange colors of the leaves that fell during autumn, but the comparison was too silly to let slide.

  He just shrugged and kept eating. “Your eyes are so pretty, too. Like shiny little emeralds. When I buy you jewelry, everything will have emeralds because of them.”

  Kellie wasn’t sure what to say to that, let alone how to process the implication of his words. Like that he thought about her eyes, or dreamed of buying her jewelry, or that such a gift meant that maybe, just maybe, his confession before was truthful and that he did want to pursue a relationship with her.

  Except for at the present, he was incredibly drunk, and probably saying stupid shit just because. It would be naïve of her to accept anything he said that evening as more than what it was—ramblings of a very drunk, albeit charming man.

  So, she didn’t say anything in response. She just kept watching him snack away, desperate to ignore the way her heart hammered in her chest every time he spoke.

  “You have a really great ass, too.” He added, throwing her a mischievous smirk, “So perfect. Like a peach or something. You know, like the emoji.”

  “I’m starting to think you just showed up to compliment me.” She said, breaking her own silence. She needed to say something to cut him off. He was flattering her, but all it did was throw more fuel on the confusing fire of what they were and what they could be.

  But Cade just smirked and downed the rest of the water that was placed in front of him. “You’re right. I did.” He hiccupped and set the empty glass down, his eyes never leaving her, “I told you, I came to tell you how pretty you are.”

  “That’s all?” She didn’t know why she was giving him an opening to continue to talk. Maybe she enjoyed hurting her heart.

  “Well, I could tell you how perfect you are and how much I like you, but I don’t think you want that,” He explained, his voice wavering only slightly, “You told me we couldn’t happen.”

  He was most certainly right. She did tell him that any chance of them w
as through. Which it was.

  Or at least it should have been.

  “You think I’m perfect?” She asked instead, hating how quiet her voice was. She was like a stupid middle-schooler with a crush, clinging on to any sort of male attention she could gather. He hurt her so much—enough that she claimed to hate him—but hearing that he thought she was perfect was simply too much.

  “The perfectist,” He exclaimed, his eyes shining in the dim light of her kitchen, “No one else is as pretty or as good of an actress as you.” He paused, before leaning forward, his tone serious. “You’re going to win an Oscar, you know?”

  Cade wouldn’t be the first person to tell her that, especially after her most recent performance in A Fiery Heart. She knew the trade publications thought that both she and Cade had nominations practically in the bag. Greg told her all the time that the golden statue was just months away from her possession.

  But she didn’t really believe any of them. There were so many other talented actresses. She couldn’t possibly win the most elite acting award of all, especially with so few films under her belt.

  Yet, when Cade said it, those chocolate brown eyes boring into her own, she started to wonder if there was any truth to it.

  “That’s very sweet of you to say,” She practically whispered, forcing herself to look away, “But we don’t know that.”

  “Oh, I do.” Cade claimed, his voice vehement, “Even if not for A Bloody Heart—” She almost laughed at his butchering of the film title, “Then for another movie in the future. You’re too talented to never be recognized for it.”

  It was mortifying, really, that the drunken rambling of this man had her on the verge of tears, but it did. His kind words and blind support of her talent was something she wasn’t used to. Not when the press and the internet and casting directors spent every minute of every day pitting her against other actresses.

  Not to mention, she didn’t feel she deserved it. She was too new at this, too bland, too typical to be anything special. She wasn’t the first actress to go to Julliard and move from stage and television to film and she would certainly not be the last.

  She must have vocalized some of that, because Cade was shaking his head so intensely that she was afraid he’d make himself dizzy from the movements.

  “NOPE!” He exclaimed, popping the ‘p’ with a dramatic flair, “You, Kellie Allen, are the most special and perfect and talented actress to ever live, ok?” He hiccupped and leaned forward, poking his finger against her nose, “And you’re pretty too.”

  Kellie swallowed and nodded. She wasn’t sure if she agreed with his words, but something about his passionate declaration, even in his drunken state, made her think that he truly believed them.

  It was unbelievable that anyone did, let alone Cade Campbell.

  “We should have ordered pizza.” Cade announced, abruptly changing the conversation, “Pizza sounds so good.”

  Part of her agreed but glancing at the clock above her oven confirmed the late hour. Pizza would be a challenge to acquire, and ultimately unnecessary considering how close it was to bedtime.

  Well, if it hadn’t been for Cade showing up unannounced, she probably would already be tucked into bed, maybe reading a trashy romance novel if she couldn’t fall asleep. Which, as of recently, was becoming a much harder task. She missed the days where her head hit the pillow and she was knocked out until the sun was up or her alarm was going off.

  “It’s a bit late for pizza, Cade,” She explained, watching as the man stumbled off the kitchen stool and strolled back into the living room, “But I probably have some frozen meals or something if you want different food.”

  She moved to the fridge and opened the freezer door, staring at her options with disappointment. She had some bags of frozen fruit, a pint of ice cream, frozen chicken breast and…

  Popsicles.

  Clearing her throat, she shut the door and walked towards the living room. “Well, actually, nothing in the freezer, but I have cereal. And I guess I could make some pasta if you really wanted.”

  `When she finally reached the couch, she was surprised to see Cade sprawled across it again, the canary yellow blanket wrapped around his muscular form. It was quite a color contrast from the black and dark blues of his clothes. Thankfully, the couch was pretty big, giving his six-foot four frame a decent amount of space to enjoy. While he did have to curl to fit, he didn’t look uncomfortable.

  He glanced over at her, his eyes drooping. Clearly, he was tired. After their hard work at the gym and then all the alcohol he consumed, Kellie wasn’t exactly surprised. She was, however, having to accept that Cade would be sleeping on her couch tonight. There was no way he could Uber home, and even if she drove him, she figured it would require more energy than either of them had.

  “That’s ok. I liked the pretzels,” He explained, his voice quieter than before, “We’ll do pizza next time.”

  She smiled gently and sat on the armchair across from the couch, watching his sleepy form. “Next time?” She asked carefully, still looking at him, “You plan to come to my house again while drunk?”

  He hummed, the sound vibrating in his throat. “I don’t have to be drunk. I could just come. And we could have pizza and watch a movie.”

  Kellie appreciated his blind optimism. She wished she had it. Because while he was being soft and sweet now, she had no idea what their next interaction would bring. Surely sober Cade wouldn’t be as contemplative as this drunk Cade was.

  “Yeah, that wouldn’t be so bad,” She whispered, practically to herself. And she meant it. The thought of an evening on her couch, eating greasy pizza and watching a movie, all with Cade by her side wasn’t a new thought. It was something she had pictured many times before, back when they weren’t constantly fighting or in prolonged periods of avoiding one another.

  At the root of their relationship, they were friends. She missed that—desperately so—but she also knew how difficult returning to that period would be given their history. Not to mention, part of her still very much—and very deeply—wanted more. Apparently, he did too, which made it all the scarier. And confusing.

  When he didn’t respond, she knew that he was probably close to sleep. But she kept watching, even as he twisted and turned on the sofa, apparently trying to find just the right spot. She remained sitting until eventually that canary yellow blanket fell off his massive form, and she felt the urge to cover him.

  Slowly, she moved towards his body, his soft breathing calming her frazzled nerves. After retrieving the blanket, she covered his form with it, taking a moment to just watch his sleeping face. Until, to her surprise, he opened his eyes, his chocolate gaze locked on her.

  “Kellie?” He murmured sleepily, his eyes still fluttering shut.

  She swallowed. “Yes, Cade?”

  “I love you.”

  He flipped back over on the couch, holding the blanket close. Within thirty seconds, his soft snoring filled the room.

  Kellie remained with her feet rooted to the ground, her eyes locked on his sleeping body. It took her some time, but she eventually willed herself to move to her bedroom.

  This time, when her head hit the pillow, the tears came down too.

  Chapter 11

  Saturday morning was an unusual one for Cade. For starters, he didn’t naturally wake up at the crack of dawn, engaging in mental warfare with himself to just get out of bed. He didn’t force himself to go for a run or lift weights until his skin was slick with sweat. He didn’t make his usual protein shake, or his beloved cup of coffee, or even indulge in a cheesy omelet or some extra crispy bacon.

  Instead, he woke up in agony. His entire body felt like it had been run over by a truck. His skin was sallow, as if every bit of water in his body had simply evaporated like a puddle on a sunny day and a nightmarish headache had him practically keeling over in pain. His head wasn’t alone, either—his neck was uncomfortably stiff, as well his back. It most certainly had to do with the very cute yet v
ery impractical for sleeping sofa that he was sprawled across, his shirt wrinkled and one of his socks lost in the night.

  Cade sat up and rubbed at his eyes, stifling his groan. Thoughts of the evening before came to mind. Drinks with Dean. Showing up at Kellie’s house. Acting like a drunken fool in front of her. Then, in probably his most mortifying memory to date, passing out on her couch like a sixteen-year-old after their first beer.

  Yeah, he was pathetic. As his eyes adjusted to the sunny California day that crept through the open windows, Cade noticed the water bottle set out for him. With eager hands, he brought the plastic to his lips and emptied the entire bottle in one pull. He was definitely thirsty.

  He didn’t know where Kellie was, and frankly, it was probably a good thing. He had no idea what he would say when he eventually saw her. He was embarrassed, and perhaps worst of all, barely remembered what he said the previous evening. He recalled calling her pretty, and discussion about pizza, and his mouth vaguely tasted of peanut butter.

  But there were a lot of details missing.

  His concerns were spared, however, when Kellie strolled in, dressed in a soft cotton dress. He couldn’t understand how she could look both comfy and casual, while also looking ready to be photographed for the cover of Eve. It was further proof that even in a drunken stupor, he knew the truth.

  She was by far the most beautiful woman he had ever set his eyes on.

  “You’re awake.” Kellie explained, walking into the living room and sitting on the chair across from him. “I thought you might sleep forever.”

  He was tired enough to. Between the physicality required of his training and the emotional turmoil between him and Kellie, he was exhausted. Apparently, getting shitfaced was the only way he could get the sleep he needed.