Cale’s grip on the seat tightens. “You’re an idiot,” he growls. “What do you really want?”
Slade shrugs his shoulders and grips the window. “Aspen told me you were stopping to pick up Riley on the way over. I was driving by and noticed your damn truck. The windows looked a little frosted and shit, so I came to hurry your ass up.”
Grinning, Cale gives Slade the middle finger while rolling up the window. He leans in and kisses me quickly, breathing heavily against my lips. “Dammit! Let’s go before this dude busts a nut outside of my truck. Anything can work him up.”
I laugh and roll the window back down as Cale crawls over to his seat and adjusts the crotch of his jeans. “Hey, Slade,” I say with a small laugh.
Slade gives me a slick head nod and smiles. “Looking good, Riley.” Leaning in the truck, Slade kisses the side of my head while smiling over at Cale. “Both of you hurry your asses up.”
Cale starts the engine, gripping the wheel while glaring at Slade. “Don’t push it, fucker. We’re on the way.”
Slade winks and turns on his heels, walking over to his nice new car.
“Remind me to kill Slade later,” Cale says while pulling out of the lot.
I can’t help but to laugh at the boys for acting so silly. I definitely won’t mind this kind of entertainment to get us through dinner. “Sure thing,” I say with a smile.
I try to stay cool on the way to my parents’ house, but the way Cale is rubbing my leg has me squirming in my seat and gripping the seat. The satisfied smirk on his face only shows me that he’s doing this on purpose and enjoying this much more than I am.
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I grab his hand and place it on his own lap as he pulls up in front of the house. “It’s already going to be hard enough to act normal around my parents, pretending as if nothing is going on. Please don’t make it harder.” I suck in a breath and attempt to compose myself.
He unbuckles his seatbelt and reaches over to undo mine, hovering his lips above mine. “Who said anything about acting normal?” He brushes his lips over mine, causing my heart to jump out of my chest. “You can touch me, kiss me . . . or fuck me for all I care. There’s plenty of rooms to choose from.” He whispers the last part before smiling and jumping out of the truck, leaving me wanting him even more.
“Damn you, Cale. You’re still a pain in my ass,” I say to myself while gripping the door handle and jumping out to catch up with him. “Well, it’s definitely going to be easy to talk to my parents now,” I tease. “So thanks for that image.”
Without bothering to knock Cale opens the screen door and lets himself in, holding the door open for me. My mom is standing in the kitchen mixing some kind of dessert when we walk in. It smells like chocolate. Cale loves chocolate.
“Oooh. Oooh.” My mom cleans the chocolate off of her hands hurriedly, and smiles as Cale walks over to her with open arms.
“Did you miss me?” Cale asks while squeezing my mom in a bear hug and shaking her back and forth.
She pulls away and grabs his face, looking him over. Her smile is so big that it looks like her face is going to split open. “You know I did. Look at you,” she squeals. “Oh my goodness.” She backs away and looks him up and down, taking in his large build. “You have gotten so much bigger since the last time I saw you, Cale, and more handsome too. Oh my. Come here.”
She grabs my arm and pulls me next to her, while holding onto Cale’s waist. “It’s so good seeing you two hanging out again. It makes me feel young again. Isn’t this something?”
Rolling my eyes, I kiss my mom on the cheek and laugh. “Yeah . . . yeah. Where’s Aspen and Slade?”
My mom releases her grip on both of us and points to the back door. “They’re outside with your father.”
“It smells so good in here,” Cale says before kissing my mom on the cheek. “I’ve missed your cooking. Don’t be surprised if I eat all that dessert you’re working on.”
My mom blushes while going back to stirring her dessert. “Yeah, well what can I say? That’s why I made so much. I learned my lesson eight years ago.” She turns to me and winks. “The food is on the grill and should be ready to eat soon. Just hang out for a bit and keep your father company. We all know he doesn’t get it very often.”
“Alright, Mom. Let me know if you need help.”
My mom shakes her head and motions toward the door. “Nope. Just go and enjoy yourselves. Scoot.”
Cale places his hand on my lower back and guides me toward the sliding door. “Your ass looks fucking delicious in those shorts,” he whispers, before sliding the door open and pulling me outside. “Can’t wait to taste you later.”
I break into an instant sweat from his words mixed with the heat. As soon as my dad sees us, he waves us over, holding up a beer for Cale. I just need to get away from this man before I melt into a damn puddle at his feet. He’s the perfect distraction.
Pulling away from Cale, I rush over to Aspen and sit down in the chair next to her while Cale goes to hang out with my dad and Slade.
My dad stands up as soon as Cale approaches. Handing him a beer, he grips Cale’s shoulder and greets him with a smile. I’m actually surprised to see how happy my dad looks to see him. I knew he always liked Cale. He just didn’t want to admit how much.
I turn to Aspen. “This is torture,” I say in a hurry.
Aspen takes a sip of her pop and looks over at the picnic table where the guys are hanging out. “Tell me about it. I’m bored already. Mom talked our leg off when we walked in the door and dad keeps talking about his work.”
I shake my head and look in Cale’s direction to see his tight muscles flexing as he grips his beer and laughs along with the guys. “No, I meant Cale. All I want to do is take him up to my old room and jump on him. It’s like I can’t even be in the same room without touching him. You know?”
Aspen smiles at my comment and lifts a brow as she watches the guys. “I definitely know, sister. Welcome to my world.”
We sit here, just watching the boys for a few minutes, before Aspen speaks up, breaking the silence. “So what are you and Cale anyway? Are you doing this whole ‘friends with benefits’ thing? Or what? That could definitely get messy, so be careful.”
I let out a frustrated breath and grab for Aspen’s pop, taking a quick drink. My mouth suddenly feels extremely dry. “I don’t know, Aspen. I care about Cale a lot, you know that, but I really don’t know what he wants out of this. I’m worried if I ask him that I’ll mess up what we have. I can’t have that. We’ve been friends for too long, so I’m just sitting back and enjoying the ride.”
“Literally,” Aspen replies.
“Shut up,” I say, while punching her in the thigh. “Can you talk any louder?”
“Ouch, asshole.” Aspen smiles, taking another sip of her pop. “Nothing to be ashamed of.”
We both look up when my father calls us. “Girls. Get over here and eat.”
We both grumble to each other before getting up and joining everyone else at the table. I take a spot next to Cale as Aspen takes her place beside Slade.
Dinner passes quickly as my parents talk to Cale about what he’s been up to over the years. Leaving out the male stripper part, Cale tells them stories from his bartending experience. Now I’m just hoping they don’t look up Walk Of Shame and decide to drop in for a quick drink sometime. They are supportive like that and it might be a little awkward to explain.
After all conversation with my parents is done and everything is cleaned up, we decide to head inside for a few drinks and a game of darts. The boys talked shit to each other the whole time during dinner, betting money on who would win. Everyone was pretty surprised when my mother jumped up and threw in some money on Cale. That definitely gave him an extra confidence boost, not that he needed one.
There’s fifty bucks on the line, so the boys are getting into a serious mode, trying to intimidate each other while us girls sit back and watch.
My par
ents are sitting in the next room watching a movie, just enjoying the fact that we’re all still here. It’s not very often that they have both of their girls home, and they’re definitely working to keep us here as long as they can.
I have to admit that we’re all having fun, a lot more fun than I expected. It sort of feels like old times, back when Aspen and I lived at home. I like this carefree feeling right now, and I’m not ready for it to end anytime soon.
“You lucky, shit,” Slade spits out while yanking the darts out of the board. “That was luck not skill, so stop that smiling bullshit.”
Cale tilts back his bottle of beer and grins even bigger, clearly enjoying this. “Oh trust me, that was all skill, bro.” He holds up his free hand, showing it off. “My hand is talented as fuck, Slade.”
“Nah . . .” Slade throws his first dart, hitting the bull’s eye. “That’s skill. Might as well give me your dick shaking tips now.”
Ignoring Slade, Cale walks over to me and wraps his hands into the back of my hair, pulling me in for a kiss. His lips are soft and sweet, tasting of the chocolate dessert that he recently ate. “I can’t wait to get you alone. As soon as I win this asshole’s money, I’m taking you to the nearest bed and letting you have your way with me.” He smiles against my lips when I grab his ass and squeeze.
“Oh, is that right?” I run my hands up his strong back and dig my nails into his shoulders. “So I can do anything that I want?”
He pulls my bottom lip into his mouth and nibbles it. “Anything,” he breathes. “You’re the only one with that power, so I would abuse it if I were you.”
Cale clenches his jaw when one of Slade’s darts comes flying at his head. “Seriously?”
Aspen wraps her arm around Slade’s neck and pulls him down to her level so that she can kiss him and whisper something to him.
“You both want to play now, huh?” I grab one of Cale’s darts and throw it at them. “I think us girls should get in on this game. Double it.”
We’re all standing here bickering, trying to decide on what to do when the doorbell rings.
A few minutes later, my mom walks in and takes one look at me in Cale’s arms, before clearing her throat and looking around awkwardly. “Riley . . . Tyler is at the door. He said he’s here to talk to you.”
I just about pass out when Tyler steps into the room, looking at me as if he’s waited forever to see me again.
His blonde hair is cut short and slightly messy, and he’s dressed in a pair of old jeans and a white shirt. I almost forgot just how cute he is, and seeing him standing here . . . for me . . . makes my heart sink.
Holy. Fucking. Shit.
FUCK ME. . . . MY EYES MEET Riley’s and I can see her being emotionally pulled in different directions, about to lose her composure. This is not good. Not good for me at all.
Knowing that he’s here to win Riley back makes me fucking sick. Now that I know what he looks like, it’s easier to picture him putting his hands all over her and I don’t like it. Not one bit. In fact . . . it makes me hate him.
“Tyler . . .” Riley places her hand over her mouth in shock, looking him up and down as if she doesn’t know whether to slap him or run to him. “What are you doing here?”
Tyler swallows and looks around the room. Riley is standing close enough to me that I’m sure there’s reason for him to question our intentions. “I miss you.” He looks at me as he says the next part. “I need to talk to you, Riley. Can we talk in private?”
Everything in me is screaming for her to say no, but I know Riley. I know her more than anything, so I already know her answer before she says it.
“Uh . . . yeah.” She looks around the room and stops when her eyes land on me. “I’m sorry. I need a few minutes.”
I place my hand on her hip and give it a small squeeze, before nodding my head and turning away. I can’t stand to watch her walk away with him. I can’t fucking do it.
“Well fuck,” Slade says after they walk away. “Just keep your cool, man.”
I grip the pool table until my knuckles turn white. “I’m cool, man.” I feel Aspen’s hand on my shoulder. “I’m good, Aspen. I’m good.”
It feels like a lifetime has passed since she’s been alone with him talking. I know for a fact that me being here is making it harder for her. I hate that feeling. I hate feeling like I’m the other guy.
After about twenty minutes, I can’t take it anymore. I feel like I’m about to burst into that room and rip his fucking head off. I keep imagining different scenarios, replaying over and over in my head, and that’s when I realize that I need to get out of here before I do something I’ll regret later.
“I need to leave,” I grind out. Pushing away from the pool table, I turn around and give Slade and Aspen one last look. “I’m about to lose it.”
Slade grips my shoulder, but I shake it off and rush out of the room before he can try to stop me. Slowing down for a quick minute, I smile when I reach the living room where Riley’s parents are watching a movie. “Thank you so much for dinner.”
Kay stands up and kisses my cheek. “Promise me you’ll come back soon.” I get ready to pull away, but she squeezes my arm, stopping me. “Promise me, Cale,” she says firmly. “You know Riley more than anyone. You remember that.”
Nodding my head, I pull away and give my respects to her father before hurrying out the door and to my truck. As soon as I close the door behind me, I slam my fist into the dashboard until it’s covered in blood. Why the hell does this feeling kill me so much? Why do I want to kill this man?
“Fuck me,” I growl.
I may give her a day to get her head on straight, but there’s no way in hell I’m giving up and letting him have her back. Riley is mine. She has been from the very first day we met.
It’s time that I show her that . . .
WE’VE BEEN STANDING HERE FOR almost twenty minutes, yet Tyler hasn’t said a word. He always does this when he’s upset and trying to think of the best way to start the conversation.
“Tyler, just talk.” I take a seat on the foot of my bed and look up at him. “What are you doing here? We broke up. Remember?”
He runs his hands over his face before looking at me. “I know, Riley, but damn. I’ve missed you so much.” Looking me in the eyes, he walks over to stand in front of me and reaches out for my hands. “I’ve been going crazy without you. You haven’t answered any of my calls and it’s been killing me. Killing me, Riley.”
I swallow back the guilt and pain that his words bring and try to keep in mind that he’s the one that decided to break it off at the last minute. He’s the one that said it would be better to just be friends.
“I’m sorry, Tyler, but I needed time. I can’t allow myself to just sit around and mope over you. I have friends and family here that want to spend time with me and I needed to keep a clear head for that.”
“I see that,” he says stiffly. “Looks like you’ve been enjoying your friend out there quite a bit.”
Looking away, I run my hands through my hair and swallow. I never meant to be intimate with someone, and especially so quickly after the breakup, but Cale is an exception. He deserves my time and attention more than anyone I know.
“Look, Tyler. Cale has been my friend for over ten years. I never meant for things to turn into something more, but . . .”
Tyler bends down and places his thumb to my lips, shutting me up. “I don’t care about that. What I care about is making you mine again.” He points down at the floor. “I’m here. I have enough bags packed to stay for a week. If we can make it work then I will fly back home and pack up all of my shit if I can’t get you to come back home with me.” He leans in to kiss my lips, but I turn my head. “Riley, I still love you. I’ve given you two years of my life.”
His words cause my chest to ache. He’s right. Two years means something. Maybe just throwing it away is a shitty thing to do. I’m so damn confused right now and all I want to do is scream.
“Do
you still love me, Riley?” He grabs my chin to make me look at him when I don’t respond. “Answer me, Riley. You can’t tell me that you don’t have any love left for me after just a short time of being apart. Tell me the truth.”
I hesitate before answering him, because I don’t want to give him too much hope, especially when I’m this confused. “Tyler . . .”
“Just give me a yes or no. I don’t want an explanation of buts or maybes. Just a simple yes or no.”
“Of course I do, but–.”
“That’s all I want to hear, and that should be good enough to at least try while I’m here.” Standing up, he pulls me to my feet. “Tell me that I’ve got a chance, Riley. Please.”
I feel my heart beating out of my chest as I think about Cale and what he must be thinking right now. I don’t want to think about me without Cale, but Tyler flew all the way here from Mexico. That has to mean something too. I don’t want to be a shitty person to the people that care about me.
I can’t do this right now. I can’t think straight. My breathing picks up and it’s getting harder and harder to breathe. “I need time. I need to get out of here.” I begin backing out of the room. “I’m sorry, Tyler.”
Turning around, I rush out of the room and down the stairs, gripping the railing a little too tight. My chest feels extremely tight as I make my through the house.
My parents both look up at me as I rush to the game room. My heart stops when I poke my head inside to see only Slade and Aspen.
“He’s gone,” Slade says stiffly.
My throat burns when I hear those two words. “He left?” I whisper, mainly to myself. I stand there frozen for a moment, before rushing outside. Cale’s truck is gone and my heart feels completely shattered.
What the hell do I do?
I want to scream, but instead I walk. I just keep walking, needing to get away from everyone and everything. This is so messed up right now and I have no idea what I’m going to do to fix this. My heart aches for Cale, but my head is telling me that I need to at least give Tyler a chance after coming all this way. I hate this so much.
Walk Of Shame Page 36