Pieces of Us

by Hannah Downing

  “Oh! I’d love to come and warm your new home.”

  Owen and I stared at her. Was she serious?

  “Sorry. I think you warmed Charlotte’s previous home a little too much, and I’m not in to skank,” Owen said before pushing the cart around to the next aisle.

  He left Lucy and me standing in shock. I’d not been expecting that. A smile formed on my face, and Lucy scowled.

  “I can’t believe he just said that to me!” she gasped.

  “I can.” I followed the path Owen had taken and left her standing in the chips.

  “That’s her?” Owen asked when I caught up with him.

  “Yep.”

  “Her?” he asked again.

  “Yes,” I said, not sure what he was getting at.

  “Sorry. I just can’t seem to wrap my head around this. Cameron had you — you were his — and he cheated on you with her?”

  I nodded.

  “What the fuck was he thinking?” Owen laughed, shaking his head and throwing his arm over my shoulder.

  ***

  A few hours later our backyard was full of people, and I was doing my best to be a good hostess, refilling drinks and bringing around snacks.

  “Can you pass those chips?” one of the Hartford guys called loudly.

  Another man threw the bag of chips across the backyard, and the guy caught it like a football and did a touchdown dance. I rolled my eyes and walked into the house to get more drinks.

  With Owen’s new colleagues, as well as my dad and some of his work friends, it was like a police function in my backyard. I was grateful when the doorbell rang because it gave me an excuse to get away from the testosterone overload.

  I opened the door and stepped back as Ryan pushed his way into the entryway followed by Sarah, Bonnie, a tall dark-haired man I didn’t know, and Cameron. I looked at them in confusion and Ryan gave me a sheepish smile.

  I suspected Ryan would be coming since he worked with my father, but I didn’t know he’d be bringing the entire Harper clan along.

  “Hi,” I said awkwardly. I knew Owen would lose it the second he saw Cameron. He’d agreed to me seeing Cameron in groups, but I doubted he meant in our own home.

  “Hope you don’t mind — these guys tagged along,” Ryan said as he swung his case of beer up onto his shoulder and looked around. “Nice house.”

  “It’s fine,” I said with a tight smile.

  There was a chorus of hellos from everyone as we made our way through to the kitchen. Our sink was filled with ice, which I pointed out to Ryan so he could add his beer to the pile.

  “The house is gorgeous, Charlotte,” Sarah gushed as she ran her fingers along the marble counter.

  “Thanks. We like it.”

  “This is Alex,” Bonnie squealed when I turned to her.

  He was very handsome, not that I would have expected anything else from a guy Bonnie was dating, but he was exceptionally attractive. His dark hair was a bit longer than Cameron’s and curled slightly at the ends. His square jaw was covered in short stubble, and his green eyes sparkled when he looked down at Bonnie. He had a pair of thin-rimmed glasses balanced on his nose. He was much taller than Bonnie, but with his arm around her, it was easy to see they fit together.

  “Nice to meet you, Alex,” I said, smiling warmly.

  “Nice to meet you too. Bonnie talks about you all the time,” he said with a friendly smile. He took the beer Ryan handed him.

  “Well, the party is out in the yard, so make your way out whenever you’re ready.” I pointed to the back of the house.

  I tried to catch Cameron’s eye but he was absorbed in looking around the room. Butterflies flapped viciously in my stomach as I tried to envision Owen’s reaction.

  “Can we have a tour?” Bonnie asked.

  “Sure.” I held my arms out wide to showcase the room. “This is the kitchen.” As I walked through the house indicating the different rooms, Bonnie and Sarah oohed and ahhed, and Alex kept whispering in Bonnie’s ear. But Cameron hadn’t said a word since entering my house.

  I looked over to him, and he smiled. Then just as we stepped into the living room, I heard my name being called.

  “Charlotte?” Owen’s voice rang through the house. “Where’d you put the lighter for the grill?”

  Bonnie groaned and rolled her eyes as Owen entered the room. I shot her an annoyed look, but she just gave me an innocent smile.

  “Char…” Owen came into the room and saw the people standing around. His eyes fell on Cameron and went cold before flicking to me angrily.

  “Why don’t you guys go get a drink while I help Owen?” I tried to maintain an aura of calm, but inside I was nervous.

  Cameron gave me a quick look before following the others back toward the kitchen. Once we were alone, Owen walked quickly across the room to me.

  “What is he doing here?” he demanded, pointing his finger after the retreating Harpers.

  “I don’t know! Honestly, I didn’t invite any of them. Ryan brought them along.”

  “I’m not happy about this,” he said in a warning tone.

  “I know. I’m sorry. Do you want me to ask them to go?” I asked, hoping he would say no.

  Owen sighed and took a deep breath. “No, I wouldn’t ask you to do that,” he said, sounding defeated.

  “I didn’t invite him.”

  “It’s okay. There are so many people here I’ll probably forget he’s around anyway. Why did we think this was a good idea?” he chuckled as he sat on the couch.

  “You wanted to invite some of your work friends, and then Dad was excited, and it kind of got out of control.”

  “Right. Let’s not do this again.”

  “Deal,” I agreed with a laugh.

  “How long until you think everyone will leave?” he whispered in a suggestive tone.

  “Well, most of them have only just arrived, and we haven’t even fired up the grill yet.”

  “So a while then?”

  I punched his shoulder playfully. “A while, yes.”

  “Come here, you,” he said, pulling me down to his lap.

  I giggled and leaned down to kiss him softly, but he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me against his chest, deepening the kiss. His tongue swirled with mine, and he groaned as I shifted in his lap.

  A cough behind us made me jump. I pulled away from Owen and turned to find Cameron in the doorway.

  “Can we help you?” Owen asked, sounding annoyed.

  “Sorry…ah, Bonnie wanted me to ask if you minded if she started getting the food ready,” Cameron said.

  His eyes never left mine as he spoke, and I remembered how it felt when I saw him kissing Lucy. I immediately stood up and moved away from the couch so he wouldn’t have to stare at me sitting in Owen’s lap.

  I glanced back at Owen, who folded his arms and stared at Cameron. This was not good. I had to get them away from each other.

  “Why don’t you and I go help her?” I asked Cameron, walking out of the room and tugging on his shirt so he’d follow me.

  I knew Owen would be angry, but I wasn’t going to leave them alone.

  Cameron was silent as he walked behind me, and I searched for something to say. I knew seeing me with Owen must have hurt him, but this was my home. Owen was my fiancé, and I refused to feel guilty. Besides, I hadn’t invited him, and he had to know when he decided to crash the party that he’d see Owen and me together. He was pushing this friendship thing a little too hard.

  But having experience with seeing the person I loved kissing someone else, I felt a certain amount of sympathy for him.

  “I’m sorry you saw that,” I said when we reached the kitchen.

  “It’s okay. I think I needed to see it. Maybe that’s why I came today.”

  “What?”

  “It makes me face reality,” he said quickly before moving away to help Bonnie with the food.

  “Oh, Charlotte, good. Can I use this pineapple juice for piña coladas, or did y
ou buy it for something special?” she asked, holding up the can from the fridge.

  “You can use it,” I said as I watched Cameron.

  I wasn’t sure how I was feeling. I only knew Owen must be angry with me now, Cameron was hurting, and I had a house full of guests I needed to entertain.

  “Do you want one?” Bonnie called over the sound of the blender.

  “Huh?”

  “A piña colada. I’m making real ones for us and a virgin for Sarah,” she clarified.

  “Oh, yeah, sounds good.” I continued watching Cameron carefully, wondering why he didn’t just go home. I couldn’t understand why he wanted to torture himself like this.

  “Ugh! Reason number forty-seven!” Sarah huffed from her barstool.

  “Reason forty-seven for what?” I asked. Bonnie and Cameron rolled their eyes, and I assumed they were well versed on the other forty-six reasons.

  “Reason forty-seven why I can’t wait to not be pregnant! I want a real cocktail!”

  “Only a few more months,” Alex said, coming in with several empty beer bottles. He threw them in the trash as Sarah sighed and took a sip of her mocktail.

  “You don’t have to clean up,” I told Alex.

  “I like to help out.” He shrugged before placing a kiss on Bonnie’s cheek and taking a fresh armful of beers out of the ice.

  “I’ll go make sure Ryan’s not getting into any trouble,” Cameron said, following Alex out.

  “Thanks, Cam,” Sarah called, taking another sip of the creamy drink. She grimaced and put down the glass. “It’s not the same without the rum.”

  I took a sip of my cocktail and felt the burn on the back of my throat. Normally I wasn’t much of a drinker, but I knew I’d need it today.

  “Shall we?” Bonnie asked, picking up the drinks and walking out the door, followed by Sarah.

  I grabbed a fruit platter and headed toward the door as Ryan walked in. He gave me another sheepish smile.

  “Are you mad at me?” he asked.

  “No… but maybe slightly confused and annoyed. Owen, however, might want to hit you.”

  “I think I can handle him,” Ryan chuckled. He flexed his large biceps, which caused me to giggle.

  “Seriously, though, what were you thinking, Ry?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I didn’t really think. Cam told me you guys were going to be friends, so when I heard you were having a barbeque I assumed it would be okay for everyone to come.”

  I sighed and punched him lightly on the arm. “Do me a favor, okay? Next time you want to invite people over, can you let me know first?”

  “Deal.”

  We shook hands and walked out to join everyone in the yard.

  “Thanks, Char,” Dad said as I placed the platter in the center of the table.

  “I’ll get the grill started in just a second,” Owen said, brushing past me with a meaningful look as he headed toward the door.

  I followed him back into the house, and I could feel Cameron’s eyes following me. I hoped he wouldn’t interrupt us again.

  “He has to leave,” Owen said as soon as we were alone.

  “Let’s not make a fuss. He’s just spending time with his family and some of your work friends. It’s not a big deal. He’s barely even said anything to me. You don’t have to worry.”

  “It is a big fucking deal! He keeps looking at you,” Owen said, sneering.

  I rolled my eyes. “Everyone was looking at me because I was carrying food.”

  Owen shook his head and cupped my face with his hands. “He was looking at you.”

  I knew arguing with him wasn’t going to solve anything, so I freed myself from his grasp and pulled the fridge door open to get the steaks.

  “You don’t have anything to worry about. We’re just friends. Why don’t we just relax and enjoy the party, and you can ignore Cameron?”

  Owen’s nostrils flared, and he looked furious, but seemed to have lost the will to argue any more.

  “Keep him away from me,” he said through gritted teeth before walking back outside with the meat.

  I quickly grabbed the oil, barbecue tongs, and some paper towels before following him.

  Once the meat was cooking, most of the guys went to stand around the grill and drink beer. I couldn’t believe how cliché it was, and I chuckled to myself when I saw my dad, Ryan, and Owen right in the middle of a male-bonding session.

  I sat down at the table where the remaining Harpers were chatting and laughing together. I felt a little like an outsider. They were all family, and I wasn’t a part of that anymore. I downed the rest of my drink before deciding I should probably go and make the rest of the food before the meat was ready.

  I walked back into the kitchen and pulled out the ingredients for garlic bread, quickly making a loaf and placing it in the preheated oven. I turned back to the fridge, pulling out vegetables and stacking them on the counter so I could make the salad. I went to the pantry to grab an onion, and when I turned back around Cameron was leaning against the wall.

  “Hey,” he said with a smile.

  “Hey,” I replied, starting to rip the lettuce into small pieces. I was a little rougher than I normally would have been.

  “I just wanted to tell you I’m sorry if I’ve caused any trouble between you and Owen.” He selected a knife from the block on the counter and started slicing one of the tomatoes.

  “Oh no, we’re fine.” I could hear the strain in my voice, and when Cameron cocked an eyebrow at me, I knew he’d heard it too. “Okay, well, maybe there’s a little trouble. But it’s fine.”

  I washed the lettuce and shook the excess water from it before placing it in a large bowl. Cameron put his sliced tomatoes in and picked up a cucumber.

  As I chopped an onion, I could feel my eyes tearing up.

  “Sorry about the tears…stupid onion.” I laughed as I wiped my cheek with the back of my hand.

  Cameron chuckled softly as he put the sliced cucumbers into the bowl. He washed his hands in the sink as I grabbed a paper towel to wipe my eyes.

  “What’s going on?” Owen demanded from the doorway.

  Cameron and I spun around to look at him.

  “Nothing,” I said. “We’re just making a salad.”

  “Nothing? Then why are you crying?” Owen pulled me into a protective hug. “What did he say to you?”

  “I didn’t say anything,” Cameron said, looking confused.

  “Right, so Charlotte is just crying for no reason?”

  I leaned back from him. “I was cutting up an onion for the salad. Really, Cameron didn’t do anything.”

  “Right, he’s so innocent,” Owen said sarcastically.

  “Is there a problem here?” Cameron asked. He was getting defensive.

  “Yes, you are the problem here.”

  I rolled my eyes and pulled out of Owen’s grasp, taking a step backward and slipping on something. I tried to steady myself, but my arms flailed wildly as I fell backward.

  The next thing I knew, a pair of strong arms came around my waist, preventing me from falling flat on my back. Since Owen was in front of me, the warm body behind me could only belong to one other person.

  “Are you okay?” Cameron asked.

  “Get your hands off her!” Owen roared. He quickly ushered me behind his back before swinging his fist into Cameron’s face.

  “Owen!” I screamed in a mixture of shock and anger. “What the hell are you doing?”

  Before he could answer me, Cameron regained his footing, turned, and with a furious look on his face, pulled his arm back.

  “Cam, don’t!” I yelled.

  But he swung his arm and hit Owen in the jaw.

  Owen grunted and curled over in pain. I thought that was going to be the end of it, but then Owen pushed forward and wrapped his arms around Cameron’s waist, pulling him down to the floor.

  “Stop it! Stop it!” I yelled as I watched them roll around, each landing the occasional punch. I reached down t
o pull Owen off of Cameron, but strong arms clasped around my waist from behind, holding me back.

  “You’ll just get hurt by accident,” Alex said as my Dad and Ryan dove in to rip the two men apart.

  “What’s going on here?” Dad yelled in his policeman voice.

  Owen shrugged off my father’s arms and turned to me. “Are you okay?”

  “No, I’m not okay!” I pushed out of Alex’s arms and stomped down the hall to the bedroom. I slammed the door behind me.

  I was furious with both Owen and Cameron. I’d never seen Owen be physically violent before, and I never expected him to just attack someone. I’d always considered him one of the calmest, most level-headed people I knew.

  As for Cameron, I’d thought of him as a placid person as well. I’d only seen him fight one other time in the ten years I’d known him. It was shortly after we started dating, and he’d done it to protect me…

  …The cool wind had blown my hair around my face, and I pulled my coat tighter. Where was Cameron? It wasn’t like him to be late. I looked up and down the street for any sign of him, but there was no one around. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket to see if I’d missed a call from him and found an unread text message flashing on the screen.

  Sorry, got held up in class.

  I’ll be about 15 minutes late.

  See you soon.

  I felt myself relax, knowing he was on his way. I searched through the phone’s menu until I got to the games and started a new game of Snake. Lucy and I often challenged each other, and since she usually beat me, I could use this time to practice.

  I’d only played for about a minute when I heard footsteps.

  “Hey there.”

  I glanced up from my game and saw someone I didn’t know. “I’m Craig,” he said pleasantly.

  “Hi,” I said before looking back at my phone and directing the small snake around the screen.

  Craig’s hand rested on my shoulder, and his index finger brushed my neck. “That was rude.”

  “Excuse me?” I stepped away from him.

  “I introduced myself, and you didn’t tell me your name. It was rude. Now, let’s try that again. I’m Craig.”

  “Ch-Charlotte.” I took another step back as he stepped toward me.

  “Charlotte,” he said with a smile. “There, now was that so hard?”