by Diana Nixon
Smartass, I thought to myself, smiling at the words.
I’m glad I met you that day; it is one of the things I will never regret, and you know how much I hate regrets. You and Emily have always been a part of our family. Take care of her; make sure she has the longest wedding veil ever; I know she always wanted it…
When she meets a guy worth spending the rest of her life with, be there to support her decision. Your opinion has always been important to her. Kiss her for me and wish her the endless happiness that she deserves so much. You know I would do anything to be by her side…
I’m sorry for leaving you so soon, brother; I wish we had more time to spend together. Don’t binge drink, I know sometimes you forget about your limits. Nothing is endless, Daniel. Now I know that for sure…
Take care of yourself and the girls.
You will always be the best friend I ever had…
P.S. Don’t be an ass, remember that people will treat you just the way you treat them. :)
Adrian
I smiled at the last sentence, let out the breath that I didn’t even notice I was holding, and then put the letter into the fire. I knew I would remember its words forever…
Adrian was right, I couldn’t lose Kassie, not again. And, no matter how many times she would make me pull my hair out, I would do my best to get her back.
There was no time for hesitation, because with every second, she was getting further away from me, and I couldn’t let that happen.
I knew I would find her at the café, and I was right. Parking at the main entrance, I saw the light in the windows which meant she saw the new emblem and the rest. Well, hell… It wasn’t exactly the way I expected it would be. I took a deep breath and entered the café.
I went straight to the kitchen, knowing that Kassie was there. To my surprise, she wasn’t cooking anything. She was sitting at the table and writing something on a small piece of paper.
“Hey,” I said, coming closer.
“Jeez, Daniel! You scared me half to death. What are you doing here?”
Kassie’s eyes were puffy, and I hated knowing that her tears were mostly my fault.
“I wanted to talk to you,” I said, taking a seat facing her. Even though I was dying to lock her in my arms, kiss her lips and never let her go, instead.
“I don’t think we have anything to talk about.”
“Wrong answer.”
Kassie sighed. “I mean it, Daniel. You don’t want to change. You keep lying to me, hoping my memories will never come back. Guess what? They are coming back, little by little. And the harder I tried to remember about the masquerade, the more I remembered.”
Not good…
“I remembered what you said after the dance. Back then, I thought you couldn’t have come up with a more stupid way to blow me off but to ask me for a dance and then tell me that we were no longer a couple. I also remembered every single thing I felt the moment I opened the door to the damn bedroom and saw that girl riding you. It’s like being there and going through that hell over and over again. Do you really think I want to talk to you now? What else don’t I remember? How many times did you break my heart? How many times did you leave me and come back, begging for forgiveness?”
“Only once,” I said, meeting her stare.
She smirked at my words. “Sounds kind of unbelievable.”
“I left only once and only once I came back to ask for your forgiveness. It happened after Adrian’s funeral that you didn’t even allow me to attend.”
“Why?”
“You were still angry at me.” I didn’t know how to tell her the rest of the story.
“Serves you right.”
“So, what are we going to do now?”
“We are not going to do anything. You are free to do whatever you want. Emily and I are leaving for Rio next week. I hope it will distract me at least a little, because right now, I can’t even make myself cook anything.”
“But, you will come for At Adrian’s opening, right?”
“Of course, I will. But please, Daniel, don’t try to see me again. You can’t even imagine how hard it is to see you now.” She stopped, swallowing to stop the tears that I could see glistening in her eyes. “All I want is a few days of peace and quiet. Is that too much to ask for?”
I rose to my feet, came to Kassie and bent to kiss her lips. They were sultry and so deliciously sweet at the same time. She didn’t stop me when I pulled her into my arms and deepened the kiss. We both wanted it so much. My heart was tearing apart at the thought of leaving her, but I realized that right now she wasn’t ready to hear the whole truth, let alone forgive me for my lies.
I took a step back, wiped her tears away and said, “No matter what I did in the past, I never stopped loving you. And, no matter what happens next, I want you to remember how fast your heart beats whenever we are together.” I looked at her one last time and left, barely able to make my way to the exit.
Chapter 20
Six days later, I could still remember the waterfalls of emotions crossing Kassie’s face. She was as lost as I was. She didn’t try to stop me, and I walked away, silently praying for that night not to become the last time we talked to each other.
Today was the day of Adrian’s bar opening. My sister hadn’t talked to me since the quarrel at the workshop, but she still kept coming every day to help me with the last preparations. Once or twice, I caught her watching me thoughtfully, and at moments like that, I badly wanted to know what she was thinking.
“A penny for your thoughts,” I said, seeing her sitting alone at the bar, staring at the picture above it.
“I think he would love this place,” she said almost in a whisper.
“I hope you’re right.” I took a seat next to her and offered her a cup of coffee. It was seven in the morning and we had a long day to live through.
“Thanks,” she said, looking at me briefly.
“Does it mean we are on speaking terms again?”
She smiled slightly. “I never stopped talking to you, Daniel. I only needed some time to get over my disappointment.”
“And?”
“And, now I’m ready for the bar’s opening. Will Kassie come?”
“I hope so. Wait, I thought she stopped talking only to me,” I said, frowning.
“She called me a few days ago and said she wanted to visit her dad.”
“She spent a week in California?”
“I thought you were still spying on her.”
“No, I was not.”
“Well, then I guess, we will find out everything when she comes here tonight.”
Kassie always loved her father. Despite the fact that he cheated on Mrs. Benson, he never stopped seeing his only daughter. As far as I knew, he got married again, but Kassie didn’t like talking about his new wife. I also knew that she hated flying, so the fact that she voluntarily agreed to visit Mr. Benson was more than surprising.
And, of course, there was one more thing that I couldn’t stop thinking about. The letter. I was supposed to give it to Kassie today, and I knew it would be like a bomb blowing up, right in my face.
“I will be there with you,” Emily said, as if reading my mind.
“What if she never talks to me again?”
“Stop talking nonsense. Of course, she will! At least to shout at you one last time.”
“You are not helping, you know?”
“I know. But, we can’t keep running from the truth. It’s time to face it. For all of us.”
“I wish I were as determined as you are.”
“Don’t let her run away again. Even if you have to force her to sit and listen to you.”
I smirked to myself. Yeah, the night promised to be interesting…
The first guests arrived around half past six in the evening. There were about thirty people invited. A few friends of Adrian’s, The Sweets’ employees who used to work with him, my parents and Kassie’s mother.
She was the first person I saw ent
ering the bar. She looked a little confused and I understood her better than anyone else. Being here today without her son felt wrong.
“I’m glad you’ve made it here tonight,” I said, kissing her hand. “Would you like something to drink?”
“Yes, please. I didn’t expect this day to be so full of emotion. Maybe it’s because of this place, the photos and so many memories coming into my head.”
“Please, take a seat. I will bring you some scotch.”
“Great choice. Thank you, Daniel.”
I went to the bar and asked the bartender to make a drink for Mrs. Benson. She was right about the emotions; I could barely control mine, either.
Every time I looked at Adrian’s pictures and saw him smiling back at me, I couldn’t help but feel his invisible presence, as if he knew how important this day was to me.
I asked for a shot for myself as well, and drank it down in a single quaff. To you, brother, I thought looking at my best friend’s happy face, shining down from over the bar.
When I turned around to take Mrs. Benson’s drink to her table, I saw Kassie standing at the entrance. She looked as if she couldn’t make herself take the next step. I put the glass on the table and went to greet her.
“Hey,” I said, not sure if I could let myself kiss her on the cheek.
“Daniel,” Mr. Benson said, entering the bar.
“Robert? I didn’t know you were going to join us. But, I’m glad to see you again.”
He nodded curtly and shook my outstretched hand.
“Is Mom here?” Kassie asked, her eyes travelling around the bar.
“Yes; she and Emily are over there.” I pointed to one of the tables.
“I’ll go greet them,” Robert said, excusing himself.
“So, how was the flight?” I asked, shifting uneasily from one foot to another. I couldn’t help but admit to myself how beautiful Kassie looked tonight. She was wearing a knee-length ivory coat with a thin gold belt around her waist; her chestnut curls cascaded down one shoulder.
“Good; it was good,” she said, looking at anything but me.
“Okay.” I hesitated for a moment, feasting my eyes on her again. In the dim light of the bar, her smoky eye shadow made her look even more mysterious and unbelievably attractive. God only knew how much composure I needed to not pull her to me and kiss those inviting lips of hers. Damn it, I needed to get a grip on myself.
“Please, come in,” I said, smiling slightly. “Make yourself at home.”
Kassie nodded silently and took a step forward, her palm brushed mine.
“I’m glad you are here,” I said in a whisper, before she would go any further.
“Me too,” she replied, finally looking up at me.
The moment our eyes locked, my breathing caught. God, I missed her so much…
As if trying to get rid of the same thoughts, she shook her head and went to greet her mother and Emily.
It was a great night; full of memories and laughter – everything that Adrian loved so much. It was also the first time since his death that I didn’t feel like I missed him. Maybe because there were so many friends and people who knew him around. Everyone talked about him as if he were there with us tonight, and even his parents declared a temporary truce.
The only person who seemed to be lost and sad was Kassie. Something told me that her sadness didn’t have anything to do with her brother and the events of the night.
Only now did I realize that she looked a little different. More distant and cold. Did more of her memories come back?
“Is everything all right?” I asked, coming closer.
“Yeah, I’m just a little tired.”
“Do you want me to take you home?”
“No, thanks. My father is staying with me tonight.”
“I see. Did you enjoy your trip?” I needed her so much, I didn’t know what else to talk about to get a chance to stay closer for at least a little longer.
“A lot.”
And? Looks like she wasn’t going to help me.
“Can we talk somewhere else?” suddenly she said.
“Sure.” I looked at her, trying to guess whether or not her desire to talk was good news. “Follow me.”
We went to one of the back rooms. I closed the door quietly behind me and leaned against it, watching Kassie intently.
She put her purse on the table, and then turned around, meeting my stare.
“First of all, I’d like to thank you for this evening,” she said, not a hint of a smile on her face. “Adrian would love your present.”
I kept watching her wordless which obviously only made her feel even more uneasy.
“Please, Daniel-” She sighed, walking to the window that opened to a beautiful night sky.
“Please what?” I asked softly, standing behind her.
“Don’t look at me if I were a traitor or something.”
“Is that all you can see in my eyes?”
She turned around slowly and I almost gasped at how beautiful she looked and how badly I wanted to stop talking…
“Did you know I was going to sell the café and leave for Italy?”
“Um, what?” I was obviously not ready for such a quick change of subject.
“It turns out that I was going to sell everything, including Adrian’s house and move to Europe.”
“It’s the first time I’ve heard about these plans. Why would you do that?”
“My father said I was going to do that because of you.”
“What did I have to do with all of that?”
“I thought you could tell me. He said I called him a few months ago and said that I couldn’t stand living so close to you anymore, and that I wanted to change my life and start it from scratch.”
“Well-” I could come up with only one explanation for her motives. She wanted to leave after she read the letter…
“I have something for you,” I said, going to one of the drawers. I opened it and gave her the envelope with her name on it.
“What’s this?” she asked, looking at me puzzled.
“Read it. Maybe then you will understand and remember everything.”
“It’s Adrian’s handwriting,” she said, looking at the envelope.
“He left letters for you, Emily and me. I was supposed to give you yours today.”
“Shall I open it now?”
“If you wish to.”
“Do you know what’s written there?”
“No. I can only guess.”
“I’ll read it when I get back home,” Kassie said, as she put the letter into her purse. Then, she turned around again and smiled, saying, “Thanks again for everything you have done for me and my family.”
I wanted to roll my eyes at the words. “You don’t have to say thanks. It was my pleasure to help. Now, can we finally talk about something else?” I crossed the distance between us and cupped her face, closing my eyes for a moment to take a deep breath. “Can we finally talk about us?”
She stood still, and I didn’t know what to expect in response, a slap in my face or another portion of boring-to-death talks about keeping distance.
Instead, she put her palms around my wrists and leaned closer, brushing my lips with hers.
“Why the hell is it that every time I see you, my rational thinking goes to rack and ruin?”
“I don’t know,” I breathed into her parted lips.
“I’m so tired of fighting with you, Daniel,” she said in a barely audible voice. “But even more, I’m tired of fighting with myself.” Then, she pulled my lips to hers and kissed me hungrily, as if she knew it was the exact way I wanted to be kissed right then.
I tangled my fingers in her hair, drawing her even closer, as if our kiss wasn’t deep enough. My lips were teasing and demanding; my mind turned off. All I wanted now was to get lost in her; in her scent and warmth; in her kisses and touches. When she moaned loudly into my mouth, I realized it was the moment that her defense shattered. I ran my hands down he
r sides, and pressed her body closer to mine. She broke the kiss only to take a breath, then crushed her lips back on mine, drinking in every word and thought crossing my blurred mind.
I pushed her backwards, sweeping away everything that was on my desk before her back touched the smooth surface. I was desperate; nothing seemed real, but I didn’t give a damn. I was dying to get a taste of the drug called Kassie.
“I can’t stop,” I breathed, swallowing hard. I was sure I would have a heart attack if she made me stop now. My heart was beating wildly.
“Neither can I,” she whispered back, trying to catch her breath. “But-”
“Oh, no!” I groaned aloud. “Please, don’t say you need to go, now.”
“I was actually going to say that we can’t do it here.”
“Why not?”
“I feel like my brother is watching us.”
I smirked. “Serves him right.”
“No, Daniel, I’m serious. Let’s go somewhere else.”
Shoot…
“You are going to be the death of me,” I said, helping her to her feet.
She ran both hands through her messy hair and looked at me, saying, “Have we always been so impatient?”
“Oh, yes, Baby. I told you that at the auction, remember?”
Her cheeks turned red. “The fitting room? Seriously?”
I shrugged, smiling at her cute embarrassment.
“You awaken the worst in me,” she said, running her palm down my chest.
My eyes followed the move and I grabbed her hand, looking at her warningly. “Don’t play with me. The game might not end in your favor.”
Chapter 21
Kassie
To our mutual disappointment the game that promised so much, didn’t even start. The moment Daniel and I left the back room, I heard my parents arguing in the hall. Again.
“Who the hell do you think you are?” my mother shouted angrily.
“I’m the father of your children, and I have a full right to be here with whoever I want!”
Oh no…
