Interference (Prescott Family Book 1)

by Mignon Mykel

  The line was silent. I had to pull back the phone to see if it was still connected. Assured that it was, I put it back to my ear. “I didn’t send you home, Syd. Tony must have had something up his sleeve the entire time, but I didn’t send you home.”

  “It’s ok, Caleb, really.” Her voice was still strong, but I could hear the slight rustling as she moved to wipe at her eyes or nose. Maybe both. “Grace and Jennifer are great girls. You would be so, so lucky to be with one of them.” Her voice cracked and the last words came out as a whisper. As much as that whisper killed me, I felt like she was being deliberately obtuse. She knew what she meant to me, dammit!

  “Listen to me, Sydney!” I was panicking. She thought I sent her home. She truly thought I sent her home. “You said you trusted me, Syd. I didn’t send you home.”

  “Caleb, I can’t do this,” she whispered. “I will cherish every moment you and I had together but… It hurts to realize you’ve been made a fool, you know? I should have gone home that first night. I should have stayed away. Then maybe this wouldn’t hurt so fucking badly. I…Whether it was your plan or Tony’s plan, it doesn’t matter. I have to go, Caleb.”

  Then before I could get in a word edgewise, the call ended.

  She hung up on me.

  She fucking hung up on me.

  I stared at the phone until the screen turned black.

  I looked around the room, searching for what, I wasn’t sure.

  I had to fix this.

  But how? How could I fix something like this?

  Tony.

  That douche bag Tony.

  I dropped Myke’s phone to the sofa and headed out to find him. I didn’t care if I woke him up in his fucking room, he and I were having words.

  Caleb

  Day 21 of 21

  I had threatened to go home. I threatened to blow up his show, far and wide, and still, Tony simply laughed in my face and told me next time, I should read my contract. His laughing, paired with the pent up anger I was feeling, earned him a fist to the face.

  I told him he’d think twice about suing me for it, too.

  While it was too late, I spent that night reading over all the fine print, not just skimming it.

  Like I should have done the moment I signed the fucker.

  Not only was the show able to pull footage from cameras in my room, in the halls, everywhere on the ship, as well as have fucking camera men follow me, but Tony and company could use their own discretion as to who was sent home.

  And if I left early, I would be forfeiting one mil for the charity of my choice.

  After talking it over with my family that same night—I didn’t care that it was one in the morning by the time we were all sitting down—it was decided that I only had two more days, to just ride it out. I wasn’t the most comfortable with that decision, but Myke assured me she would play peacemaker as best as she could with Sydney.

  Yesterday, rather than spending the day with my family or even with the remaining two girls like Tony demanded of me, I stayed locked in my suite. My family tried to get me out, but I wasn’t budging. I heard via text that Jonny proposed to Jenna.

  Apparently his titties and pussy phase from April was just cold feet.

  He should have fucking iced them more. The kid was head over heels for her and I didn’t want to see the day he realized what we’d been trying to tell him for years.

  He hid it well, but Jonny was soft-hearted. It would fucking break him when he learned Jenna didn’t love him.

  But like I said, we’d been trying to tell him for years. He was going to have to learn that one the hard way.

  Aside from that family plunder, nothing else exciting happened. Today we docked at our last port, and Grace and Jennifer each went to their own destination. I was supposed to follow one of them.

  I stayed in my suite.

  I wasn’t fucking playing this game anymore.

  Twenty minutes after I was due at my car, my door was being pounded on. Wearing clothes that I brought and not the fucking monkey suit the show wanted me in, I answered the door to a camera and Stewie.

  Let’s not forget Tony, too, who was sporting a nice purple bruise on his jaw that makeup hadn’t been able to fully cover.

  Tony stood back with a dark scowl on his face while Stewie tried to get a line for the camera.

  “I made a mistake.”

  I didn’t want to fucking own up to something I didn’t do, but I was going to have to in order to keep everything for this show on the up and up.

  “What do you mean, you made a mistake?” Stewie asked, his hands clasped in front of him.

  “When I sent Sydney home the other night.” I decided to play along with the story we were given for the show. “I let her walk away from me once and I’m terrified I’m not going to be able to redeem myself this time. But the last two days without her have been a living hell.”

  “So you’re going to say no to both Jennifer and Grace today?” Stewie’s placid tone was likely great for the audiences, but after three weeks of living with it, I was over it.

  “I am. I should never have said goodbye to Sydney.”

  Stewie nodded a few times. “Well, the girls will be finding out shortly, then. We wish you the best of luck with Sydney, and hope to see you with her on your arm at the reunion ceremony.”

  The camera stopped rolling and Tony’s scowl changed to a grin. “This is going to be my best show yet. I can just feel it.”

  “Do you fucking like toying with people’s emotions?” I was so over Tony and his fucking scheming ways. “If I can’t get Sydney to hear my side of everything, I’m fucking coming after you and your company.”

  Tony just waved his hand in the air. “I’ll talk to her, I’ll talk to her.” He shook his head and as he walked away, I swear he called me a lovesick sap.

  So what if I was. At least I knew when I had a good thing, and wasn’t the type of person to push and pull until someone had enough.

  Now, though…

  Now I had seven days on this ship with my family on the return trip to San Diego.

  Seven days to figure out a way to get Sydney back.

  Seven days for her to not answer my calls, to put more distance between us…

  I couldn’t think like that.

  Seven days.

  Seven days and this would all be fixed.

  Caleb

  Seven days later I found myself in an airport in Utah, waiting for Sydney’s father.

  She still didn’t know I was here. She didn’t know that I was coming.

  First though, I wanted to talk with her father. She met my family and I hoped I would have the opportunity to truly meet her family while she interacted with them, but I needed to do this my way for now. It took some doing, but I was finally able to find her family and contact them, asking her father to meet me at the airport.

  When I made it to baggage claim, I wasn’t that surprised to find more than just Sydney’s father waiting for me. I could tell that the four men standing there were waiting for me because Sydney and two of her brothers were strikingly similar. That, and the three who had to be her brothers all had crossed arms and scowls on their faces.

  With my chin up, I passed the bags moving around the carousel and made my way to the group of men. When I reached them, I extended my hand. “I’m Caleb.”

  Her father took my hand in his and shook. “Samuel. Or Sam. You’re the one who broke my daughter’s heart?”

  There wasn’t any anger in his tone though. I had explained everything over the phone, more than once, and I was thankful that her father heard through my pleas.

  “I didn’t mean to. I love your daughter, sir.”

  Sam simply nodded before dropping my hand. “Boys, help him with his bags.”

  “I only have one. It’ll be quick.” I moved to the carousel and grabbed my duffle when it came across. I had yet to speak with her brothers, but I had the feeling they weren’t my biggest fans at that exact moment.

&nbs
p; We drove in relative silence to Sydney’s parents’ house, where I met her mom—who was where Sydney got her short stature from. Seeing her father and mom next to one another had me nostalgic for Sydney to be in my arms again.

  While her mother, Susan I learned, prepared dinner, I spoke candidly about meeting Sydney and spending time with her. Smith, oldest brother that he was, took some time to thaw toward me, but the one I really found I had to win over was Sawyer, the brother two years Sydney’s senior. It seemed they had a close relationship. He didn’t speak much to me, instead keeping the same scowl on his face from earlier.

  I told them about our trips on the first leg of the cruise and then about the times we spent together on the show part of the cruise. All G-rated, of course.

  But of course, her brothers saw through that nonsense. Even though I thought I made huge strides with Smith, Bora Bora alone had the man tensing.

  And that was the most G-rated night Sydney and I had.

  Sean stayed pretty quiet through most of the talk, but when he found his voice, he definitely didn’t leave me with any doubts how protective he was of his baby sister.

  “You know if, when this shit airs, you’ve been caught kissin’ and sleepin’ with the other girls, you’ll have more than just an upset Sydney on your hands, right?”

  There wasn’t even an iota of anger in me that he would voice that concern, at doubting my intentions. I would probably be the same way if one of my sisters found themselves in this same situation.

  “I swear to you, the only woman who has had my attention since April is your sister,” I told Sean directly. I then looked at each of her brothers before settling on Sam and Susan. “I am so incredibly in love with your daughter,” I glanced at Smith, Sean, and Sawyer, “your sister. Her thoughts and feelings were on my mind the entire time she wasn’t with me. I promise you that.”

  When they seemed to accept what I was saying, I showed them my favorite pictures from the gallery on my phone, which I think was the turning point for Sawyer—seeing the look of such happiness on Sydney’s face.

  Finally, just before Sydney was due to arrive for dinner, Sam pulled me outside to have a “little chat”, he called it. I wasn’t afraid.

  In fact, I had some things I wanted to “chat” with him about as well.

  Sydney

  After nine days of moping, I finally agreed to family dinner. It was what my family did.

  I checked my face in the rearview mirror. I had been a case of serious puffy-face the last few days, and I was glad to see the swelling and redness was completely gone.

  Tony had called me and told me that my going home was completely on him, that Caleb didn’t have any idea. Hearing from him what Caleb tried to tell me…well, it didn’t really make it better.

  I didn’t care who sent me home.

  I cared about the fact that Caleb let it happen.

  I trusted him, yes. But he should have fought harder.

  I didn’t care if he was doing it because Tony threatened him, or held something over his head, or whatever it was that happened. I cared that when it all went down, Caleb didn’t fight a little harder.

  Hell, the show wrapped up a week ago, and I still hadn’t heard from Caleb! Even if I wasn’t answering his texts or calls, he could have showed remorse or something by trying to contact me.

  I sighed heavily and swiped under my eyes. It wouldn’t do me any good to cry now.

  It was done.

  It was over.

  We had two completely different lives, anyway.

  I pulled myself out of my car and walked up the drive. I was apparently the last one here. All three of my brothers’ trucks were in the drive, with Sawyer’s taking up the most space.

  Boy didn’t know how to park.

  I laughed quietly to myself.

  God, I missed my brothers.

  I opened the front door and could hear the clanking of dishes and sounds of conversation coming from the kitchen. I closed the front door behind me, dropped my bag to the floor and slipped out of my flats, and headed in that direction.

  “Hey, guys, I’m here,” I announced as I walked through the door.

  All sound stopped.

  I frowned and looked around the room, taking in my mom and my brothers. My dad came walking in from the porch, keeping the glass sliding door open behind him.

  “What’s the deal? Why’s everyone so quiet? Do I have something on my face? I’m fine guys!” I laughed to reassure them, but my laugh lodged in my throat when Caleb walked in shortly after my father.

  Caleb.

  He was here.

  He was with my family.

  I was so fucking confused.

  My heart kicked into a fast pace in my chest. It was torn, so very torn. I was mad at him, but damn, I loved seeing him.

  It was like that night on the beach all over again.

  If I gave in to what my heart wanted, was I just going to be overcome with fear in a few hours? What about when he left?

  I couldn’t do this.

  No, I really couldn’t do this.

  I shook my head. “I can’t do this.”

  I turned on my heel to leave and heard as my brothers tried to call me back.

  Someone grabbed my arm before I made it to the foyer and I knew without turning that it was Caleb.

  “Please let me talk to you, Syd. God, Chief, let me talk to you.” His forehead fell to rest on the top of my head.

  I fought with the desire to say no. I was over it all. I was done with the emotional roller coaster.

  But he was here.

  He was in Utah.

  I should at least hear him out. Right?

  “Fine.” I bypassed my shoes and stepped away from him, shaking my arm from his hold. I opened up the front door and stepped out to stand on the front porch. Sitting on the stairs, I waited for whatever it was Caleb came to say.

  He sat beside me and must have been able to tell I didn’t want him to touch me, didn’t want to hold his hand, so he put a respectable amount of distance between us with his hands clasped in his lap. He didn’t face away from me, though. No, he turned so his back was to the rail and he had nowhere to look other than at me.

  “I didn’t know you were being sent home until Myke came pounding down my door. That was after you texted her. After talking with you, I found Tony and ripped him a new one, and all he had to answer for it was something about the drama. It was all he was after. I wanted to come after you right away, Syd. I talked it over with my family and it was decided I should finish the show.”

  “Oh, so you could just push me to the side a little.” I nodded a few times. I could hear the bitchiness in my voice, the sarcasm as well, but I didn’t care if anything I said hurt him.

  “It wasn’t like that, Syd.” When he reached for my hand, I crossed my arms tightly over my chest. He sighed and dropped his hand to rest beside him on the porch. “Two days until it was over, and I could end it however the hell I wanted. And I would still be given money for charity. I know we talked about that point before, but it was a good amount. So for two days, I stuck around, locked up in my room.

  “When Tony and Stewie came to find me the last day because I didn’t show up on time, I informed them I wasn’t choosing either girl. I gave them some fucking story that would go with the stupid one you and I had to play off of, but it made Tony happy. Then I had to sit on that fucking boat for seven more days until I could come after you.

  “I am done counting the days until I can see you again, Syd. I want to know that you’re going to be there.”

  He wanted to know that I was going to be there? He was the one who left me high and dry! I clenched my jaw and continued to listen to what he had to say.

  “I want you to know that I am always going to be there.”

  Oh. Ok…

  “You may be scouting in New York and I may be playing an away game in Texas, but at the end of the week, the end of whatever road trip you or I are on, I want to know that it’s
you I’m coming home to. Please, Sydney. Please believe what I’m telling you.”

  I unwrapped one of my arms so I could chew on my thumbnail. A terrible habit, I know, but I had to think. The pain was evident in Caleb’s eyes, in his voice. Did I believe everything he said? Actually, yes.

  Then there was the fact that my family knew what had happened, and still they allowed him through their doors and to dinner.

  It didn’t override the fact that he didn’t talk to me after it happened. He pushed and pushed when I left the first time; why didn’t he the second?

  I would call myself ten kinds of a fool if I let him in again and he eventually pulled away but…

  I trusted him.

  I stared at him as he stared back. I could see him willing me to forgive him.

  I stood and offered him my hand. “Dinner’s probably ready. Let’s go eat. We can finish this later.”

  It wasn’t the forgiveness he was looking for, but he took my hand and walked in with me.

  Caleb

  One Week Later

  This week was probably my favorite one with Sydney.

  No, we didn’t go on any fancy excursions, or make love in any fancy lagoons, but I got to experience her life through her eyes. After dinner the first night, she and I spent hours talking back on the porch as the sun sank and the stars made their appearance. I couldn’t help but be reminded of when Sydney said the sun wasn’t beautiful in Utah. Her parent’s had a world-class view of a red-rock mountain.

  I hated seeing Sydney cry, but I was glad she voiced all of her fears from the last few months, but mostly from the last week. I tried my damnedest to assure her that I would never again not fight for her, to have her feel like she meant little to me.

  Because she meant the world to me.

  Midweek, we had a barbeque with her family, including extended family and neighbors. She brought me to some of her favorite places in her city.

  And at the end of every night, we went back to her little white apartment and just relaxed.

  I didn’t need the fancy trips to be happy with Sydney. I knew that all along. It was always simply Sydney that had me excited for the days we were on our cruise adventure.