His eyes lift and lock with mine, and I see no emotion in them.
They are dead, lifeless.
Part of me wants to storm inside, scream, and lash out, but I listen to the other part of me. I close the door and walk down the stairs with my head held high. I need to make it out of here, then I can go home and cry.
For once, no one is around, and I’m able to get to my car without seeing anyone. At least so I thought. I’m about to open the door when Cash jogs over to me, still in his sandy board shorts from the beach. “Hey, where are you going? I thought we were?—”
He sees my face and brings his arms to my shoulders. “Kenzie, what happened? Are you okay? Let me call Dad. He?—”
“No,” I snap, shaking my head. “I need to get out of here now. I’m sorry, Cash. I don’t want to see anyone, please.”
He looks right at me, and he probably sees just how close I am to breaking.
With trembling fingers, I go to open my door again, but Cash stops me. “Get in the passenger side, I’m driving you home.”
“No.”
“Now, Kenzie. Or you aren’t leaving, and I’m calling Dad.”
Yeah, no fucking thank you.
I get into the passenger side, he takes the keys from my hand, and starts the car. We drive in silence for a few minutes while I try not to cry in front of him.
“Do you even have a driver’s license?” I ask.
He winces. “Technically, no, but I’m a good driver. I’d never put you in danger.”
How did this amazing child come from Chance?
“Can I ask you something?”
He’s silent for a moment. “Sure.”
“Does the president try out all the new club girls first? Is that a thing here?”
From the way his face drops, I know the answer. “Yeah, that is how they do it here. But that’s when Dad was single. There’s no fucking way?—”
“I’m never going back there,” I whisper, the first tear falling.
The others are close behind.
I knew… I knew he would break my heart.
Why didn’t he just stay away from me? Why did he have to fight for me? Why did he have to show me a taste of what my life could have been like with him?
We pull into my driveway, and Cash punches the steering wheel. “I fucking told him.” He turns to me and forces a sad smile. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”
When I don’t move from the car, he gets out, comes around to my door, and lifts me into his arms. “It’s going to be okay.”
He unlocks my door. It takes a few tries, but he gets there and then carries me to the couch. After locking the door behind us, he heads into the kitchen and comes back with a glass of wine.
God bless him.
He sits next to me and stares at his phone as it rings. He declines the call and glances around my living room. “You have a spare room here, right?”
I nod, drinking half the glass in one go. He eyes me closely and then nods, as if coming to a decision. “Well, I hope you don’t mind a roommate because I’m staying here tonight.”
“Cash,” I whisper, reaching out and touching his cheek. “Thank you for taking care of me, but you need to go home. We can still hang out. Let’s just reschedule tonight’s plans.”