“Hey,” the taxi driver says, making us jolt apart in surprise. “Are you two going to get a room or what? I’ve got another fare to pick up.”
And we laugh and pick up our bags, closing the trunk and moving out of the way, so we can get on a plane together and go home.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Edward
I should be looking forward to seeing one of my oldest and best friends again, but the second we pull up outside Rick’s house, instead I’m ready to just turn around and head back to the airport.
If it wasn’t for Casey at my side, and the knowledge that this has to happen in order for us to be together for the rest of our lives, I might just have done that.
“Are you ready?” I ask her, squeezing her hand one last time as we get the bags from the trunk.
“Of course,” she says, looking at me with an adoring gaze. It almost makes me flinch. I hope her trust in me is not misplaced – that I can win Rick over the way I’ve won her heart. Because if I can’t, this might make things very difficult and uncomfortable in the future.
“Hey, you’re back!” I hear Rick’s voice as he rushes out of the house to join us on the sidewalk, but I look up in time to see him falter as he recognizes me. “Ed? What are you doing here?”
“I thought I’d make sure Casey got home alright,” I say, with what I know is an awkward smile.
“What?” Rick looks puzzled. “You didn’t come all the way over here just to do that, did you?” He approaches me for our habitual man-hug even though he seems confused, and when we part, I have to take a slight step back. I feel guilty. I know he isn’t going to like this, but what can I do? Casey is mine, and I can’t let the fact that I know her father change that.
“Actually, no,” I admit. “I didn’t. We should talk inside.”
“Well… okay,” Rick says, getting the door for us. I carry both my bag and Casey’s, and since they aren’t very heavy, there’s no need for him to help. “Are you staying here, too?”
“That might be a little odd,” I say, with a half-laugh, exchanging a look with Casey. “Awkward, maybe. I’ll get a hotel after we talk.”
“Awkward? What are you talking about? There’s no need for that. You know you’re practically family here,” Rick says, as we head into the lounge and I set the bags down.
“I’d like it to be more than practically,” I say. There’s no sense in dragging it out, and now that he’s given me the opening, I have to take it.
“What’s that?” Rick asks, screwing his face up as he looks at me. I can tell he’s having a hard time figuring out what’s going on. I need to make it as clear as possible.
“Look, Rick,” I say with a sigh. “Something happened in London. Casey… we didn’t plan it. But Casey’s the one for me. I mean it. Somehow, we fell for each other.”
Rick blinks at me for a few moments. Just when I’m wondering whether he actually heard me, and if I should repeat myself, he shakes his head a little and sits down. “I know I must have heard you wrong,” he says. “Because it sounds like you might be taking advantage of my daughter.”
“That’s not true,” Casey says quickly, rushing forward. “It’s not like that at all!”
“Well, let me tell you how it looks to me, and you tell me if I’m wrong,” Rick says, raising his voice. His face is flushed with anger. “I asked my best friend to look after my daughter, twenty years his junior, because she needed help looking at colleges. Instead, he – what? Got her in the sack and decided he wants a young mistress to have around when he’s bored of work?”
“No,” I say, grinding my teeth. “For starters, not instead. I did take her on those college tours. I did make sure she was safe and that she had a good time, and saw all the sights.”
“And you just happened to get her into bed as a reward,” Rick sneers. “I told you how important it is for Casey to focus on her studies! What, is that when you decided to pounce on her? Found out how innocent she was and couldn’t wait to get your rocks off, is that it?”
“Dad!” Casey protests, though we both know that her Dad isn’t listening to her at all. Rick only has eyes for me right now, and I’ve got a feeling that he’s seeing red.
“It was before that,” I say, raising my chin and speaking evenly. “Before we spoke on the phone. I actually called you to tell you that I was falling for her, but after what you said, I couldn’t.”
“This is ridiculous,” Rick snaps. “Why would you come into my own home and say this? Why flaunt your shame in my face? Why not just hide in England with your tail between your legs where my right hook can’t reach you?” He leaps up with those words, his hands really curled into fists – though I don’t quite believe he will use them.
“Because it’s not like that,” I tell him. “It wasn’t just an opportunistic thing. I wasn’t bored. I love her.”
“Edward,” Casey breathes, staring at me. “I… I love you, too.”
It’s not the perfect setting for the first time we’ve ever said it to each other, but I’m not going to complain. Hearing it is sweet enough. I look at her for a moment, a smile creasing my lips, before Rick snaps my attention back to him.
“Answer the question,” he shouts. “What are you doing
