Chapter 13

Scott

We woke up the next morning in post-coital bliss, staring into each other’s eyes as the sun seeped through the blinds in my room. I rubbed the hair off her face and kissed her sweetly. She was so beautiful, and for a moment, I felt like the luckiest man in the world. Her phone rang, and she picked it up, grimacing at her father’s name on the screen. She put her finger to her lips and answered it.

“Hey, Daddy,” she said, pausing as he spoke. “No, I’m fine. I’m sorry I didn’t call. Old habit from being in school. I stayed the night at Whitney’s house. I love you too, and I will see you later today.”

She hung up the phone and set it on the nightstand, letting out a deep breath. She shook her head and lay back on the pillows, looking up at the ceiling. I lay down next to her and kissed her cheek.

“Why is your dad so worried about you?” I asked. “You’re an adult, not a child. Maybe it’s because I have been on my own for so long, but he seems super possessive over you. If I’m overstepping by saying that, just let me know. It took me off guard.”

I couldn’t imagine living in a world where I had to explain every move I made. I had been independent since I was sixteen and never had a parent checking up on me. I thought I might go crazy if I had to deal with that all the time, but she took it in stride.

“I’m the only child, and I’m a girl,” she said. “My father has always been super protective of me. I used to think it was sweet, and sometimes I still do, but most of the time it is exhausting. During my freshman year in college, he hired someone to check in on me like three times a week on top of requiring me to call him every other day to let him know I was safe.”

“Wow.” I chuckled. “I’m sorry for that. It sounds more than exhausting.”

“Yeah,” she said. “When I said he would skin you alive, I was only half kidding.”

“Well, I can tell you right now, I am not planning on outing us anytime soon,” I said. “I like my skin right where it is. It’s just foreign to me. I guess because girls in this town, they’re pushed to find a man. Their parents only check up on them if they are still single at my age, and that’s usually only to push them to find a husband.”

“I think my dad is the opposite,” she said, making a face. “If he could keep me single for the rest of my life, he would. He can’t deal with the idea of his little girl growing up or meeting the ‘wrong’ guy, which seems to be anyone of the male species at this point. He barely lets me go on a date when it is someone he approves of, which means I won’t like them at all.”

I turned over on my back and put my arms under my head. I was definitely not going to be the guy her father approved of, and I was starting to think it didn’t matter what I did. I could all of a sudden own ten hardware stores, but my background, my pedigree, wasn’t what he was looking for. I didn’t want to lose my job. It was the only thing that was keeping me on pace for meeting my goals this century. I liked being able to pay my bills and work toward the future without completely killing myself. In order to make up that kind of money, I would have to work three jobs, which was almost impossible in this town.

Something inside me was trying to tell me that maybe, in the pursuit of showing people they were wrong, I had taken things too far. But how could I back out of it now? I was already hooked on Cassie, unable to be away from her for more than a day or so. I waited every morning to see her beautiful smile, and when I’d thought she had stood me up, my heart had felt crushed. I may have just backed myself into a corner, which was not a good thing at all. I had a real chance of not only losing everything I had worked for but also losing the girl I was falling for, and fast. We could both get really hurt in this situation, but there really was no going back.

“I’m sorry,” she said, turning over and kissing my cheek.

“For what?” I said, pulling my arm over her.

“For making it so hard to be together,” she said. “For having a crazy father whose standards for a boyfriend are unreachable by anyone.”

I chuckled. “Don’t apologize for that. It is not your fault at all. You can’t control what your father does. He is his own man, and he has his own thoughts on everything. I can’t say that if I had a daughter like you, I wouldn’t feel the same way he does. You are smart, beautiful, sweet, and everything else good you can be.”

“You are sweet,” she said, smiling. “So, are you okay if we keep our relationship a secret?”

“As long as I have you, I don’t care if no one or everyone knows.” I smiled, kissing her nose. “Besides, it’s probably better for me that way. I don’t have to worry about your father, and no one is in my business. Plus, when we are together, I don’t have to share you with anyone else. Our time will be just that, our time. Everything we have will be sacred and special to us, and that is something that in today’s world is hard to come by.”

“You’re right,” she said. “I like not having to share our time with anyone else. It makes me feel that much closer to you. Besides, if our relationship were out, we would be dragged to all kinds of places I hate, like the country club, stupid meetings, and everything else in between. This way we pick what we do and don’t have to feel guilty about it.”

“Good,” I said, leaning over and kissing her deeply. “I’m going to make us some coffee.”

“Yes,” she said. “I need my caffeine or I will lie here all day.”

“I’m okay with that.” I laughed, pulling on some shorts and walking over to the kitchen.

I had a small place, an open-floor-plan concept. It wasn’t fancy or anything even slightly special, but it was all I needed. Until Cassie came around, it was only me, and I cut my expenses as much as possible to save toward the future. I brewed a pot of coffee and took her a cup in bed, sitting down and smiling at her. As we sipped our brew in silence, my stomach growled, and I looked over at the time.

“Man, it’s already almost noon. We really slept in,” I said. “Why don’t we get dressed and head over to the deli on Mason Street and get some lunch?”

“That sounds perfect.”

We got up and got ready, finishing our coffee and heading over to the deli. I knew we wouldn’t run into anyone from the crew there since it was far enough out of town. It was mostly full of college-aged students and people from the richer area, like where Cassie was from.

“Cassie?” a voice said from behind us.

“Whitney!” Cassie smiled and went over and hugged her friend. “I want you to meet Scott. Scott this is Whitney, my best friend in the whole world.”

“Nice to meet you,” she said excitedly. “Cassie has told me a lot about you.”

“Hopefully all good.”

“Of course,” she said.

Given the circumstances, seeing people we knew was a bit of a red flag, but I enjoyed meeting her best friend. It was a glimpse into the part of Cassie’s life I hadn’t experienced and wasn’t sure I ever would. Whitney was the girl who was with Cassie at the bar that first night we talked, and I could tell Cassie trusted her a lot. That was enough for me to feel relaxed around her. I watched the two girls talk and giggle, smiling at how beautiful Cassie was. I loved being around her. It made my day so much brighter.

The three of us sat down at a booth in the back of the deli and ate our lunch together. Whitney and Cassie laughed and talked, telling me stories about when they were in high school and what kind of trouble they usually got into on their summers off. It was obvious Whitney was a part of Cassie’s other world, but she was nice and didn’t judge me at all, so I was more than happy I got to meet her. When we were done eating, I looked down at my watch.

“Well, ladies, it has been a sincere pleasure,” I said, “but I have to get going to get ready for work tonight.”

“Yeah, I should get home before my father sends out a search party,” Cassie said, rolling her eyes.

“Text me later?” I asked, kissing her on the cheek.

“Of course.”

“It was nice meeting you, Whitney,” I said, shaking her hand.

“You too.” She giggled.

I headed home to get ready for work, knowing it would be a long night of driving. It was the first time I wished I could skip it and be with Cassie instead, but I had to remember my goals and keep pushing toward the future. Luckily, I had not been picked for overtime that weekend at the site. Otherwise, the day would have been completely different. It was rare that we worked on Sunday, but I knew a few of the guys were called in to get caught up. I liked the money, but I also liked to have at least one day off a week to relax. When the time came, I headed out on my Uber route, picking up people who were going out to dinner. The dinner crowd was my favorite because they were usually a lot calmer than the bar crowd.

When I didn’t have any riders and was waiting for the next call, Cassie and I texted back and forth. She was so cute, flirting with me on her phone, sending me hilarious memes about dating the boss’s daughter. I couldn’t stop laughing and was thankful she had a sense of humor that was much like mine.

“Technically you are my employee,” she texted. “Which means I can ask you to do anything I want.”

“Oh, yeah?” I texted back.

“Yep. And if it weren’t for the nosey crew, I’d be doing you every day behind the trailer.”

“I mean, I can take care of them, but you might not get the project done this century,” I texted back with a smile.

I shook my head, reading the witty banter back and forth, picturing her sitting on her bed in her parents’ huge house, giggling as she texted me. She was so amazing, and I couldn’t help but think about how much I really liked her. It wasn’t about the sexual attraction anymore. It was about how well we connected, how I wanted to protect her from the world, and how good I felt when we were together. I hadn’t experienced anything like it before. Hopefully it would turn into something more, but with her father looming in the shadows, I feared that might not happen.