CHAPTER 3
CALEB
I was boarded up in my office working on some logistics for a new resort we were opening in South Carolina. It was our first resort out on the East Coast, and so much needed to go right.
When it came to expansion, I was a beast.
Dominate the market.
Leave them wanting more and more.
It was our code.
That’s why we were so damn good at what we did.
I needed to agree on a layout for the building and figure out how many people we’d need to hire. I needed to figure out how much of a workload it would add to everyone and what kinds of animals we’d have on the resort property. I had to plan out amenities and figure out what was going to set this resort apart from all the other ones.
Every new resort needed a ‘wow factor’.
But I couldn't concentrate. With all the guests pouring by my office, I could hear them snickering and gossiping about Katie. Wondering how she could let a catch like Michael go and wondering if she had been cheating on him.
Fucking morons.
Theorizing she was a lesbian or a gold digger that couldn’t keep up with the lifestyle or whatever. Made me sick.
What kind of people had she fallen in with at college? The city was supposed to broaden her horizons, not close her up into this petty little group.
I couldn’t take it anymore, so before I unleashed my wrath on the cowards, I decided to get myself a drink.
Dylan wouldn’t like the fact that I was drinking on the job, but I didn’t care. My mind kept swirling with how Katie was doing. I hadn’t seen her since we’d helped her get settled into her room last night. I wanted to know how she was, but I was trying to respect her need for privacy.
I doubted she wanted to see anyone after what happened last night.
When I entered the bar, I watched Katie’s brother raise his beer in the air. Hunter was tall like myself, with dirty blonde hair and brown eyes like his sister. Though where Hunter was long-legged and lanky, Katie was all luscious curves and femininity.
“Hunter, my maaaan! What’s got you day-drinking?” I asked.
“It’s celebratory,” he said as I sat down next to him.
“A beer, thanks,” I said to the bartender. “Celebratory, huh?”
“Michael was a fuckin’ prick, and now he’s gone. No more havin’ to pretend I like the son of a bitch just so Katie could stay longer.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Every time they came to visit, it was on his schedule. And things had to be like he liked them. Shit in the fridge. Healthy food on the table. Nothin’ fried, greased, or cooked in oil.”
“Sounds like a good time,” I said flatly.
“And if he didn’t like somethin’, he made an excuse to leave. An’ she was always expected to leave with ‘im. She followed him, Caleb. Didn’t stand at his side but followed him like some obedient servant. I don’t know what the fuck was wrong with her, but I’m glad she’s done with it now.”
It made me angry to hear some of the things Hunter was rattling on about. Her ex-fiancé sounded like an abusive control freak. It made me relieved that Katie wasn’t going to be marrying a man like that, but that didn’t mean her heart wasn’t broken.
I tipped my beer up to my lips and guzzled it down, then breathed a sigh of relief.
I didn’t know why I felt all that relief.
“You’ve always been so protective of Katie. Why didn’t you say somethin’ if you didn’t like the guy?” I asked.
“I did. Many times. But she kept brushin’ it off, talkin’ ‘bout how he was doing so much for her and momma. She changed around him, Caleb. She ain’t the sister I remember.”
“Explain,” I said.
“She stopped partyin’. Stopped drinkin’ beer. It was all ‘wine and sparklin’ water’ whenever she came over. She traded that loud voice of hers for somethin’ more tempered and hell, she fuckin’ stopped cussin’.”
“People grow up and change. What makes you think it was Michael?” I asked.
“Cause the change didn’t start ‘til after their first fight.”
“What did they fight about?”
“Her partyin’ in college. I don’t know what was said. She still won’t talk ‘bout it. But after that argument, she called me cryin’ ‘til she fell asleep. I was in a fuckin’ airport ‘bout to book me a ticket to the city before I heard her snorin’ into the phone.”
“And her snorin’ stopped you?” I asked.
“She sounded peaceful. Not the cryin’ mess that had called. So I sat in the airport ‘til I could get her back on the phone. She sounded different and begged me not to come out ‘cause she was swamped with finals, so I didn’t. But I should’ve. I know that’s when shit turned with them. When he had his grip on her and didn’t look back.”
“Well, she’s out now. We can all be thankful for that.”
“Truer words were never spoken, my friend.”
We simultaneously picked up our glasses and took a big gulp.
Hunter and I turned our heads to see Katie approaching us.
She was fucking radiant, dressed in a yellow and orange summer dress that accentuated her soft curves and played up her warm brown eyes. She had boots on her feet and attitude in her smile. She eyed Hunter curiously before she threw me a cautious smile, her eyes asking questions before her mouth opened.
“Anyone want to explain why my brother’s day-drinking?” she asked.
“Cause you ain’t marryin’ that asshole, that’s why,” Hunter said.
“I’m just glad I made the right decision when I did,” she said with a sigh.
I was shocked at the relief that showed along her features. I figured she’d be sad or crying or screaming mad or something. But she was none of those things.
She was at peace.
And it was a good look on her. In fact, it was sexy as hell.
“You gonna stick around the resort?” I asked. “You got that room as long as you need it.”
“So Dylan tells me. And don’t worry, I’ll make sure he doesn’t find you drinking on the job.”
“I’d ‘preciate it,” I said with a grin.
“Well, I ain’t workin’, so bartender? Get me another one, please,” Hunter said.
“How many is that?” Katie asked.
“This’ll be my third, then I’m done,” Hunter said.
“Then I’m going to stay here and make sure it is,” Katie said.
“Be our guest,” I said.
“And to answer your question, I think I’ll stick around for a few days. But I can’t stay much longer than that. I’ve got an apartment in town I gave a sixty-day notice on. I’ll have to see what begging will get me. Otherwise, I’ll have to find another place to stay,” she said.
“You got an apartment in town?” I asked.
“Courtesy of the asshole,” Hunter said. “Rented it out for her since she was back an’ forth with momma so much. Guess he didn’t want her stayin’ with family.”
“That wasn’t the reason, and you know it,” Katie said. “Michael rented it out when Mom got sick, yes. But after she passed, I took over the rent for it. I thought it’d be a nice place for us to come stay whenever we did come to see family so we could have our own space.”
“Whatever,” Hunter said.
“And when we got closer to the wedding date, there was no need for the apartment any longer. So I put in a sixty-day notice to end the lease. But now, I’ll be needing that lease back,” Katie said.
“If I can help with anythin’, let me know. I’ve been known to give a good stern talkin’ to people,” I said.
“I will, thank you,” Katie said.
“I gotta piss,” Hunter said. “Caleb, watch my beer.”
“You got it,” I said.
“Good man,” Hunter said as he patted my back.
Katie smiled at me as she crawled up onto Hunter’s seat. The weight that seemed to be lifted off her shoulders was grand. Her smile seemed more genuine, and her eyes sparkled more than they had last night. It was like she was breathing for the first time in years, and I was thankful for it. I sipped on my beer as she looked at me, her dazzling eyes drawing me in.
They’d always done that, and I never could help but stare. It was why I enjoyed taking her fishing and hunting.
Wasn’t no one there to call me out on how much I was looking at her now.
“What you guys have built here is beautiful,” she said.
“Glad you like it. It’s growin’ on me,” I said.
Katie’s giggle was music to my ears. Soothing, sweet music I hadn’t heard in years. And the way her nose wrinkled when she laughed was making it damn hard not kiss her.
“So, if you’re stickin’ ‘round for a few days, maybe I’ll see you ‘round town?” I asked.
“Maybe. I think a few days of resting before I try to negotiate things with my landlord will do me some good.”
“Well, I hope I’ll see you. When I’m here, I’m cooped up in my office so I won’t see you much ‘round the resort.”
“Such a shame. It’s a beautiful place.”
“I see it every day. Loses its charm after a while.”
“Well don’t tell your customers that. You need them to turn a profit,” she said.
“Don’t worry. We ain’t got no issues in that department.”
An easy silence fell between us, like it always did on our fishing trips. My mind ventured back to one of the last ones we took together. Hunter had been gone with Andrew camping or some shit, so it was one of the rare moments where I had Katie to myself. Even in simple basketball shorts and a t-shirt, she was delectable. I could remember the way her eyes always fell to my lips whenever they got the chance. She had wanted me to kiss her so badly that morning, and to this day I don’t know why the hell I didn’t.
“Been fishing lately?” Katie asked, almost as if she’d been reading my mind.
“A bit. I go with Andrew sometimes. But he ain’t as pretty to look at,” I said.
“Haha! Caught anything like that one fish?” she asked.
“I still can’t believe how big that thing was,” I said with a snicker. “Thing took up half the damn bucket. To answer your question, I’ve yet to catch one near that size.”
“Well, maybe we could go fishing while I’m in town and see if we can’t catch one even bigger.”
“I’ll take you fishin’ whenever you want.”
“Is that creek still running strong?” she asked.
“It is. Not much has changed around the ol’ homestead. Crickets are still chirpin’, deer are still gettin’ in the way, and the fish are still jumpin’.”
“I miss the beauty of that place. Don’t get me wrong, the city was wonderful. Full of life and loud with sounds of hustle and bustle. But there’s nothing like the peacefulness of the countryside.”
“Got that right,” I said.
I grabbed Hunter’s beer and tipped it up, feeling Katie’s eyes on me. I tossed back a couple of swigs before I handed it to her, watching as her eyes fell to the long-necked bottle.
She plucked it from the bar and wrapped her lips around the top. Her first few sips were tentative, but when she closed her eyes, I knew that bottle was a goner. I watched her neck bob as she swallowed it down, moaning lightly as the skin on her body puckered.
Goosebumps.
She had missed drinking beer so much that her skin crawled at the taste of it.
Something told me the old Katie was making her way back.
One step at a time.
“You owe me another one,” Hunter said, coming back to the bar.
“Don’t worry. I think I’ll have one with you,” Katie said. “Man, that tasted good.”
“Bartender, set ‘em up. I gotta get back to work,” I said.
“See you around?” Katie asked.
I slid from my seat and turned my eyes toward her, throwing her a tiny smile before I nodded my head.
“Sure hope so,” I said.
“See you ‘round, Caleb,” Hunter said.
“Don’t drink too much. I ain’t draggin’ your ass back to your room,” I said.
“Don’t worry. I got him,” Katie said.
“No, Katie. You let someone get you for once,” I said.
It was the look in her eye that made my blood boil. Like I’d spoken some foreign language to her. The thought of someone taking care of her was now a foreign concept.
I turned my back and made quick work getting back to my office so Katie couldn't see the anger bubbling behind my eyes. Then I punched my metal filing cabinet, denting the side of it as I let out the breath I was holding. The whole time I was picturing Michael in front of me.
What had that man done to her?