“I guess you are competitive,” Cade said when she sunk the lime green ball in one stroke through the windmill.
“Mini golf is my game,” she said, laughing.
“I didn’t know it could be someone’s game, but hey, there are seventeen more holes for me to beat you,” he said.
But he didn’t and as much as Alex wanted to rub it in, she didn’t. She was having too much fun, him delivering exactly what he promised to do.
There was so much she could be doing today, but she ended up caving and spending the day with Cade when she’d told herself that she shouldn’t. That if they were going to keep this simple and uncomplicated, then doing things like this wasn’t the way to go.
Only he’d pulled out all the stops this morning, pleading and making her laugh with the stories of the pranks he’d done on his siblings. She was laughing so hard that she just wanted to continue.
“Now what?” she asked when they returned their putters to the front desk. She should be ending the day, but couldn’t bring herself to.
“How about video games? I’m a pro at Skee-Ball.”
“They still have that? And it’s not a video game,” she said.
He tweaked her nose. “It’s a classic. Arcades will always have Skee-Ball.”
He looked so adorable, she followed along like a stray kitten waiting for a bowl of warm milk. He was definitely scary to her peace of mind. No one had ever made her follow along in her life.
“Cade!” She heard the annoying squeal and turned her head to see two women making their way over. One waving excitedly like she was trying to flag down a taxi in New York City during rush hour.
“Monica,” he said, his smile in place but forced at best. “What are you doing here?”
She made her way in front of him, bouncing slightly on her toes, her chest doing a great job of jiggling in the half shirt she had on, her belly ring flashing for all to see. “I’m picking up my younger brother and some of his friends. You remember Candace, right? She met us out that one night at the club.”
“Nice to see you again,” he said.
Monica turned her eyes to Alex and said, “So who are you?”
“This is Alex Marshall,” Cade said.
“Hi,” Alex said, reaching her hand out.
She could be polite. What she was really trying to do was fight back a sarcastic comment at the two young women in front of her.
This was the type of person Cade normally dated? They looked like they were barely out of high school!
“You’ve still got my number, right?” Monica asked, her eyes traveling the length of Cade.
The only saving grace was Cade starting to fidget in front of her like he wanted to leave but was trying to be nice.
“It was good seeing you again,” he said, not answering her. Alex wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. “Alex and I have somewhere to be.”
“Oh,” Monica said, snapping her gum, then reaching in and hugging Cade. Alex heard the whispered, “Call me.”
Cade took Alex’s hand, threading their fingers together and pulling her out of there fast. “Sorry about that,” he said.
“What are you sorry about?”
“First off. It’s not what you think.”
“How do you know what I think?” she asked, opening the door to his car. He was almost sprinting to get away from the arcade.
“You’re thinking I dated her. That she’s probably not even of legal drinking age.”
He did know what she was thinking. “Well, did you?”
“No. She was an intern of mine a few years ago. I always get one from the local colleges. She knew what my schedule was like and she always found a way to end up at whatever venue I was at. She wanted more from me than credits for college and I didn’t comply.”
“Really?” Alex asked, not sure she believed it.
“Honestly. I’ve never mixed work and pleasure. She was twenty-one and it was a few years ago. She hasn’t grown up much by the looks of it. She was a silly little girl that turned into a silly woman.”
“How did she end up as your intern then?” she asked. “Didn’t you pick her?”
“Actually, I didn’t. She was one of the first I had and the school sent over a few resumes. I was out of town and the person had to start. Brody picked her. It was a joke.”
Alex laughed. “Seriously?”
“Yes. He called it payback. He knew I wouldn’t end her internship before the end of the semester and that I’d be stuck with her. She drove me insane. I never counted days as much as I had those few months. I couldn’t get away from her.”
She wouldn’t have believed it if she didn’t know how much he played jokes on his brothers, but it did seem plausible.
“All right. I guess you’ve got a pass.”
***
Cade had been sweating bullets when he saw who called his name. Monica didn’t look much different than she had years ago. Damn Brody for bringing her in as his intern back then. Brody knew he’d never tell her it wasn’t working out, but would just try to avoid her at all costs.
Sometimes his siblings’ ways of getting even with him were worse than what he’d done to them as kids. He was stuck with Monica for months.
“Thanks,” he said. “Are you hungry? Want a late lunch or an early dinner?”
“I could eat,” she said. “Then I’ve got a bunch of things I need to do at home.”
“Oh,” he said. “Am I keeping you from something important?”
“Only housework and laundry.”
“Definitely not important,” he said.
“Nope. Just a necessity of life.”
He was going to bring her to Fierce to get lunch but then realized that might not be the thing to do. She was still acting like this wasn’t anything more than a little bit of fun and if any of his family got wind or saw them together, it’d be tricky to answer questions when he and Alex seemed to be heading in different directions.
So instead he brought her to another little cafe for sandwiches. He was at a loss on how to extend this day any longer.
“Hey, Cade.”
He turned and groaned. Not again. This time it was someone he’d spent some time with. How the hell would he have known she was working here? “Andrea. How are you doing?”
Andrea looked at him, then at Alex, just smiled and politely brought him to a booth. At least it didn’t look like she was going to make a production of it. Maybe he could just brush this off.
“You’re Mr. Popularity today. Does this happen often?” she asked.
“I spend a lot of time in restaurants and venues. I’m bound to always run into people who know me. Remember, we’re pretty well known in Charlotte too.”
“Have you ever been confused with one of your brothers? I mean you don’t look exactly alike and you do dress a little bit differently too.”
He laughed. “I’ve been called Brody before. Once Aiden, but never Mason. Mason just carries himself differently.”
“I noticed that. That you and Brody walk the same for the most part.”
“What way is that?”
“Cocky,” she said. “Very cocky.”
He laughed. “We are. Sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.” She leaned in and whispered, “After last night, I’d say you’ve got reason to be that way.”
He actually felt heat fill his face. “Thanks, I think.”
She grinned, then shook her head. “But in this case, Andrea is someone you dated, huh?”
So much for thinking he could get away with it. “How did you figure it out?”
“It was the way she looked you over, then me. She hesitated too long before she decided to not mention it. I appreciate it though.”
He sighed. “We saw each other on and off.”
“Friends with benefits,” she said. “Just like us?”
“Not like us. That isn’t what we’ve got,” he said. “We talked about that.”
“But you had it with her?”
He could lie, but decided not to. “Yes. Trust me. It’s not the same.”
“I want to ask why, but then you might have to give me details of that relationship and I really don’t want them.”
“Good, because I don’t want to give them.”
She nodded her head, they ordered their food, ate, and he brought her home.
She didn’t ask him in. She didn’t do much more than kiss his cheek and say, “See you around,” leading him to believe it might be a while before that actually happened.