After You (Because of You 2)

Glancing back at me as he opens the door to the restaurant and lets Cassidy run inside, Dere

k tells me, “A lot can change in six years.”

“A lot can stay the same, too,” I mutter as I walk inside.

A loud, boisterous voice calls out, “Who let you guys in here?”

My eyes widen as I look up, but Cassidy goes running, charging a dark-haired man in a pair of jeans and a red and white jersey. “Guess what, guess what, guess what?”

“What?” he asks, theatrically excited.

Cassidy reaches into her purse and brings out the five dollar bill again. “I got rich!”

“Whoa,” he says, grasping his chest. “Where did you get all that money from?”

“Daddy gave it to me,” she says, shoving her money back into her purse. Snickering, she tells him, “We played a trick.”

“You played a trick? On who?”

Now Ryan looks at me. Confusion registers first, because he has no idea who I am. We went to high school together, I know exactly who he is—one of Derek’s old dude bro friends—but then his eyebrows rise with even more confusion as he takes in the fluffy bridesmaid dress and heels I’m wearing.

“Nice prom dress,” he tells me.

Cassidy runs over and touches my skirt. “I think it’s pretty.” Looking up at me, she informs me, “You look like a princess.”

“Thank you, sweetie.”

Ryan steps forward, offering his hand to shake. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Ryan.”

I do not shake his hand. “I know. We went to high school together. Nikki Harmon.”

His eyes widen and jump to Derek.

Huh, I guess my name still precedes me. Cool.

“Table for three,” Derek says, cutting this off before it gets weird. Well, a minute too late, but he gets an A for effort.

“Well, all righty then,” Ryan says, grabbing menus and walking us into the dining room.

Beyond the hostess area up here, the restaurant is actually a lot cooler on the inside than it looks from the outside. Outside, it looks like any small town hole in the wall, but the inside appears to be revamped and brought up to date. Off to the right is a beautiful bar with blue-lit shelves and row upon row of alcohol. There’s a wooden bar top where people can sit to have drinks, but the bar below is lit, too, casting a blue glow on the tables around the bar.

“That’s pretty,” I remark.

Derek is at my side, so he leans in. “The lighting? Yeah, nice touch, isn’t it?”

“You can thank this guy for that,” Ryan states, pointing at Derek. “All his idea.”

Derek rolls his eyes, but Cassidy picks up the torch, turning to tell me, “Daddy helped make this whole place.”

I cock an eyebrow. “Oh, did he now?”

She nods proudly. “Yep. Daddy is good at his job.”

I lean in toward Derek, murmuring, “Is she still on your payroll?”

Smirking, he whispers back, “No, she just really likes me.”

“There’s no accounting for taste, I guess,” I joke.