Caspian (Carolina Reapers 8)

Her lips pursed as she looked away, and I took a deep breath. Why the hell was I fighting with Ryleigh? Was it really any of my business who she wanted to marry? No. But I couldn’t help but somehow feel…responsible for her. As if going through with this little ruse of ours put the blame on my shoulders when he would inevitably break her heart.

“Look,” she said, dragging her gaze back to mine. “I don’t expect you to understand. Chuck is having a quarter-life crisis, or whatever, but he’ll get over it. We’ll get back on track. Art can wait. Life can’t.”

“Ry—” I moved toward her, but she stepped back, out of my touch.

“Let’s just—”

The door swung open, and Chuck walked onto the deck, his gaze darting between us. “I was wondering where you went.”

Aggravation made my spine rigid at the interruption.

“Why the hell would you care?” I snapped, momentarily forgetting the role I was supposed to be playing.

Chuck blinked.

Ryleigh stepped in between us. “We were just chatting about the sculpture.” Her voice sweetened into something so saccharine it made my teeth hurt.

“Oh, that thing. Right.” He smoothed his hand along his over-gelled hair.

That thing? Is that how dismissive he was about her talent? Her needs? Her fucking dreams that he’d crushed in front of our entire town? A fierce wave of protectiveness swept through my system like a hurricane, and I stepped forward, but Ryleigh blocked me.

“Is there something you need, Chuck?” she asked, a note of hope in her tone twisting my stomach.

He swallowed. “I just wanted a word with you in private, Ryleigh. If you don’t mind.” He glanced back at me.

I fucking minded. We were in the middle of a conversation here.

“Absolutely.” Ryleigh shot a smile back at me that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Caspian doesn’t mind.”

She walked off the deck and through the door that Chuck held open for her, her posture softening as he put his hand on the small of her back just like I had. Then the door shut behind them, leaving me standing on the deck like the red herring I was.

“Caspian fucking minds,” I said at the closed door.

I needed a damned drink. Our little ploy to make him jealous had worked faster than I’d even imagined, but that wasn’t really the issue.

No, the churning, sickening flash of anger in my gut was the problem.

It was jealousy.

4

Ryleigh

Chuck’s hand rested at the small of my back, the touch familiar as he guided me past all the shower guests and coral balloon monstrosities and toward an alcove tucked into the back of his mother’s café. I couldn’t help but recognize the lack of sparks from the touch, but then again, it had been a couple months since we were together. Maybe my heart and body weren’t over the breakup yet. But that would all change when we got back on track.

I spun to face him as he dropped his hand, looking up into his pretty brown eyes, but Caspian’s words echoed in the back of my head, and I internally cringed at the way I’d snapped at him. He was doing me a huge favor, and with Chuck pulling me away? I needed to thank Caspian later and apologize.

“Chuck,” I said, a sigh rushing past my lips.

My heart thumped against my chest with every hope I had for getting back to normal these last two months. We had so many plans. A stable life with our dream home, him coming home to me after work, me cooking him a nice meal. Easy, sustainable, unshakeable. Everything I craved after my world had been turned upside down when my father died. Plus, Dad had loved Chuck. Loved how we’d been together all through college, and he’d been proud of the plans we’d made.

“Ryleigh,” he said, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Was he nervous? That wasn’t like him at all. He usually operated with a confidence only small-town royalty could.

The hope in my chest built, if he was nervous, maybe he was searching for a way to apologize. To makes things right between us.

“Enjoying yourself?” he asked, his tone a bit on the icy side as he scanned the party going on beyond us. I followed his line of sight, noting how his eyes landed on Caspian with a glare.

I laughed a little because Caspian was right. Chuck was jealous, I could see it in the taut line of his jaw. “Chuck,” I said, drawing his gaze back down to me. “It’s London’s shower, of course I’m enjoying myself. Look how happy she is.” I pointed to where London and her fiancé Jansen were laughing at something one of his teammates said. Her smile was infectious, and the way Jansen looked at her? I swallowed hard, suddenly wondering if Chuck had ever looked at me like that. Looked at me like I was the center of his world, his gravity keeping him grounded.