Just One Spark (The Kingston Family 4)

That more being Cassidy. A woman who thought for herself, was smart and driven. She didn’t take his shit, and he didn’t want to give her any. She was a warm, caring person who’d been there for her best friend during a scary time and hadn’t run at the first sign of danger. Dash wanted her to turn that caring part of her nature on him, without being afraid he’d hurt her. And he wanted to give her the security she deserved and take away the loneliness she didn’t.

Axel listened and nodded. “Same, man. Same.” He slapped Dash on the back and walked out of the kitchen.

Staring after him, Dash realized he’d just received Axel’s permission. He’d have continued his pursuit of Cassidy anyway, but Axel had just made Dash’s life one hell of a lot easier.

Chapter Seven

Dash’s family gathered around his home, stuck inside because of rainy weather. Which meant today wasn’t as much a barbeque as a get-together, and he’d switched the food order accordingly, getting rid of raw meat to barbeque in favor of premade sandwiches. Or rather, Cassidy had.

He’d always let his assistant handle the ordering because if he wanted people to eat and enjoy, he needed to let someone else do the choosing. She’d laughed at him since all she’d had to do was call the store in town that had their standing rain-or-shine order for himself or Xander, depending on whose month it was to host.

Everyone was here except Chloe and Beck, who called from the road and said they’d hit traffic coming from the city due to an accident.

Prior to today, Dash had had a solid week in the studio with the band. They’d each contributed to the songwriting process, bringing lyrics they’d been working on in private, along with melodies and refrains that came to them as they shared the words. Dash loved collaborating with his bandmates, and he was glad Axel contributed to the quality of their music.

They spent hours jamming, joking, bonding, and yeah, writing solid songs. Although they had a long way to go, Dash felt good about where they were headed. When a long day of working was over, he’d end up at Cassidy’s cozy house and in her bed – and thank God she had a king-size mattress to accommodate his tall frame and lots of amazing sex. But more importantly, they were building a relationship, something he now understood he wanted for the first time in his life.

During the day, Cassidy acted as the band’s assistant, around if he or any of the guys needed her. She made sure they had lunch sent in, coffee, sodas, and snacks on hand. In addition, Sasha’s production company would be kicking into gear the first of next month. So Cassidy would also begin interviewing someone to take her place as the band’s personal assistant. Once she narrowed down her choices, she’d let the guys meet the people she’d short-listed and ultimately decide who they wanted to hire.

Dash understood Cassidy better now. At night, when he’d hold her, she’d talk about her past, and he’d had glimpses into her vulnerability due to losing her parents at a young age. He understood how him leaving her that morning in the hotel room had dug into an open wound of abandonment. Knowing her issues, he had to figure out a way for her to accept his touring lifestyle without triggering her again.

On a more basic level, he’d learned she liked her coffee light with no sugar, a basic healthy turkey on whole wheat with tomato for lunch, and cooking wasn’t her thing; it was more his. She usually ordered in and had dinner waiting when he came over between seven and eight p.m. That had become their get-to-know-you time.

The more he learned, the harder he fell. It hadn’t taken long and maybe it didn’t need to. Chloe and Beck had met the night of her almost-wedding and had been inseparable ever since. The thought brought him back to his first night with Cass at the hotel room all those months ago. Because he’d woken up and his first thought had been about rolling over, holding her, and taking her again, he’d freaked out.

Which was what had sent him running, and though he’d learned his lesson, he didn’t know what would happen when the band began to travel and Cassidy’s job ramped up. But he was grateful for now. And always aware something could happen to make the new life he was trying to build come crashing down. Like telling Cassidy about Billy.

“Hi, honey.” His mother walked up to where he’d stood looking out the window into the rain.

He’d been so engrossed in the memories, he’d all but forgotten about his family around the room. “Hi, Mom.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek.