Page 2 of Behind the Cascades
She gives me a devilish smirk, throwing her long blonde hair over her shoulder. "Good. Those jerks should have invited us. The fact they didn't is reason enough to give them a verbalsmackdown. In person. Possibly with fists." Her nonchalant shrug at the end implies that she's only half serious, but I can see the mischievous glint in her eyes. Knowing Dess, she would have no problem following through with it. The woman packs a mean left punch, and each of the guys has received a few dead arms at her expense.
The guys hadn't even told us they were planning this trip so they have no idea that we arrived the night before them. Connie, Hayes mom, and the one who practically raised me after my parents died, mentioned that all three guys would be together for the first time in years. In Vegas. Without us. Surrounded by booze, gambling, and who knows what else. A few years ago, they invited—more like drug— us along to everything they went to. The five of us were a package deal, but since they graduated high school and moved away, everything's changed.
Drew and Hayes joined the Navy, went through bootcamp, and then went right into BUD/S. Both of them officially became Navy SEALs a few years ago.And have egos to match.Drew rarely texts and only calls for holidays. Hayes keeps in touch more regularly, a lot through social media but I think we talk at least once a week. That's why it was so surprising when Connie mentioned his birthday in Vegas. He hadn't said a word to me about them going. I'm doing my best to pretend that didn't hurt, but the sting of rejection is always present with Hayes. Especially since my "crush" is still very much alive and well, six years later. It's not my fault the man is aging like fine wine. With each deployment, he comes back a little gruffer, a little more muscular, and a lot sexier. Not that I've noticed. We are friends. Only friends.So I keep telling myself.
Everett decided to join the army, going from high school to flight school, and has been crushing it as a Rotary Wing Aviator. He flies all over the world, constantly being deployed, and rarelykeeps in touch. I honestly can't remember the last time we talked—maybe my birthday? For the obligatory "happy birthday" text. Odessa typically keeps me filled in on his life though and I’m sure vice versa.
When I told Odessa about the guys trip, she immediately bought us plane tickets and booked a hotel room. The woman is nothing if not efficient and has the paychecks to back it. She had everything booked before I even agreed to the trip. Which is probably a good thing because I absolutely would have backed out. For starters, I'm not twenty-one and will be using a fake ID that my coworker Ava lent me. She's only a few years older than me, but we are roughly the same height and have the same eye color. I've used it before and bouncers don't even bat an eye at the photo. Second, the guys clearly don't want us there or else they would've invited us. Thirdly, I'm a complete scaredy-cat when it comes to Hayes and telling him my feelings. Seeing him flirt and dance with other women may damn well kill me.
I groan when I see the clock in our hotel room after we finally check in. It's just after eleven here, but it would be after two a.m. back in South Carolina. I also had class this morning and then worked a full-day at the office. Technically, I should only be part-time until I graduate next spring, but I tend to put in full-time hours to help Ava. The hours are dauntless, but I love the fast-paced office. I'm Ava's assistant and she's the assistant of billionaire Noah Ledger. Noah's only in the office half the time and the rest he's traveling around the world, making lucrative business deals and investing in commercial real estate. That leaves me and Ava to handle everything while he's gone. Well, Ava handles most of it and delegates the easy stuff to me.
Thankfully, she had no problem with me leaving at the last minute; if anything, she demanded it. I walked into work andshe handed me a suitcase with some of her designer dresses, her ID, and condoms. Her exact words were, "Make that manyourman, or I will."Like that’ll ever happen.
"Wakey-wakey, Char!" Odessa hollers from the other side of our hotel room. My brain refuses to open my eyes to the bright room. I feel hungover and I didn't even drink last night. The anxiety of seeing Hayes had me tossing and turning all night, despite the plush bedding.
I quickly yank my blankets up and throw my pillow over my head when I hear the distinct noise of a cart rolling into our room. Odessa must have ordered room-service and I'm in no state for an attendant to see me right now.
Light conversation filters between Odessa and the person dropping off our breakfast. She is the queen of small talk and flirtation so I have no doubt the unsuspecting male room-service attendant is already under her spell. He chuckles at whatever she says and then, thankfully, leaves.
She yanks the pillow off my head and my eyes fly open. "Charlotte Amelia Reynolds, get your ass out of bed. You have exactly one hour until the guys land."Shit.
I grab my phone off the nightstand and grumble when I see that she isn't just messing with me. It's already well into the morning and Connie has been keeping us in the loop about their plans. Her birthday present to Hayes was this hotel suite so she knew exactly which hotel and even which room they'd be in. She booked the Skyloft for us all and then made sure to let the front desk know they couldn't inform the guys that we were up here. Luckily, it has four rooms, so only two people have to share. With any luck, I'll be sharing with Hayes.
"Coffee, shower, food." Odessa sternly points me in the directionof all the things I need to do. Only half-begrudgingly, I go. I’ve been excited to take advantage of the double-headed waterfall shower since last night. Everything about the suite is dripping in luxury. Not that I should be surprised; Connie chose it and she always goes above and beyond. Especially when it comes to fancy things.
Forty-five minutes later, I feel human again. I'm convinced iced coffee and a hot shower are the ultimate cure for almost all of life's problems.
Dess lets out a low whistle when I finally emerge from the bathroom. "Damn, girl. If Hayes doesn't man up, I guarantee there will be ten other guys lining up to do the job."
I smirk back and try to laugh off what she said, but deep down, I know she's right. I've been pining after a guy for years who barely notices my presence. Sure, I've gone on dates. A lot of dates, actually. But when you compare every guy to Hayes, they all fall short. He's kind, funny, and sexy as hell. The trifecta. The complete package. Throw on the compliments he showers me with and I'm gone. Hook, line, and sinker. It's no wonder I haven't been able to get over him. Every time I try, he reels me back in with a "thinking of you" text. Bleh. I'm weak. I know I'm weak. Yet, here I am. A skimpy bikini, hair curled, and face full of makeup to lounge by the pool.
"I'm willing to admit, I look good. It’s his loss if he doesn’t notice.”
Her evil chuckle has me feeling nervous. “Oh, he's going to notice. It's only a matter of whether he pulls his head out of his ass and does something about it.”
Chapter Two
Hayes
The hotel my mom booked for us is way out of our normal budget. Hell, it's out of 75 percent of the population's budget. She doesn't throw her money around often, but I know my grandparents left her a healthy trust fund. The one they left me is only a fraction of hers, and it's enough to cover any modest person's expenses for the rest of their lives. I haven't touched it yet, but someday I plan on leaving the Navy and settling down. Buying a house with some property and living a low-key life. As of right now, that future is looking pretty lonely. Especially considering the only woman I've ever been in love with is so off-limits I won’t even let myself dream about it.
"I'm Face-Timing mom the second we get in our room. This place is insane!" Drew has called my mom "mom" for years, even before she moved him and Charlie into our house after they lost their parents.
Once we reach our floor, we have to use our keycard to get off the elevator. The cart doors open to an expansive hallway with only a few doors. It's not the most exclusive floor, but damn close.
I gesture to the door that is ours and Drew scans the key card. We all freeze the second the door starts to open and we hear giggles on the other side.
"What the—?" Everett begins to question the sound but is interrupted by Odessa's unmistakable voice on the other end.
"Hurry up, losers!"
Drew shoves the door open the rest of the way while I'm still too stunned to move.
Right on the other side, leaning up against the back of a couch and looking directly at us, are Odessa and Charlie. My Charlie. My so-off-limits it isn't even funny, Charlie. My Sunshine.
Everything about her looks as good as I remember. She's always been gorgeous, but every year, I swear, she gets more beautiful. My own personal torture is looking at her and knowing I can't have her. Before, it was just the age difference. A three year difference might not be much but when you've grown up with someone, it felt like ten. Add on that she was my best friend's little sisterandwe lived together because her parents had just died… Well, that alone felt like enough to keep me away. Now, though, it's all of that, along with knowing that I could never truly deserve her. Not after all the things I've seen and done. Charlie is pure and good, and I'm, well, I'm the opposite. I'm not evil, but I'm the one they call to take care of the evil. And if that doesn't leave some eternal marks on your soul, I don't know what will.
She nibbles on the corner of her nail, clearly nervous for our reaction to them crashing our party. Only she isn't crashing. If I had thought she could be here, I would have flown her out in a second. I hadn't wanted to ask because I know how busy she is with classes and work.And because I didn’t want to walk around with a hard-on all weekend.
