Kirk squinted at the tall silhouette standing at his front gate. A man, a big, burly guy dressed in khakis and polo shirt, peered in their direction as they drew up to the driveway. Kirk had never seen him before.
He’d barely brought the car to a halt before Cassie jumped out. She hurried toward the stranger, her shoulders hunched up, her movements tense and jerky. Uneasiness stirred in Kirk as he followed her. Something warned him he wasn’t about to enjoy meeting this stranger.
The big guy’s face lit up as Cassie neared him. “Hey there, sweets! Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?”
“Russell.” Cassie sounded faint with shock. “What—what on earth are you doing here?”
Russell. Holy shit. Kirk came to a screeching halt. Cassie was talking to the guy, but Kirk couldn’t hear anything for the sudden roaring in his head. Russell. Cassie’s ex-boyfriend. The one she’d rebounded from straight into Kirk’s arms. Russell, here in San Francisco. What the hell was he doing here and what did he want?
Then Russell placed his hands on Cassie’s rigid shoulders, smiling at her like she was the best thing since sliced bread, and a shard of ice jagged its way down Kirk’s spine. The ex-boyfriend was here to win Cassie back, and Cassie wasn’t exactly beating him off with a stick.
Chapter Eight
“Russell, I can’t explain now, but I need you to do something right away,” Cassie muttered as her friend tried to hug her and looked perplexed when she warded him off. “You’re my ex-boyfriend, and we broke up about a month before I came here. Okay?”
Russell’s eyebrows shot up, and her stomach rolled as further waves of shock crashed over her. “Dumbfounded” didn’t adequately describe the feeling of stricken nausea that had gripped her as soon as she recognized the strapping, sandy-haired man waiting outside Kirk’s house. Russell couldn’t have picked a worse time to surprise her.
Without turning, she could sense Kirk’s penetrating gaze honed in on them, and despite the jumbled confusion in her brain, one thought stood firm—Kirk mustn’t know the truth about Russell. She would disintegrate with embarrassment if she had to fess up that Russell had never been nor ever would be her boyfriend. She couldn’t face Kirk if he realized she’d made up the story simply to put on a brave face, to show him she wasn’t pathetic. If the truth came out, how much more pathetic would she appear?
But she only had a few seconds to get Russell on board. She gripped his arms in rising panic. “Russell? Got it?”
“Er, yeah. Whatever you say.” He let his hands drop away from her shoulders.
Cassie’s nape prickled as Kirk walked up behind her. Hastily composing her expression, she spun around to find his shrewd eyes focused on her.
“Cassie? How about introducing me?” he said, his voice and face completely neutral.
She cleared her throat. “Uh, yeah, sure. Russell, this is my old college buddy, Kirk Rochester. Kirk, Russell Stewart, my—um—my friend from Sydney.”
Kirk transferred his attention to Russell and shook his hand. “Russell.”
“G’day.”
For a couple of seconds it seemed the two men were sizing each other up. They were similar in height, and though Russell was bulkier, Kirk had a leaner, meaner air. If they ever fought, they’d be evenly matched. What was she thinking? Of course Kirk and Russell would never come to blows.
“You must be the Russell that Cassie’s told me so much about,” Kirk said, his deadpan expression giving nothing away.
Russell shot Cassie a brief, uncertain glance before answering, “Uh, yeah, if by that you mean the guy she’s been, er, dating.”
“Why didn’t you call and tell me you were coming?” Cassie asked Russell. God, her voice was so squeaky she was sure Kirk could tell she was lying about something.
Russell rocked back and forth on his heels. “I wanted to surprise you,” he said slowly, as if feeling his way through the situation.
“You got that right.” Cassie folded her arms, shuffled her feet, chewed her lip. The tension was making her nauseous. What on earth should she do now? Should she send Russell off and pretend to Kirk that nothing was awry? Should she invite Russell in? But no, she couldn’t do that. He was her ex, and she was supposed to still be getting over him, and besides, this was Kirk’s house.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think it through.” Russell’s ears were turning pink. Poor guy. She’d really put him on the spot. “Uh, I should probably go. Didn’t mean to ruin your plans. Maybe we can chat some other time.”
She had to talk to him as soon as possible. She had to get him on board with the situation before she could face Kirk.
“Actually, I think we should go somewhere and talk right now,” she said before turning to Kirk. “I shouldn’t be too long. We—we can still go out for dinner later.”
But Kirk shook his head resolutely. “No, that’s not necessary. You go and talk with Russell for as long as you want.”
If only Kirk wasn’t such an expert at masking his feelings. His face was so neutral, his words gave nothing away. She had no way of knowing what he felt about Russell’s sudden appearance. Was he annoyed or angry? Maybe even jealous? She had no way of telling. Maybe he was only irritated at his dinner plans being disrupted.
She turned back to Russell. “Okay, let’s go for a walk.”
Russell gave Kirk a nod of acknowledgment before falling into step beside Cassie. As they walked down the sidewalk, her insides knotted with misgiving and apprehension. Her private day with Kirk had taken a screeching detour. After that magical sunset helicopter ride, she’d been looking forward to a cozy dinner with Kirk, followed by another hedonistic night in his bed. But all her plans were in tatters.
Russell! Her dear, wonderful friend. How could he have screwed up her day so completely? And if the sick feeling in her stomach was anything to go by, more than just the day was ruined.
…
Kirk glared after Cassie and Russell’s retreating figures until his eyeballs ached. Several inches separated the pair, but he’d feel better if it were at least a foot. Why was Cassie even going off with the guy? Why hadn’t she told him they were through and they had nothing to discuss? Could it be she still harbored feelings for her ex?
The tightness in Kirk’s ribs intensified. He swiped his hand over the back of his clammy neck. Holy crap. He wasn’t jealous of Cassie’s ex-boyfriend, was he? No, course not. He wasn’t happy that his plans for a shower and dinner with her had been disrupted, but that was all. He had no further claims on Cassie. As her friend, he was merely concerned for her. He didn’t want Russell coming over and messing with her head.
But Russell had flown all the way from Sydney just to see Cassie. That wasn’t a spur of the moment thing. That indicated serious intent, desperation even. Which meant the man wasn’t going to be easily deterred. Damn it all.
Kirk swung away and marched into his house, determined not to waste any more time brooding over Russell and Cassie. But as he stripped off and stepped alone into his shower, he couldn’t help wondering how late she’d be. She would return, he thought. She wouldn’t stay out all night with her ex-boyfriend. Would she?
…
Cassie kicked a stone lying on the path. They were walking through a park filled with kids, parents, joggers, and dog walkers.
“I almost had a heart attack when I saw you,” she said to Russell. “Why didn’t you call first?”
“I did when I landed, but you didn’t pick up, so I sent you a text message. Several text messages. Didn’t you get them?”
“I left my cell phone behind today on purpose.” Cassie groaned. “I didn’t want any interruptions…” She trailed off, sighing at the memory of Kirk’s impassive face. “How did you know where to find me, anyway?”
“I remembered your mom’s name and used directory assistance to get her number.”
Cassie frowned at that. “You spoke to my mom?”
“Yeah. I said I was a friend of yours and desperate to find you.”
“Desperate to find me? You surely didn’t fly all the way to San Francisco just to see me?”
“No.” Russell heaved a heavy sigh as he came to a halt. He stared down at his feet. “I was supposed to be here with Jason. A surprise romantic trip for his birthday. But instead he dumped me on Saturday.”
She gasped, instantly reaching for him as sympathy flooded her. “Oh, Russell.” She squeezed his arm. “I’m so sorry.”
He scraped a hand over his chin. “I decided to fly out here anyway. At least I’d be using up one of the tickets.”
“But I don’t understand. You and Jason always seemed so happy together.”
“Yes, we were good at maintaining appearances, but we weren’t always happy. In fact, at times we were fucking miserable.” Russell shook his head. “I was hoping this surprise trip might make a difference, but I guess nothing was going to save us.”
Cassie wrapped her arms around him and gave him a huge hug. He was such a stoic tough guy, but she knew deep down he was hurting.
Russell hugged her briefly before letting her go. “Enough of that or you’ll make me tear up, and one thing I’m not going to do is cry.” He looped his arm through hers and tugged her along the path. They passed the boot-campers and their yelling instructor before he said, “So what’s going on with you, sweets? Why are you pretending I’m your ex-boyfriend?”