Home is Where the Heart is(4)

“Better offer?” Nick quizzed.

Cassie beamed and tossed a strand of her long golden tresses over one shoulder as she hopped off the bar stool, finishing the last of her drink. “You could say that. Have fun guys; don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Cassie flashed a wink, leaning in toward her best friend and whispering in her ear, “But maybe not too much fun.”

Gabby gave a short little laugh. “Yeah, like that’s possible when I’m with him,” she muttered, pointing at Nick.

“It’s been really nice being in your company, considering you don’t get out much at night—like you’re some kind of hermit crab—but it’s been fun, just like old times,” said Nick, running his hands through his dirty blonde hair as he briefly stood up and squeezed Cassie in a hug. “With the exception of one thing, of course,” he voiced inaudibly, taking in the scent of Cassie’s sweet, strawberry-scented hair. His remark—referring to Jordan not being with them like he always was in the past—didn’t go unheard by Gabby though, to which she replied, “Thank God.”

There was definitely no love lost between Gabby and Cassie’s former flame.

Cassie and Nick chose to disregard her sharp comeback about Jordan.

“Are we still on for tomorrow?” Cassie asked Nick.

Nick nodded his head with a huge grin. “Absolutely, I’ll see you then. Have a good night.”

One thing Cassie loved about her friends was that they were always there for her, and God knows, she had given her friends plenty of reasons to ditch her in her time of need. In the past six years though, when life threw her too many challenges and curveballs to even name, she knew—despite how arduous those tests proved to be at times—she always had the encouragement of her friends standing next to her. She was very appreciative to have them as a part of her life, like they were her second family.

After exchanging good nights with each of her friends, Cassie turned and made her way toward the exit door of the tavern, sidestepping and nudging through the maze of people currently occupying the room tonight. There were more than usual, or so Cassie assumed; it wasn’t like she was a frequent visitor of Mickey’s Tavern, and she hadn’t been for quite some time. Something was definitely up tonight.

As she wove around everyone—realizing she hadn’t known Yellow Valley was home to so many people—bodies brushed past her without so much as a ‘sorry’ or glance in her direction. It was like she was invisible, and before she knew it, she was pushed to the ground, falling down on her knees.

Yeah, what an awesome night I’m having, she thought to herself as she blew loose hair out of her face. Rude people!

You’d think that as small of a town as she lived in, someone would come help her, or at the very least have the courtesy to watch where they were going and lookout for the people around them. Who would just push someone over, not apologize, and help them up?

This was her life, she realized, and one of the many reasons why she didn’t go out at night.

Then suddenly, help came in the most unlikely of people. Slowly, a hand reached down to pick her up, and without a peep, Cassie held onto the hand for support. As she ungracefully rose to her feet, she fell into the arms of someone who was most definitely no stranger to her. She didn’t need to see his face to know who had rescued her from getting trampled by the crowd, and she was instantly taken back to a time in her past she could remember very well.

He was here.

In Yellow Valley.

And she was in his arms again, just like old times.

Cassie leaned in closer, smelling his masculine fragrance. His smell hadn’t changed. He still wore Calvin Klein, a cologne she had given him as a Christmas present one year.

She was snapped out of her familiarity-haze when she felt the resilient presence of his hands on her waist, and then he spoke to her, his voice still the same profound timbre.

“Are you all right?” he asked her.

Cassie nodded her head, shaking him off and managing to collect her thoughts enough to let the word yes stumble out of her mouth. Then, when she could muster the right words together, she thanked him.

Cassie was simply not expecting to literally run into him tonight, despite knowing he was back home. Did he still think of Yellow Valley as his home? This was his first time back since leaving six years ago, and she knew he had made a home for himself in Miami, where he was now based. This was simply the town he was born in, used as his launch pad to stardom in the NFL. There was nothing keeping him from leaving again anyway, and for Cassie, she liked it that way.

“It’s no trouble. I was coming in the door when I saw your spill. It was the least I could do, given it was probably partly my doing anyway…I think people were rushing over to greet me.” Jordan grimaced. He figured he would keep the fact he was watching her through the window of the tavern to himself. Cassie didn’t need to know she was still in his thoughts, and he only came in here because he saw she was inside.