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Cassie’s blush intensified, but her lips quirked at Nessa’s typically saucy observation.
She’d had such a good time this afternoon, it was hard to get snippy with her best mate for pointing out the obvious. And in a funny way, the fact that Nessa could tell what a difference her days with Jace had made to her state of well-being reinforced her decision to indulge in her wild fling.
The afternoon had gone better than she could have hoped. And that had been mostly down to Jace. While it had taken a lot of persuasion and quite a bit of trickery to get him to Nessa’s, he’d relaxed and enjoyed himself once he was here. Her friends were a close-knit group, having all known each other since they were teenagers, but with his sharp wit and easy-going charm Jace had fitted right in. He’d joined in with their banter, told some entertaining stories about life in New York, wowed everyone with the apps on his phone that were just a small segment of his company’s output and had bonded with Nessa’s fiancé, Terrence, over the subject of Spurs’ chances of making Europe this year.
Funny to think that even after three years of dating Lance, none of her friends had ever hit it off with him nearly as well.
‘So what’s happening with you two?’ Nessa asked, picking up the wet saucepan. ‘Seems like you’ve got off to an excellent start.’
Cassie deposited a frying pan on the sideboard, and quashed the silly pang radiating up her torso. ‘It’s not the start of anything. It’s nothing more than a Christmas fling. He’s going back to New York on New Year’s Day and that’ll be the end of it.’
Nessa shoved the saucepan in a cupboard with a loud clatter. ‘That’s stupid. Why don’t you go over to New York with him for a while? See how things work out? You can draw anywhere.’
‘Ness, stop being absurd. Quite apart from the fact that he hasn’t invited me.’ And he wasn’t likely to, she thought as the silly pang got worse. ‘I told you, this isn’t a relationship. It’s just a bit of fun.’ Which was all she wanted, she told herself staunchly. But her golden glow from the afternoon faded a little.
‘Uh-huh,’ Nessa said, scepticism oozing from every pore. ‘You wanna know what I think?’
Cassie yanked the plug out and wiped her hands on Nessa’s tea towel. ‘Not really, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me anyway.’
‘He can’t take his eyes off you, especially when he thinks you aren’t looking. And your gaze follows him wherever he goes too. And you buy him a sweater that he wears first chance he gets. Plus you’ve been having spectacular sex for the last four days without an intermission.’ Nessa doggedly counted off the points on her fingers, then slapped her hands on her hips. ‘That is the start of something. It’s the start of something called a relationship.’
Cassie blew out a careful breath, tried to quell the seed of hope that had been budding inside her all day. The seed of hope that wanted to believe that what Nessa was saying was true, when her head already knew it wasn’t. ‘It’s not a relationship. It only looks that way.’
Nessa made a scoffing sound. ‘Why do you always sell yourself short like that?’
‘I’m not, I’m being realistic.’
Nessa waved the comment away with a flick of her wrist. ‘So that’s what they call giving up now, is it? Realism.’
‘I’m not giving up, it’s not like that.’ She couldn’t let herself hope again. Hope for something that wasn’t real. She’d learned that lesson too often to want to learn it again. And worse, she somehow knew that if she let herself dream for something permanent with Jace, the devastation would be that much worse. Because he already meant more to her—in four scant days—than Lance had meant to her after three years. ‘You’ve never had anyone tell you to your face, in the most graphic way possible, that you didn’t matter, so you don’t know what it’s like,’ she hit back.
‘Maybe not,’ Nessa conceded. ‘But then I never made the mistake of hitching my dreams to guys that weren’t worth the effort either.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ Cassie whispered, shocked by the accusation in her friend’s voice. Nessa had been the Rock of Gibraltar throughout her adolescence and her adult life. She was the one who had always been there, picking her up when the men in her life had let her down, or abandoned her, or cheated on her.
Nessa gripped her upper arms, gave her a little shake. ‘Don’t get all pinched face on me. I’m not saying what Lance did was your fault. You’re the one who said that. But what I am saying is why did you ever settle for someone like him in the first place? He was never good enough for you, honey, but you were the only one who couldn’t see it. Now you’re falling in love with Jace Ryan, a guy who might actually be worthy of you, and you’re too scared to even admit it’cos for some dumb reason you think you’re not entitled to be that happy.’
‘It’s not that …’ Her voice trailed off. She wasn’t falling in love with Jace; she couldn’t be. Her panic button wasn’t just tripping now—alarm bells were blaring out at full blast.
‘Stop freaking out,’ Nessa said, pulling her into a hard hug. ‘All I’m saying is, if you decide you want him, don’t be scared to fight for him.’ She drew back, held Cassie at arm’s length, a confident smile spreading across her lips. ‘Because it’s exactly like they say in that hair ad. You’re worth it, honey.’
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
‘WHO’S Lance?’ Jace shifted gears too forcefully, making the rental car’s engine whine.
‘Hmm?’ Cassie glanced over from the passenger seat. She’d been subdued since they’d left Nessa’s place. But then so had he.
He’d had a good time. The food had been fabulous, and plentiful, and the company even better. But there was something about seeing Cassie with her friends, and getting drawn into their Christmas celebration, that had been kind of unsettling towards the end of the evening. As they’d said their goodbyes, it had occurred to him that he’d never see these people again. And for the first time ever he actually regretted the transient nature of the friendships in his own life.
Not that he was missing anything, he reassured himself. He had friends. Just not people he wanted to depend on, the way Cassie clearly depended on hers. But watching the way she blossomed in their company had been captivating. Gone was the woman who seemed unsure of herself. She had been more confident, more in control—just as she was when they made love.
Or at least she had been, until Terrence had made a passing reference to this guy Lance. Cassie had changed the subject and, after a few knowing looks had passed between her friends, they’d gone along with it. It was obvious they all felt protective towards her. Which had made him wonder what exactly it was they were protecting her from. Then of course he’d had to wonder why he cared.
But even knowing he shouldn’t care who Lance was, he hadn’t been able to stop the question spilling out.
It was just curiosity. He wanted to know why she’d changed the subject, and why the mention of the guy’s name had caused that moment of distress to flash across her face.
‘Or Lance the Loser, to give him his full name,’ Jace prompted, jerking his gaze from the road to watch h
