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Shaking my head, I reply, “I’m serious, Shep. This is my life.”
“Okay. Okay,” he says, holding up his hands. “You’re right...but....”
“But?” I prompt when it takes too long for him to finish.
“If you showed a little courage and went after her, you might find all the answers.”
Shaking my head, I reply, “No. I refuse to. Besides, she’s made her choice.”
“Want to know what I think?”
“Not really. But I know you’ll tell me anyway,” I grouse before finishing my water and placing the glass in the sink.
“I think that you’re a damned fool. Anyone can look at either of you and see that even after four months, you still have feelings for each other. I watched how you two watched each other all night long. I think you’re broken up over finding out she was married more than anything, not because you can’t have her.”
“Then why?” I challenge.
“Because you, my brother, are a rule follower. You never color outside the lines, never blur them, and the one fucking time you did, it blew up in your face, and you believe that was your chastisement for breaking the order.”
He's right. I know he is, but I can’t do anything about it. My conscience won’t allow me to. Before tonight I’d given up hopes of seeing Yaya again.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel something when she touched my face. That gentle caress had my heart speeding up again and made hope blossom. Just as quickly as I knew I was being foolish, I had to step back.
The look in her eyes made me want to comfort her and let her know I have forgiven her. And though the words wouldn’t come out of my mouth, the words that did were a contradiction of my forgiveness of her, but I could let her know with a kiss.
A sweet, simple kiss. That’s all it was. Or rather, all it should have been. It left me with a boner the size of Texas, wanting her more than I’ve ever wanted her.
Until that man arrived.
“What’re you thinking?” Shep asks, breaking into my concentration.
I shake my head.
“Nothing, really.”
“You know what I think?”
“Thought you already shared that. But since you’re being so generous tonight, don’t stop now,” I say mockingly.
“I think you need to take a break from the company.”
My intrigue is aroused because that’s not where I expected him to go.
“No. I’m supposed to be taking over in the next two months. I can’t do that now.”
“Why not? It’s the perfect time. You’ve spent the last two years being personally groomed by Dad, not to mention you grew up in his office. You know everything about that business backward and forwards.”
“Someone had to. You didn’t want to,” I sneer.
“Hey, don’t fault me for being true to myself,” he says, holding up a hand.
“Why would I?” I grumble.
“So, take some time off to get to know Cade. Not the Cade you’ve been groomed to be or the one that our parents and society expect you to be. Find out who you truly are before you commit the rest of your life to another life-altering decision. Yesenia Parker was your one regret and biggest heartbreak. Don’t let this company be your second. Take some time off, maybe a month or two, and just live. Then return here to Charleston and do what you do best. Make decisions. Only this time, they’ll be true-from-the-heart, not just well-informed decisions.”
What he says causes my heart to race like he speaks to my soul. Yet, at the same time, it’s a bit scary. I’ve never not done the right thing except in that one instance, and that didn’t turn out in my favor.
“Quit overthinking it, Cade,” Shep says, knowing me like the back of his hand.
