Cake: A Love Story (12 page)

Chapter Seven

Casey

As I walked down the aisle holding my flowers, my eyes focused on Jake. My stomach did a little flip. He was so gorgeous. There was this strange raw chemistry…a powerful connection that I couldn’t explain. I’d liked plenty of guys before him but had never experienced anything close to this. It was almost like a magnetic force field attracting me to him. I couldn’t see anything or anyone else in the church. Just him. He stared straight ahead with that same detached look on his face that he had when I first saw him. Was it because he was in front of a bunch of strangers? This definitely wasn’t the guy I knew. I tried to catch his eye but he was all business. So distracted was I with Jake that I tripped on the first step, falling to the side. I caught myself with one hand and managed to push myself upright in one quick motion. I attempted to suppress a giggle but it was too funny to hold in. Jake caught my eye and his facial expression softened. A slight smile crossed his face but then he looked away again and the mask went back up. I got an instant feeling of unease. What was going on?

The ceremony was followed by almost an hour of pictures. Jake stayed close to his family the entire time. I tried to get his attention once or twice but Jake refused to engage me. Even when I was standing next to him for a picture he still didn’t talk to me. It wasn’t like I was expecting him to flirt with me in front of his family but he could at least look at me and acknowledge my existence. After pictures we moved into the reception hall. Dinner was not starting for an hour so the guests were all wandering around and chatting. Jake stayed next to his parents. I wondered if they had asked him to hang out with them for the wedding. I thought it was a little odd that a twenty-three-year-old man would stick next to his parents as they mingled with other people but what did I know about their relationship? Still why didn’t he even look in my direction? I had an uncomfortable feeling that Jake was actively trying to ignore me. I just couldn’t understand why? He’d been so flirty with me and had even said that we would continue our conversation later but then nothing. Weird.

Dinner began. Jake was assigned to sit with his family and I was with the bridal party. I glanced at him several times, okay every minute or two, throughout the evening but he never once reciprocated. The longer this went on the more I realized that I needed to accept the truth…Jake McKallister was definitely not into me. I felt crushed. I didn’t know why. I had just met him so why would it hurt this much?

After dinner and during the speeches, my friend and co-worker, JD, came over and sat next to me, thankfully taking my mind off Jake. Of course, JD started up with his incessant flirting. He always felt a need to sweet-talk me even though he and I both knew it was never going to happen. JD, with his black wavy hair and chiseled good looks, was the biggest player I’d ever met. His booty count was in the fifties and he loved bragging about it. I had no interest in being another notch in his belt. Still, I found his efforts entertaining. We talked and laughed for a while. At one point I looked up to check on Jake for the thousandth time and was shocked to find him staring right at me for the first time all evening…and he actually looked annoyed. It took me a second to realize why. JD. He was…could it really be? Was Jake McKallister seriously jealous of JD Owens?

I wanted to laugh out loud at the preposterous assumption that Jake had made about JD. Did he really think that any guy, much less JD Owens, was on an equal playing field as him? Did he not realize that he was in a league all his own? But the look on his face was clear. Jake McKallister was jealous. I smiled and waved at him as if nothing at all was amiss. His frown turned upside down and he tentatively waved back. He then turned back to his sister, ignoring me once again.

“Whoa…you know him?”

“Sort of. We were paired for the wedding, remember?”

“I know but you guys weren’t interacting or anything. I just assumed he was keeping to himself.”

“No. We actually met yesterday at dinner. I hung out with him and his brothers later at the hotel too.”

“Oh, you hung out at the hotel,” JD nodded.

“Yeah, wipe that smirk off your face. Nothing happened,” I said.

“Uh-huh,” JD joked.

I laughed and wagged my finger at him.

“So what’s he like? He seems stand-offish.”

“Yeah he seems that way but when you get to know him he’s actually really nice.” I must have voiced it with googly eyes because JD picked up on it right away.

“So wait…hold up here…do you, or do you not, have something going with Jake McKallister?” JD asked in surprise.

“No…I mean…I don’t know. We kind of hit it off last night but…yeah…I have no idea what’s going on. He has pretty much ignored me since the wedding started.”

“Well, he’s not ignoring you now,” JD said. I glanced back and Jake quickly turned away like he didn’t want me to know he was staring. Something told me that I now had Jake’s full and undivided attention.

“What the hell?” I mumbled. “He made it pretty clear that he wasn’t interested so then why would he even care if I’m talking to you?”

“Probably because I’m devastatingly handsome.”

“Oh yeah, right. That must be it,” I smiled.

“Seriously though Case…he seems legit pissed that I’m talking to you.”

“Well too bad,” I responded, feeling a little pissed myself. Jake had spent the better part of the day ignoring me…he didn’t have the right to be jealous.

“Shall I continue to irritate him?” JD asked.

If Jake wanted to play games, then so would I.

“Please,” I smiled. JD put his arms around me and I laughed loud enough for Jake to hear. He turned around again upon hearing me enjoying myself and saw me in JD’s embrace. His eyes instantly met mine and I swear he looked hurt. I quickly pulled out of the hug feeling strangely guilty.

Then suddenly the sound of tapping on the microphone broke the moment. Mitch said, “I just want to thank everyone for being here tonight. You’ve all given Kate and I a day to always remember. We are so grateful for our amazing friends and family. Here is to all of you!”

Glasses are raised in celebration.

“And to my beautiful wife…I feel so lucky. You made my heart beat faster from the moment we met. Now I know why….you were the one, Kate…you’ve always been the one. I’m so excited to spend the rest of my life with you.”

More glasses were raised.

“So I’m not sure if any of you are aware of this but my younger brother, Jake, is a minimally successful professional musician,” Mitch claimed jokingly. “And, you know, he’s still working on trying to build a fan base so he begged me to let him sing tonight.” The crowd laughed. “Okay okay…relax…I was just kidding…in reality, I begged Jake to sing Kate’s favorite song, a little tune called ‘Pride’ and he graciously agreed. So Jake.” Mitch motioned to Jake, who immediately stood up and walked over to the stage. Kate clapped happily. Quinn followed his brother onto the stage. “Jake will be accompanied on guitar by our youngest brother, Quinn.”

The McKallister boys slung the guitars over their shoulders and strummed the strings a few times as they waited to perform.

“You know, when people find out that Jake is my brother the first question I’m always asked is…can you sing? And I’m like…noooo…and people always seem so disappointed…like why?” Mitch expressed in a whine. Everyone laughed, including Jake. Mitch turned to him and said, “Anyway, I think we can both agree that you inherited your musical talents from your mother’s side of the family because our dad….” Mitch shook his head sadly.

Jake nodded and laughed.

“At least you all inherited your good looks from me,” their father, Scott called out, joking. Everyone laughed.

“Yeah, right dad,” Mitch laughed. “Anyway, lucky for us that Jake’s mom gave him a voice because we all get to enjoy it tonight…thank you for playing for us,” Mitch said, nodding toward Jake before replacing the microphone. He exchanged a few words with Jake before walking back to Kate. He kissed her before sitting down. She looked giddy with excitement.

Jake adjusted the guitar then stepped up to the microphone and, to my surprise, he glanced over at me before he started playing the guitar. His was the only instrument. The sound was sweet and gentle. Then he began singing. Jake’s voice was warm and rich and wonderful. He’d created this song out of nothing and it was simply beautiful. Quinn joined in on guitar and sang back up vocals. People around me listened and sang and swayed to the music. I looked on in amazement at how he was affecting everyone. To be able to touch so many people with such a simple, heartfelt song was really inspiring. Jake’s talent was undeniable. An overwhelming sense of pride filled my chest. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. His voice mesmerized me. His words seemed to fill the air around me. Just as he sang the last words, his eyes locked with mine. I felt a powerful electricity pass between us. It was a brief moment but it happened. Jake looked away as the song ended and the audience erupted in applause.

Chapter Seven

Jake

After the song, the dinner wrapped up with the maid of honor and the best man’s speeches. Then the bride and groom had their first dance. I glanced over at Casey. She was still sitting with that guy. I shook my head. I was pissed. It didn’t take her long to replace me. My stomach was tied up in knots. I was so frickin’ jealous. I didn’t even know I had that trait in me until tonight. I guess I’d never actually liked any girl enough to get jealous over her actions. I hated the idea of another guy getting her attention. She liked me. I knew she did. And I liked her. So what the fuck was I doing over here while that asshole was sitting with her, making his play? God, I was such an idiot. I led him right to her!

I mean, really, what did I expect? Casey was a beautiful woman with an amazing personality. She wasn’t going to be single for long. And judging by the guy hanging all over her, she might even be off the market by tonight. Just the idea of her being with another guy, and having the life with him that I wanted, filled me with anger. It was just a cruel twist of fate that put me here, watching from a distance, and him there, sitting beside her. If I hadn’t been in the wrong place at the wrong time all those years ago, my life would have been so different. A fucking twist of fate! That’s all it was separating me from the guys who had what I didn’t.

Yeah. Yeah. Stop with your pity party. I’d done this to myself. It was my decision to walk away. Casey had every right to hang out with whomever she wanted, especially after I’d been such a giant douchebag to her. I’d seen her staring at me. I could feel her confusion. I could taste her disappointment. What was I doing? How could I really predict how Casey would react to me and how my body would react to her? And really, why was I so worried about screwing things up. Any woman who dated me obviously knew about my past. It’s not like Casey would be going in blind. I mean wasn’t it the common assumption that I was irreversibly damaged? So it should come as no surprise to her when I fuck everything up.

I watched Casey laugh at something the douche said. Anger rose up through me. No. Sorry. I couldn’t stand another second of this shit. I might not be able to have her but I sure as hell wasn’t going to let him either. It was at that moment that I realized that it was impossible to ignore Casey Caldwell. I couldn’t when she went all ‘James Bond’ on me and ‘saved’ me from fans. I couldn’t in the church when she adorably tripped on the step and instead of being mortified, started giggling good-naturedly. And I definitely couldn’t when she was chatting up some asshole guy who just wanted to get her in bed.

Chapter Eight

Casey

“Don’t look now, but lover boy is on his way over,” JD said smiling at me. I kept my eyes focused on JD even as excitement rose through my body. “Damn, he sure knows how to command a room…no wonder it’s so difficult to score at this wedding.”

I grinned, keeping focused on JD so Jake wouldn’t get spooked and head in another direction. I felt a nudge and when I looked up Jake was standing next to me. He’d taken off his coat and bowtie when he performed and now he wore a white collared shirt unbuttoned a few notches.

“Hey!” I exclaimed, a little too loudly.

“Hey yourself,” he answered back, smiling warmly. The Jake I knew from earlier was back, in all his sizzling sexiness. My whole body tingled with anticipation. I wanted him and I wanted him to know.

I touched his arm and let my hand linger there on his warm skin. Jake looked down where I touched him. He didn’t say anything. Suddenly I worried that he really didn’t like being touched. Such a thing would not seem unusual considering his past. He’d reacted to Sarah’s touch but not my earlier one. But despite all my worry, Jake didn’t seem upset and he didn’t pull away.

JD loudly cleared his throat to let us know he was still there. In fact, I’d completely forgotten about him. We both looked over.

“Hi, I’m JD,” he said as he stood to shake Jake’s hand.

“Hey, nice to meet you,” Jake responded pleasantly, shaking JD’s hand.

“Great song, by the way,” JD complimented. “I’m a big fan of your music.”

Jake focused his full attention on JD, “That’s cool. Thanks man.”

The three of us stood there for a couple seconds before Jake asked, “So how do you know Casey?”

“JD’s a friend of mine. We work together,” I answered before JD had a chance to answer the question he was asked.

JD smirked then nodded, “Yeah, what she said.”

“How long have you worked together?” Jake asked. I sensed strain in his voice.

JD looked at me. “What like three years? Has it been that long?”

“Yeah, I think so,” I replied. What was Jake doing? Why all the questions? Was he trying to assess our relationship or something?

“We haven’t dated or anything like that,” I blurted out then instantly regretted it when I caught sight of JD’s arched eyebrows and amused grin.

Heat burned my cheeks. I was so embarrassed. Jake hadn’t asked if we had dated. Now he was going to think I was assuming he was jealous. Oh God. Shut up Casey!

Jake nodded but didn’t respond. His expression was neutral. Had he seen the little non-verbal action playing out in front of him? What was he thinking? Was my second chance with him slipping away?

“Well then you won’t mind if I steal my bridesmaid away,” Jake finally said to JD. He really wasn’t giving JD a choice in the matter as he grabbed my hand and pulled me out of my chair. Jake started leading me away.

“Oh no…that’s cool,” JD replied to our backs.

“See ya later,” I called over my shoulder.

“Not if I can help it,” Jake whispered in my ear.

I didn’t respond until we were on the other side of the room. “That’s big talk for a guy who has been ignoring me all evening,” I stated, calling him out on his behavior.

Jake hesitated a second. The serious look on his face wiped the smile right off mine.

“Oh,” I whispered as my cheeks reddened. A knot instantly formed in the pit of my stomach. He really had been ignoring me…and on purpose apparently. I felt like an idiot for thinking there was anything between us. “I’m embarrassed.”

“Don’t be, Casey. Let me explain,” he started.

“No,” I interrupted, putting my hand up and backing away from him a step. “You don’t have to explain yourself Jake. We just met. I mean, you’re not into me and that’s okay. I just…I totally read things all wrong.”

“No, you didn’t,” Jake replied honestly. “You read them right.”

I looked at Jake in surprise. WTF? “Okay now I’m really confused.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I’m a fucking idiot.”

“Yeah you are, and you’re starting to piss me off too,” I admitted.

“Sorry. Casey, please, just give me a minute to explain, okay?”

I looked at my wrist like there was a watch on it and replied, “Your minute starts now.”

Jake seemed surprised that I was playing hardball with him.

“Tick tock Jake.”

“It’s true, I’ve been avoiding you,” Jake rushed out his words. “But it isn’t because I don’t like you. Obviously I do. It’s just…I’m in the middle of a world tour. I’ve been on the road for four months. This weekend was just supposed to be a quick detour and then it was back to Europe. I have up to five shows a week. I have a bunch of band and crewmembers that rely on me to keep things going. I’m just not in a place where I can really cultivate a new relationship.”

“Okay. Why didn’t you just say that? You didn’t have to ignore me all day.”

“I know but every time I’m with you I get all giddy and weird and shit…and I can’t think straight…so instead of trying to explain all that to you, I decided to take the immature, idiot approach and just ignore you.”

I thought about what he said for a second before grinning and saying, “Well I guess nothing says affection like ignoring the person completely. In a screwed up way it’s kind of a compliment.”

“You’re not mad?” Jake asked, looking immensely relieved.

“No…guys brains just aren’t as evolved as girls,” I replied, grinning.

Jake smiled and shook his head in amusement.

“I do have to ask though. Your dastardly plan was working perfectly. Why did you ruin it all and come over to me just now?”

“I…,” Jake looked embarrassed. “I saw you with JD and I got jealous.”

“Huh…interesting,” I nodded, amused. “So now what? Are you going to go back to ignoring me?”

“I want to hang out with you but…”

“But you don’t want to lead me on? I get it. Who says I want a relationship with you anyway? Maybe I have some big summer plans that I don’t want you to ruin either.”

“I didn’t…I,” Jake stumbled over his words. “You wouldn’t be ruining my plans.”

I grinned. “I’m just kidding. Seriously though, why does it have to be so complicated? I wasn’t asking you to get down on one knee, Jake. You’re a cool guy. I like hanging out with you. I just wanted to do more of that tonight…that’s all. And I’m still up for it…if you are. It doesn’t have to be anything more than that. I mean, its either that or you continue to ignore me and I continue to talk to JD to make you jealous.”

“You were trying to make me jealous on purpose?” Jake asked, in surprise.

“Only when I figured out that it bothered you.”

“That’s whacked,” he grinned.

“Well, it got you over here so…” I smiled up at him.

Jake shook his head and gave me his charming smile.

“So what do you say? One evening of fun…no strings attached,” I said, maybe a little too eagerly. “Do we have a deal?”

Jake nodded. “I’m down if you are.”

Of course I realized that the deal I was offering was for Jake’s benefit only. But I’d already decided that I would take what I could get from him. At least he was honest with me and didn’t try to sweet talk me into sleeping with him, all the while knowing he was going to dump my ass the minute he stepped foot on the plane. I understood that Jake was a complex guy with a demanding life. That he was even willing to take the time to get to know me made me feel special. And he’d admitted that he liked me. Maybe after his tour ended he would look me up. But if I never saw him again, then I would just have to deal with it. Spending time with Jake was worth the risk in my opinion. I mean, really, what girl wouldn’t jump at the chance to spend an evening of fun with the hottest, most charming musician on the planet?

One of my favorite songs came on. “I love this song. Do you want to dance?” I asked.

Jake’s lips formed into a frown. “I don’t dance.”

“Oh that’s right. I almost forgot about your allergic reaction to the yesterday’s fictional wedding dance.”

Jake nodded.

“Wait, though. You’re a rockstar. Don’t you have to dance on stage?”

Jake laughed out loud. “Obviously you’ve never been to a rock concert before?”

“No, actually I haven’t.”

“Let me guess, you’re more of a pop music kind of girl?”

“I listen to whatever is on the radio.”

“Who is your favorite musician?”

“Well, you, of course.”

“Oh, uh-huh, right. Name one song of mine?” Jake grinned.

“Pride.”

“Too easy. Name one I haven’t sung in the last 30 minutes.”

I stood there a moment thinking then a smile broke out across my face.

“I knew it,” Jake laughed. “Who is it? Beyoncé, Bieber, or Spears?”

“All the above,” I laughed. “But, to be totally honest, I just listen to what’s on the radio. I don’t really pay attention to the artist. I’m sure I’ve heard a lot of your songs but just didn’t know it was you who sang it.”

“You know there is an app for that?” Jake grinned.

“I know. I know. It doesn’t bother you?”

“What? That you’re not a Stan?”

“A what?”

“A superfan.”

I laughed. “I’ve never heard that term.”

“It’s from an Eminem song but you probably aren’t familiar with him either,” Jake smirked.

“I know who he is but I’m definitely not a Stan.”

“Well, I’m not vain enough that I think everyone is a card-carrying member of my fan club.”

“Wait a minute! Are you telling me they still have fan clubs?” I asked.

“Uh…yeah. They have moved online…but they still exist.”

“Wow, who would have guessed?”

“Anyone who knows anything about music would have guessed.”

“Yeah, yeah.” I waved him off. “Anyway, I’m going to make up for lost time. I’m now officially your number one fan. Jake McKallister!”

“No Lexi in Ohio is my number one fan.”

“Oh so sorry. I stand corrected,” I laughed. “Okay, here is another confession…I’ve never been to a concert.”

“Ever?” Jake asked in surprise.

“Nope…it’s not that I didn’t want to, it’s just I never really had the means. When I was younger I would beg my parents to let me go to a concert or to buy albums but we always lived on a fixed income and just didn’t have excess money. Then when I got older and started making my own money, I still never went because I needed that money for trivial little things like food.”

“Yeah, that seems way more important. I actually haven’t been to that many concerts either…only like maybe 700 or so,” Jake teased.

“So yeah…we are sort of on the same page on that then,” I smiled.

Jake nodded.

“Hey, I have an idea,” I said brightly.

“What?”

“Maybe you could be my first,” I teased, pausing before adding, “Concert that is.”

“Yeah, I would love to pop your concert cherry,” Jake smirked.

I bust out laughing. Just then a slow song came on.

“You want to dance?” Jake asked.

My mouth dropped open. “I thought you didn’t dance.”

Jake cocked his head and said in his sexy way, “I slow dance.”

“Oh do you now?” I smiled and let him lead me out onto the dance floor. Once we stopped he reached his arm around me and pulled me close. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he moved his hands to my hips. I leaned into him. We stared at each other. I felt that familiar chemistry pass between us again. We swayed gently to the music, not speaking for a long time…just enjoying the feel of our bodies pressed against each other while moving in rhythm to the music. I was lost in his embrace. He kept dipping his head into my shoulder. His hair tickled my bare skin, sending shock waves radiating through me. He held me close. The heat of his body sent my mind reeling. Absently I stroked the long strands of his hair. It was a bold move but it just seemed so natural at the time and Jake clearly didn’t mind. The song ended and was replaced with a dance tune. We reluctantly broke apart and walked back over to where we had been standing before.

Jake’s mom came over to us. She introduced herself to me then turned to Jake and said, “You might want to tone it down a bit…you wouldn’t want to draw attention away from the bride and groom.”

He looked surprised but he nodded anyway. Once his mom left, Jake leaned down and, with his hot breath tickling my neck, said, “I’m really hot. You want to get some air?”

“Yeah, good idea,” I echoed, fanning myself as I followed him out of the reception hall. We walked down a long hallway then turned right. We came to a stairwell.

“Where are we going?”

“A place I found last night when I was dodging those women?”

“They followed you?” I asked in surprise.

“Yep,” he said like it was an everyday thing. And, yeah, it probably was.

Jake pushed open a door. “This way. Every floor has one of these.”