Snake Eyes (The Masks Series Book 3) (5 page)

Eric

“Okay, so you guys will get there at eight and we really don’t have that much stuff. Between Caity’s Mini, your jeep and Dale’s car, we’ll easily be able to fit everything in.” Nicole grinned at me.

I nodded, kind of done with hearing the logistics for the next morning.

Dale dipped a French fry in ketchup and popped it in his mouth. “We bought Matt’s bed off him, so that third room is all set to go. Caity, we weren’t sure if you wanted to move your stuff straight in there or into Eric’s room.”

I glanced across at her, but she wasn’t listening. She was staring at her soda, spinning the straw around in circles and then, yet again, peering over her shoulder at the table of tweens who hadn’t stopped giggling since they got here. Their squeals and loud antics were borderline irritating...although they did remind me of my kid sisters and I couldn’t help finding them just a little cute.

“Um...” Dale cleared his throat. “Caity?”

I gently nudged her arm with my elbow.

“Huh?” She spun around to face us.

“What is your problem tonight?” Nicole threw a balled-up napkin at her.

Caity bashed it away with a half-hearted laugh before scratching the side of her neck and glancing over her shoulder again. Dale gave me a quizzical frown, which I shrugged at. I ran my hand lightly up Caity’s back.

“Babe, are you okay?”

Pulling on her earlobe, she twitched beneath my touch then sat up straight.

“Would you guys hate me if I changed my mind about the whole moving-in thing?”

There was a long, silent beat while we all absorbed her words. My initial reaction was a perplexed frowned. She winced and looked down at her plate.

“What?” Nicole snapped, having finally found her voice.

Caity drew in a shaky breath. “I just, um...the thing is, I’m nervous. This feels like a really massive step, and I’m not sure if I should take it yet. I’ve been trying really hard not to feel this way, because it’s totally insane. I should want to say yes more than anything, but I just...” Her eyes flickered up to me, begging for forgiveness.

That look always turned my insides to mush. I gave her a soft smile.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Nicole wiped her mouth with Dale’s napkin and dropped it on her plate, her pouty lips in a sharp line. She looked like a snake, ready to bite.

I gave her a warning glare, which she promptly ignored.

“I thought we’d agreed on this. You can’t just change your mind at the last minute.”

“Yes, she can.” I softly stood up for my girl. Not that I wanted to, but like hell would I let Nicole make her feel bad. Caity was already tortured over this; anyone could see that.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to let you guys down, I really don’t, but I...I need some more time. I don’t know if my parents would approve of me moving in.”

“You haven’t told them yet?” Nicole looked incredulous. “I don’t get why you’re stalling on this. It’s going to be awesome.” Her hand flicked in the air. “And besides, who cares what your parents think? You don’t need their permission. You’re a grown woman; you can make your own decisions.”

“Nicky,” Dale said quietly. I could tell he was rubbing her leg beneath the table, his gentle way of telling her to take it easy.

Nicole gave him a sharp scowl and huffed, crossing her arms and flopping back against the booth seat.

Caity blinked rapidly, running her finger beneath her nose. “I knew you guys wouldn’t get it and so I’ve been trying to pretend and go along, but...now it’s crunch time and I’m not...I’m not ready,” she squeaked, tears winning the battle and sliding down her cheeks.

“Hey.”  My heart pinched as I brushed the first few away. “It’s okay. You’re not letting anyone down. If you’re not ready, you shouldn’t be moving in. It’s an open invitation; you can change your mind at any time.”

“Not if she wants a refund from student housing,” Nicole grumbled.

I threw her a dark look. She caught it this time and made a face at me.

Caity swiped at her tears.

“Nicole, I’m sorry I’m backing out. I just need a little more time in the dorms.”

“Why? That’s insane?”

“Just because you’re ready doesn’t mean I have to be.” Caity’s eyes bunched at the corners, her face crumpling as she took in Nicole’s
real
expression. I wished I could see it, too. “It’s not you...any of you.” She looked at each of us. “I love you guys and that’s why I didn’t want to say anything before, but I have to be honest with myself. I’m scared that living together will screw up what we have. There’s a big difference between hanging out a lot and actually living together.”

“We’ve been living together for the last year. It’s been fine.” Nicole’s forehead creased and I was starting to see the hurt buried beneath the anger; not the way Caity could, but there was a glimmer. Maybe I saw it because Nicole and I were alike in more ways than I wanted to admit. We were happy to let the anger show, that part was easy, but getting down to the raw bones scared us senseless.

“It wasn’t fine the whole time,” Caity mumbled, another tear breaking free.

Nicole opened her mouth to say more, but I raised my hand before she could. “Ease up, okay? So she’s not ready; big deal. I can cover the extra rent so money’s not an issue, and Caity can move in when she’s ready.”

“That’ll be fine.” Dale gave us a closed-mouth smile and I guessed he was squeezing Nicole’s leg now, telling her to shut up and let it out later when they were alone.

I mouthed, “Thank you” at him and he gave me a quick wink.

Caity sniffed, grabbing the paper napkin off the table and blowing her nose.

I rubbed my hand up her back, gently squeezing her neck and kissing the side of her head.

She gave me a watery smile. “Maybe I can sleep over a few times a week and we can work our way into this.”

“It’s not a problem. No pressure, Caity, honestly.”

She studied me for a moment and I let her peel back as many masks as she needed to. I felt surprisingly calm about it all. Maybe it was seeing her cry that did it. All I knew was I wanted my girl to be happy and if she wasn’t ready, I refused to take it personally. Living together was a big deal, and I actually liked that Caity was taking the decision seriously.

“Thank you for understanding.” She smiled.

Nicole scoffed in disgust, robbing that beautiful look from Caity’s face. I thought more tears were about to form, but then the table of tweens erupted with giggles. We all turned to watch them this time as they snorted and choked on their drinks. 

Caity turned back to look at me and sniffed out a chuckle. Her eyes were once again dry and her expression, although still sad, seemed peaceful. Obviously telling us the truth had been a huge burden off her shoulders.

I couldn’t say I wasn’t disappointed with her answer, but like hell would I go and make her feel worse.

Above all else, I wanted Caity to be happy and I’d do anything to make that happen...even if it meant sacrificing what I wanted. If I truly believed we were meant to be together forever, then what was a few months of waiting? She’d come around eventually, I could feel it in her...she just needed a little time.

Caitlyn

Although it felt good to finally accept my decision to help these girls, it still didn’t take away the sting of letting my friends down. Eric was being really good about it. I could see underneath it all that he was disappointed, but he was hiding it well and doing everything to make sure I didn’t cry again.

My tears had actually been quite genuine, unlike my reasoning for moving in with everyone. In some ways, it was a blessing I had initially hesitated. It made the whole
I’m not ready
pitch so much easier to sell.

Nicole always took time to adjust to things she didn’t like. It was a compliment that she was so annoyed with me. She really did want me to move in with them, and I hated hurting her.

The next few weeks were going to suck, big time. I already couldn’t wait for it to be over. I was determined to work as quickly and efficiently as I could. I needed to get as much information from this Mendez girl as possible...not just for those poor girls, but also for myself.

I let out a heavy sigh as Eric drove us back towards UCLA.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. Nicole will get over it.”

“Yeah.” I rubbed my aching head. “I just really hate when she goes all ice queen on me.”

“That’s just who she is. She’s not really one to hide her emotions.”

“She can when she wants to,” I muttered.

“What was she feeling tonight?”

“Hurt,” my voice wobbled.

“I thought so.”

I huffed, wishing I could just drop the charade, but feeling like I needed to sell it just a little more. “I really wish I could explain to everybody that it’s nothing personal.”

“Hey, we know that.” Eric squeezed my knee. “She just needs time to process her disappointment.”

“And you?”

Nerves skittered through me as I gazed across at him. His jaw clenched for a second before an easy smile drew his lips north.

“You already read me at the table. You know I’m disappointed, but I care enough about you to want what makes you happy. If you’re not ready, you’re not ready. I know you still love me.”

He braked at the traffic light and gave me his full attention.

I could have drowned in that soft smile and was tempted to say, “Screw Kaplan; I want to move in with you!”

I pressed my lips together and looked out the window.

“I’m sorry I made you sad.”

“Maybe just a little.” He winked at me. “But I am happy you’re being honest with me. I would hate you to move in if you didn’t want to.”

I swallowed, the word
honest
ringing in my ears.

When this was all over I’d have to tell him the truth. Would he hate me? Forgive me?

Why did I have to take this risk?

“I’m so torn,” I muttered.

The light turned green and Eric accelerated through the intersection. “It’s better to take your time and feel confident about a huge decision like this.”

I flashed him a smile. “You’re so good to me.”

“That’s cause I love ya.”

My insides did that giddy dance they always do whenever he said that to me. I shuffled in my seat, drinking him in as I leaned against the window.

We paused at the next intersection. Eric’s fingers hovered next to the indicator. Right would take us to the UCLA campus, left to his place.

“Want to sleep over?” His voice was a little husky, and I couldn’t resist it.

“Yeah,” I whispered, not caring there was a chance I’d bump into Nicole tomorrow morning. I just wanted to spend the night with my man.

With a broad grin, Eric flicked the indicator left and we headed to his place.

Dale’s car wasn’t in the drive, which meant we had the house to ourselves for a bit.

Eric walked in the door and stripped off his shirt as we headed down to his room.

“I’m just going to jump in a quick shower. Want to join me?” He grinned.

I wanted to say yes, but there was something I needed to do.

“Actually, I might just hide out in your room if that’s okay.” I trailed my fingers along his bare torso. 

He snatched them up and kissed my knuckles. “Back in a minute.”

I waited until I could hear the shower running before grabbing my phone and Kaplan’s business card. I dialed her number and held the phone to my ear with quivering fingers.

“Kaplan,” she answered. 

“Okay, I’m in.”

She paused for a beat and I could almost see the smile forming on her sharp face.

“Good. Meet me tomorrow morning at nine for a briefing. I’ll text you the address.”

With that, she hung up. I pulled the phone away from my ear and switched it silent, not wanting Eric to hear any kind of text alert. Sliding the phone into my back pocket, I unbuttoned my jeans and took off my shirt, sliding between Eric’s sheets in nothing but my underwear. I’d need to get up early in order to get back to my room and collect the files hidden in my backpack.

Pulling a pillow toward me, I scrunched it beneath my chin and gazed at Eric’s headboard. Although I knew I’d made the right decision, it didn’t take away the sense of dread simmering in my belly. I had no idea what this meeting would entail, but I knew I’d have my work cut out for me.

No part of this assignment was going to be easy.

I closed my eyes and drew in a slow breath.

The girls.

I just had to think about the girls.