Kiss Me, Dancer (28 page)

Luckily, Natalie had a catering job today, Parker was mulching his peach trees, and Jiao had gone to visit relatives. No one to push her into staying.

Or so she thought.

As Casey walked to her car she felt someone trailing her. She slowed her steps and, while watching parents and children laughing at the clowns and pumpkin puppets, she turned to see who it was.

Drew’s father stepped toward her. He was alone. “Damn, you walk fast. Casey Richardson, right?”

She nodded. “Hello, Mr. Byrne. Enjoy the performance?”

“I’m not much on that sort of thing, but I can certainly appreciate what great shape those kids are in. Whew. Tired me out just watching.”

“Glad you came. I’m sure it means a lot to Josh.”

He nodded silently, looking her over. Not in a sexual way. More like a boss or a teacher deciding if you’re up to snuff. Finally he said, “I did something that got my son furious at me.”

“Really?” This was an odd thing to share with her. A twinge of caution rose.

“Ya see, I tricked him into doing what I wanted. Hardly the first time, but this one came out all wrong because he said you saw him with Amber Von Alston and thought what went on between them was real.”

Heat suffused her cheeks. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because my son’s been ornery and miserable lately. Told me he finally fell in love and now he’s lost you because I made him mess it up with this scheme around Amber. So I guess I owe it to him to try and fix it.”

Casey froze, dumbfounded by his words. Drew was in love with her? Could it be true? Maybe Parker was right.

Andrew Sr. pointed to the costumes in her arms. “Putting those in your car? You’re not leaving yet, are you?”

“Well, I—”

He touched her elbow and started forward. “Come on, I’ll help you. Then we’ll go back and have some apple cider. Not my preferred drink, but…”

Should she? Where would this lead? But if his father was right, she’d treated Drew unfairly. All because she was so sure he would break her heart. Meanwhile she was allowing him to fund a studio that would provide her with a career and a purpose. She heard herself saying, “All right.”

They reached her beaten up 2000 Honda Civic.

“You’re driving around in
this
?” he said.

Casey loaded the costumes into the trunk. “I love this car. Been driving it for years.”

“Looks it.”

On the way back they passed a hay tunnel, an inflatable bounce house, a haunted trail and kids at a table painting scary faces on themselves. There were tractor hayrides and a corn maze, goats and sheep wearing orange ribbons, pony rides, squawking ducks and chickens to feed.

People Casey knew and some she didn’t stopped her with warm wishes for the group and congratulations. They offered her donuts, pumpkin pie, roasted corn and jellied apples. All of which Andrew Sr. accepted and polished off while mumbling appreciative sounds.

They finally saw Drew and Josh getting out of a wagon that was returning from the fields.

Josh waved. “Hey, Grandpa! Look at the pumpkin we got.”

“Figures he’d pick one that weighs a ton,” Drew said, carrying a huge pumpkin wider than his torso.

“Casey!” Josh bounced toward her, chattering about the haunted trail through the cornfields.

A slight crease formed between Drew’s eyebrows when he saw her with his father. “Got to get this thing to the car.”

“I’ll take it for you.” Andrew Sr. reached for the pumpkin.

“You sure you can handle this, Dad?”

“Don’t insult me, son.” He grabbed the massive pumpkin and heaved it up on his chest. “Josh, you come with me. Get your dad’s keys. You can open the trunk for me. And we’ll stop at the face-painting table on the way back. I can make you look like a real ghoul.”

Andrew Sr. cut his eyes to Casey with a quick, but meaningful glance and walked away with Josh. Leaving her with Drew.

She just stood there shuffling her feet like an idiot trying to figure out what to say. Should she apologize? Should she explain? “I…I wanted to talk to you.”

“About?”

Us
. But she couldn’t quite get the word out. Especially when she remembered him saying exactly that to her in the limo the night he’d tried to make her believe his story about Amber. Her mind went numb. Everything she considered saying sounded wrong.

“Casey Richardson.” Monica Bickles came rushing toward her. “Welcome me back.”

Casey went pale. Say hello to the real Madame Lumina. “Monica. I don’t believe it. How was Tibet?” she asked, hoping her friend would get wrapped up talking about her trip instead of mentioning tarot readings. And the favor Casey performed for her with the Fourth of July raffle winner. Who just happened to be standing right here.

“Cold and windy,” Monica said.

That was it? The girl who usually talked a blue steak had no more to say about her big trek in the wilds?

Then Casey saw why. Monica clearly wanted to be introduced to the eye candy standing here. “Monica, this is my friend Drew Byrne.” Casey gestured. “Drew, Monica Bickles.”

Monica shook his hand and said, “I do psychic tarot readings in case you’re ever interested.” She turned to Casey. “By the way, I heard you were great.” She laughed, giving Drew a winning smile. “While I was trekking the mountains of Tibet, Casey filled in for me as Madame Lumina.”

Casey wanted to crawl into the nearest hole.

Drew’s teal blue eyes turned to ice. He glared at Casey, turned, and marched away.

“Did I say something wrong?” Monica asked.

“Talk to you later, Monica.” Flooded with guilt, Casey bounded after him. “Drew, wait. I can explain how it happened.”

He kept walking, but tossed words over his shoulder. “My father never told you that horse’s name, did he?”

“No.”

“And you weren’t really trying to reach another client when you called me in Saratoga.”

“No.”

“That was right after you dumped me for Ravage. Guess you called me to gloat over bringing down the big guy.”

“Are you kidding? I was devastated after seeing you with Amber. I only wanted to know if you ever actually cared for me.” Some people noticed them arguing. Casey purposely lowered her voice, not wanting to make a scene.

He stopped. Casey was about to elaborate on how it all happened, to tell him the truth about how she felt for him and beg him to understand. But the face he turned on her was so cold and hard she masked her feelings and instead said only, “But you made it pretty clear I was just another
tiring
female.”

“I’ll say. And a liar.” He snorted a laugh. “And you called
me
a liar. Punishing me like I’m a monster who plays women.”

“That’s not how—”

“
You’re
the one who’s a player. Just another manipulative bitch. Well, you got a dance studio out of me. Guess that’s what you wanted all along.”

“I never…I tried to pull out of that plan. You talked me into it. Even barged into Natalie’s kitchen to convince me.”

“An actress, too.”

“Fuck you. If I had—”

Drew showed her his back. “Hey, don’t I know you from somewhere?” he said to a redheaded woman in tight jeans who strolled by as if on cue.

The woman gave him a pert smile. “No, but maybe you should.”

He flicked a glance at Casey and said, “See ya around.” And strolled off making cutesy talk with his new target.

A lump of emotion filled her throat. Casey made herself turn and move her feet toward the parking area even though it felt like a Mack truck had landed on her.

No. A Byrne truck
.

She told herself this only proved her fears were founded. If she had agreed to start over with Drew it wouldn’t have lasted. He would’ve moved on to someone new and left her with a broken heart. Andrew Sr. was sadly mistaken.

But Casey also felt horrible about the way she’d handled the readings once she’d discovered Drew was the raffle winner. She’d known all along he’d be furious if he ever found out, but couldn’t bear to face him. It was cowardly.

She nearly reached the edge of the farm when Josh came running toward her, his eyes wild. “Casey, where’s my father?”

“Back there somewhere. What’s wrong?”

“Grandpa’s in trouble. I think that pumpkin was too heavy for him.”

“What happened? Where is he?”

“Lying on the ground next to Dad’s Porsche. It’s his heart.”

“You go find your dad. I’ll call an ambulance and stay with your grandpa.”

Casey remembered Drew telling her his father already had two heart attacks. She took off at a jog for the field of parked cars, thankful Drew had brought his blue Porsche today, since there were several black Range Rovers. Miraculously, she managed to find both the car and Andrew Sr. while calling 9-1-1.

He was not even conscious. As soon as she ended the call, Casey knelt in the dirt beside him and started the chest compressions she’d learned in the CPR training she’d taken for teaching adult fitness. Having never had to use it on anyone before, she hoped she was doing it right.

The minutes ticked by. No Josh, no Drew. Casey worried the ambulance wouldn’t see her here on the ground hidden by cars. But didn’t want to stand up and let go. The more continuous the compressions, the better chance he’d have.

A family came by and saw her. The mother agreed to stand guard and wave to the ambulance when it came.

Casey kept pushing, terrified Andrew Sr. would die right there under her hands. The slack and pallor of his face brought images of her father’s last days and the sad, desperate girl she’d been, powerless to save the man who’d been the center of her life throughout her childhood.

Josh came running to her. “Casey, is he still alive?” his voice trembled.

She nodded, keeping her rhythm.

Drew squatted beside her, dread and sorrow in his face. “I can take over.”

“Do you know CPR?”

“No, but I can learn.”

But the ambulance arrived, sirens at full. She hadn’t noticed a crowd had gathered around her. They shouted and waved. The EMTs took over, and Casey stood, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

Drew touched her hand and murmured a thank you.

Feeling too many emotions to handle, Casey just backed away, found her car and went home.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Drew moved around the galley of his Ferretti yacht, his nostrils flared, his lips pressed together in irritation. He couldn’t get over Keith’s reaction when he told him about the real Madame Lumina.

Keith laughed so hard he practically sprayed his beer clear across the table. “She even picked the damn horse!” Crows feet pinching the sides of his eyes, the salty old mechanic shook his head.

“But she made a fool of me.”

“Ah, come on. Way too cute a story to be turned into something dark and diabolical.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying forget about it. Shut up and take her to dinner.”

Drew kept checking the stairs that led to the deck. Right now Josh was up there with Keith’s wife Lizzie. And Drew wanted to get in this private discussion before they returned. “Another beer?”

“Bad luck to drink on Sundays, they say. Which is why I’ll have another.”

He pitched a Corona to him. “I thought you’d take my side, Keith. Give me some support on this.”

“Not when you’re wrong, I won’t.”

“You don’t think this means she’s underhanded or anything?”

“Nope. Ditzy, maybe. The kind of person who might jump into things without looking and find herself in a bit of a jam.”

“Funny. I remember her saying that very thing about herself.”

Keith folded his arms behind his neck and leaned back on the white leather banquette. “From everything you’ve told me about this Casey, I’d say she’s just the kind of woman you need. Smart, bold, but sweet and sexy. Admits her mistakes, but fights hard when she knows she’s right. And didn’t you tell me she has a heart of gold? Came through when you needed her, right?”

“Yeah. Casey also may have saved my dad’s life.”

“She was there?”

He nodded. “Casey’s the one who kept up about twenty minutes of CPR on him yesterday. Doctors said it’s one reason he’s stable now.” How ironic that Andrew Sr. ended up in the hospital on the day Keith came for a visit. Drew had planned this a while back. Inviting someone his dad did not approve of had been a little act of rebellion for him.

“Sounds like a good woman to me.”

“Wish I knew for sure. Maybe she’s using me to get a studio.”

“Bullshit. You told me you had to push her into that.”

“True. And it’s not like she planned the Madame Lumina mix-up. But she let it go on. Kept me in the dark.” Drew added more onions and mushrooms to the butter in the pan, and then dropped in the flounder. They’d eat inside, since the day was slightly nippy on the water.

Keith knocked back a gulp of Mexican beer. Then he sat forward and eyed Drew closely. “Let me ask you something. Do you love her?”

Drew gave an ornery shrug and fidgeted with his spatula, shuffling the sizzling fish and vegetables from one side of the pan to the other.

 “Yes or no?”

“I thought I did.”

“If you found out she got married, that she loved somebody else and your chances of ever having her as yours were totally gone, how would you feel?”

The answer came like a boulder landing on top of him. “Flattened. Hopeless. Half dead.”

“Pretty strong reaction.”

“Yeah. I know.”

“I think you do love her.”

“I know that, too.”

“Then that’s all that matters.”

***

Thursday arrived, the day of the final
Got Moves
challenge.

Drew still had not spoken to Casey. Josh saw her daily at rehearsals and sent her text updates about Andrew Sr.’s progress. But ever since Casey had given Drew that bunko about limiting their relationship to friendship and business he’d made a point of keeping his distance. He’d started handling every single communication to her through his secretary and hadn’t joined her on any of the
Got Moves
trips since that first show.