Night shifts black

“We should take her to 49^th & Finch.”

Casey’s eyes light up at the thought. “We totally should. Oh man, they have the best bar food.”

“Bar food?” I ask, skeptically. “So basically you guys just upgraded the same stuff you ate when you first started out as a garage band ten years ago.”

Casey grins. “Basically. Although to be fair, we still eat that stuff, too.”

I laugh. “And you’re not 500 pounds, why? Because I’m pretty sure I would be.”

Casey shrugs. “I don’t know, good question. Stress?”

I shake my head. “Ok, first of all, if you’re going to hang with me, you’re going to learn to eat a vegetable.”

“What about fruit cups?” Luke asks with snicker, and I glance over at him in surprise, then amusement.

“Yes, that’s a start.”

“Fruit cups?” Casey asks.

“Part of my standard balanced breakfast order at Jemma’s,” I explain.

“She doesn’t drink coffee either.”

“I noticed that this morning!”

“I like tea. So what?” I shoot back, crossing my arms. “You know what? I’m so sick of your holier-than-thou attitudes. You think I’m the one who baffles the mind? What about the two of you?”

They both smile, clearly liking the challenge. “Yeah, what about us?” Casey asks, taking the bait.

I grunt. “Ok, well, first of all. Explain to me why two guys with more money than they probably know what to do with, two guys who have an entire mall’s-worth of clothing options just a personal shopper away, point to the plain, ratty t-shirt and say, ‘Yes. That’s it. That’s what I want.’”

They laugh, and Luke shakes his head. “Again with the t-shirts! You really have a vendetta, don’t you?” he teases.

I raise my eyebrows and give them an obvious appraisal. “Am I wrong? You two look identical right now.”

Casey visibly braces for the fight. “Well, first of all, if you recall, I’m actually wearing his clothes, so…”

“And, second of all, I thought we already established pink polo shirts weren’t my thing,” Luke adds.

I deflate with a pout, afraid maybe I’m losing this round. No! I’m not losing. “I didn’t say you had to dress like an investment banker, I’m just saying, would a little color or design kill you? I mean, really. It’s appalling.”

“She just wants us to take our shirts off,” Casey teases, and I blush. I don’t know why. At this point I’ve seen both of them almost naked, one of them actually naked, and yet still I blush. Stupid Casey and his sexy smile…gosh, sexy everything. I have to force away the extremely unhelpful memories of him in a towel.

“Whatever. You’re just mad because I don’t drool over you all the time like you’re used to.”

“No? Really,” Casey challenges, moving around the island. He pulls his shirt over his head, and sure enough my mouth goes dry. I curse to myself. At least I’m not drooling.

“Not even a little interested?” he continues, taking my hand and guiding my fingers over his chest, his abs. His perfectly sculpted tattooed torso. The detailed ink reminding me of every tantalizing picture I’d made the mistake of studying in my earlier search.

I can hear Luke snickering from his seat, and struggle desperately for a witty return. Anything! Just…something!

I swallow. His warm skin feels so good beneath my fingers and I can’t get our kisses out of my head. The way his hands moved over me, the way he felt beneath my own. Gosh, I want him so much that I actually hate him right now. I especially hate that he clobbered me in this debate, even if he totally cheated.

“Geez. Put your clothes on. Luke’s trying to eat.”

“I’m good,” Luke interjects, and I glare over at him, but finally manage to pull away from Casey. I grab his shirt from the floor and sling it back at him. He captures it against his chest with that goofy grin that only increases his appeal.

“And also, I don’t believe for a second that you can look like that sitting around watching TV and eating bar food, so that makes you a liar on top of everything else.”

Casey laughs and mercifully slips his shirt back over his head.

“Of course not. I was kidding about the junk food and stress. Trust me, they keep us on a pretty tight leash.” He pauses, and glances over at Luke. “Speaking of which, I was go

For some reason, Luke looks to me first before nodding. “Actually, if you want, I’ll just call down and have Mara get you one of your own.”

I’m sure Casey’s stu

“Thanks, man,” Casey replies casually, but I know he must be bursting inside as well.

“Sure. Thanks for the burger.”

Casey nods, and somehow we all sense the universe has shifted.

 

∞∞∞

 

Luke says he’ll make the call to Mara from his room and disappears shortly afterwards for some time alone. He’s had an emotionally exhausting day that jerked him all over the spectrum, so I’m not surprised. You don’t shatter glass without drawing blood.

Once we’re alone, I glance back at Casey who still seems in shock.

“Guess you’re staying?” I say.

“Guess so,” he replies with a smile.

“What about your life? I mean, don’t you have somewhere else you’re supposed to be?”

He grins. “Trying to get rid of me?”

I roll my eyes. “You know I want you here. I just…I don’t know. You must have a whole other life. Obligations.”

“Obligations,” he smirks. “Yeah. But nothing I can’t do from here. Don’t worry, Mom, I’ll be where I need to be when I need to be there.”

He sighs. “Anyway, I do have my own place, but it’s nothing worth missing. I’m on the road so much I never thought there was any point in setting up roots.” He pauses. “I could say the same to you.”

I almost laugh. “Please. My life is literally nothing. Talk about a pointless existence.”

I feel his gaze and realize I revealed more than I’d intended.

“Sorry, that didn’t come out right.”

He shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe it did. What does that mean? Who are you? I don’t even know your last name.”

I look away. “No one worth your time, believe me.”

I upset him. I can see it in the way his eyes change, that constant amusement dissolving into anger.

“You do understand you’re insulting me, too, when you do that?”

Not the response I was expecting. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. I just …I don’t know. I just meant I’m no one.”

He shakes his head in frustration. “What the hell does that even mean? You’re no one? So am I just an idiot then to be wasting entire days and nights with ‘no one’?”

My heart starts to pound. “No. That’s not what I meant. Of course not.”

He glares at me and curses. “No, I know what you meant. I know exactly what you meant. Your face isn’t slapped all over the internet and some stupid magazine so therefore you don’t count as a person in my life just because mine is. God, Callie, we basically met two days ago and I can’t even imagine not having you in my life at this point. Luke didn’t know you existed a month ago and now you’re his best chance at survival. You’re doing what no one else could! You write poetry that cut into me, and have made me laugh so much these last couple days it’s actually starting to get painful.” He draws in a deep breath, and I can only stare in stu

I bite my lip and shift in my stool, doing everything I can to sort through the explosion. There’s so much there, it’s so heavy, I don’t know how. I cover my face with my hands and lean my elbows on the counter. He doesn’t respond, he’s waiting for my decision, and I suck in a deep breath. Is he proving to be my hammer?