No Love Allowed(2)

Humiliated and close to tears herself, Didi dropped to the ground and began gathering shards of glass and placing them on the tray. Blubbering Girl wouldn’t stop screaming hateful words, adding to Didi’s fast-rising stress levels. Doing her best to close off as much of the noise as she could, she concentrated on picking up what was left of her dignity scattered among the glass and lemon slices. She wasn’t going to cry. Damn it. She totally wasn’t.

When she reached for the largest piece, a hand beat her to it. She looked up into the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. They were so clear she could almost see her reflection in them. She gasped when the tips of her fingers grazed the back of his hand.

“You don’t have to do that,” she said quickly, hating how shaky her voice had become. The corners of her eyes stung.

“You shouldn’t be doing it either,” he replied. “You could cut yourself.”

“But it’s my job,” she insisted, reaching for a clump of cucumbers.

“To cut yourself?”

She pinned him with a withering glare. She’d had just about enough. Her day had to stop getting worse. Or she would explode. Or spiral into a deep, dark pit of despair. Either was bound to happen. She felt it like an itch under her skin.

The corners of his gorgeous eyes crinkled as he whispered, “To be honest, what just happened did me a huge favor.” He glanced up and said loud enough for the girl still looming over them to hear, “It’s just a little water, Amber. Calm down.”

Didi would have laughed if she could have found it in herself to. He had just said the two worst words any guy could say to a clearly distressed female. Something about him being a jerk was yelled. She looked over her shoulder and witnessed pink pumps striding away. She would have breathed a sigh of relief if the stocky form of her manager hadn’t been lumbering toward them.

“Mr. Parker, I’m so very sorry,” he said.

Trust-Fund Brat stood up. Didi followed him with her eyes, because how could she not? Paying attention, she could make out the best details about him. Besides those eyes, his dark tousled hair was combed to one side. When he smiled at her manager and shook his hand, a hint of a dimple appeared. She was pretty sure the combination of navy sports jacket over a simple T-shirt, and khakis with leather loafers cost more than what she made at the club in an entire year. Add sparkles dancing in the air around him and he would cut a dazzling figure. Hell, it was like he had stepped out of a Ralph Lauren catalogue—all pressed and shiny.

“Don’t worry about it, Tony,” he said after pulling his hand away from the manager’s grip. “Put everything on my tab.”

It rubbed Didi the wrong way how he used his money to smooth things over. Sure, she couldn’t afford paying for the glasses and the food that had already been ordered, but she didn’t need someone like Mr. Parker coming to her rescue. Oh, why oh why had he picked her section to sit at today?

Impulsively she pushed to her feet and said, “That won’t be necessary.”

The corners of his eyes crinkled again. “Really. I’m happy to pay. What’s two glasses and lunch? You can even keep the burger and salad.” He leaned in, giving her a good whiff of his cologne—cool, clean, and crisp. Expensive. “You saved me. I owe you.”

Like water from a burst pipe, words spewed out. “You don’t owe me anything. I tripped because I was wearing the wrong shoes. I spilled the water on Ashley—”

“Amber,” he corrected.

“Whatever.” She huffed. “I’m done! My fault.” She yanked off her name tag, threw it at Trust-Fund Brat, and stomped off in the direction of the staff locker room.

The country club sat on a hill overlooking the water. Boats of different sizes tugged against their moorings along the docks, waiting for their owners to take them out. The afternoon sun gleamed, giving the water a shimmer like golden confetti. The sky looked way too clear for the kind of drama Caleb had already been through.

After making sure Amber had left by asking one of the valets out front, he made his way to the limited-edition Mustang his grandmother had given him for his sixteenth birthday, parked in its slot facing the docks. Still in mint condition, it had been his grandfather’s car. Given to him by the great Carroll Shelby himself. He would miss the car when he took his gap year, but it was a small price to pay for freedom.

He sat in the driver’s seat, not intending to leave. Amber’s shrill voice still rang in his ears. Tugging his phone out of his back pocket, he plugged it into the special jack on the dashboard. Then he opened the glove compartment and grabbed a small plastic bag containing a joint and a lighter. He glanced around.

The parking lot looked empty, but considering his luck today, he didn’t want to risk adding an arrest for possession with intent to use to his worries.

Slipping the joint and the lighter into his pocket, he left the baggie on the passenger seat and got out of the car. He knew the best place to get high.

Coward’s Cliff. It stretched out over the water and was accessible by a path that began at the edge of the parking lot. The stand of trees gave the perfect cover. As kids, he and his friends used to dare one another to jump off. It wasn’t too far from the road, but it was secluded enough that a passing cop wouldn’t see him from the road.

Caleb ambled down the grassy path, keeping his stride leisurely, hands in his pockets. As far as anyone who saw him was concerned, he was out on an after-lunch stroll, enjoying the rest of the beautiful day. Once he made it to the shelter of the cliff, he fished out the joint and lighter.