You Belong With Me (14 page)

"I wanna go see the fishies, daddy. Pweeze?"

Domenic and Eva scooped her up and started walking towards the dock. Domenic said over his shoulder, " We will be right back. Just order us both burgers well done and chicken nuggets for this one." He pointed at Haley.

Once they weren't in ear shot Jane reached over and placed her hand onto Carter's forearm.

"So, all these years later and you are still in love with her, aren't you?"

Carter choked on his beer and he began to cough. "Jesus Christ mom. What are you talking about?" He said while trying to clear his throat.

"Don't take the Lords name in vain son and you know exactly what I mean. I know you have been in love with Casey since you first introduced me to her at Beach Bums all those years ago. You looked at her as though she had this illuminating light around her and you were drawn to it. It's obvious by way you are around her. How attentive you are with her, when she is with you. I just have one question for you son. Why aren't you fighting for her? What has stopped you all these years?"

Carter rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands and scratched the stubble on his chin.

"It's that obvious?" He asked her.

"Honey I gave birth to you. I know everything there is to know about you. I know when you are happy, I know when you are sad, I know when you're frustrated and dear God I know when my child is in love."

Carter sat back in his chair and just looked at his mother. The all knowing, ever wise Jane London saw right through him.

"Forever, mom." He said quietly.

"Forever, what son?"

"I've loved her, forever. Or at least it seems that way."

"Then why haven't you told her all this time. Why put yourself through this torture, Carter?"

He didn't want to say it. This was his mother and the sun rose and set with him. How could he tell her that he thought with his dick instead of his heart on most occasions? He was twenty eight years old. A man, a musician, an adult.

"You really want to know mom?" She nodded yes.

"Because of two things. First thing is, I think with what's between my legs and second." He paused. "And second, I'm not good enough for her. Jordan Reid can give her the world. All I can give her is a few months out of the year that I'm not on tour or in the studio."

She gave him a closed smile and shook her head. "Oh Carter, you were always good enough for Casey. Can't you see that? You just never had enough confidence to prove yourself wrong. You. Are. Good. Enough." She paused after each word in order to make her point.

"Life is all about taking chances. Some go our way, some don't, but you will never know unless you take a leap of faith."

"I have a confession, mom. I did a lot of thinking on the road and I had decided that when I came back I was going to tell her how I felt. I would tell her I loved her and always had and that I wanted to spend my life with her. I wanted to tell her she belonged to me, with me. When I got back, that's when she told me about Jordan. I decided to back off because she looked so happy."

"And what about you son? What about your happiness? It matters you know?"

Carter pondered her words. Domenic, Eva, and Haley made their way back with someone else in tow.

"Look who we found on our way back from the docks." Behind them stood Tommy.

"Boo!" He jumped from Domenic's back and surprised Jane.

"My third son!" She exclaimed. He went over to her embracing her in a tight hug.

"Hi mom. You look great!"

"And you look tired, my boy," She answered. She touched his cheek and smiled at him.

"It's because of the lack of dietary sufficiency on the road. Nothing to be concerned about." He grabbed Haley out of Eva's arms and started to tickle her.

"And how's my favorite girl doing, Hale Hale."

"Tommy, you nook funny. I don't nike your nails." Haley said shaking her head.

"You don't like the color, Hale? Maybe you can paint them for me tomorrow, whatever color you want."

The little blonde haired angel wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him. Jane kept looking Tommy over and he smiled as he embraced Haley. It was a look of concern. She had known this boy's troubles in the past and did whatever she could to protect and watch him since his parents were killed. He lived with Jane and Carter after that and made sure she performed the duties a mother would. Keeping him away from the drugs was a tough one, but she tried her best as though he was her own flesh and blood.

"Tommy, where are you staying?" Jane asked.

"With a few of the roadies from the tour in St. Pete's. Then me and Lond are going to find a place after the East Coast tour. Right, Lond?"

Carter and Tommy talked about buying or renting a house somewhere near Indian Shores, close to Jane and close to Casey. Carter's intention was to tell Tommy that he wasn't going down that path once he came home and told Casey how he felt. He fantasied that Casey would jump into his arms and profess her love of him as well, they would live in her townhouse until Luminosity won their first Grammy, then they would buy a house right on the Gulf, and live happily ever after. That dream was flushed down the toilet as soon as the name Jordan Reid was spoken.

Carter answered him softly, "That's the plan."

"Well, I can't stay. I have some things to do downtown. I just wanted to stop and say hi and I promise I'll come for dinner one night, mom." Tommy stood up and gave Jane a quick peck on the cheek.

"Wait, how did you even know we were here?" Carter asked.

"I called Casey and she told me you were in Clearwater and I figured you were here because we always come here with mom." He smiled and bent down to kiss Haley and Eva and shake Domenic's hand.

"Lond, I will see you at rehearsal for the reunion on Thursday, right?"

"Yep, I'll be there. Hey, did you talk to Lyla?"

Tommy raised one side of his mouth in a smirk and chuckled.

"Nope. She hates me but then again who can blame her. I'll kiss the hate right out of her one of these days." He winked at Jane, gave them all a wave and left the restaurant.

"Carter, he doesn't look good. I'm worried. He is pale and too thin. You don't think he's up to no good again, do you?" Carter lied right to his mother's face.

"No, mom. He's great. He's just tired from the tour. We have only been home for a few days. Let him rest." Jane dropped the conversation and Carter was glad. He tend to be transparent when lying. He was worried about Tommy since the other night at Beach Bums. He hoped it was a short lived weakness and it wouldn't happen again. He would keep a close eye on him for the next few weeks.

After lunch, Carter headed back to Casey's house to practice a few new songs on the keyboard. He had no idea what time she was going to be home, but he remembered she had to work a twelve hour shifts the next few days. He remembered her saying she had a lot of laundry to do. He went to her room and retrieved her dirty laundry, and used towels from the bathroom. He made his way to the kitchen where her double decker washer and dryer were behind a billfold door. He began the laundry then looked around to see if there was anything else he could do to help her out. She worked long, tiring hours at the hospital. He went under the kitchen sink to grab some cleaning products and began going around the house dusting and polishing the furniture and cleaned up in the kitchen. By the time he was finished, the first load of laundry was done. He put it in the dryer and put the dirty towels in to be washed. He made his way to the second floor to clean the bathroom and then went to Casey's room to dust and polish. When he went into it the smell of Magnolias came into his brain. He could have stayed in that room forever. He went to her bed and ran his hand across her pillow. He thought about her laying her sweet head down at night and how she breathed as she slept. He could almost hear her in his head. He needed to get out of that room before another piece of his heart broke.

He finished up everything he could and then he had an idea. He would cook for her. Surely she would notice how domesticated he was. He guaranteed Jordan Reid never picked up a dust rag in his life or cooked a meal. He was raised on servants and probably didn't know the first thing about the service industry. Carter looked in Casey's cabinets and found a few ingredients so he could muster up a decent meal for her. Now he would wait till her Converse clad feet walked in the door.

Casey and Lyla made their way to Neiman's and Casey tried on several dresses for Lyla. She settled on a bluish-green satin strapless dress the was rouged at the bodice and hung straight down. It had a big slit on the side and paired it with silver strappy Gucci heels. She finished it up with a matching hand bag and a pair of silver and diamond drop earrings. The color of the dress complimented her eye color and it made her tan glow even more. They decided to grab a quick lunch at a cafe near the store before she had to get home and do her weekly chores. She dreaded it.

They sat down to eat their salads.

"Case, you've been really quiet today. What's up?" Lyla shoved a piece of lettuce in her mouth.

"Nothing really. Something happened last night and it's been on my mind all day."

Lyla was still chewing and said with a full mouth, "What has?" Casey took a sip of her water and began twirling her hair in a sped up motion.

"Last night, Jordan and I were having sex."

Lyla raised her eyebrows up and down at her suggestively. "Oh, really. Tell me all the nasty details."

Casey shook her head and continued the twirling frenzy.

"Carter was also home with Ashby."

"Oh God, don't even tell me you heard them. Gross, Case."

"Yes. Unfortunately, I did hear them having sex but that isn't all I heard. I think when he was.. you know..."

"Finishing?" Lyla asked. "God Case, just say it. You can be such a prude."

"OK. Yes. Finishing. Geez. He called out.... my name."

Lyla's jaw dropped and she was about to say she wasn't surprised but she stopped herself because she couldn't betray Carter's wishes and tell her how he felt about Casey. Besides she was happy to see her friend happy with Jordan. Lyla knew what Carter was like. He was a ladies' man and always was.

"Ly, say something. I feel so. I don't know. Dirty?"

"Don't feel like that, Case. It may have just been the fact that he was most likely drunk off his ass and he was in your house and that's why he said it." Lyla tried to lie and she internally cringed when she realized that it wasn't a very good scenario.

"I guess your right. I can't eat anymore. Let's go. I have a ton of housework to do before I have to work a twelve tomorrow."

The girls made their way home. Casey dropped off Lyla and pulled in her driveway. She walked up to her front door and heard soft music coming from inside. She opened the door and heard the smooth as silk vocals of one Mr. Al Green playing. He crooned about staying together. She smelled fresh lemons and looked around to see that the house was spic and span. She looked towards the bottom of the steps to see her laundry basket filled with fresh folded clothes and towels.

As she ventured further into the house she spotted the dining table set for two and a candle burning between two place settings. As Al still sang, she heard the soulful voice of another man. She peered around to the kitchen and saw a sight that stopped her heart. A shirtless, tanned, barefooted, lean, muscular specimen of a man stood at her stove bending over into her oven singing away. His gray drawstring sweatpants hugging his tight, well defined ass. As he straightened up after retrieving some kind of baking dish from inside, she noticed his muscles flex and curve as he moved his body. His skin looked soft and supple. He wore her big red and white floral oven mitts and she noticed how his sweat pants hung low on his hips and she could see the side of his natural 'V' that lead to his center. She thought it was without a doubt the sexist thing she had ever laid her eyes on and it pissed her off to no end that his body stirred these unwanted reactions from her. She cursed his body in her head:
Son of a bitch, fucking wash board fucking abs, fucking flexing muscles, Goddamn "V," mother fucking treasure trail of hair going towards his fucking....

Carter continued his singing and turned to place the baking dish on the table when he spotted Casey standing there with her lip pulling in and out of her mouth. One thing entered his brain. Affected! Score another point for Carter. He turned towards her.

"Hey, sweetface, when did you get here?"

It took her a moment to answer. She swallowed hard and open and shut her eyes, trying to focus better on the question at hand.

"I.. um. I. Wait you cooked?"

"Yep." He said as he made his way to the table and put down the dish.

"And you did the cleaning and the laundry too?"

He stood up and leaned against the door jam of the kitchen. He crossed his legs at the ankles and his big, strong arms in front of his chest. Those damn sexy muscles flexed again. She took notice. In all reality, how could she not? He smiled at her with his dark haired, five o'clock shadow, and the deep, insanely hot dimple that made it's appearance on one side of his face.

"I did. I know you have a busy week with work and the dinner party so I figured since I'm crashing here, I mind as well pitch in."

She plopped down her bag and keys on the table and went over to him.

"You really are a big old softy aren't you, Carter London? Now feed me." She placed her hand on his naked bicep and instantly felt something that she never expected. She felt a surge of electricity. It was almost painful as though she was burnt or shocked by what she felt. She retracted her hand quickly but not enough not to feel what was apparent. She backed up towards the steps unsteadily. He watched her reaction when she touched him. It was like the blue light in her eyes began to dance.

"Car, I'm kind of not feeling well right now. I sort of have a headache. Everything smells great but I think I need to...no I know I need to lie down. Can you wrap mine up and I'll eat it for lunch tomorrow?"