I help her stand and slap her ass as she rushes to the bathroom to compose herself. I pocket her thong; she won’t be needing it tonight. I grab a towel from the kitchen to wipe my face as I walk to unlock the door. It flings open and there stands my best friend, dressed to the nines.
"Couldn’t wait till after dinner to have your dessert, could you, Luci." I hate his nickname for me. He walks past me, ruffling my hair like a child. Asshole. But he is the brother I never had so I still love him.
He catcalls and whistles, and I turn to see Cassie coming from the hall. She walks up and gives Jayme a big hug.
"Hello, sweetheart. You look breathtaking. Black dress? Louboutin’s? Seems familiar. Almost as familiar as those lovely sounds I heard when I stepped off the elevator." She playfully elbows him in the gut.
"Yeah, you clean up nicely, too. For a pig." She retorts back at him.
"Ouch, a pig? That's just rude, Cassie. I believe if I’m a farm animal, I’m a horse since I’m hung like one." He bursts out laughing, and she slugs him in the shoulder.
"Ok, you two, don’t we have to get going?" I ask Jayme.
"Yep, the limo is downstairs. Oh, and Cassie, there’s something inside the limo for you." He gives his devilish grin.
"Ooh, a present?"
"You could say that, " he jokes. I don’t even know what he is talking about or what this surprise is. I was just told to be ready by six and dress fancy.
"All righty, let’s go." She says as she grabs her clutch and heads out the door. There goes my woman. Mi amor. Mine.
72. Cassie
I’ve only been in a limo a handful of times, but every time, I am still taken aback by how beautiful and spacious they are on the inside. On the seat is a black velvet box. Oh God, it better not be another collar. As the boys get in and look at me, I’m staring daggers at Jayme. He surrenders, holding up his hands as if he knows what I was thinking.
"Chill, Cass, it’s not a collar. Just open it.
Inside the box is two black silk blindfolds.
"One for you and one for Lucian. Can’t let you see where we are going and ruin the surprise now, can I?" Jayme explains.
I shrug at Lucian and put it on. I’m assuming he does the same because Jayme claps his hands together.
"All right, let the fun begin. Gino, we are ready to go." Gino is one of Mr. Sniders most trusted drivers. Jayme occasionally hires him to be his driver when he is in town, though.
The car turns and turns. I can’t seem to follow where it is going. I’m about to ask how much longer it will take when the limo suddenly stops.
"Okay, we are here. There is still no peeking. Lucian, I’ll take you in first, then I’ll come back for you, Cassie." I feel Lucian squeeze my hand.
"See you in there." He exits the limo, and I’m left in silence. I don’t like being alone nowadays. The silence is deafening, making my stomach turn, but Jayme is only gone for less than a minute.
"No worries, sweetheart. I didn’t go for long." Thankfully, he understands. He takes my hands and helps guide me out of the car and up the steps to the door. "Okay, you can take off your blindfold now."
"SURPRISE!" People are shouting from every direction. We are at Papa Pepperonis.
"I rented the whole place out for tonight," Jayme says, putting a hand on my shoulder. I look out over my friends and family. Even Madam Odette and Mr. and Mrs. Snider are here.
"What’s going on?" I smile and laugh.
"Your birthday is in 2 weeks, silly. And I can’t make it back for that, so I decided to throw you a surprise party. All with the help of your amazing friend, Ash." He tips his head to her and winks.
They have been awfully weird around each other ever since I was in the hospital. They will be all sweet and flirty until they realize someone is watching. Then they go back to acting like they can’t stand each other. They think they are so sly.
"Thank you. Wait, why did Lucian have to be blindfolded?" I ask.
"Oh, because Lucian sucks at keeping secrets, especially from you. So he knew nothing of this night other than to dress fancy and be ready by 6."
I laugh. He isn’t wrong. Lucian sucks at keeping secrets. He can’t lie to save his life. I turn and give Jayme a big hug and a kiss on the cheek.
