10: Big fish

Cassie POV

The next day, I witnessed something interesting at college. Piper McCoy came to confront me.

I was in the amphitheater, finishing preparations for a mock trial that the law program was holding for the university’s next presentation, when the girl approached me, dressed in her cheerleader uniform. “Whatever you’re doing with Mark, you better stop. He’s mine now. You lost him!” She looked pissed as she spoke.

I raised an eyebrow. “I have no idea what you’re talking about?” I was amused seeing Piper so mad, but I genuinely didn’t know what she was referring to—not yet, at least.

“Oh, you know exactly what I mean, Cassie!” She took a step closer, her face furious. “Stay away from him, or I swear—”

“Piper!” It was Mark, approaching with an authoritative tone. “That’s enough. Back off. Leave Cassie alone!” he ordered, sternly.

“But Mark…” Piper tried.

“She’s got nothing to do with this, okay? I’m the one who doesn’t want anything to do with you anymore,” he told her.

I raised a curious eyebrow. Oh, so the cheating couple decided to call it quits? And it looked like Mark was the one who dumped her.

Piper stared at Mark with tear-filled eyes, then shot me a glare that could kill, before storming off, stomping her feet. I let out a mocking chuckle. “What a drama.”

“Sorry about that, Cassie. I really need to put her in her place,” he said.

I shrugged, gathering my textbooks and stuffing them into my bag. “As long as you both keep me out of it.”

“Relax, it’s all good,” he smiled, but then stood there in front of me, as if waiting for me to give him orders to move. “So, what do you think about Mexican food? My treat,” he offered.

I looked at him for a moment. Was he genuinely trying to be a decent guy now, or was this another one of his cheap tricks? Piper McCoy’s tears seemed too real for this to be a ploy, and honestly, he deserved a little of my attention after giving me the pleasure of seeing McCoy like that.

“Mexican food gives me gas. I’d rather have Japanese,” I replied, then walked off, knowing he’d follow me, grinning like an idiot.

Mark took me to one of the most expensive Japanese restaurants in Chicago. Man, I wasn’t even dressed for a place like this—jeans, a hoodie, and my hair tied up in a messy bun weren’t exactly appropriate for such a fancy spot.

The bill for the appetizers alone was probably a couple thousand dollars, but I mentally shrugged. It wasn’t my money, and if Mark wanted to spend his cash on me, let him. He still owed me big time after what he did to me.

“So, busy as always?” he asked, and I nodded.

“Preparing the mock trial for the next university presentation,” I answered, dipping a piece of sushi in sauce and savoring it. I was the president of the law program, something I’d earned through my own merit, but it came with a lot of responsibility.

“I’m always impressed by your dedication, seriously. Not many are like you,” he praised.

I chuckled. “Not everyone has rich parents,” I commented, but then regretted it as Mark’s smile faltered. I remembered his confession at my apartment yesterday and felt guilty. “Sorry.”

“No, it’s fine…” he mumbled, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed hard. “Like it or not, it’s still an advantage, right?”

“Tell me more about them, your parents? It must’ve been tough for your mom to go through a divorce like that.”

He sighed. “My mom, she… unfortunately, never recovered. My dad was her first love, you know. They got married young, for love. She always loved him so much, but my dad kept having affairs, no respect or consideration for her. My mom’s broken today, and he’s out there, hiring young, beautiful escorts and living his greedy life like he didn’t ruin hers.”

Mark’s words were so heavy they sent a shiver down my spine, a feeling of unease. This man, his father, sounded like a truly vile and selfish person. “I’m so sorry about your mom. Her story just makes me want to be a family lawyer even more, so I can protect women and kids who’ve gone through that kind of abuse from men like that,” I said.

Mark smiled, brushing his hand over mine on the table. “I’m sure you’ll be an amazing lawyer,” he said, looking at me.

But I pulled my hand back. Just because I was letting him open up didn’t mean I was open to him. For me, what we had was over.

After dinner, we walked side by side to my apartment building. We kept the conversation light, as the night was already heavy enough for more serious topics.

“Thanks, Mark. The food was amazing,” I said when we reached my building.

“You’re welcome. If you want, we can go to places like that more often,” he suggested.

“Careful, now. I’m a big eater—I might drain all your money with food,” I laughed, and he laughed too.

“Billionaire’s son, unlimited credit card,” he said, making me laugh. But then he looked at my building, then at me. “I’d really like it if you let me come up, keep you company.”

I shook my head. “No, Mark.”

He might be trying to earn my forgiveness, but he needed to understand that what he did was too serious, and I’d probably never forgive him, even if he turned into a saint. He had to know that and deal with it.

He nodded now. “Sure, sorry. See you around,” he said, then left.

I sighed, watching his back as he walked away, then took the elevator up to my apartment. As soon as I got home, I was greeted by Kitty’s cute bark.

I picked her up and started petting her. “Mommy’s home! Did you miss Mommy?” I kissed her, so happy that she wagged her little tail, content. When I got to the couch, I found Beckie sprawled out, asleep. Beckie had a key to my apartment, so she could come over whenever she wanted. “Wow,” I complained dramatically, smacking her leg to wake her up.

“Ow! What’s your deal, you savage?” she grumbled, rubbing the spot on her leg where I hit her.

“What are you doing here? Don’t you have a place of your own?” I asked. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at me.

“Ugh, don’t start. Let me sleep. I didn’t sleep all night—I’m wrecked,” she said, lying back down and closing her eyes.

“It’s already 9 p.m., how embarrassing. You slept the whole day?”

As soon as she heard my lecture, her eyes shot open, and she sat up on the couch. “What? It’s already night?” I sighed and sat down on the couch, now that there was space since she was sitting up.

“Yup, and at this hour, normal people are coming home from work or college, like me, for example,” I said, accusingly. My friend wasn’t even bothering with college.

“But I was working. My bank account’s looking pretty fat after last night,” she said, throwing her head back against the couch.

“So that’s the life you want? Living off gigs like that?”

“Look, if the guys from my gigs are rich and hot, I’m in,” she shrugged.

I sighed. “Who’s footing the bill? That Tyler guy?”

She rolled her eyes. “Forget Tyler, love. This girl was made for big fish,” she said, running her hands over her body, laughing. “You won’t believe who wanted to see me again.”

“Who?”

“Andrew and Connor,” she told me with great excitement. I shrugged, clueless about who they were.

“Who are they?” I asked, innocently.

“God, girl, those giant books you’re always reading are messing with your memory, huh?” She threw a pillow at me, hitting me but not hurting. “They’re Joshua’s friends from that wild night at Sins, remember?”

My eyes widened instantly, remembering Josh and the night we had. “My God, they called you again?” My heart nearly stopped in that moment.

So that meant Beck had seen Josh?