I Get A Kick Out of You

Chapter 54

"What do you mean he lost his—!" Cassie quickly shushed her dad and brought him out to the balcony. It was getting to be a brisk cold in New York, but she loved it. It's one of the many reasons she wants to move back.

She peaked through the glass door and saw Ben giving her a thumbs up, indicating Ethan didn't hear his grandfather almost blow up about him losing the scholarship. Not only did she not need that on Thanksgiving of all days, but she didn't need Ethan to feel worse than he already does.

Not that he doesn't deserve it.

"What do you mean he lost his scholarship?" Don asked, his voice not any lower than it was inside. "It means he lost it!" She said, equally as loud. "He got into too many fights at school that they took it away! He has a chance to get it back, but—."

"But nothing!" Her father said. "It doesn't matter if he gets it back or not, that record is going to follow him for the rest of his life! If a scholarship wasn't on the line, then it would be thrown out like nothing, but if he's seriously considering being a professional baseball player, teams are going to look at that! Not to mention the media, the fuckers!"

This was not helping. She was hoping to get some advice from her father, not more stress! Don could see this - unlike her mother, he could read her like a book - and took a deep breath. "Sorry," he told her. "Look, do you want me to talk to him? Give some grandfatherly advice?"

As much as she would love that, she knew it wouldn't work. "You can try," she told him, "but I can't get a damn word out of him. Neither can Joel." Don scoffed, "Well, let's face it, Joel has never been much of a father, a husband, a man." He really hated Joel.

"What about Ben?" He asked. Cassie gazed out to her loving city and shook her head. "He won't talk to him, either. I know it's this fucking rumor that's going around about him, but he won't tell anyone what it's about, not even Cill. I don't get it, dad, he used to tell me everything. It only stopped when he started getting in trouble. It's like he's trying to protect himself from something, but he needs to know that I am the best person to protect him from everything that comes his way."

Don smiled lovingly at his daughter and brought her in for a hug. "Oh, how the tables have turned," he said. She looked up at him questionably, so he elaborated, "You used to be the same way, baby girl. You told me everything, remember? It wasn't unit you got pregnant that you stopped because you thought I would think differently of you. And what did I do when you told me?"

She had to smile at the memory. He reacted the complete opposite of what she thought. "You asked me if I was okay, then made us hot chocolate," she told him. "I ended up talking your ear off for hours about my fears and you just listened. Then, you threatened to kill Joel if he ever hurt me or the baby."

They both laughed. "I think the talking to I gave him after finding out what he did scared him enough," Don said. Cassie scoffed, "Yeah, you think? He called me shaking and asking if I told you to do that. When I told him I didn't, that scared him even more."

Again, they both laughed. "I'll talk to him," Don concluded as he gently got out of the hug. "Maybe he'll tell his old grandpa what's going on." Cassie huffed as she said, "Good luck, grandpa." As he walked inside, he pointed to her and said, "Hey, only my grandkids are allowed to call me that!"

She laughed and shook her head, then went back to gazing out at her city. She truly loved it here and hoped Ben was serious about moving back once the boys graduate. Speaking of Ben, she glanced back to see him and her dad talking. They laughed for a moment, then Don went on his way.

Ben looked out to Cassie and gave her a smile. She returned a small one, then turned back around. Ben grabbed her glass of wine, then came out and shut the door behind him. "Bloody hell, it's freezing," he said. "Do you want me to grab your jacket?"

She simply shook her head, never taking her eyes off of the Empire State Building. He both their glasses down on the nearby table, then wrapped his arms securely around her waist from behind. "You, and I will say it again and again, are my personal heater," he told her. "What's on your mind?"

The look she gave him made him realize that was a stupid question. "Right," he said, "sorry. Your dad told me he was going to try and talk with him. Who knows, this could be it." Shaking her head, she told him, "No, it's not. Believe me, if he won't talk to me, he won't talk to anyone. That's how it's always been."

"Well, maybe he'll talk to Maria," he suggested. "She really is a great therapist and I'm sure Ethan will console in her once he gets comfortable. No, you won't know what's going on still, but at least he'll get it all out. Right?"

Nodding, she told him, "Right." He knew that didn't make her feel any better. Still, he buried his face into her neck, then said, "Let's go out tomorrow night. Just you and me. I'll get us a nice hotel and I'll make you forget all about these past few days. That's a promise."

Now that got her to smile. He chuckled into her neck and held her close. "I love you so much, baby. I feel I haven't been saying it as often as I should. I love you so damn much, it's impossible to put into words."

Her smile grew even more and he could feel it against his head. She eventually turned into his arms and gave him a big hug. He held her tighter than any person would deem comfortable, but she promises these are her favorite hugs.

"I'm so grateful for you, Ben," she said. "It's impossible to love me more than I love you." He laughed as he placed a kiss onto her head. "My arse," he told her, "but we'll see who wins that tomorrow night."