Cerberus

8. Fire Fight

"What the fuck does that mean?" Lydia was fuming and she could feel the effects of the lemon drop shots heating her face.
Kassidy looked sideways at her. "Exactly what you think it means." He said.
"If you have something you'd like to say to me, say it with your chest." Lydia took a step closer to him and he turned in his chair to fully face her.
"It means stop acting like the victim and face what you did to get yourself into this situation." Kassidy's blue eyes darkened as he spoke, the truth of his words hitting her like a bus.
Lydia felt her anger building up in her throat and she clenched her fists. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't I? It's all over every shitty tabloid posted to the internet. You're viral, princess, and not for your ineptitude for driving boats."
She froze.
Kassidy wasn't done, "you think you're so perfect? I didn't have to look long to figure out why your father wanted you out of the public eye. His golden child has fallen from grace, making a mockery out of the family name. And you want us to feel bad for you? Think again. Real life's a bitch, get used to it."
"Fuck you." Was all she could say, tears threatening to well in her eyes.
"Not even in your dreams." Kassidy stood and reached behind the bar to pull out a bottle of brandy left on the counter below the bar top. "On second thoughts, I think I will enjoy my night off." He said before unscrewing the top, taking a pull, and stalking off to the stairs that led to the ground floor.
"Lydia," Isaac said, "he didn't mean that." He stood and took a step closer to her.
Lydia inhaled sharply and cautiously dabbed under her eyes so as not to smudge her make up. "It's fine Isaac. Why should I care what a washed up asshole thinks about me?" She took Kassidys vacated seat next to Isaac's and waved to the bar tender who was quietly minding his business at the sink. "Make me something strong, would you? And can you call the kitchen and ask what the hold up is? I'm hungry, Isaac is too." She plastered one of her best smiles on and looked to Isaac, hoping he'd be his usual talkative self. She didn't think she had the capacity to make idle small talk. Not when the weight of Kassidys words held so much volume over her head.

~

Kassidy ate dinner alone down stairs at the outdoor seating area. He occasionally pulled from the bottle he'd taken from the bar, the amber liquid went down smooth. Who knew how much the bottle alone cost, but from the taste, it was a lot. He hadn't meant to snap so fiercely at Lydia but the ups and downs from the last few days were taking a toll on his patience.
He had learned about Lydia's problem streak the night before they left for the airport. Osman had filled him in. He'd known she was an influential member of the socialite circle but her recent behavior had gotten out of hand. The yacht wasn't even the worst of it. She had a habit of causing scenes where publicists were present and biting at the bit for a good story. It was like she fed off the attention that gave her, even if it was all bad attention.
He had decided that afternoon that he wouldn't be another ablest allowing her to run rampant and bully everyone around her. Perhaps getting a dose of her own brazen behavior was just what she needed. But still, he felt foolish for belittling her before she had even made an attempt to be bullheaded. But knowing her, it wouldn't have taken long.
An hour passed and he was still sitting outside. The influence of the alcohol and the sound of water running over the edge of the infinity pool had lulled him into relaxing back into the chair, bottle held lazily by its neck, his legs spread and stretched out before him. In the distance, The Strip was lit up like a machine that never took a days rest.
The soft sound of someone's bare feet on the concrete floor behind him stirred him from his state of relaxation and he looked over his shoulder to see Lydia approaching the pool a ways behind him. She was wrapped in a black satin robe and carried a large black towel over her arms. She didn't so much as look his direction as she stopped and slid the robe off her shoulders, letting it pool at the ground by her feet. She was wearing a forest green bikini underneath. She quietly stepped into the pool, taking one step at a time until she was submerged up to her waist.
In another world, Kassidy might have allowed himself to appreciate the curve of her waist and hips. He would have let himself look at the parts of her breast that weren't covered by the tiny bit of fabric on her chest. He might have even let himself look further down to her high wasted bikini bottoms, only tied together by a thin string on each side. The curve of her ass just as appealing as every other inch of her bod.... Shit... how much had he drank?
Kassidy snapped his attention back to The Strip in the distance.
"What, don't like what you see?" Lydia had moved closer to him.
Kassidy remained silent and took another pull from the bottle now tightly gripped in his right hand.
He heard the splash of water as she made it to the edge of the pool beside him and folded her arms over the lip.
Kassidy looked over his right shoulder to see her resting her chin on her crossed arms, looking up through her lashes at him.
"I think we started off on the wrong foot." She said to him. "If we're going to be stuck here together, we should at least try to get along."
"Getting along with you isn't my job." Kassidy said gruffly.
"But it would make your job a lot easier." She replied.
Kassidy quietly observed her. He could tell she was trying to play at something but couldn't figure out what. His thoughts were coming slowly and it was getting increasingly more difficult to focus his eyes on her face.
"We should go out to the city one night." She said, tilling her head to the side.
"No." Was all Kassidy could say. Was it just him, or were her cheeks an unusual shade of red. "Are you drunk?" He asked bluntly.
Lydia grinned up at him knowingly, "are you?"
Kassidy rolled his eyes, "I'm off tonight and I'll be gone for the day tomorrow."
Lydia perked up her head at that, "where are you going?" She asked.
He hadn't meant to bring it up, it had just come out. "It doesn't matter."
"Can I go with you?"
"No."
"Don't be such an ass, I need to get out of this house." She pleaded.
"Not happening." Kassidy said. He took another small pull to signify the end of the conversation.
Splashing pulled his attention back to her. She was pulling herself out of the pool and began stalking across the few feet separating them. Beads of water ran down her neck and into her very visible cleavage. He couldn't help but follow them as they descended further down to her navel. He snapped his unruly attention back up to meet her eyes. Her expression was a mask, eyes hooded with a look he couldn't read.
She stopped and knelt down by the right arm of his chair. They sat there, face to face, for a moment without speaking. She lifted her hand up and gently traced the tattoos on his forearm with her finger.
"All this time alone in this house could make a girl very lonely." She said in an uncharacteristically low voice.
Kassidy only watched her hand as it began drawing circles on the back of his own, which still held firmly to the bottle of brandy.
"A little company can go a long ways."
Slowly, so fucking slowly Kassidy drew his eyes back up to meet Lydia's. She was looking at him expectantly. She was definitely drunk... but so was he.
In that moment, Kassidy realized what she was insinuating and before he could stop himself, a laugh erupted from his lips.
"Is this your next attempt at getting me under your thumb? You're better than that, Lydia." He shook his head and laughed softly under his breath. "I'm going to bed. I'll send Isaac down."
He stood abruptly and shook his head, laughing under his breath. Lydia stood as well, her expression once again turned to ice.
"You're an ass." Was all she said to him as he stalked towards the stairs, only stopping to pick up her towel and toss it to her. She caught it and wrapped her arms around it, as if for security.
"Not the worst thing I've been called. Goodnight, princess."
Kassidy left her there by the pool, placing his bottle of brandy back on the upstairs bar as he passed it. He made sure to inform Isaac of Lydia's location and lack of sobriety before making his way back into his room for the night.