Reflections on Ice Ch. 02

In the morning, it was all Cassia could do to drag her ass out of bed and walk to the garage. She unlocked the front doors, her eyes still squinty with sleep. As she meandered through the garage, bumping into an SUV in the middle bay, she hoped someone had bought coffee this week.

She reached the office and flicked the lights on, seeking out the coffee maker. And sure enough, the cupboard over the machine was empty except for some mugs and filters.

"Son of a bitch."

"Cass? That you?"

Cassia turned at the sound of her brother, Kent's voice. "I'm in the office."

He appeared a moment later, filling the doorway with his former linebacker's form. He took one look at her face and fell back a step. "I didn't do it."

"Where's the coffee?"

His eyes flicked to the cupboard behind her. "Uh... didn't Kurt pick some up?"

"Was it his turn?"

Kent shrugged, backing away another step. Her morning demeanor sometimes had that effect. "I'll just run over to Cafe Longhorn and get you one."

"And text Kurt and tell him to pick up coffee for the office on his way in."

Kent's 'yes, ma'am' echoed through the empty shop, as he was already several paces away from the office, and her morning attitude.

Grumbling now, Cassia moved through the office, pulling out job tickets and seeing what was first priority for the day.

When Kent returned, his twin accompanied him, and they didn't say a word to her as Kent set the massive cup of coffee on the engine cover under the hood of the car she was looking at. She didn't say anything in reply, just reached for it, slamming back a quarter of it in a single gulp, mindless of the heat.

Once she downed another quarter of it, she felt her morning fog starting to lift. By the time she was finished the whole cup, the pot in the office was finished brewing with the coffee her brother, Kurt, had brought in. When she walked into the office to get a fresh cup, she found her father sitting at the desk.

"Hey, Dad."

"Hiya, sweetheart." He didn't look up from whatever form he was writing up. "How are you?"

"I'm good." She poured fresh coffee into her takeaway cup. "You?"

"All right. Your mama is making roast dinner on Saturday, you coming?"

"Yeah, of course." Cassia turned to face her father. "What's the occasion?"

He shrugged his big shoulders and sat back in his seat, looking up. "She misses you guys."

Cassia smiled. "Oh, please. We were there two weeks ago for the twins' birthday."

Keith Morgan, former University of Texas running back, laughed and stood up, towering over her. He put an arm around her shoulders and squeezed so hard, she winced. "Two weeks, too long."

They walked out to the garage together and over to the car she'd been working on.

"So what's up with this?"

Cassia leaned in and pointed with her free hand as she explained. Her dad nodded, picked up the clipboard that was resting against the windshield, and made a note.

"All right. Call Ms. Brown and ask when she wants to come get it."

Cassia nodded, took a long swallow of her coffee before setting it down, and leaned in to finish with the car.

A few hours later, she paused for a brief lunch of a sandwich and a banana. She sat on a stool, facing the shop and watched her dad and brothers working for a while, along with the other two employees, Fernando and James.

Someone new pulled into the driveway at the front of the shop and Cassia swallowed her last bite, washing it down with some soda, before hurrying out to greet them.

"Welcome to Morgan & Sons." Cassia smiled as the elderly man climbed out of his vintage Pontiac.

"Hello, young lady." The old man smiled at her. "Your daddy here?"

"He's just inside. Do you know him?"

"Yeah, Keith and I go way back."

Cassia shrugged and turned to lead the way. They didn't normally let customers into the shop, but at least twice a week, someone would drop in, saying they knew her father.

Sure enough, when she got her dad's attention, he wiped his hands and came right over, shaking the older man's hand.

"Geoff, you old bugger. How are you?"

Geoff laughed and squeezed Keith's arm and they both walked off to the office to talk. Cassia walked over to the car her dad and James had been working on.

"What's up here?"

"Couple loose belts, and the rad is blown."

"Damn." Cassia whistled through her teeth before she zipped up her coveralls and bent to help James.

A few more hours after that, Cassia was ready to crawl into bed and not move. She left the shop early, since she'd opened, and walked home to an empty apartment.

She was relieved to have the apartment to herself, even if it was only for a brief period. She didn't know when Kyle would be home, but she enjoyed the quiet solitude while she had it. Then she remembered her father's request that they all have dinner on Saturday. She knew Kyle wouldn't be thrilled.

Walking into the bathroom, she started the shower and stripped out of her work clothes. She had managed to get through the day with relatively little mess but she could feel the dust and grime on her skin anyway.

Half an hour later, she stood in the kitchen, slicing some chicken for dinner. As she was tossing the chicken and vegetables in the pan, the front door opened and in walked Kyle.

"Mmm. That smells good. What is it?"

"Teriyaki stir-fry." Cassia stirred the mix, added some more sauce, and stirred again. "You want some?"

"Yes, please."

"Go clean up and it'll be ready in a few minutes."

Kyle didn't argue. They sat down at her little kitchen table ten minutes later, and dug in.

"How was work?" Cassia asked after the first few bites.

Kyle shrugged. "It was fine. Why?"

"Just making small talk." The thought made her smile, recalling Dylan and his inability to manage the same with almost every woman he met. She had no doubt her brothers had never had that problem. Maybe she should introduce them all. Then she quickly discarded that idea. Somehow, the thought of her brothers meeting Dylan did not seem like a good thing.

After dinner, Kyle migrated to the couch to watch TV. Cassia cleaned up and joined him on the couch.

"So Dad said that Mom wants us all there for dinner on Saturday."

Kyle looked over with a frown. "Why?"

"Why not?"

"They probably want to lecture me some more."

Cassia smiled. "I don't know about that. Dad didn't say anything when he told me earlier."

Kyle turned back to the television. "Whatever. I'll go but if they say anything about it, I'm leaving."

"Your call."

Cassia sat with him a little longer before her yawns grew too broad and too frequent. She said goodnight and went to bed.

In her dark room, wrapped up in the covers on her bed, she wondered if she could duck out of dinner early on Saturday and go for pie at the diner again. She told herself it was because the pie at the diner was better than her mom's, not that she hoped to run into Dylan Samuels again. That would be foolish, even if she did know he'd be in town this weekend, while the league took a break for the All-Star weekend in Los Angeles. He was a hockey player, and yet he could barely talk to women without getting uncomfortable. She was a stubborn, coffee-addicted mechanic, with a penchant for strong opinions, and foul language. It had turned off more than one man in the past, and she'd been hurt more than once by love. She didn't want that again. Not right now.

With a sigh, she rolled over and closed her eyes.

****

The team had practice the Saturday morning of the All-Star weekend. The only Star who'd been selected for the All-Star game was Tristen, and so the rest of the team had a few days off, with only the morning light practice.

Dylan ran through the drills with his teammates, laughing and joking about Tristen having to work through the event, while the rest of them had the time to slack-off. In a manner of speaking.

After practice, Dylan took his time getting dressed, still shooting the breeze with his teammates.

"What's the plan for tonight, Sams?" Seth sat across from him, toweling his hair. "More clubbing and picking up chicks?"

Dylan rolled his eyes and bent to lace his shoes. "Yeah. That's me. Always picking up chicks."

Jake Brown shifted closer on the bench, a sly grin on his face. "You don't have to lie, Sams. Tristen told us what you've been up to."

Scowling, Dylan face his captain. "What are you talking about?"

Seth and Jake exchanged a look as John walked in and sat down on the other side of his brother.

"You guys bugging Sams about his night of first impressions?"

Dylan froze, turning his gaze to John. "What?"

There was a beat of silence before they burst into laughter.

"Tristen told us you went to some speed dating thing at a bar last week." Seth continued to laugh, slapping a hand to his knee. "I mean, really, Sams? Speed dating?"

"Are you that desperate?" Jake nudged him with an elbow as he pulled a shirt on.

Dylan was going to kill Tristen when he got back. Rubbing a hand over his face, he stood up. The guys continued to rib him, and he tried to let it roll off his back, told himself that this was what they all did. Jokes, insults, and giving each other a hard time, was all part of what made them a team.

"I bet they were all winners there." Jake chortled as he stood up next to Dylan. "Did they tell you all the names of their cats? Or just the favorites?"

Dylan flipped his middle finger in Jake's direction.

"Come on, you gotta tell us how it was, man." John strode over, pulling his jacket on. "Is it something we should all do?"

Seth stood up on the other side of the room. "Yeah, it can be a team-building activity."

"Sure." Jake agreed. "We can work on communication. Like, this one's a yes, that one's a big, fat no."

The others laughed.

"So tell us, Sams. Is it worth a try?"

Dylan didn't know what to say that wouldn't make it worse, so he shrugged and went for impassive. "Actually, they weren't all bad. There were some really nice ladies."

The other three exchanged a look before bursting into laughter again.

"Oh, seriously, get over yourselves, guys." Dylan sighed and reached for his jacket. He pulled it on as he headed for the door. He couldn't leave it like that, or he'd never hear the end of it. "And I actually did meet someone. Someone who doesn't have any cats and someone I enjoyed talking to."

"I bet you did." Seth hooted with laughter. "Was it her chest or her ass you talked to?"

Dylan made another rude gesture before striding out of the locker room. The sound of their laughter followed him and he ran a hand through his hair. Yes. He was definitely going to kill Tristen. He hoped his roommate had a good time at the All-Star game because it was going to be his last.

"Sams, hold up."

Dylan paused and looked back to see Jake hurrying up to him.

"You know we were just kidding around back there."

"Yeah, I know." Dylan smiled. "No worries, man. I can take a joke."

Jake grinned. "Clearly, or you'd never have gone to speed dating."

Rolling his eyes, Dylan turned to keep walking. "Yeah, yeah."

Jake kept pace with him, chuckling all the while. "Hey, how about we go out for a drink tonight."

"Why?"

Jake shrugged. "Why not? You can show me how you scored at this speed dating."

Now it was Dylan's turn to laugh. "What?"

"Yeah. Is it every Saturday night?"

"I have no idea."

"Well, let's go to this place tonight. At the very least, we can have a drink, watch the skills competition, if they've got it on, and have a good time." Jake punched him in the arm. "What do you say?"

Dylan found himself nodding. "Yeah, OK. Why not."

"Awesome. You want to drive?"

"Sure."

"OK, pick me up at eight."

"Will do." Dylan winked at him. "Make sure you wear something pretty for me."

Jake laughed and flipped him off before they headed to their own vehicles.

Sure. Dylan could do an evening at Tapley's. Hell, maybe he'd even see Cassia there. And if not, there was always pie and coffee, even if Jake was with him.

****

Saturday evening rolled around, and Cassia wanted to kick her brother in the soft spot between his legs. She'd been ready to leave for dinner for over an hour, and was stuck waiting for him to get his act together.

"I'm going to leave without you, Kyle."

He stuck his head out of the bathroom door. "You promised we'd go together. You know I can't walk in there last."

"Then hurry up." Cassia crossed her arms over her chest and glared at her brother. "You've got five minutes, and promise or no promise, I'm leaving your ass here."

He ducked back into the bathroom, grumbling, and emerged, ready to go, four and a half minutes later. Cassia grabbed her keys and left, not waiting. Kyle followed a moment later, after pulling his shoes on, and she heard him lock the door behind them.

The walk to their childhood home, where their parents still lived, took ten minutes. Kyle lingered behind her by several steps the whole way, saying nothing. Cassia understood his apprehension. Every exchange between him and the rest of the family since he'd dropped out of college had been tense, to say the least. She knew he suspected that tonight was going to be no different.

When they got to the house, Cassia hurried up the front steps and paused at the top, turning to wait for Kyle. He didn't meet her eyes as she turned to open the door.

"Hi, we're here." Cassia walked in and left Kyle to close the door

Their mother hurried down the hall towards them, a ruffled apron covering her front. She grinned and wrapped her arms around Cassia in a big hug.

"Hi, Mom."

"Sweetie, you look thin." Katherine Morgan pulled back and scrutinized her daughter's face. "Is Kyle eating all your food?"

Cassia smiled and shook her head. "Of course not."

Katherine turned to her youngest child and he took a step towards her, an uncertain smile on his face. "Baby, you look tired. Are you working too much?"

Cassia stifled a laugh and shook her head as Kyle assured their mother that he was working just enough. Katherine Morgan had a way of greeting each of her children that made them feel loved and, at the same time, inadequate. None of them minded, really. Cassia knew it was her mother's way of fussing over them, as if none of them were able to care for themselves, and so they'd always need their Mama.

"Well, come on in, you two. Your father and the boys are out back." Katherine released her son and turned to walk back to the kitchen. "Dinner will be ready in half an hour."

Cassia headed for the back of the house, which opened towards a wide deck, surrounded on all sides by enormous, old trees, providing shade in the summer and serving as wind breakers all year round.

"Here they are, finally." Keith turned as Cassia opened the patio doors. "Hi, sweetheart. How are you?"

"Fine, Dad." Cassia hugged her father and turned to face her twin brothers. Except they weren't alone. Another man sat with them, someone she knew well. "Alex?"

Alex Donnelly, good friend to her older brothers, and her ex-boyfriend, stood up and pulled her into a hug before she could back away. Still in shock, Cassia stood there, unable to voice an objection or react to his embrace for a long minute.

"It's so good to see you, Cass." His arms were strong, his scent familiar, as was the way he ignored her insistent nudges to let her go, when she at last regained her senses.

"This is such a surprise." Cassia extracted herself after another moment. She looked up at Alex's face, acknowledging at once that she still found him attractive but his mouth still curled in that same near-mocking smile that she had come to despise. "What are you doing here?"

"Your Mama ran into him at the supermarket earlier." Keith clapped a hand on Alex's shoulder with a grin. "She insisted he come for dinner."

"Did she." Cassia took another step back, grateful when all eyes fell on Kyle as he stepped through the doorway.

"Hi." Kyle stood there, hands shoved in his pockets as his eyes roamed over every face, narrowing on Alex. "What are you doing here?"

Cassia almost laughed at the way Alex's smile slipped. Bless Kyle. For all his faults, and the way he tended to get on her last nerve, he had her back. No one else in the family seemed to recall that she had broken up with Alex last year. Then again, she had only told Kyle why, that she'd ended things with because he'd cheated on her.

Cassia didn't wait to listen to Alex's response, or anyone else's. She turned and strode back into the house, heading right for the kitchen, and her mother.

"Mom, what did you do?"

Katherine looked up from the dish she was stirring on the stovetop. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

"What the hell is Alex doing here?"

Her mother smiled. "Oh, he's such a nice boy. I ran into him at the market, and he helped me carry all the bags to the car."

"Mom." Cassia came closer with a scowl. "You know that's not what I meant. Why on earth did you invite him to dinner?"

"I thought it would be the polite thing to do." She lifted her eyebrows and shot Cassia a look. "I don't know why you're so upset."

Cassia wanted to scream. "Mom. You remember that I broke up with him last year, right?"

Her mother nodded and reached for the salt. "Of course I remember. You were so sad, and crying all the time. I thought you'd be happy to see him again."

"Are you serious?" Cassia rubbed her forehead with one hand. "I never wanted to see Alex Donnelly again."

"I don't know why not." Katherine sighed and set the salt on the counter, stirring the dish some more. "I always thought you two made the sweetest couple."

"Mom, he..." Cassia rubbed her eyes. She still couldn't bring herself to tell her mother the truth behind their break-up. It still made her burn with humiliation and it had been almost a year. "He was a total jerk," was the best she could come up with.

Her mother turned and faced Cassia. "Everyone makes mistakes, sweetie."

Cassia's mouth dropped open. "I can't believe this."

"You did tell me how he called you for months after you broke things off, and that he wanted to work things out."

"And I said no." Cassia couldn't believe she was having this conversation. Her mother had always been a bit of a meddler in her children's lives but this was taking things to a whole new level.

"Come on now, Cassia. You said yourself just last week that you have no one to take to Vivian's wedding. Alex isn't seeing anyone right now. Why not ask him?"

"No." Cassia shook her head. "Hell no."

Katherine put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes. "Now, you listen here, young lady. You spend all your days at that garage, and your nights holed up in that little apartment. You're never going to find another man like Alex that way."

"Good!" Cassia threw her arms in the air. "I don't want another man like Alex. I'd rather have someone who doesn't treat me like shit."

"Cassia! Language, please."

But Cassia was too upset to apologize. She whirled away from her mother and stalked out of the kitchen. She was halfway to the front door when she realized she couldn't just take off. She needed to stay and make it clear to her mother, and Alex, and everyone else, that she wouldn't back down. She wasn't going to give Alex another chance, no matter what her family wanted, and no matter how much he ingratiated himself with them.

Straightening her shoulders, she turned around and walked through to the back deck. As she stepped out onto the patio, she ignored Alex, and moved over to sit down beside her brother, Kyle.

Across from them, Alex and the twins were discussing the Longhorns' chances for the next season. Their father stood nearby, listening, but not saying anything.

Kyle nudged Cassia's shoulder. "You OK?"

Cassia gave a short nod and looked out over the back yard. After another minute of sitting there, saying nothing, she wondered if anyone would care if she went back inside and turned on the NHL All-Star skills competition. Her mother might not mind, though Katherine might use it as an opportunity to try to convince her to give Alex another try.