Chapter Three

Cassie

Cassie entered the bathroom and found it blissfully empty. Leaning against a stone tile wall, she let the hot tears escape. There weren't many. She didn't usually cry. She was typically strong and steadfast. She didn't let people get to her.

Cassie blamed it on being tired. She blamed the tears on traveling all day. She blamed it on the stress of her job. She blamed it on Lorna knowing the exact buttons to push to make her doubt herself.

She wiped her face off, checked the mirror to make sure she didn't look like she'd been crying, and went to order more wine. She found their waiter in the hallway putting orders into a computer.

“Fernando?”

He looked up with a start and then relaxed when he saw it was just Cassie.

“I just wanted to let you know that if Lorna does speak to your manager, I'd be happy to speak to them as well. You've been great. She's the customer from hell, and I want to apologize to you for her. I don't want you getting in trouble with your boss because she's awful.”

Fernando smiled, his shoulders releasing from around his ears. “Thank you, ma'am. That means a lot.”

“I'm happy to do it.” Cassie shrugged, but inside she felt a little bit better. “And when you get a chance, I'd love some more wine. Me and everyone sitting at our table. Except the teenager. Don't bring her any no matter how much she asks.”

“Of course.” He nodded, then paused for a second. He glanced around and then leaned forward. “We didn't recook her steak. Chef just moved the potatoes around. Same exact plate.”

Cassie's eyebrows raised.

“I also would recommend not eating anything from her plate. Just in case Chef did something else. He doesn't like when orders get returned for no reason.”

Cassie had worked in hospitality and food services long enough to know you don't anger the people that make your food. They had all the opportunities to put things like bugs or food that had fallen on the floor onto your dish without you ever knowing about it.

Lorna apparently never had that lesson.

Cassie thanked Fernando and headed back to the table. Luckily, Lorna had moved on. She now sat at a table with a wealthy looking man who was currently trapped in a conversation with her. The poor man had no idea what he was in for. Cassie felt bad for him, but not bad enough to rescue him. She didn't want Lorna to come back to her table.

“You okay?” Brianna asked when Cassie sat down. Janessa and Kyle were making their rounds around the room talking to guests. Katy was off talking with her grandparents. The other guests had finished dessert and were chatting among themselves.

Cassie nodded. “I got us more wine.”

“Good.” Brianna looked over at Cassie, appraising her. “You sure you're okay? That was brutal.”

“I think so.” Cassie gave a small shrug. Her eyes darted over to make sure Lorna was still occupied at the other table.

“You know it's not true what she said, right?”

“I know. It's just...” The threat of tears tightened around Cassie's throat again. She swallowed hard and wished the wine was here already. Her ex-husband used to say similar things.

Brianna gave Cassie a quick side hug. “She just enjoys pushing buttons. She's evil, and I hope a shark eats her this week.”

“Poor shark.”

“Yeah.” Brianna paused for a moment. “Actually, I don't know if a shark would eat her. She's too bitter.”

Fernando sat two big glasses of wine in front of Brianna and Cassie with a smile. They were bigger than the ones from before. Cassie took a sip and felt her shoulders relax a little.

“On the upside, we may have discovered an effective shark repellent.” Cassie took another sip. The bittersweet liquid was soothing to the soul.

Brianna chuckled. She took a sip of her wine and then set her wine glass down hard, nearly spilling it in the process. “Oh, I almost forgot. We're going dancing after dinner. There's supposed to be this amazing dance club here.”

Cassie could feel the tension increasing in her shoulders again. “I think I'm going to pass tonight,” she told Brianna. “I'm tired. It's been a long day.”

Brianna pouted but didn't push. “Okay. If you change your mind, come find me.”

Cassie nodded, and Brianna gave her another a quick hug.

“I'm going to go change,” Brianna said, standing up and taking her wine with her. “These aren't dancing clothes.”

“I'll walk up with you.” Cassie grabbed her wine glass. They both waved to Janessa and headed out of the dining area.

Brianna started telling Cassie all about the dance club, obviously trying to entice her to come along. They walked across the outdoor pool area, and Cassie let her talk, nodding and making the appropriate noises, but secretly looking forward to cuddling up in her bed and watching some bad hotel TV. Mario Lopez was her plan for the night.

But then she saw him. The guy from earlier. Sexy short blonde hair, broad shoulders, and sun-kissed skin. He stood behind the outdoor tiki bar serving drinks. She stopped short.

“You can wear those shorts with the black tank-top we got... and why are you stopping?” Brianna followed Cassie's gaze to the tiki bar. “Oh.” She looked back over at Cassie and smiled wider. “Oh.”

“I think I'm going to have another drink before bed,” Cassie told Brianna. She chugged most of the rest of the wine in her glass. Partly so that she would have an excuse to be at the bar for a new drink and partly for courage.

“Hold up,” Brianna said, pulling out her phone. She snapped a picture of Cassie looking confused with a mostly empty wine glass.

“What's that for?”

“So I have proof you can let loose,” she replied with a smug grin. She gave Cassie a gentle push toward the bar. “Go get 'em, tiger.”

Cassie rolled her eyes and took a confident step toward the bar. And then a not so confident step. Was she really ready to do this?

“If you bring back a guest, just put the privacy card on the door,” Brianna told her. “I can bunk with Janessa. She's in a room by herself until her wedding night.”

Cassie glanced back, and Brianna was grinning at her. She looked like a proud parent sending her kid off to school.

“You know what?” Brianna grinned a little wider. “I'm just going to stay with Janessa anyway. You go have fun, party-girl.”

Brianna started walking again, leaving Cassie just steps from the bar. It was time to put this vacation on the right track. Time to let the fun Cassie out for a bit. What was the worst that could happen? If she made a fool of herself, no one here knew her. She wasn't at work. There were no corporate rules here. She could be the confident, charismatic, fun woman that she knew herself to be.

She could do this.

Cassie took a deep breath, lifted her chin, and walked over. She took a seat at the end of the bar and drank the last of her wine.

Time to turn on her best flirting abilities and try and earn a vacation fling.