[Copyright © 2013 A Deal with the Daredevil]

All rights reserved.

***

Casey's POV

Most of my life I've tried to keep a positive outlook on things. I've tried to believe that everything happens for a reason. But for fucks sake, out of all the places and all the people, why, oh why, did I have to run in to Makayla Dashwood in Los Angeles? Why couldn't it have been someone I actually liked? Someone who wouldn't try to spill all of my secrets just to hurt me?

I marched over to the elevator, my eyes squinted into angry slits and my hands coiled into tight fists. To bystanders I probably looked like a crazy person, but at the moment, I couldn't give a rat's ass. Surprisingly, I wasn't even mad at Makayla; she was right. How could I be mad at her for being right? That of course, did not mean, she wasn't a bitch, because she was. She was one of the biggest bitches I'd ever met. Makayla could reign hell on a person, destroying their entire life and manage to schedule a manicure while doing it. She was ruthless.

"Casey!" I turned around just in time to catch a glimpse of Nissa's long blonde locks as she rushed towards me, pushing people out of the way. People scowled and glared at her as they were shoved in her process to get to me. Nissa was like a hurricane when any of the people she cared about needed her; she always left a havoc in her wake, trying to get to the person that needed her, and she never seemed to notice. When she finally reached me, she rested her hands on her bent knees and panted for air. Nissa had never been one to exercise or do anything that required physical labor, so running from the beach to the hotel, was putting a lot on her small, short legs.

"I'm fine," I assured her before she could utter a word. She lifted her index finger, letting me know that she needed a minute. Breathing in a lungful of air, she slowly exhaled and repeated the process, trying to slow down her heart rate. I stood there waiting for her, my arms crossed over my chest, my lips pulled back into a tight line. Finally seeming to regain her strength, she straightened and gave me an expectant look. A look I knew all too well. She wanted me to share the gossip.

"It was just Makayla being Makayla." I rolled my eyes and she signaled for me to elaborate.

Pressing the button to go up, on the elevator, I motioned for her to follow me. I wanted to get out of my bathing suit and hop into the shower. I'd just had birds try to eat me for lunch and I was feeling icky.

Once we were on the elevator, we stood on opposite ends, leaning against the sides, quietly. The cheesy elevator music was the only thing that could be heard. I never understood why they played that kind of music in the elevator. Why couldn't they play something along the lines of 'A Day in the Life,' one of my favorite songs by the Beatles? I mean, maybe someone who got on the elevator needed a pick-me-up song.

The elevator dinged as it reached our floor and we both, got off. Once we reached our room, Nissa immediately sat on the bed, crossed her legs, rested her her bent elbows on them and placed her chin between her cupped hands, and waited expectantly. Rolling my eyes with a shake of my head, I sat on the chair across the room and began my story.

"What's really bothering you, Case?" Nissa asked after I'd told her what had happened and complained to her that Makayla had to bring up the diets. Nissa knowing me better than most people, immediately saw through the bullshit. I wasn't upset about her bringing up the diets my mom had insisted I get on, I was upset about the last bit.

"What if she'd over-shared, Nissa? Hmm?" She gave me and small, understanding smile. "What if she'd spilled about what happened in New York?"

"But she didn't," Nissa reminded me, getting up and walking over to sit in the chair opposite mine.

"But she could have..." I trailed off as I stared out the balcony doors at the beautiful beach. The beaches in Los Angeles had always been some of my favorites. The water was crystal clear, filled with gorgeous rainbow-like fishes, that swam around your feet. The sky in Los Angeles for some reason, seemed so much bluer. I loved coming to Los Angeles when I lived in New York. It was all so different from New York, so much more relaxed. "I don't know what I would do if that got out. I've already been through the town's scorn with my dad's death, I can't go through it again."

The death of my dad had been one of the worst times of my life. My dad had committed suicide and for some reason, the town decided that it was my fault; that I'd driven him to do it. People had sneered, giving me the cold shoulder and whispered about me for months. Finally, their focus had shifted to something else, and I was left alone.

"I know, but you can't let that bitch ruin LA for us," she told me with a small smile, her eyes willing me to understand. I knew Nissa was afraid that I would shut down like I used to do and push her away, but I wouldn't. I'd learn in time that I needed her.

My eyes lowered to stare at my hands as I thought about how close Makayla had come to sharing my deepest, darkest secret with Ryder. I trusted that Ryder wouldn't repeat it, if she had opened her mouth, but it still bothered me to know that he could have found out. Nissa was the only one who knew about what had happened. People in my old neighborhood in New York, didn't know for sure what had happened; they only suspected. Makayla was one of those people.

"The only reason she would have told Ryder is because we're friends. That's why I never made any friends after what happened, Niece, because it made it so much easier to keep it hidden," I replied, glancing up at her through my lashes, fiddling with my fingers.

"I know, but you can't keep yourself locked away from the world forever." Her eyes were filled with concern and I understood where she was coming from. It wasn't like I wanted to push people away, I needed to. The only way to keep my past in the past was to not let anyone close enough to want to dig it up. "Casey, you can't let her control your life even from the grave."

I stared out the balcony doors and sighed heavily. I didn't want to. I didn't want to live my life always looking over my shoulder, because I was afraid she would jump out at me. I didn't. But it was hard to let go of the past. It was hard to let go of the hurt and the excessive pain. I wanted to move on; live my life. But every time I tried, I found myself falling back into old habits.

Standing up, I glanced at Nissa and gave her a smile. "I'm going for a walk."

"I thought you were gonna take a shower?" she replied, staring up at me with confusion, her eyes darting between me and the bathroom.

I glanced at the bathroom and shrugged. "I'll do that when I come back. Right now I just need some fresh air." She sat back in her chair with a hesitant nod and I smiled at her weakly before heading to the door, but her voice stopped me mid-way.

"You don't think that heathen came with her, do you?" Turning around, I fought a smile. The person she was so nicely referring to-please note the sarcasm-was Makayla's brother, Austin Dashwood. Austin was Makayla's older brother, and also, Nissa's biggest nemesis. I never really understood why Nissa hated Austin so much-well aside from the constant prank wars they always had. In my opinion, he was actually really cool.

"I doubt it. Even though him and Makayla are siblings, he hates her almost as much as we do, so I doubt he'd come along. He usually took a different vacation, remember?" I replied, taking her back to our summer after second grade, when Austin had made his parents pay for a second vacation just so he didn't have to be around Makayla. I guess you could say they were both a little spoiled.

"And of course 'golden boy Austin', got what he wanted," Nissa mumbled with a scowl. Laughing, I told her to forget about him and walked out the room before she kept me in there whining about how much she truly despised him.

I was walking through the hotel lobby when I heard a familiar voice shouting my name, turning around, I searched for Ryder's familiar face. I waved at him when I spotted him and he sped up. That's when I noticed the boy walking next to him. My brow furrowed in confusion as I stared at the handsome boy. There was just something about him, something so...familiar.

Finally reaching me, Ryder flashed me a smile and turned to the guy. "Hey, this is Austin, we were just heading down to the restaurant." My jaw literally fell to the ground as I stared at the boy with Ryder. It was none other than Austin Dashwood. The very same Austin, Nissa and I had just been discussing. The boy standing in front of me, though, had no resemblance to the boy I spent my summers hanging with, when I spent my summers in LA without Nissa. "Austin this is-"

"Little pancake?" Austin asked, his eyes wide with surprise, flickering up and down my body. His mouth was slightly ajar as he stared at me, his eyes taking me in. "Oh my god, look at you!"

I laughed lightly as I gave him a once-over. "Look at me? Look at you! God, you look nothing like the chubby little kid who made me a mud cake then shoved Nissa's face into it." His green eyes crinkled at the corners when he laughed and I couldn't help but join in. Austin had that power over people. Whenever he laughed, you just wanted to laugh along; his laugh was contagious.

"I can't believe you remember that, little pancake," he answered with a chuckle and spread his arms out to give me a hug, I walked into his hug and gasped, pulling back a little to glance at him.

"Do you have rocks under that t-shirt or something?" I asked him with a grin and his body shook with silent laughter.

"I'm guessing you two know each other?" I heard Ryder ask next to Austin and I pulled back from Austin with a smile.

With a nod, I turned to Ryder. "I knew this one when he was chubby and wore braces."

"And I knew this one, when she wasn't fit as fuck and could eat an entire horse," he grinned. Ryder nodded with an arched eyebrow and my eyes flickered between them.

"Wait, how do you two know each other?" I inquired curiously, my eyes moving between the two.

"We met at one of Ryder's dares. The jumping out of a truck with a goat-or was it a sheep? Are those the same thing?" Austin asked, his eyebrows shooting up as he stared into space.

"They have similarities, but their taxonomy eventually diverges. While sheep have fifty-four chromosomes, goat have sixty," I informed him. Noticing the knowing smirk on his face, I rolled my eyes.

"Still a smartass, I see." Ryder laughed next to him and I shook my head.

"Still as dumb as a block, I see," I mocked him and he grinned, his eyes twinkling. "So what are you doing in LA?"

"Family vacation," he answered, rolling his eyes. I gave him a sympathetic smile, understading how hard it was for him to be around his family. Austin's family weren't the type of people you wanted to spend more than half-an-hour with.

"So why little pancake?" Ryder asked, his eyebrows knitted together. I turned to Austin and shook my head with a laugh, my mind going back to the day he'd dubbed me little pancake.

"Austin came over to our house in New York this one time, when we were kids, after school. Nadia had taught me how to cook pancakes, so I decided to show off and cook some for Austin. My pancakes ended up being these small weird looking things and Austin never let me live it down," I recounted the events with a smile. Austin had laughed for hours at the state of my pancakes. After a while he'd decided that 'little pancake' was a fitting nickname for me. He'd called me that ever since.

"Well you were such a show-off. 'Look, Austin, I can make pancakes,'" Austin added with a laugh, saying the last part in a high-pitched voice that was supposed to sound like mine. Ryder laughed next to him and I shook my head.

"Jerk." I laughed. "Well, I'm gonna get going, but it was great to see you, Aussie."

"I'll see you around?" he asked, hopefully and I nodded with a smile. "Hey, is Nissa with you?" he asked, almost hesitant. Austin had always had a soft spot for Nissa, the poor block just didn't know how to show it to her. I nodded and he fought back a grin. "We should get together; catch up."

"Definitely." I turned to Ryder and he grinned with a wink. I rolled my eyes with a smile, waved bye to them and continued on my way to the beach. I couldn't believe how much Austin had changed. I could still remember the chubby kid who would run over random people's sandcastles to make Nissa and I laugh. I hadn't seen him since I was eleven, almost seven years ago. He wasn't a kid anymore, he was definitely not a kid. He still wore the same blonde hair, except it was a little darker, but it still fell down his forehead in messy locks. His face was no longer round and pudgy, his features a lot manlier. He was definitely handsome, but I had always thought that Austin would be very handsome; I'd been right.

Walking down the beach I couldn't help but think about all the fun times I'd had in LA. But then those memories were always overshadowed by the bad. I wanted so bad to forget the bad, but it was etched in my brain, like a broken record.

I stopped walking and looked around at the empty beach. Realizing that I'd walked almost three miles down the beach, to a desolate part, I shrugged and decided to sit down and cherish the quiet. There wasn't a soul on this part of the beach. It looked untouched, almost as if no one had even been here, like it had never been discovered.

I had needed that, I had needed quiet. Most of my childhood, I spent in solitaire, no one sticking around long enough for me to get attached. It was ironic how back then, it was pure torture and how much I now craved it.

***

I laughed as the light of the fire show danced around the mostly dark beach. The show was courtesy of the hotel for their guests. Showmen would show of their skills on the beach, impressing the tourist with their incredible ability to make fire on the end of ropes seem so mesmerizing. And it truly was. The way it would dance off the sand's surface, lighting a few spots on the beach. It was beautiful to watch.

"Thirty bucks says he chokes and burns his ding-dong off." I felt Ryder's hot breath as he whispered this in my ear and I chocked back a laugh.

"Usually I'm the one who's a pessimist," I reminded him as I glanced around at him. His proximity caught me off guard, making me stumble. Circling his hand on my elbow, he kept me from falling flat on my ass.

He flashed his perfect white teeth, his eyes twinkling, the fire reflecting off of them. "Don't worry, sweetheart, I don't bite-unless you ask nicely." His lips curved into his infamous smirk and I showed my exasperation with the one action I knew would get it across: a roll of my eyes.

"Do you make everything dirty?" I asked him with a huff, pulling my elbow out of his hand. Turning back around to the show, I felt him move around me to stand next to me.

"No, like I told you before, sweetheart, you just seem to bring out the best in me." He cocked his head to glance at me and I shook my head, not daring a glance in his direction. For some reason, he'd found a way to make me blush. I didn't usually blush, but he'd found a way to press the right buttons to cause that reaction out of me.

"You know what amazes me?" Gathering wits, I turned to him just as he turned towards me. The shadows of the fire danced on his face, making it hard to see his expression.

"What is that, sweetheart?" he asked, his voice low, almost as if he was whispering a secret to me.

Shaking my head, I tried to focus on the task at hand. "The fact that since you walked over here, I've had half of the females in this crowd glare at me, and the other half, whisper among their friends as they stare at you, blushing. What the hell has happened to the women in this century? Why the frack are they blushing just by glancing at you?" I rambled, completely oblivious to the fact that Ryder was now a breath away from me.

Leaning down, he brushed a loose strand of my hair over my shoulder, before pressing his lips to my ear and whispering, "So far, your blush is my favorite." I felt a current run through my body as his hot breath touched my face and neck, making the skin there, hot. I felt my heart thump in my chest as it picked up it's rate, my body becoming very aware of the boy standing very close to me. I wondered how it would feel to have his hot lips on my neck, or on my own lips, slowly caressing them-

Whoa, okay, back up there. What the hell was that? Had I seriously just been thinking of Ryder's lips? Why on earth would I go there? Ryder and I weren't even attracted to each other.

Maybe he's not attracted to you, but you sure seem to want a piece of him. That voice in the back of my head corrected and I tried not to scowl. It couldn't be right. I couldn't, under any circumstances, be attracted to a guy who only saw women as sex objects. It went against every bone in my body.

"Casey?" I heard Ryder's voice call out. It almost seemed like he was miles away. Snapping out of my very embarrassing lust-induced haze, I turned to the object of my embarrassment, my cheeks flaming up. Taking one look at the boy who had invaded my thoughts, I did the one thing I knew how to do.

I walked away as fast as I could.