The cockney voice was insistent. "I'm afraid not, old son. It just ain't 'appening! My guys want Cubans…they get the Cubans…You don't go giving them no other M-Fing leaves. That's what "riders" are for. Giving the stars what they want…you hear me, Del-Boy?"
Derek pulled a face. And you know where you can stick your stupid fucking Cuban cigars don't you? He thought, sick to the back teeth with this cockney moron and his over-priced one hit wonders. He had warned the chairman they were going nowhere but it was to no avail. Derek's boss still wanted the guys signed to the record label.
Of course, in a year's time when the pair of eighteen year old blond twins failed to sell more than a handful of CDs it would be all Derek's fault!
As their British moron of a manager droned on and on, Derek wondered to himself if the "guys'" voluptuous, black-rooted, cheap blonde of a mother had been bestowing oral gifts to the head of Derek's record company. His own mind started to make up silly jokes about giving head to the head.
He went back to doodling on the blotter that his secretary had insisted on placing on his desk - despite the fact the only person he knew in the world who still used a fountain pen was…
BUZZ!
The room fell silent.
The cockney, interrupted mid-sentence, stormed over to the intercom, pressed a button and hollered. "I thought I told you to hold all calls!"
Derek took a deep breath and stood up, firmly knocking the little guy's hand from his intercom.
"And the last time I looked this was my office." Derek said quietly. Then he pressed the button again. "Hi Grace!" he said with false cheeriness. "I'm sort of in the middle of something right now. Can it wait?"
BANG!
Derek's door swung open with such force that it crashed against the wall behind it. From the corner of his eye he saw on his "floating" book shelves the hideous vase that had been an unwanted (and unreciprocated) gift from his boss' cougar of a wife rock slightly. He caught himself praying that it would fall to the ground and smash.
It didn't happen.
"I'm sort of in the middle of something right now too!" The new entrant stated in a manner and voice Derek recognised. "And it's all your fault, Venturi!"
He groaned and slumped into his big "I'm a powerful man now" chair tipping his head so far back he could see the ceiling as though it was directly in front of him.
He had been a bit of a prankster as a child and teenager, winding people up, getting numerous detentions, annoying the hell out of…
All the same, he didn't deserve days like this, no matter what the new arrival might think as she stood there with her hands on her hips.
She repeated herself.
"I'm in the middle of something too! I'm trying to plan the happiest day of my life and you're screwing it up, Derek!"
Derek looked from the angry cockney to his fuming step-sister and sighed.
He definitely didn't deserve days like this.
And then, just when he thought his day couldn't get any tougher, his phone rang. He snatched it up eagerly, hoping that it was something that would get him out of dealing with the two nightmares in front of him.
It was worse.
It was Nora.
"Derek? Is Casey there? She…erm…ran out of the house in tears this morning, moaning something about you ruining her big day and…"
"Relax Nora. She's here." He took a deep breath. "I'll deal with it."
He replaced the receiver and stood up making sure that he kept both his adversaries in his sights.
"Charlie. Draw up a list of "requirements" for the guys and I'll look at them. However, I am not authorised to provide anything illegal, no matter how big the stars. If you want illegal cigars or any other substance you'll have to arrange that with someone higher up the chain. I don't touch illegal. Now, as you can see I have a…ahem… emergency on my hands, so if you'll please excuse me, I need to speak to Miss McDonald."
Casey glared across at the British guy and dared him to defy Derek, and for a moment, her step-brother was glad she had burst into the room. Of course she was here to talk about a subject he was largely denying existed – namely her forthcoming nuptials – but if it got the Cockney out of his office, he might even take that…
He met her eyes, and then looked away.
…then again…
After Charlie had reluctantly left the room, Derek had no choice but to deal with Casey.
"Hi Sis!" He greeted her.
"Don't you hi sis me!" She fired back.
Derek tried but he couldn't for the life of him think what he had done to piss her off this time. He hadn't pranked her in over a year and he hadn't even seen her in over three months. There was that email he had sent her about a month ago, but he sort of thought that maybe she would have reacted sooner rather than later over that one. I mean, if your brother called your fiancé a wet fish you don't wait a month to storm into his office to have it out with him…or do you?
Derek leaned forward and pressed the intercom button. "Grace, can you hold all my calls for five minutes, Casey needs to throw stuff at me." His finger released the button cutting off Grace's giggle. She was an old hand at the Derek-Casey situation.
Said sister glared at him and leaned forward to press the button too.
"Hi Grace!" Casey said, her tone light, cheery and a complete contrast to the black look she was pointing at Derek. "Erm…can you cancel everything in Derek's diary for the rest of the day? I need to borrow him."
"Casey I can't…" Derek objected.
Casey straightened up and walked to the door where his suit jacket was hanging on a special stand.
"Yes…you can. My wedding is in jeopardy if you don't. Now. Did you or did you not tell Mom that you would deal with "this"? She held out his jacket.
Derek sighed. He had a few calls to make, but realistically they could be made by his junior staff. He had also been planning on checking out the new restaurant down the street because he had walked past one day and noted that one of the waitresses was hot, but that too could wait.
And of course, he had told Nora that he would deal with the Casey situation…which was of course the story of his life…dealing with the Casey situation.
"You can't do this Casey." He protested. "You can't barge into my place of work and just kidnap me."
"Says who?" Casey fired back.
"Me?" Derek replied weakly.
Most of the time he won their fights, but every now and then he knew not to push Casey.
"Fine. Give me the damn jacket." He conceded.
It wasn't until they were walking down a Toronto street, Casey pulling Derek along by his jacket sleeve and Derek feeling like a truant kindergartner, that he thought to ask where they were going.
"So…is this a surprise day trip or are you going to tell me where we are going?"
"Just shut up and walk faster, Venturi." Casey shot back and he snapped his mouth shut and followed her. She was getting up quite a head of steam by now, and he felt it was slightly unfair that he still had no idea where they were heading. As well as the sense of injustice was a tinge of fear as he knew she was probably not telling for a reason.
"You know, maybe we should have got a cab." He suggested.
"It's only another block." Casey threw over her shoulder and he grimaced as she yanked him again, their aggressive progress making for an amusing spectacle in the busy street. Derek rolled his eyes and shrugged at some of the on-lookers, and he saw several men give him sympathetic wry smiles.
They turned a corner onto one of the main shopping streets and almost immediately Casey stopped outside a shop.
"Best behaviour." She cautioned him firmly as Derek looked in utter horror at the sight in front of his eyes…white stuff…Lots and lots of white stuff.
It wasn't the sort of white stuff he liked, it was early Fall and the snows hadn't started yet. Instead, it was the sort of white stuff that gave determined bachelors nightmares about claustrophobic spaces, and death by asphyxiation with a ball and chain.
"You can not be serious!" Derek spluttered. "I am not going in there!"
"Don't be stupid, Derek of course you are. There is absolutely no reason why you cannot go into a wedding dress shop."
"Yes there is, it's the place where you take Nora, or Emily or Lizzie or someone with…"
He started to hold his hands up to his chest in a cupping gesture, but thought better of it. "Girls do not take their brothers to choose their wedding dress." He finished.
"Normal girls don't Derek."
"My point exactly." He interjected.
"However," Casey emphasised the word, "whilst I am normal…[Derek coughed]…I do have to take you with me."
"Why? Why not inflict that punishment on someone who deserves it? I've been good. I haven't pranked you since you started dating whatshisface and that's been over a year. If you need to take a guy with you why don't you take him? He was dumb enough to pose the question, the least he can do is man up and be the one who goes with you to choose the dress!"
"That's just stupid Derek. That's bad luck. A groom cannot see the bride's dress before the wedding."
"Yeah well I'm saying it's bad luck for a brother to see his sister's wedding dress before the wedding too."
Casey put her hands on her hips and stared him down.
"This is your own fault." She informed him. "I've brought you because I want you to get the whole "insult the hell out of Casey's wedding dress" thing out of your system before I hand over the money. I don't want to be walking down the aisle with you sniggering in the background because you think I look like cotton candy, or worse you think I look like I'm knocked up."
"Are you?"
"Am I what?"
"Knocked up?"
"Der-ek!"
She shoved him on the arm, hard and then propelled him through the door of the shop with a ting of the door bell. Derek looked up at the door in surprise. He didn't think shops came with door bells anymore.
"Good morning, can I help you?" A tall, slim brunette of about forty five approached them. She was very smartly dressed in a "twin-set and pearls" way and Derek thought if she got any more uptight she would break the broomstick currently up her…
"I have an appointment." Casey informed the lady. Derek glanced up.
"You planned this?" He gasped. Casey ignored him.
"And the name?" Broomstick Butt asked.
"Casey McDonald."
"Oh yes!" The "librarian" figure smiled, but it did nothing to loosen her up. Derek groaned and immediately two sets of eyes lasered into him.
"We…erm…don't normally recommend fiancés attend the dress fittings." Uptight Lady said.
Casey's eyes broke from her Derek-glare to look at the woman.
"Oh he isn't…" at the same time as Derek said "We aren't…"
The assistant looked between them.
"Derek is my brother." Casey clarified. It made Derek look quickly away to the outside as if checking to make sure no one he knew could see him.
Uptight lady smiled again. "Well Casey, in that case, Derek is more than welcome. My name is Annabelle. Would you like to follow me and I'll show you to your dressing room?"
Annabelle led them through a curtained doorway to the rear of the shop were there were a number of dressing room doors each one bearing the name of a romantic pairing. The doors were well spaced apart and Casey wasn't surprised when Annabelle opened the door marked "Emma & Knightley" and a large room with full length mirrors was revealed.
Annabelle motioned them to some seats.
"So…what kind of wedding are you planning?" She asked pleasantly.
"An expensive one." Derek said, remembering the conversation his parents had had at lunch last Sunday. Casey had been away, so it had been safe to spend the weekend with the family. No annoying sister and definitely no annoying brother-in-law-to-be.
Casey hissed at him. Uptight Lady, suddenly politic at the mention of money, ignored the exchange.
"Are we going for traditional? New Age?" Her voice trailed away.
"Oh! Traditional!" Casey said quickly.
"White, cream, ivory…?"
"I think cream." Casey decided. Derek sniffed.
"Not white?" He asked pointedly.
"Don't start, Derek." Casey said quietly.
"I just thought, since you two haven't actually got around to shacking up together yet that maybe you could still get away with wearing white."
"Der-ek!"
"Although you never did answer my question about the "oven" situation…"
"Der-ek!"
"Perhaps Derek isn't the best person to…erm…assist you with this decision." Annabelle suggested. Casey shook her head.
"He's perfect." She said with gritted teeth.
Derek smirked at her.
Derek was asleep or rather he was dozing. He was leaning back in the hard wooden chair, his legs stretched out in front of him lazily, one foot crossed over the other at the ankle. It was a bizarre pose for a man in a five-thousand dollar suit. The face that he was wearing a five thousand dollar suit was probably the only reason why "Annabelle" was still tolerating his presence in the changing room.
Casey kicked the leg of his chair. He sat up abruptly and glanced at the current offering.
"Trailer trash". He offered, his eyes already closing again.
Casey looked exasperated.
"Derek. Can you at least look at it properly?"
"I did." He said, not opening his eyes. "The fabric is like the stuff they make kid's superhero costumes from and the whole thing looks like you picked it up in a thrift store. Trailer trash."
Annabelle bristled. "Derek…" She said stiffly. "This fabric retails for $300 per metre."
"Ok." Derek said. "Expensive trailer trash."
Casey looked at the dress in the mirror. Actually, Derek had a point.
"Perhaps a different fabric?" She suggested. Annabelle went off in search of new dresses.
Casey started to ease herself out of the dress.
"Woa there…! What are you doing?" Derek asked her, sitting up in panic.
"I'm taking the dress off, Derek."
"Yeah but I'm in the room."
"And I'm wearing underwear. You've seen me in my bikini plenty of times, there's no difference."
Derek looked appalled. "There's every difference!" He said. "Bikinis are supposed to be seen, panties aren't. Besides, I don't look when you are in your bikini."
"Yeah…right." Casey said with disbelief, easing the dress over her head.
She lifted the fabric from her body and walked over to the hanging rail and hangers to place the dress safely on the rail.
The act left her in high heels and lacy underwear as she walked across the room and Derek squinted through closed eyelashes as her butt wiggled in ways that... Fuck me!
He shifted awkwardly on the chair.
"So how much longer is this going to take?" he asked, looking for his escape.
"As long as necessary." Casey said. "And if we don't finish it today, we'll carry on tomorrow."
"My schedule tomorrow…"
"Then get it sorted today!" Casey pointed out.
After a moment, Derek asked, "Just exactly what do you want from me today?"
"I want to come away from here with a wedding dress that I know I will get to wear down the aisle without you making some obnoxious comment about it. A comment that I subsequently get to hear, thereby making me want to hide my wedding pictures for the rest of my married life."
"Believe me, Case. Wanting to hide your wedding pictures for the rest of your life is sort of a given. Look at Dad and Nora. The pictures went from pride of place beside the dining table to that dark alcove by the stairs in the time it took to have three anniversaries. And they at least love each other."
"Meaning?" Casey asked. Derek looked at her pointedly. Meaning I'm not sure you love him.
She huffed. "Yes well…I want you to tell me that you like one of the dresses."
"I liked that last one." He said, pointing to the "trailer trash"
"…And mean it Derek!"
He sighed. "Fine. I'll try harder."
And he did. Except that Annabelle it appeared wasn't. Her next offering wasn't even cream and looked like something Anne Boleyn might have worn for her wedding to King Henry the VIII.
They had been at it for two hours and had covered half of the shop, according to Annabelle. Derek was exhausted and all he had to do was look at the damn things. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.
Except this time he actually did go to sleep.
"How do you do that?" A voice said in his ear.
"Do what?"
"Fall asleep at will like that."
"Late night." He said honestly, rubbing his eyes. "Launch party for another one hit wonder." He blinked at the voice who turned out to be Casey and his eyes widened.
While he had been asleep she had put on another dress, but it was nothing like the others. He hadn't believed the old myth about you "just knowing" when you put on your wedding dress for the first time. But if Casey didn't think this dress was it she was a fool.
It was elegant, refined and it made Casey McDonald look like…
His heart was in his mouth and if he didn't close his mouth right away his heart was going to jump out of his mouth and impale itself on his sleeve.
He closed his mouth.
The dress was long and close fitting, but it wasn't tight. It was an almost pink kind of cream silk which, bias-cut, was fluid over her curves and pooled at her feet. The neckline was scooped and plain: devoid of embroidery or adornment. She had evidently been in the dress for a while, because someone had clipped her hair back on one side so that it fell in an almost Forties' style. For the first time in her life, Casey looked like a bride.
And it fucking killed him.
"Are you okay?" Casey asked. "You're pale."
He shook himself awake properly. "Yeah…I'm…just…sorry."
"What do you think?" She asked him.
I think I hate my father. He admitted to himself – not for the first time.
"Hideous!" He lied out-loud and Casey's face fell.
Derek looked at her standing in front of him, more beautiful than he had ever seen her but with the saddest expression on her face. And for possibly one of the final times in their lives, he wanted to be the one person to put the smile back on her face.
After today he wouldn't be able to deny that she was getting married as he had for the past three months. After today, he would only ever picture Casey in that dress…knowing she was marrying that guy. The dress was so obviously her and he couldn't help but love it.
Betraying every instinct he had he stood up and walked toward her, not able to bear the sadness in her eyes.
"I liked this one. I thought…" she started.
Derek took her hand and threaded his fingers through it. "It's beautiful." He said softly. "And totally you."
"Meaning?" She asked cautiously looking at him through her eyelashes. Jeez did she know what she was doing to him?
"Meaning this is IT, princess." He whispered, not entirely sure if he was talking about the dress or the fact that he was about to say goodbye to the last glimmer of hope in their ridiculous relationship.
Casey's face lit up and her eyes sparkled as she smiled at him, and for a moment he got lost in a day dream where this was her looking up at him on their wedding day.
The dream didn't last.
"He's going to love it!" Casey exclaimed all giggly. "I can't wait to show Mom!"
Derek watched her carefully aware that he was probably staring, but he couldn't help it. He wanted to scoop her into his arms and kiss her.
But he couldn't because that wasn't how they worked.
"What happened to Stick-up-her-ass?" He asked, trying to change the subject and the mood.
"You mean Annabelle?"
Derek nodded.
Casey sighed. "An assistant came in with a tale about a bride freaking out in "Lizzie and Darcy"."
"It probably isn't a tale, Casey. I don't know how you women enjoy these things. It seems like absolute torture to me."
Casey smiled. "Her wedding day is the happiest day of her life, Derek. A girl likes to be the centre of attention. She wants people to say how beautiful she looks and how lucky the groom is."
Derek said nothing. The groom had no idea how lucky he was. But Derek did.
"You really think this is it?" Casey asked. Derek nodded.
"I promise I won't make derogatory comments about this dress." He swore and made a "cross my heart" gesture.
Casey looked pleased and picked up his hand to squeeze it.
"Thank you. I appreciate your support."
Derek wanted to run from the room screaming.
Annabelle took her time returning so in the meantime, Casey led him over to the chairs and they sat down.
"Do you remember that night?" She asked Derek, leaning on the back of her chair to look at him.
Derek feigned ignorance. "Which night would that be?"
She regarded him with a frustrated expression which was so at odds with her current attire he had to laugh.
"Do you mean the night you forgot to put gas in the car and we ran out on the way back from that party just outside Kingston?" He asked, knowing full well that it had been him that forgot to fill the car and that she had only been with him under pressure from Nora and George to mix more socially.
"I forgot?" Casey exclaimed. "Listen Buster. You committed the crime, you do the time!"
"Yeah well…getting stuck with you in the middle of nowhere for two hours was certainly a penance."
"Asshole!"
"Language, McDonald." He reprimanded.
And because this was them at their best, they grinned at each other.
Casey tilted her head to one side and regarded him.
"You really will behave about the dress?"
Derek gazed at her.
"Do I have a choice?"
Casey shook her head and looked away. "It was nice…talking like that."
And he knew she was back to that night again…it was the night that he still had (wet) dreams about. Where he and Casey were on the same page for more than an hour and where, had it not been for the sudden arrival of the tow-truck, everything might have been so different. He had come so close to kissing her.
"Yeah." He said.
Casey rested her head against his shoulder. "Why Derek?"
"Why what?"
"Why are you doing this?"
"Erm…because you kidnapped me and forced me to."
Casey rolled her eyes. "I don't mean why are you here now, I mean why are you…" She paused and sat up.
"What am I to you?" she asked suddenly.
He smirked, because that was what was expected of him.
"No. Don't answer that." She said, groaning.
Derek grinned again and for a moment they looked at each other.
"We talked a lot that night." She said, wistfully.
"You talked a lot. I listened." Derek corrected.
Casey smiled. "I know. It was like all our "moments" rolled up into one."
"Our what?"
"Moments. You know, kindred spirit moments, times where we don't hate each other."
He looked confused. "Sorry you lost me. What was that about not hating each other?"
She narrowed her eyes at him and he laughed. Then Casey joined in.
"I'm getting married." Casey stated, settling back against his shoulder.
"You are."
"Don't you have more to say about it?" She asked.
Derek shrugged. "What's the point? He loves you, you think you love him…"
"A-ha!" She exclaimed sitting up. "That's what I mean!"
Derek raised his eyebrows. "You're going to make sense in a moment, aren't you?" He asked, more in hope than expectation.
"You said, "You think you love him." That means you don't think I do."
Derek frowned. "You seem very cheerful about this…"
"I am."
"Because…?"
"Because that's the sort of reaction I expect from you. Not the stupid, ignoring-me-for-three-months attitude."
"Sorry? You want me to tell you you're being an idiot marrying a guy who thinks fly-fishing is relaxing, and who wears socks with his sandals?"
"No but a sarcastic reaction from you is better than no reaction at all!"
"Really? How come it's pissed you off for the past ten years?"
Casey sat back in her chair more confident now. "It did piss me off. But you not behaving like Derek was worse." She admitted.
Derek shook his head, but the smile on his face was affectionate. "You're weird, you know that?"
"Never bothered you before."
Derek slid an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.
"It was a good night." He said quietly.
"We spent most of it like this." She looked up at him and he smiled down at her.
"We did, didn't we?" He confirmed.
"Do you ever…?" She started.
"Do I ever what?" He prompted.
"Do you ever wonder what might have happened if that truck had turned up later?"
Derek wanted to be honest, but he couldn't be. There were too many years of Casey being his "sister". He had had opportunities through the years to change things, but there had always been a very good reason not to.
Right now, looking at her cuddled into his side, he struggled to remember what the reason was…but that still didn't mean he could answer truthfully.
"No."
"Liar."
He gazed at her for a long while and she put a hand up to his cheek.
"I'm getting married Derek."
"I know." He whispered.
"What are you thinking?"
This time he told the truth. "I hate my dad."
And because she had always been more on his wavelength than either of them cared to admit, he didn't need to explain why.
"Poor George."
Derek pulled himself away from her and stood up.
"Buy the dress, princess. I won't say a word." He paused. "I need to go."
Casey watched him thoughtfully as he patted himself down to make sure he had his keys phone and wallet.
"You've decided not to come, haven't you?" She said after a moment. "To the wedding." Derek froze. "Derek…"
"Casey, I don't know, okay? I'll try." He bluffed.
And now Casey was standing, moving towards him.
"Don't Derek." She asked, pleading with him. "Don't go…You'll find some stupid way to avoid me for the next three months or longer."
He closed his eyes against the sight of her, perfectly imperfect, pleading with him to stay.
"You'll be beautiful." He said, looking at her again, his fingers brushing her cheek. "You always are."
"Derek…"
"Don't Casey. I came with you today. You put me through torture enough. Don't make me watch it."
"Derek…"
"No." His voice was firm but not raised. "Don't, honey."
Casey's fingers found his and wove a pattern to prevent him leaving, but her face was far from gentle.
"I have your blessing, don't I?" She sounded disgusted, and Derek realised he would never know how her mind worked.
"And my love." He whispered, kissing her forehead.
"Your love?" Casey questioned and it never occurred to him to wonder why she didn't sound surprised. "How exactly? If you don't want to be in my life."
"I want to be in your life." He said slipping an arm around her waist. "It's just not a good idea."
"Because you love me." She finished his thought process for him.
Derek's posture slumped and he rested his head against hers again.
"Because I'm in love with you." He said so softly she almost missed it.
There was a pause where all they heard was the ticking of a clock somewhere and their own breathing. They stood together, Derek holding her by the waist, their heads together.
Casey spoke. "I thought I got the dynamic between us. For many years, I thought I knew that it was part friendship, part frustration, part quest for power." She paused. "And then that night happened…the one where the car broke down, and we broke down our barriers. For the first time we were honest with each other without one or other of us immediately shouting "Fooled you!" I felt closer to you at the end of that night than I had ever felt to another person. And we may not have kissed or fooled around but for the first time I realised that the biggest emotion between you and I wasn't anger or frustration, but love…denied love. A love that we were refusing to allow to surface because of what it would cost us." Derek tightened his grip on her waist, their heads were still bowed and neither of them was looking at the other.
Casey went on. "For years, I fought myself as I tried to work out what was the best for us…for the future. On the face of it, the answer seemed to be to ignore it, to hope that it went away. You dated, I dated and nothing changed. No one person seemed to hold our attention more than each other.
And then…last year, you stopped pranking me…you stopped choosing to spend time with me, and I couldn't understand what had changed. You weren't in a relationship there was no one else to hold your attention, yet…you didn't want me. I thought you had moved on."
"He was different." Derek said. "I could tell he loved you for you. The others, there was always something to make me feel the need to step in. But him…I couldn't justify stepping in. I couldn't make myself screw it up for you."
Casey moved in his arms and he realised she was nodding. "When you stayed out of it…and didn't seem interested, I convinced myself you didn't feel anything for me anymore. He is a good guy and when he proposed…I said yes." Casey was quiet for a moment. "I suppose part of me wanted you to step in…to say "stop!" but you didn't. And then you stopped being around me altogether. You avoided me completely for two months…and that really hurt."
"Wedding preparations suck to watch." Derek murmured.
"I gave up on you and me two months ago, Derek."
"I know."
Casey placed the flat of her hand on his chest. Her fingers brushed the cotton of his shirt, moved his tie slightly to one side and slid into the space between the buttons to stroke his skin.
"Then you wrote that silly email last month." She said with a small chuckle.
"Yeah. Sorry about that." Derek apologised. He wasn't sure what to make of this. He'd just admitted to loving her for the very first time and instead of running for the hills like any self-respecting engaged step-sister, she was in his arms caressing his chest. It was strange, not at all unpleasant, and not something he was going to point out to her.
"I wasn't sure whether you sent it as a goodbye or as an invitation to come round and fight."
They both laughed nervously.
"But, in a silly way, it gave me hope, because it was more of the sort of reaction from you that I expect. And when Marti told me that you go to Sunday lunch whenever I'm not there – without fail, I realised that it wasn't me you were avoiding, just my situation. And I started to think about us again."
"It wouldn't have worked, Casey. There's the family…there's…"
She shook her head. "There's only the barriers we erected, Derek. It's time we stopped blaming our parents."
"Yeah. You're right." He glanced up at her now. "I'm sorry. I should have got this out of my system years ago."
"Me too."
"He's a lucky man." Derek said.
"He's had a lucky escape."
Derek nodded absentmindedly and then frowned when her words registered. Casey smiled softly as her hand lifted from Derek's chest and traced his lips.
"Two days after that email, I went to see him. I told him I was having doubts that things would work out between us. I told him I didn't think I loved him enough to make him happy."
Derek opened his mouth to say something but Casey's finger pressed against his lips.
"He told me that he had been offered a job abroad and it had made him rethink his own priorities and that he had been having doubts too." She took a deep breath.
"We parted as friends. I'm not engaged, Derek I haven't been for nearly a month."
His eyes widened. "So what was this all about? The wedding dress…?"
Casey sighed. "It was me trying to get across to you that some day this will happen. Some day I will say yes to someone else…and go through with it." She held his eyes with her own. "It was me giving you your chance to say "stop!" before it was too late."
"Say it Casey." Derek said when his brain was working again. "Tell me why I am here, right now."
"Because I love you." She admitted for the first time. "I am in love with you."
Derek closed his eyes. Casey reached over and kissed his lips gently. "I love you." She whispered again and again.
Kiss…
"I love you".
Kiss…
"I love you".
And then Derek was kissing her back, hard at first becoming softer, fingers holding her to him as though he was scared she would disappear.
It was minutes before they pulled apart.
"Annabelle should be back by now." Derek said against her lips.
"No. She said she'd give us till half past." Casey said.
"You planned all of this?" Derek sounded amazed.
"No. I planned us having the time to talk. I only hoped that you felt the same way as me." She admitted. She looked down wryly at the beautiful dress she was wearing. "It's a shame. I really liked the dress."
Derek smiled and reached for his wallet. He handed her a credit card. "Buy it. Maybe one day it'll come in handy for our wedding."
Casey stared at him. "Are you serious?"
He cocked his head and regarded her. "I'm serious about you."
Casey smiled and Derek asked the burning question.
"What are we going to do about the family?"
Casey shrugged. "That's your problem. I'm all out of cunning plans."
Derek laughed. "I guess we'll deal with them together."
Casey nodded and let him kiss her again.
"I guess I had better get out of this dress."
"Hmmm…Can I help?" His eyes were playful. Casey groaned.
"No. This I can handle myself." She said batting his hand away. "Besides, I blanked the rest of your diary for today, remember? Let's buy this dress, get out of here and take this "discussion" some where less…public and toss a few ideas around between us."
Derek smirked and Casey matched the smile.
Life with Derek and Casey wouldn't be perfect, but it at least it wasn't second best.