Page 19 of The Boardroom: Cassidy
I laughed as I let Cassidy lead the way down a series of more city streets until we got to an area I hardly recognized. And there, in the center of this grimy, gray city, was a beautiful green park. I could have cried.
“Oh my god,” I said, before we had even reached it. “I don’t think I’ve seen this much green in an entire month.”
The park was very organized and purposeful in the way that city parks are, with all of the trees and plants organized in geometric displays. It was not a place of nature that was already there and modified for human enjoyment, the way parks were back home, but a piece of nature that had specifically been built as a sanctuary for people living in the city. Everything here had a human purpose: there were wooden benches along walking paths and biking trails, playgrounds for children of all ages and stages put up for concerts or plays. Funny modern art statues were scattered around the place, adding peculiar splashes of color and shape where you would least expect it, and a large fountain with a statue of naked woman pouring water inside it was situated at the center of the park. There was a definite city sensibility to the place.
I still adored it.
Cassidy took Maggie’s leash from me for a moment and let me wander about a little bit, examining maps and flyers detailing upcoming events at the park. I decided I would have to come here more often.
Cassidy took my hand again and led me over to a park bench overlooking a small duck pond (which was notably devoid of ducks). He got out the bag of cupcakes, handing me my dulce de leche one before putting Maggie’s on the ground in front of her, which she happily devoured in seconds. He gave Maggie a scratch behind the ears before picking up his own red velvet cupcake and digging in.
The sunshine was warm where we were sitting, and I beamed as I felt Cassidy slip his arm around me, and suddenly I felt warm inside and out. I was surprised, to be honest. I didn’t think that Cassidy would have been capable of such a serious and thoughtful date. He knew how much I adored Maggie and missed being outdoors, and had been thoughtful enough to find a ridiculous cupcake shop for dogs and then take me to the most beautiful park in the city. I supposed he really was as serious as he said he was, or was at least very good at this.
“So, what is your story, anyways?” I asked, nibbling on my cupcake. “It sounded like you had absolutely everything back home. Why on earth would you come here?”
Cassidy stared out into the distance and sighed. “Everything at home was suffocating,” he said, letting his mind wander into the past. “Have you ever seenDownton Abbey?”
“Yeah.”
“It was worse.”
I laughed. “It was a little bit like that for me at home as well, actually,” I said, reaching down to happily scratch Maggie behind the ears. “But it wasn’t about wealth and snobbery. It was about…smallness.”
“Smallness?” Cassidy asked. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Eliza said. “Everyone in my hometown expects my loyalty to it, to that way of life. Little American towns like mine are dying out fast, and sometimes I feel like the weight is on my shoulders to keep it going.”
“At least you didn’t give up a title,” Cassidy nodded. “I gave up being anearl,for fuck’s sake. I mean, am I crazy for doing that? Am I ungrateful?”
“I don’t think so,” I said. “It’s not fair to be told to who to be and what we represent. Itissuffocating. Everybody deserves the chance to run, the chance to stretch out a little and find their purpose, instead of having it told to them. We should only have to have responsibility over ourselves.”
I smiled, surprised at how deep this conversation had gotten already. Cassidy was even more surprised, however, at how much he and I had in common. It turned out you didn’t have to have aristocratic blood to have a legacy your family wanted you to fulfill. Even in my tiny, middle class house, I had been expected to be a certain person, and to keep a certain way of life going. I had been expected to marry a boy from my church and to go every Sunday, to take a job at the town factory and then quit when I had a good number of children. To the people I loved in my community, I was the hope that their past would carry itself on into the future. But that wasn’t my job. And it wasn’t Cassidy’s job to uphold the traditions of a fading English aristocracy he hardly cared for either.
“To being ourselves, for ourselves,” Cassidy said, holding his cupcake up to me in a mock toast. I clinked mine up to his and took a bite with him, laughing.
The sun began to set, but our conversation was still going strong. Cassidy was full of stories: tall tales about pranks he played during his posh British school days and various things his friends had done when they were completely drunk. I had my own stories as well: not as colorful, but usually just as funny. Usually men like this, ones that broke rules and partied and walked through life without a care bothered me, but not him. There was a warmth to Cassidy that was undeniably good, and it was this kindness that made me feel as if I was already sitting on a delicate precipice to love. However, it was getting late, and it was time to head back home.
“Let me walk you home,” Cassidy said. “To Sabryna’s, I mean.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I had a great time, honestly. And everything you did for me, and Maggie, to make us happy…it was very sweet. I would love to do it again sometime, if that’s alright with you.”
“Always,” Cassidy said, and in a quick motion he leaned down and kissed me on the lips, deep and lovely and full of promise for the future. I was already weak in the knees, then he took my hand, kissed it, and held onto it as we made our way home. I was swooning.
Cassidy was charming and sweet underneath his bad boy exterior, and I found myself wanting more of him in every way. For the first time in forever, I felt excitement and novelty on the horizon, just waiting to be discovered.
I found myself feeling rather sad when we reached Sabryna’s apartment complex. I didn’t want this long and lovely afternoon to end. I wanted it to stretch on forever, into night and into morning. The air was still warm and the sunset lit up the city in a way that was strikingly romantic, and I could have danced with him right there.
“Well,” Cassidy said, smiling. “I guess I’ll see you at work, new girl.” He winked, and I nearly swooned again.
“I guess you will,” I said, winking back, my heart still racing at a thousand miles per hour.
“Just one thing first,” Cassidy said. He came closer until I was backed up against the wall of the building, threaded one of his hands through my hair, and kissed me.
This was not the chaste kiss we had shared before we had left the park, but a different animal entirely. This kiss was ravenous and exhilarating, and I gasped as Cassidy gripped my waist and pulled me tight against him. I moaned as he moved his lips down to my neck, and I was about to suggest we go back to his place when I heard a familiar voice in the distance.
“Eliza? What the fuck?”
My heart, which had been racing only seconds earlier, had suddenly frozen to stone in my chest. It was Ben.
