OUR DIRTY STEP-SECRET

THE COLD SHOULDER

Cassie’s pov

For the next three days, Cassie learned exactly what it felt like to be erased.Jace didn't yell. He didn't smirk. He didn't pick fights or block the stairs with his long legs anymore. When Cassie walked into a room, he simply looked right through her, his slate-gray eyes flat and empty, as if she were nothing more than a piece of furniture left behind by the previous owners.It was exactly what she had asked for in the kitchen. She had told him to stop. She had told him they were done, that he was a reckless brat, and that he was just using her as a convenient body. She had demanded her walls back, demanded the control she had spent her entire life building.But now that she had it, the silence in the mansion was absolutely suffocating.Cassie sat at the kitchen island on Thursday morning, her plastic clipboard resting flat on the granite counter. Her master schedule for the upcoming wedding rehearsal was perfectly color-coded, every single detail neatly lined up. By all accounts, her organized little world was completely intact.Yet, she hadn't written a single word in twenty minutes. Her fingers were tightly gripping her pen, her eyes fixed on the empty hallway leading to the foyer.She hadn't slept more than three hours a night since their argument. Every time she closed her eyes, her mind replayed the look on Jace’s face right before he walked out of the kitchen—the sudden, freezing hurt that had exposed itself beneath his arrogant mask. It made her stomach churn with a heavy, sickening weight. She wanted him close. She wanted the heat of his hand on her waist, the rough, breathless weight of his mouth against hers. She was starving for him, a desperate, humiliating craving that made her throat tighten with panic.But her pride was a stubborn, rigid thing. To speak to him meant admitting she was wrong. It meant admitting that she was just as reckless, just as obsessed, and just as deeply caught up in this forbidden mess as he was. So, she kept her jaw clamped shut, hiding behind her checklists, waiting for him to break first.He didn't break.The heavy front door clicked open, and the sound of her mother’s bright, cheerful laughter echoed down the hall. Cassie sat up straighter, smoothing down the front of her oversized sweater as Susan walked into the kitchen, followed closely by Richard and Jace.They had just come back from a meeting with the wedding caterer town over, and they weren't alone. Walking right next to Jace was Hailey, the twenty-year-old daughter of Richard’s closest business associate. Hailey was beautiful in an effortless, wealthy way, her blonde hair perfectly styled, wearing a sundress that looked expensive even from across the room."Oh, Cassie, sweetie!" Susan said, setting her handbag on the island. "You should have come with us. The tasting was incredible. And look who we bumped into at the bridal boutique!""Hi, Cassie," Hailey offered, giving a polite, sweet wave."Hi," Cassie managed to say, her voice coming out a little stiff. Her eyes immediately flicked past Hailey to lock onto Jace.Her heart did a violent, painful drop. Jace was looking at Hailey. He wasn't wearing his usual deadpan mask. Instead, his mouth was tilted into a low, easy smile—the kind of relaxed, charming expression he had never once given Cassie."Jace was actually helpful for once, Richard," Hailey joked, bumping her shoulder lightly against Jace’s upper arm. "He helped me pick out the bridesmaid accent colors since your dad was completely clueless.""Hey, I know what looks good," Richard laughed, walking over to pour himself a glass of water. "I just know when to let the younger generation handle the style."Jace let out a quiet, amused chuckle, his gray eyes crinkling at the corners as he looked down at Hailey. "Don't let him lie to you, Hailey. He wanted everything to be corporate navy blue."Hailey laughed, a bright, musical sound, and reached out to playfully tap Jace's chest. "I knew it! Good thing you were there to save the day."Cassie’s fingers tightened around her pen so hard the plastic casing creaked. A sudden, toxic wave of pure, hot jealousy rushed through her veins, so intense it made her dizzy. Her chest felt like it was physically burning. She wanted to stand up and rip Hailey’s hand right off his shirt. She wanted to scream at him for smiling like that, for sharing inside jokes with another girl right in front of her, while treating Cassie like an invisible ghost.He’s doing this on purpose, her mind screamed. He’s trying to punish me.But as she watched Jace reach out to gently tuck a stray piece of blonde hair behind Hailey’s ear, Cassie realized something much worse. Jace wasn't looking at Cassie to see if she was watching. He wasn't trying to catch her eye to gloat. He was completely ignoring her presence because, to him, she truly didn't matter anymore. She had pushed him away, and he had simply walked."Actually," Susan said, looking between Cassie and Jace, completely oblivious to the agonizing tension thick enough to choke on. "Richard and I have to head over to the country club to finalize the seating charts, and Hailey needs a ride back to her apartment downtown. Jace, honey, can you drive her? And take Cassie with you—she needs to pick up the final box of printed wedding invitations from the stationery shop right next to Hailey’s building."Cassie's breath caught. "Mom, no, it's fine. I can just drive myself later—""Nonsense, Cassie," Richard chimed in, setting his glass down. "The truck has plenty of room, and there’s no point in burning gas for two separate trips. Jace, take your sister and Hailey downtown."Sister. The word felt like a physical slap to Cassie's face.Jace’s smile vanished the absolute second his father spoke. The cold, mechanical mask locked right back into place over his handsome features. He didn't look at Cassie. He just reached into his pocket, pulled out his keys, and let out a flat, gravelly breath."Sure," Jace said, his voice entirely stripped of the warmth he had just used with Hailey. "Let's go."The walk out to Jace’s battered black truck was a slow torture. Hailey naturally claimed the middle seat, sliding into the tight cabin with an easy familiarity, leaving Cassie to sit by the passenger door.The drive downtown was filled with the sound of Hailey talking about college, her summer plans, and old memories of growing up around Richard’s office. Jace responded consistently, his voice low and casual, dropping brief, smooth answers that kept Hailey smiling.Cassie kept her face turned entirely toward the passenger window, staring blindly at the passing traffic. Her throat felt completely tight, a hot lump of unshed tears threatening to spill over. Her pride was a suffocating weight. She wanted to open her mouth. She wanted to interrupt them, to say something clever, to force Jace to look at her. But every time she thought about opening her mouth, the memory of her own harsh words in the kitchen stopped her cold. I’m probably just some convenient body to you. She had broken the string, and her pride wouldn't let her beg him to tie it back together.When the truck finally pulled up to the curb outside Hailey’s luxury apartment building, Hailey turned and smiled warmly."Thanks for the ride, Jace," she said, leaning across the seat. She pressed a soft, lingering kiss against Jace’s cheek, right near his jawline. "Call me this weekend, okay? We should grab drinks.""Yeah. I'll call you," Jace murmured, his eyes tracking her as she slid out of the truck.Cassie felt like she was going to throw up. The exact spot where Hailey’s lips had touched his skin was burning into her retinas. The second Hailey slammed the truck door shut and walked into her building, the silence inside the cabin became deafening.The stationery shop was directly across the street. Cassie knew she should get out, pick up the invitations, and finish her checklist. But as Jace shifted the truck into park, leaving the engine idling with a low, heavy rumble, the absolute limits of her endurance snapped.She couldn't take the silence anymore. She couldn't take being the ghost."Are you serious right now?" Cassie asked, her voice cracking sharply as she finally turned her head to look at him.Jace didn't move. His hands remained gripped tightly around the steering wheel, his eyes fixed firmly on the windshield ahead. "Get the boxes, Cassie. I’m double-parked.""No!" she shot back, her stubborn nature flaring hot, overriding every single boundary she had set. She unbuckled her seatbelt and shifted her body toward him, her chest heaving. "Look at me, Jace. Just look at me!"Slowly, deliberately, Jace turned his head. His slate-gray eyes were cold, hollow, and completely empty of the warmth he had just shown Hailey. "What do you want, Cassie?""Why are you doing this?" she whispered, her pride finally fracturing, revealing the raw, bleeding insecurity underneath. "You're treating me like I'm a stranger. You brought her to the house, you're smiling with her, you're letting her kiss you... you're acting like last weekend didn't even happen."Jace let out a short, mocking laugh, a dry sound that cut through her words like broken glass. He turned his body, leaning closer, his large frame instantly crowding her against the passenger door. The familiar scent of mint and laundry detergent filled her senses, making her head spin."Isn't this exactly what you wanted?" Jace asked, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous register that made her heart hammer violently against her ribs. "In the kitchen, you screamed at me to stop. You told me I was a spoiled brat using you as a convenient body. You told me to leave you alone. So, I’m leaving you alone, Cassie. I’m playing by your precious little rules.""You're not leaving me alone, you're torturing me!" Cassie cried, a single, frustrated tear finally escaping her eye and rolling down her cheek. She hated herself for crying, hated how weak she felt, but she couldn't stop. "You look right through me. You act like I don't exist. It’s driving me crazy, Jace."Jace froze, his jaw clenching so hard a sharp muscle ticked beneath his skin. The cold, indifferent mask finally cracked, revealing an intense, hungry focus that was directed completely at her lips. He reached out, his large hand moving fast, his fingers wrapping firmly around the back of her neck, pulling her forward until her chest brushed against his."You think you're the only one going crazy?" Jace whispered roughly, his breath hot against her mouth. His gray eyes were dark with a fierce, possessive anger. "I spent the last three days trying to tear you out of my head because you called me a hookup. You told me I didn't care about anything. I brought Hailey around because I was trying to convince myself that any other girl could make me feel the way you do."Cassie's breath caught, her hands instinctively rising up to grip his forearms, her fingers digging into his leather jacket."And?" she breathed, her chin tilting up defensively, her pride making one last, desperate stand. "Did she?"Jace’s grip on her neck tightened, his thumb tilting her jaw upward as he closed the remaining distance between them."No," he growled against her lips, his voice tight and rough around the edges. "Not even close."