Despite the enormous size of the estate, Lilian wasn’t that difficult to locate. Noah and Riley found her sitting in the sun room, sipping afternoon tea with Cassie. The moment Noah entered the room the two women turned to look at him. Lilian glowered, her eyes raking over Riley and Cassie immediately rose to her feet and then rushed to Noah and flung herself against him. Her eyes were red from crying and she made quite a show of how upset she was by pushing her face into Noah’s chest and sobbing heavily into his shirt.
“This is your doing.” Lilian pointed a finger at Riley as she admonished him. “Did you really have to go after Cassie this way? Couldn’t you have left her alone, at least? Or do you thrive on making others miserable?”
“I have no idea what you’re even talking about.”Riley rolled his eyes, annoyed that once again Cassie had managed to insert herself between he and Noah. Now she was apparently blaming Riley for something so she could play the victim card, which she did expertly, to draw sympathy from the others.
“Go ahead, play stupid.” Lillian hissed. “But the way you treated this poor girl is unacceptable and I demand you apologize to her at once.”
“I have nothing to apologize for.” Riley narrowed his eyes as he crossed his arms defiantly over his chest. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”
“That’s not true.” Cassie raised her head and looked up pleadingly at Noah. “The things he said to me, Noah, he was so cruel. He told me that you didn’t want me here. He said no one wanted me around. He insulted me, called me hurtful names and told me that he wouldn’t rest until you threw me out of the house and out of your life. I guessed that he was just jealous of our relationship but I never thought he’d stoop so low. He was just so horrible.” She began crying again, false tears streamed down her cheeks and stained her face.
“I believe it.” Lilian said, rising to her feet then walking over to stand in front of Riley, glaring at him with malice in her eyes. “I always knew he was trouble. It doesn’t surprise me in the least that he would lie like this just to get rid of the competition.”
Noah gently moved Cassie away from him, holding her at arms length then he sighed. “There is no competition, Mother. Cassie and I are just friends, nothing more.”
“If that were true, then this…boy…wouldn’t feel so threatened by her.”
“I’m not threatened by her.” Riley said pointedly, “and I never said any of the things she’s accusing me of.”
“Yes you did!” Cassie sneered, turning to look at Riley with a glare so sharp it could cut through diamonds. “On the stairs, earlier, you told me that Noah doesn’t love me and would never marry me.”
“I said that because it’s true.” Riley argued. “You wishing it to be other wise isn’t going to change anything. He loves me, not you.”
“You didn’t tell me about any of this.” Noah said to Riley. “Why didn’t you mention that you met Cassie on the stairs?”
Riley took a deep breath. “I didn’t think it was important, and I didn’t want to cause anymore trouble between you and Cassie. She is your friend, and I respect that.”
Noah’s expression softened as he turned to Cassie, not sure what to do or say to fix this. Yes, Cassie was his friend, a good friend, but Riley was the love of his life. Cassie needed to understand once and for all that Noah would never see her as anything but a friend and would never love her the way he loved Riley.
“Cass, Riley didn’t mean to hurt you.” Noah tried to explain. “He was just being honest with you. I’m sorry that his words upset you, but you have to understand where he’s coming from.”
Cassie balled Noah’s shirt in her fists and tried to pull him closer to her but when he refused to move her desperation turned to anger. “You don’t understand, Noah. He’s trying to turn you against me. He’s jealous. You and I were always meant to be together. We’re perfect together. We think alike and we come from the same world. You couldn’t ask for a better match.”
“No, Cassie.” Noah shook his head sadly as he gently removed her hands from her shirt. “You and I would never have worked out. Riley isn’t the problem. Even if he wasn’t in the picture, I still wouldn’t be interested in you, Cassie, I’m gay. I’ve known it since we were kids. I just never looked at females the way I looked at males. It’s nothing against you, it’s just the way I am. I’m attracted to men, not women, and I’m in love with Riley.”
“Why?” Cassie’s face twisted with rage. “How can you be in love with him?” She yelled through her sobs. “He’s nothing! He’s vile. He’s hateful and cruel. He said terrible things to me, deliberately, just to hurt me. He hates me because I love you, he hates me for being close to you!”
“No, Cassie.” Noah said firmly. “Riley is my partner, my mate. If he said those things to you, it was only because he was trying to protect our relationship.”
“This isn’t right.” Cassie wiped at her eyes, her mascara making streaks down her cheeks as if her tears were turning black. “You’re not supposed to be with him. You barely even know him but you and I, we’ve shared so much. Who was there for you when your father died, or when Charlie moved away? Who stood by you through all your years of self-imposed isolation? Riley? No, it was me. It’s always been me. I’ve always been here for you. I’ve stood by you when no one else would, I stayed loyal.”
“And I appreciate that.” Noah sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. His shoulders slumped and he looked so exhausted, both mentally and physically. Riley suddenly wished that he had never brought up El or her diary. If he hadn’t, he and Noah could be in their room now, curled up in bed, holding each other close. Instead, they were in the sun room, going around in circles as Noah tried desperately to defend his relationship with Riley to both his mother and now to Cassie as well.
“Cassie, I’ve always cherished our friendship but I can’t be what you want. I can’t be your lover, or your husband, but I will always be your friend. You just have to accept that and move on.”
Cassie shook her head as though she could shake off his words, shake away the pain and humiliation of his rejection. Her heart knew what Noah was saying was true but her mind refused to believe any of it was real. “Why are you doing this to me?” She asked finally, lifting her head to meet Noah’s gaze. Her voice sounded so small, so broken and for a moment, Riley actually felt sorry for her. “Are you trying to punish me for something? Are you angry that I didn’t keep in touch after I left for school? Is that why you’re treating me this way?”
Noah exhaled deeply and closed his eyes. He could feel the start of another headache building, just behind the eyes. A relentless, pounding that became more pronounced with each passing moment.
“Once again, Cass, my feelings have nothing to do with you. You didn’t do anything and I’m not punishing you for anything. I’m not doing this to you, it’s just who I am. Being gay isn’t something you choose, it’s just the way I was born, It’s who I am and nothing can change that. You either accept what I’m telling you or…”