Vishal Shukla

I WISH FOR A GUY who worships my body, is great at sex and makes me feel like a goddess. Someone who loves me, for me . Inside and out, And is really, really good at it And if he could be six foot two, with sandy blond hair and dreamy green eyes, a body that made nymphomaniacs weep and a smile that melted her panties, that’d be cool, too. Eyes scrunched tight , Eden Gillespie let that visual play out for just a second. Then, with a deep breath, she opened her eyes wide and blew. The flame went out . Thankfully. Because she'd blown so hard, the candle toppled from its perch on the chocolate cupcake. Good wishes did that, she told herself as she scooped up a fingerful of frosting and grinned at the woman sitting across from her. “So? What’d you wish for?” Bev lang leaned forward, her wild red curls bouncing like springs around her cheerful face. “it’s a secret . If I tell , it won’t come true,” Eden said primly before bursting into laughter. Yeah.Like she was gonna lose out on her body-worshipping lover because she put the word out that she was waiting? Still, She pulled her Cupcake closer and, since it was filled with molten chocolate, used a fork to enjoy the next bte... and fill her mouth so she didn’t blurt anything out. “I can’t believe you won’t tell me . How long have we been friends.?” Bev asked, putting on her best ‘affronted’ expression. It wasn’t very effective since she still looked like she was waiting for wile apron and her boy friend, Raggedy Andy. “Eleven years?” Eden guessed, counting back ot the first day of high school. That’d been the year her dad had died, leaving her mom too broke to keep and paying the ex-orbitant tuition to the private school Eden had always attended . Secretly terrified , Eden has put on a brave face in hopes that the public school kids would accept her more that the private school snobs had. Bev had been the new girl in town, unaware that Eden wasn’t acceptable the ins and outs of ocean point social politics , she and Eden had been too good of friends for it to matter. “Then as your best friend since ninth grade, I figure it’s my job to help you with the wish,”Bev decided , leaning back in Eden’s faded and frayed Queen Anne dining chair and digging into her own cupcake. “I think this should be your year for sex.” “ An entire year, dedicated to sex?” Eden asked with a laugh. She was sure there was nothing more than dust motes and the faint air of neglect floating through the formal dining room . But, still, it was all she could do not to look over her head to see if the wish was written there in the candle smoke. “You should dedicate this year to the pursuit of sex”. Bev scrunched up her nose.”I don’t want to hurt your feel- ings or anything ,but it might take a little effort on your part,”she added. When was the last time she’d had sex worth the effort? Definitely not with Kenny. Not with any guy, if she were bring honest. Eden swirled her fork in the gooey rich chocolate , using it ot make a design on the Meissen plate. After all, Waht better time for brutal self-truths than a girl’s twenty-fifth birthday. Kenny, the last guy she’d had sex with, had broken his foot trying to prove his manliness by doing it against a tree. Instead of accepting that he just wasn’t he-man material , he’d blamed her. No Wonder her love life sucked. Look at what she had to work with. “So I know why I should want good sex, ”Eden said, standing to clear their plates." But why is my personal life on your radar?” She didn’t have to look to know Bev was following her to the kitchen. The rat-a-tat-tat of her high heels was a giveaway. “Janie was in the shop yesterday,”Bev said, sounding like her cupcake had been bitter lemon instead of rich chocolate. Bev Owned Stylin,’the best salon in town. And despite her penchant for wearing her own hair in rag doll fashion, she worked pure magic on everyone else. Enough magic to lure in the well-paying oceanfront set. “Ah”.Eden didn’t need to hear any more than that. She wasn’t sure of the what, when and where, but she was sure she was the who the chatter had revolved around. That’s how Janie and company worked. They wouldn’t check in with Eden directly----- they’d go to her best friend and mine for gossip. “Don’t let her get to you.”Eden set the plates next to the sink. “I m just so tired of them talking about you, ”Bev grumbled, throwing the cupcake wrappers in the trash so hard that they bounced right back out. “They are all so snooty and rude, with their perfect lives bought and paid for by someone else.” “You think they have perfect sex, bought and paid for, too?” Eden asked, keeping her tone, and her expression, serious. She lost it, though, when Bev glared. Laughing, she asked,”What? You think I should get upset because they are talking about, let me guess... My love life, or lack thereof?” “Well, it’s not like they are saying nice things.” Eden shrugged , so used to pretending she didn’t care that it pretty much came naturally to her now. As if realizing she’d brought the bummer cloud to dim the party atmosphere, Bev clapped her hands together and exclaimed,” Presents! I’ll be right back. I’m going to get your gift from the car”. Eden kept a cherry smile of anticipation on her face until the wooden screen door clapped shut behind her friend, then let it drop. She sighed, tossing the forks into the dishwasher and squirting liquid soap on a sponge. Hot, happy sex. Her chances of finding that were about as small and slender as the half-melted candle she’d just blown out. What a waste of a wish. She should have used it on her career. Only out of veterinary school six months, she still had student loans and now a substantial mortgage on this house. It’d taken every bit of daughterly influence she had to convince her mother to let her buy it instead of putting it on the market. It’d also taken her entire savings account and the tiny trust fund left to her by her grandfather, but Eden loved her home and her heritage too much to see it sold to the highest bidder. And then there was the fact that there was enough property for her to set up her veterinary clinic. With a shake of her head, she carefully dried the china and walked over to place it in the ornate cabinet with the reverence her great-great-gramma’s plates deserved. Like most of the furnishings in her childhood home, the glass –fronted hutch was a antique. Rattling around here alone all the time, Eden sometimes felt like the house was just waiting for her to join the ranks of antiques so she’d better fit in. It wasn’t that she minded being alone, really. But like sex, sometimes a girl got tired of going it solo. “The postman drove by when I was at my car,” Bev said , returning to the room with a huge polka-dot box with a ribbon as curly as her hair.”I brought your mail in. Look, I think there are a couple of birthday cards here.”More because Bev was looking worried again than because of any curiosity to see who’d remembered her birthday, Eden took the stack of mail. Before she could get to telltale bright envelopes, she noticed one from the bank . It was addressed to both her and her mother. “What’s up with this.” She muttered, tossing the others on the counter and sliding her fingernail under the flap.She and her mother had no bank business together. And Since Eleanor was tolling aroud the country, following the crafts fairs in a new RV, Eden didn’t hesitate to open the missive. “What the...”She has to wait for the room to stop spinning and the buzzing to clear from her ears before she could read the letter again. Nope. The words hadn’t changed. “I am going to kill her.” She muttered through gritted teeth. “What? Who? Where’s a shovel so I can help you bury the evidence.” “My mother took out a loan against the house.”Fury pounded at her temples like a gorilla with a sledgehammer. Knowing the words wouldn’t change , no matter how many times she glared at thme, Eden crumpled the letter in her fist and threw it against the wall. “I thought the house was yours,” Bev sad quietly.”I thought you bought it from her.” “My cousin Arnie is a lawyer. He wrote up a legal document that said the house was mine once I took over the mortgage, and then added my name to the title. But he’d advised against transferring it out of mom’s name at the point because I was still carrying student loans and needed the bank to approve another so I could start a new business.” But why hadn’t he checked for loans against the property when he’d changed the title? “She didn’t warn you? Talk it over with you before taking out the loan? Give you a heads-up that you were about to get hit with a big ole bill? Nothing?” “Warn me? She didn’t even call to wish me a happy birthday, ”Eden said, her laugh only a little bitter,wishing she could be as shocked as Bev. “To her credit, she probably forgot.” “About the loan?”Bev Scoffed, her freckled face furrowed in fury. “About my birthday.” And how sad was it that the fact that her mother forgot her birthday hurt more than a bill for thirty grand. Eden reached for the phone, then curled her fingers into her palm. As much as she wanted a explanation ,an assurance that the payment-in-full had been mailed to the bank, she knew better. Eleanor Gillespie didn’t worry about little things like money. She was too flaky to let the mundane rain on her creative lifestyle. Glancing at the bank’s letter, Eden cringed. Flake or not, her mother had made a mess of things. And, as usual,Eden was the one who had to figure out how to clean it up. Because if she didn’t find some money quickly, she could lose the house. The property that’d been in her family for five generations. Her home, her place of business. Her life. As if reading her mind, Bev asked , “What are you going to do?” Eden blinked fast to clear the dampness from her eyes. What she wasn’t going to do was cry, dammit. “I guess I’m going to find thirty thousand dollars.” Where on earth was she going to find that on top of her other debts? And why hadn’t her mother arranged for a repayment plan? Coming up with that kind of money in one fell swoop was close to impossible. Eden rubbed her fingers against the sudden pounding in her temple, then walked over to retrieve the letter. She’d to study it, contact the bank, so she understood all the details. “You’re really going to take on your mother’s loan ?” “It’s against my property . I have to take in on. At least, until she turns up again and deals with it herself. But she;s tooling across the country from craft fair to art show right now. I hae no idea when I’ll hear from her. Or When she’ll come home and clean up her mess.” “How are you going to get the money?” Hell if she knew. Every penny she earned was earmarked. Despite her fancy address, she was living a ramen noodle lifestyle here. There was noanthing of value to sell. Oh, sure, she still had her great-grandma’s chine and there were a few an- Tiques left floating around. But they were all she had left of her family. Well, those and her mother. And right now she was pretty sure the china was worth more. Eden took a deep breath. There had to be a way through this. She just had to think. Think, Eden. Her eyes fell on a square envelope embossed with ivy and roses. The monthly garden club meeting. She wrinkled her nose, wondering if they resented having to send her the invitation as much as she hated getting it. Because she was the last person the socially upstanding ladies wanted invading their exclusive get-togethers. But the Gillespie name guaranteed her an invitation. “The Oceanfront set, “ She exclaimed, snapping her fingers. “What was the question again?” Bev asked with a confused look. “I’ll hit up the country club ladies.” “For loans?” Eden cringed. Handouts? Oh hell, no. She was nobody’s charity case. “For clients. They are all big on their designer pets. I just have to get two, maybe three of them to start using my veterinary services, and more will follow.” “How much are you going to charge?” Bev asked , her eyes huge with a horrified sort of glee. Eden laughed. “Just enough that they consider the services exclusice.All it will take is a few of them using me as their vet,a little behid the scenes hype and pretty soon I’ll have a well-heeled clientele. I might not be able to pay off the entire loan at once, but if I can get enough of a down payment and show the bank that I have the potential income, I’ll bet I can swing a deal.” Maybe. And maybe was all she needed. Eden reached for the phone again, quickly dialing the head of the Garden club. Five minutes and three grimaces later, she hung up with a triumphant smile. “Why’d you RSVP for two?” Bev asked, pulling her head out of the pantry to give Eden a suspicious look. “Because you’re going with me.” “Oh,no.” Bev declared, emptying an armload of bins and jars onto the chipped tile counter.”I’am not a member. They won’t let me in.” “You’re my guest.” “They aren’t going to want me there.” Bev predicted. “They don’t want me there, either.” Eden shrugged. “They’ll just have to deal with us . Because I need you with me.” “For moral support?” Eden wasn’t sure how much good moral support would be when faced with forcing a tight-knit group of women to accept an outsider at one of their chichi meetings. But she did need someone to play off. Someone who could talk up her veterinary skills and give her the verbal setups she’d need to spike home her point if this plan was going to work. “What are you doing?” Eden asked , eying the eggs and butter that had just joined the flour brown sugar and peanut butter. “This s clearly a cookie situation,” Bev said , digging a bag of chocolate morsels out of the freezer. Before Eden could decide if the two of them eating what, if the butter and eggs were anything to go by, would be a double batch of peanut butter chocolate chip cookies was a good idea, there ws a rumbling outside. Company? Or another birthday surprise? Maybe her mother had found a way to send the plague by UPS. Or, Eden squinted, in a shiny new Jaguar. “Hey, cool. It’s like the birthday fiary heard your wish.” Bev joked, joining Eden at the door to see who was pulling up the weather-pitted driveway. Recognizing the car, Eden frowned. Even though they were neighbours, Robert Sullivan never visited. So the only way the birthday fairy was playing into this particular arrival was if his son, Cade, had hijacked the jag and was driving up to make all of Eden’s fantasies come true. Cade sullican. Tall, blond and gorgeous, with hypnotic green eyes and more charm than a proud momma’s bracelet. The Sexiest guy to ever set foot in Ocean Point. High school quarterback. Class president. Navy SEAL. Her hero. She knew most people in town who didn’t have membership with the exclusive Ocean Point Country Club-and even a few who did---saw Robert Sullivan as a major asshoole. But when she looked at him, all she saw was an older version of cade. The guy who always rescued her from mishaps, who’d never made a tag-a-long girl five years his junior feel stupid. The guy she’d had a crush on since she was seven. The one she’d spied on at the small, private lake that bordered their two properties. The man who’d who formed her every basis for what spelled sexy in a guy. Eden sighed. Then Robert ‘s car swerved. Eden gasped. The Jaguar made a beeline for the faded brick arch that welcomed people to the Gillespie house. Eden hit the door running. Just as she made it to the Bottom of the steps, the car slid into the unyielding bricks with a sick crunch of crumpling metal. “What’s happened ? Who is it ?” Bev called as Eden sprinted across the lawn, skidding on the gravel driveway in her burry to reach the car. “Call an ambulance. Tell them to hurry.”Eden started at the older, colder version of her favourite fantasy, her breath tight in her chest. She checked the pulse at his throat to be sure, then gave a shaky sigh.”Robert’s hurt. I think he might have had a heart attack.” IT WAS LIKE WATCHING a bunch of virgins tour a whorehouse. Lieutenant Commander Cade Sullivan shook his head at the current crew of Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL trainees slogging through the wet sand, each carrying a dripping log over his shoulder. “Were we ever that green?” he wondered aloud. “You weren’t,” Captain Seth Borden said with a laugh, clapping Cade on the back.” You were one of the most focused BUDS we’ve seen come through here. I’ve been a MTS a long time, but even I can’t alwys tell which guys will make it through Hell Week. Sometimes none do. But when you came through, every instructor knew you’d graduate.” Borden was a Master Training Specialist .One of the top at Coronado’s Naval Special Warfare Center, as a matter of fact. He was a machine. A guy who’d dedicated thirty years to the navy and scared the hell out of most people. Cade considered him a crusty old bastard who drank like the sailor he was, cussed with flare and played a wicked hand of poker. And when they weren’t in uniform or on bas, he Cade’s favourite uncle. “Why’d you haul me donw here?” Cade asked, grimacing when one guy tripped over his own feet, taking three Others down with him and sending his log flying ahead into the back of two more. “Wanted to make sure I appreciate how good my team is?” He grinned when three winnable SEALs sidestepped the downfall and just kept on going.Those guys, they had the downfall and just kept on going. Those guys, they had what it took. “You need a reminder?” “Nope.” Cade’s smile faded. He knew dammed well that he served with some of the best SEALs in existence.Guys who gave their all, like his buddy Phil Hawkins, Who’d given it right to the end. A familiar band of grief tightened in Cade’s chest, as it did whenever he thought of the loss. The Three Amigos, Phil, Cade and Blake Landon had gone through BUDS together, and served in the same platoon, in countless missions together. They embraced everything that being a SEAL stood for. Brotherhoood. Dedication . Excellence. And now the Three Amigos were two. “C’mon in. We’ll have a cup of coffee.” Grateful for any distraction from the gnawing emptiness that had started to overshadow his SEAl career, Cade followed the captain to his office. He shook his head when Borden held up the coffeepot. While on tour, he might have to stick with field rations, but the rest of the time, he opted for quality. From the looks of that pot, the sludge in the carafe was barely digestible. “So?” Cade prodded, knowing he didn’t need to repeat the question. “You’re coming up on your PRD.” Cade wasn’t surprised at the captain’s statement. Borden figured he’d recruited Cade to the SEALs. Since being a SEAL had been Cade’s goal from the time he was twelve, he didn’t think recruiting was the right term, but he let the old man have his illusions. “Not for six months,” Cade said , referring to his Projected Rotation Date, the time when he’d be up for reassignment. He’d been based here in California for eight years. Chances of being sent to Virginia or Hawaii were slim, but possible. Maybe a transfer was a good thing, though. He could start fresh , get away from the constant reminders of his lost friend. “Why?” “I want you to consider taking your MTS cert.” Cade laughed and shook his head. “Why the hell would I want to be certified as a trainer?” “You’re a freefall jumpmaster, took gold in the Excellence in Pistol Shot, and were awarded the Silver Star. You aced out of Sniper School. And then there’s the advanced counter terrorism technology training. You’re one of the elite. You got the goods, boy.” Cade rocked back on the heels of his jump boots and grinned. Yeah. That was a pretty sweet list of qualifications. He’d worked dammed hard, and loved every second of getting all of them. But all he said was,”So?” “So we could use you here. The certification, a year as a trainer----it’d bump your pay grade and move you a lot closer to those captain’s bars.” Cade frowned. He didn’t care about the pay or rank. But he did care about losing his edge, about this depthless funk he’d sunk into, dragging his team down, too. He glanced out the window at the grown men falling all over themselves in the surf, struggling like toddlers to reach their boats. Those guys wanted to excel. To be the best . And he could be dammed good at helping them get there. But to do that , he’d have to quit being a SEAL. And he didn’t quit. Not one damned thing. So he shook his head.”Nah. I’m good.” “Don’t you think it’d be mighty impressive?” the cap- tain asked as he and his steaming cup f coffee settled behind the desk . “Borden, I’m already a SEAL. There’s not a dammed thing more impressive than that.” “Sure, maybe to the ladies.” “Who else matters?” Cade laughed. Hell, it was rare that he ever even had to pull out the SEAL card to impress a woman. He looked good enough that the women tended to fall all over him anyway. They always had. And it wasn’t ego talking . He credited genetics for his sandy blond hair, sharp green eyes and chiseled features and the navy for ripped body. He had nothing to prove to anyone else. “You want to climb higher than Lieutenant Commander?” Cade shrugged again. Rank and money didn’t mean anything to him. Neither one had the thrill, the excitement, or the rock-solid satisfaction of being a part of Special Ops. At least, up until last fall, when Hawkins had taken a piece of shrapnel to the head while under Cade’s command. “I’ll bet there are some people who’d like to see you move up the ranks,” Seth said, staring into his cup like it held some fascinating secret. Or, more likely, because he didn’t want his expression to give away his trump card. “I don’t live my life for other people,” Cade countered with a grin, dropping to a chair and getting ready to pay. Mind games were almost as much fun to win as war games. “What about Robert?” Cade’s smile fell away. “I definitely don’t live my life for my old man.” “Not saying you should. But I’ll bet it’d go a long way toward keeping him off your back for while.” “Your mean it’ll keep him off your back?” Robert Sullivan had married Seth’s little sister Laura Thirty – five years ago and had probably muttered an average of few dozen words a year to his brother-in-law since the reception. Less after they’d lost her to cancer five summers ago. But Robert somehow managed to find a few here and there to touch base with Seth for a little secondhand haranguing for his one and only child. “Robert doesn’t bother me,”Cade’s uncle said, dismissing him with a jerk of one shoulder. As if his ex-in-law that easy to flick off. Cade wished that were so. But he knew better. Robert Sullivan, of Sullivan Enterprises, specialized in tenacity, had the personality of a bulldog and the charm of a cactus. He’d been furious when Cade had joined the navy instead of taking his rightful place at the helm of the family’s financial consulting firm. “If he doesn’t bother you, then why are you using him as bait?” Cade challenged. “Because you’re damned good soldier. A fine SEAL and a strong leader. I don’t want to see you derailed. You’re on edge lately. That’s the kind of thing that some people look for, try to take advantage of in order to make things go their way,” he said, referring to Cade’s father. “A break would let you figure it all out, before you’re played.” His pleasant expression didn’t change, nor did his body shift even an inch as a painful sort of tension spiked through Cade’s system. “No offense, Captain,” Cade said with a grin as he got to this feet.”But I don’t give a good damn what my father does. And nobody plays me. Not even the old man.” To Robert Sullivan, Cade was a pawn. A useful tool. He’s expected his only child to follow in his footsteps, to learn the ins and outs of finance and take over the vast Sullivan holdings if and when Robert deemed it time. Cade had never been interested in any of that. Not even as a kid. So he’d never let the old man in on his plans. He’d enlisted the day he’d turned eighteen, three months before he’d finished high school. Already knowing the value of good strategy, he’d waited to tell his father until the morning after graduation. And he’d left for basic training right after the ensuing big ugly fight. It wasn’t just that he didn’t want to take some bullshit business major if his father covered tuition that made him decide not to go to college. He simply hadn’t wanted to wait to get started in the navy. And then, like now, he hadn’t given a damn about rank. He just wanted to be a SEAL. He was born for the military. He just had to remember that and get through this damned...What did his squadmate and amigo, Blake’s Fiancée, Alexia, call it? Journey of grief. Stupid thing to call being pissed off over losing his buddy. And definitely not something he wanted to talk about. Not to Blake, not to Alexia. And definitely not to his uncle. Before he could make excuses to leave, Cade’s cell phone rang. “Speak of the devil”, he muttered , nothing the number on the screen. “The old man?” “Close enough----it’s my grandmother.” The only thing that kept Cade from turning his back on his family, and all the drama and crap that went along with it, was his grandmother. He would do anything, even play nice at holidays, to make Catherine Sullivan happy. With that in mind, he gestured his apology to Borden and took the call. Five minutes later, he wished he hadn’t. “Robert had a heart attack,” Cade murmured as he slid the phone into his pocket. “Is he okay?” Seth asked, looking up from the paperwork he’d been pretending to do to give his nephew Some semblance of privacy. “He’s in intensive care. They don’t know if he’s going to make it.” Seth frowned, coming around the desk. “Are you okay?” Cade Shrugged. He didn’t know what he was. Numb. Despite a lousy, contentious relationship, shouldn’t he care that his father might die? That he was hanging by a thread? Cade’s mind couldn’t quite take it in. He was a SEAL, specially trained in multiple ways to cause death. He’d served during wartime. He’d watched men die. He’d held one of this best friends life drained away. It wasn’t that he wasn’t familiar with concept. But his father? He’d always figured the old man was too stubborn, too obnoxious, too uncompromising to allow it to happen on anything but his own approved timetable. “You need anything?” Cade gave Seth a blank look, then shook his head. “Gotta see my CO, get leave. Grandma wants me home.” Seth’s wince pretty much summed up Cade’s lifelong feelings about returning to the Sullivan Estate. Cade grimaced in return. “ Looks like I’m getting that break after all.” 2 “DID YOU HEAR? Cade Sullivan is back.” Eden shook her head as twitters and giggles filled the room, women from the ages of eighteen to sixty-eight offering up a communal sigh. From what she’d seen, the members of the Garden Club rarely agreed on anything. Leave it to Cade Sullivan to bring women together. But as hot and sexy as Cade was, he wasn’t the kind of study she wanted to talk about right now. It wasn’t like she wasn’t a fan of Cade herself. She adored the guy. Heck, she’d love to do the guy. But she was here to talk up her business. To try and garner a few new clients. Instead, the entire conversation had been derailed by the homecoming of the town hero. Cade was good at that kind of thing. Making women sigh, fantasize , and if rumors were true, have some mighty fine orgasms. At least, that’s what the Cade-ettes, as those lucky few who were in the know liked to call themselves, claimed. “I heard he’s here for a month. He doesn’t come back often, does he?” Bev mused, her eyes dreamy. No doubt visualizing Cade in some form of undress. “It’s been, what? Ten years since he left?” “Twelve.” Eden corrected absently, leaning over to scoop up a bite of her friend’s lemon chiffon cake. The fork halfway to her mouth, she noticed all the stares aimed her way and shrugged.”It’s not like I’m marking off the years in my diary. He left for the navy the same week I broke my foot the first time. He’s the one who carried me home from the lake.” “Did you know him well?” asked a pretty blonde whose name Eden didn’t remember. The girl had married her way into the Ocean point high society, so she didn’t have firsthand knowledge of the almost mythical wonderfulness that was Cade Sullivan. “Oh, please,” Janie Truman scoffed, sliding into an empty seat at the table and taking a single grape from the bowl in the center,” You barely knew Cade Sullivan. Sure, he rescued you a few dozen times. But that’s sort of what he does for a living, isn’t it? You were like basic training.” Her laugh was too bubbly for Eden to take offense. At least, not unless she wanted to look like a bitch. That was the problem with Janie. She always came across as all smiles and charm, even while she slid her pretty jewelled knife between your ribs. Eden sighed, wondering why belonging to this group was her holy grail. The ugly was always as subtle, but as real, as the expensive perfume. But only to outsiders, she figured. The only way to avoid being the butt of their jokes and pitying looks was to belong. I”d say growing up next door to the Sullivans means she probably knows Cade well enough,” Bev defended, her irritation on Eden’s behalf shining bright. “Sort of,” Eden demurred ,not sure she wanted to share just how about Cade she did know. Instead she settled on the simple facts. “ Cade’s five years older than I am , so we weren’t in school together, didn’t run in the Same crowds. Cade was busy with football and the swim team and I was playing with animals and volunteering at the shelter.” How was that for an opening to talk about veterinary care, Eden thought, giving herself a mental back-pat. “Captain of the football team. Class president, home- coming king,” Janie rhapsodized, her sharp chin on her hand as she gave a dreamy sigh, ignoring any references that included Eden. “Oh, to be a Cade-ette...” “Cade-ette?” Bev asked with a laugh. She gave Eden an are you kidding look. Eden grinned. It was a little shameless, as far as titles went. Still, it carried as much cachet as an Oscar did for an actor. “It’s silly. When Cade was in high school----“ “Junior high, even , “ Janie interrupted . “Maybe, “ Eden acknowledged, wrinkling her nose. “That’s awfully young, though. Not for Cade, of course, but for the girls? But nobody knows for sure, do they?” “Knows what?” Bev prompted before Janie could launch into one of her typical attempts to prove that she did, indeed, know everything. “Knows when it all started, what the rules are or even who’s in the club,” Eden said. “The story goes that Cade, while being quite the ladies’ man even in this teens, knew he wanted out of Mendocino Country and wasn’t about to let anything ------not even a girlfriend-----keep him here. So while he played the field, he kept things simple, uncomplicated.” “In otherwords, he was really careful about sleeping around because he didn’t want to be trapped. Not just because he’s super cute, but because the Sullivans are filthy rich,” Janie explained, eyeing the cake with an envious look before nibbling on another grape. “But after a while, girls started bragging. I think the allure of having done Cade Sullivan was better than a pair of Diamond studs, and they just couldn’t keep from showing off”. Eden remembered the almost mythical shot to fame the girls would get, bring fawned over, buddied up to, romanced by other guys.”Pretty soon, the Cade-ettes had an even more exclusive membership than the country club” “Exclusive, and elusive,” Janie interrupted. “There weren’t many who could make that claim to fame. Maybe a dozen at the most.” “How do you know they were telling the truth?” Bev wondered. “ I mean, if he was determined not to get trapped, would he really sleep around, even with a dozen girls in four years?” “Sixteen years,”Janie corrected.” Taht dozen counts the girls he was with before----and after----he left for the navy.” “You mean the club still has openings?” Bev joked. I wish, Eden almost said aloud. Horrified, she focused on shovelling cake into her mouth to keep it busy. She had a bad habit of looking before she leapt, and speaking before she thought. Usually, she didn’t worry about the results. But this was Cade they were talking about. And she cared about everything that had to do with Cade Sullivan. Which was why she’d never shared, not even with her best friend, how often she’d seen Cade at the lake behind their properties. Skinny dipping sometimes, practicing martial arts others. But usually with a girl. Eden had rarely seen the girl’s face, but could see through the bushes clearly enough to know they both usually ended up naked. He’d been gorgeous, even as a teen, with the body of one of the Greek Gods Eden had been fascinated with. Tan, sculpted and, well, huge, he’d been worth the many bouts of poison oak she’d gotten spying through the trees. She dropped her fork onto the empty plate and reached for her iced tea, needing to cool off. “So this rumor, you believe it?” Bev propmpted . “Sure.” Eden shrugged.” I mean, the few who did try to claim they’d done Cade Sullivan were outed as liars pretty fast. Nobody but the Cade-ettes themselves know what the secret is that proves the truth. I guess they think it’s pretty good secret, too. Like I said, it’s been twelve years since he left and they still aren’t talking .” And while she’d only watched him a couple of times before embarrassment and a heart-crushing envy had made her avoid the lake altogether just in case he was these, she’d never seen any distinguishing marks or heard him use any special phrases that might stand out as tells. “Everyone wanted to be a Dade-ette,” Janie said with a sigh, either forgetting her constant diet as she scooped up a fingerful of chocolate from the cake in front of her, or envy making her so morose that she didn’t care. “Everyone?” Bev asked, her eyes questioning Eden. Eden just shrugged again. She wasn’t going to lie to her best friend, but neither did she see any point in admitting that she would have given anything to join the well-sexed crowd. But not for the title. Nope, she just wanted Cade. “Ladies, time to get to work,” Gloria Bell, the Garden Club president called, clapping her hands for attention. “The Sping fling is just around the corner. Our biggest society ball needs the best flower arrangements, don’t you think? Come on now, chop chop.” Most of the older women got up and gathered around the three head tables, discussing what kind of flowers screamed fancy party. That left Eden and a dozen women her own age seated next of them, since they studiously kept their gazes averted. Eden, who while carrying a plethora of issues and challenges, could happily eat anything and everything without gaining an ounce, just grinned. This was the only way she stood out, a wren among peacocks. They were grace, she was clumsy. They were as beautiful as money could buy, she was as average as broke could buy, she was as average as broke could maintain. “I can’t believe nobody has shared the secret yet. Are you sure there is one?” Bev asked, wrinkling her nose. “I mean, it sounds like more of an urban legend than fact, you know?” “Oh, it’s real.”Crystal Parker leaned forward, her eyes shifting to the matriarchs to see that her mother was occupied before she shared in a low tone, “My sister, Chloe, was almost one of Cade-ettes.” “ Almost ?”gaped Bev. “How is one almost in the club?” “She went on a few dates with Cade the winter before he graduated. The two of them were getting really friendly, if you know what I mean, during the high school Winter Bash and Chloe got a little loud. Then the principal, Mrs.Prince, walked in on them. Chloe said Cade charmed his way out of a lecture, but never did ask her out again.” She gave a good-humored roll of her eyes, as if her sister’s getting busted making out still amused her. “Of course, that couldn’t have been as embarrassing as what happened to poor Eden here,” Janie said with a giggle before patting Eden’s hand. As if that friendly gesture made the joke any easier to take. “You never have told us the real story about what you and Kenny Phillips were really doing when he broke his foot and ended up covered in a nasty rash.” Eden pressed her lips together in grimacey sort of smile, hoping someone, anyone, would change the subject. She didn’t need anyone speculating about what particular sexual position Kenny had been in when he’d fallen. Cade had rescued her then, too. Turning the tables nicely, he’d show up at the lake to find her with his best buddy from high school. The poor guy had been rolling around naked in a patch of poison oak while clutching his broken ankle. “Girls,” Gloria called, gliding over like a elegant steamship. “Chitchat is over. Now it’s time for work.” “I can help,” Eden offered, gratefully getting to her feet. But in her desire to escape further sexual comparisons, her hip bumped the table, sending the unlit candles toppling, forks bouncing off plates and the grapes rolling over white damask to the floor. “Oh, well...” Mrs. Bell grimaced, then shook her head. “Thank you, dear. But we need someone with a little better eye for color. Janie, why don’t you and the girls come along now and see what you think of the plans.” En masse, all of the women except Bev and Eden migrated to the front of the room. To the popular section. Eden sighed, pushing aside the last plate of dessert, this one a double-chocolate brownie. “What’s wrong? It’s not like you to stop rubbing your super-fast metabolism in the princesses’ faces before you’ve tried every dessert,” Bev said quietly. Although Eden noticed a few envious glances at three empty plates in front of her, all she could focus on was the giggling group of women all bundled together around the flower displays. All fitting in, all contributing meaningfully. All perfect, even if they couldn’t eat more than two hundred calories at a time. “Nothing. I’m just tired,” she excused, not completely lying. She was tired. Tired of being so easily dismissed. Tired of feeling like a failure. Tired of wallowing in mediocrity. Just once, she wanted to be admired. To stand out---in a good way. To feel like someone special. To be part of the in-crowd. And maybe she should wish for a time machine, too, and blast to high school when she should have gotten over these silly issues. “Oh, Eden,” Lilly-Ann winters, who sat at the next table, called, offering a charming smile. “I’m so glad you made it to the meeting this month. You so rarely do.” “I usually work Thursday afternoons,” Eden said with a cautioning look toward Bev. Lilly-Ann had a trio of Parti Yorkies and a pedigree Persian at home. “Oh, you still have that,um,job?” Lilly-Ann asked, a rapid flutter of her lashes probably supposed to be a distraction from her having no clue what Eden did. “ I opened my veterinary clinic seix months ago, and yes, it’s still in business,” Eden said with a nod, amping up her smile and getting ready to pitch her real reason for subjugating herself to this torture. “You should bring Snowball in for a checkup. I have a wonderful new program for cats, an all-natural diet and supplements that are guaranteed to add luster to her coat.” “Oh,no. Snowball only sees Dr Turner, Lilly-Ann said, her eyes wide with horror at the idea of taking her Precious Persian anywhere but the most expensive vet in three countries. “I understand, ”Eden said, pulling out the diplomacy she’d been practicing since she’d called in her RSVP.”Dr.Turner has a wonderful reputation. And he’s so popular. Just last week someone was saying she had to wait a month to get her puppies in for a routine exam.” Lilly-Ann’s smile tightened at the corners. Bingo. Eden knew the only thing the other woman hated more than designer knockoffs was having to wait for anything. “Don’t you worry about emergencies,though?” Eden continued, leaning forward and speaking in a hushed, let's’ share-a –secret tone.”You can’t take risks with a feline as