Chapter 58

It had been a great four days since the football game. David wasn’t sure how it had happened, but he and Tracy had gone from an occasional, casual, stress-relief relationship to something more in the blink of an eye. They’d flown back to Alabama and packed everyone up for the trip back to LA. Tracy just tagged along.

David discovered the girl of his dreams had been right in front of him all this time. He remembered how lucky he’d felt when she’d first agreed to go out with him when they were in high school. Back then, neither had been ready for anything too serious. All this time later, they’d become friends, and now it felt like they’d taken a step beyond.

David did have a moment of doubt because it had all come crashing down during his freshman year of high school. But he’d come to understand how messed up Tracy had been back then. Once all her problems had come to light, she’d had to work her way out of her deep depression and get her life back to normal.

David had been there as much as he could back then. It was why they’d put their entire relationship on hold and focused on just being friends. When he joined her at USC, he considered her one of his best friends and never thought more about it.

But something had happened to the two of them in that hotel room that night. They had admitted that they loved each other. And not just the love two friends have for each other, but the romantic kind. They hadn’t discussed what this meant yet, but David knew this wasn’t just a fling; it was more than just a fun romp.

He’d all but moved into the townhouse, and he and Tracy only seemed to leave her bedroom to go out to eat. What David found surprising was how easy it had been. It made him realize it was probably time to sit Tracy down so they could define the relationship. He wanted to enter the new year knowing he’d finally found the right girl. Maybe even his forever girl.

Cassidy was in her room, contemplating what was going on. She’d let David out of her sight for a few weeks, and her world had turned upside down. That snake Tracy had announced that she and David were talking about getting back together. Their ‘official’ first date would be at Greg and Joey’s New Year’s Eve party that night.

What concerned Cassidy was how fast all this had happened. David was not the type to commit to someone so quickly. Then again, it was Tracy, whom he’d known for what seemed like forever. This time, it felt different. It had the same vibe as when David dated Brook. Tracy wasn’t someone he would date casually.

Cassidy had talked to Pam about it, and even she scratched her head. What had been their usual MO of helping each other out now and again had somehow changed. Pam was as confused as she was.

With that in mind, Cassidy had called an emergency meeting with Pam and Tami to discuss how they were going to derail this. Tami had agreed to drive down from Stanford and would be there at any moment. Cassidy heard the doorbell and bolted downstairs. She flung open the door to find Crystal, David’s most recent ex; Taylor, her goofy sorority sister; and, of all people, Kat, the Goth Barbie barista David liked for all of two minutes in the spring.

“Word on the street is David might be off the market,” Crystal said.

Cassidy was slightly confused as to how Crystal would know about her planned intervention. Still, at that moment, she was glad for more moral support. All she could think was that David and Tracy must have been seen out and about, and Crystal had apparently spoken to Pam.

“A couple of us were going to talk about how to stop it,” Cassidy said.

“Then we’re in the right place,” Taylor said, pushing her way in. “I hope you have enough wine for everyone.”

Crystal rolled her eyes as Taylor walked in, followed by Kat, who looked normal. Law school probably frowned on the Goth look.

“We’re going to meet on the roof,” Cassidy called after them.

Taylor grabbed a couple boxes of wine while the other two gathered up the snacks Cassidy had put out. You couldn’t have a proper gabfest without the right food.

There was a knock at the back door.

Cassidy found Tami with Lexi, David’s ex, who’d started this whole mess. Cassidy gave David’s former PA a stern look.

“Settle down. I figured if anyone could talk David out of a relationship, it was Lexi,” Tami said.

Cassidy couldn’t argue with that, so she stepped aside. She checked her phone and determined her secret weapon was five minutes out.

“Pam should be upstairs. Go on up and get comfortable. I’ll be up in a moment,” Cassidy said.

Cassidy heard a car pull up and park. She jumped up and ran out the back door into the arms of Brook, her best friend and the only woman she’d ever seriously worried would steal David’s heart. With her was Halle.

Cassidy had kept it together until that moment but then burst into tears.

“I think I missed my chance.”

David pulled into the driveway of his Malibu home and parked the Demon in front of the garage. Before he got out, he grabbed Tracy’s hand so she would look him in the eyes.

“If you have any doubts, say so now,” Tracy said mischievously.

She knew him too well. If she’d let him talk, they’d be stuck in the car for hours until he’d worried through every little detail.

“I take it by your silence that you’re on board with this?” Tracy asked.

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Then open your door because Coby and Carol are waiting for you.”

He looked out his window and saw them dancing around because their dad was home. Dancing with them were Duke and Duchess, the newest member of the Dawson household, a thirteen-week-old Springer Spaniel puppy that Carol had received as a Christmas present. David still couldn’t believe his mom had agreed to a puppy.

When he opened the car door, Coby and Carol stepped back because they knew what would happen when Duke’s big tail got wagging. It had zero feeling and could knock a munchkin on their butt.

David got out and loved on his hound while Tracy walked around the car, asking, “Where are your brothers?”

“We passed sepection,” Coby said proudly.

Tracy glanced at David to help translate.

“Inspection. Nana Dawson makes them pick up their rooms before company arrives. She’s learned to check their closets where they try to hide their mess.”

Tracy nodded and made the mistake of trying to pet a bouncing Duchess.

“Ouch!” she cried out, checking her finger for blood.

“She bad,” Carol said sagely.

Coby pulled out a squirt bottle and shot Duchess in the face. David couldn’t help smiling because the local sheriff had just exacted justice. It seemed to work on toddlers and puppies. David scooped the misbehaving pup up before she could cause more mayhem.

“I’ll go in and take over for my mom. Why don’t you take these two to the roof, where everyone will gather for dinner?” David asked.

“We’ll show you,” Coby said as he took Tracy’s hand.

Carol took the other one, and they led the way into the house.

Tracy made it to the second floor, where Coby and Carol abandoned her to get snacks from Rosy. Tracy remembered the way to the roof and went up to find David’s dad, Rob, and younger brother, Phil, cleaning the grill.

“Good! We get to interrogate you before the women tell us to butt out,” Rob said.

“Yes. What exactly are your intentions with my brother?” Phil asked with a smirk.

“I could ask the same about you and Pam,” Tracy said.

Rob looked at his son and rubbed his chin.

“This is a new development. Does David know about this?”

Phil wasn’t used to a Dawson grilling and blushed.

“We didn’t do anything. We’re taking it slow,” Phil said.

David caught the last part as he came up and clutched his chest as if he were having a heart attack.

“Taking it slow?!” David asked incredulously. “This coming from a total man-whore in Dubai.”

“David,” Rob warned.

“Bite me. Pam’s not like those Instagram models,” Phil said, then realized he had the gift of Tracy standing right next to him. “And what about you, big brother?”

Tracy barked out a laugh when David didn’t even flinch. Phil looked at Tracy in disbelief.

“You don’t think I know what a slut he can be?”

Rob’s phone chirped.

“Hold that thought. Greg’s at the gate and needs in on this conversation.”

Tracy gave David a slight smile. He shook his head as if disappointed in her. She’d found a new phone app that she wanted to try out called ‘This is God.’

“Go ahead.”

Tracy pulled out her phone, quickly tapped in something, and then motioned for the guys to join her so they could watch. Greg got his horde out of his van, and they raced to the backdoor, leaving him to carry their overnight bags.

When he reached the back door, Tracy tapped on her phone.

An artificially deep voice from above said, “Greg! This is God, Greg! Now that you’re married, I want you to stop masturbating!”

Greg’s head snapped around to see where the voice came from as he exclaimed, “Bullshit!”

Tracy quickly tapped out another message as God’s voice boomed over her phone speaker.

“I bullshit you not!”

Greg looked up when he heard the guys laughing at him. He made a rude gesture and went in the back door. The guys high-fived Tracy for her excellent prank.

While the other men grilled Tracy, David took a moment away from family time to send consolation messages to Tim and Wolf for their Orange Bowl loss. Alabama had jumped out to a three-touchdown lead in the first quarter, and Oklahoma couldn’t make up the difference. Wolf had gotten some playing time, but Tim hadn’t made it onto the field. Still, David would have preferred to have the Sooners’ 12-2 record rather than the Trojans’ 6-7. It reinforced David’s resolve that next year would be different.

Cassidy went upstairs with Brook and Halle.

“You know, most people get postcards, a fridge magnet, or a key chain when they go on a trip, not a man,” Kat said.

“What are you talking about?” Cassidy asked.

“Pam was just telling us how Tracy got together with David,” Tami said.

“Fill us in,” Halle said as Taylor poured her a glass of wine.

“I was telling them that David and Tracy spent the night together after the bowl game. I figured it was just stress relief on Tracy’s part because they do that now and then,” Pam said.

“What has you all in such a tizzy?” Lexi asked. “My understanding is that Tracy’s simply a good friend.”

“She was his first love,” Tami said.

“Don’t hold back,” Brook said. “She dumped him, twice, and everyone thought they were through forever. But David worked to become her ‘best’ friend. Sometimes, the best relationships are built on friendship.”

“Tracy never seriously dated anyone after David. She had some issues and fell into depression, but David was always her rock. She became someone he trusted,” Pam said.

Cassidy knew that Pam and Tracy had become BFFs during high school. It was one reason the three of them lived in David’s townhouse.

“Tracy’s story is hers to tell. Some of the things she’s done ... They’re what you do when you’ve experienced the worst of the worst. You seek out people like you—people worse off than you—and use them to make yourself feel better about the terrible stuff that happened to you. But David helped her see that there was more to life than what happened to her. From what I understand, she’s doing much better and might be ready for a real relationship,” Tami said.

“But we’re supposed to be talking about how to stop this because if he and Tracy become serious, it’s over for the rest of us,” Cassidy said.

“Consider how much love people have denied themselves throughout history because they believed they didn’t deserve it or that it would eventually happen,” Tami said. “Believe me when I say I’m as guilty as the next for thinking that if I could just wait him out, David and I would have our ‘someday.’ Not acting on my feelings—and in your case, yours, Cassidy—is the greater tragedy,” Tami said as she purposefully looked around the room.