Steal You Away

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chase headed for the screen door to the front porch, ready to greet the start of a beautiful sun shining day. He had jumped out of bed this morning with his heart light, and with an exorbitant amount of excitement flowing through his veins. Grabbing a cup of coffee hadn't been a necessity today, only a force of habit. He didn't need the caffeine. He was motivated enough without it just at the thought of not only getting to see Mackenzie, but at having another chance of making her theirs. But...the opportunity hadn't come cheaply. He snorted a soft chuckle. That Cathy Ramsey was one hell of a business woman.

This little plan of Trent's had cost them plenty, but, if everything worked out in their favor, it would be worth ten times more. Besides, he didn't mind becoming a silent business partner, not when it could benefit both the town and Mackenzie's future. After seeing some of her breathtaking work, he had all the faith in the world she would turn Captured in Rapture into a blazing success. Grinning so wide his cheeks hurt, and with an extra spring in his step, he took his cup, and opened the door. When he stepped out, he pulled up short in utter disbelief. His ignored coffee slipped from his hand and crashed down onto the porch.

The tables and chairs they had painstakingly set up the night before for today's party were flipped over, dispersed far and wide. Table linens scattered across the lawn as if a washing machine had exploded, raining its carnage all over the yard. Loud barking jerked his attention to his right. Goose came bounding around the corner of the house in hot pursuit of a terrified raccoon who was running for its life straight for the one fucking table still standing. The scampering critter leaped up on top, its paws skidding across the table cloth like it was some kind of stars and stripes slip and slide.

"No! Goose! Stop!" Chase yelled, running down the steps. Making a dive, he tried to catch the dog, but it was too late. He charged full speed ahead, sending the plastic folding table and raccoon flying ass over teakettle through the air. Luckily for the raccoon, it landed near a tree, and quickly scampered up. But Goose, oblivious to his escaped quarry, kept bulldozing his way through the jumble of ruined decorations. All the while, the damn raccoon sat right above the dumb dog's head chattering away, adding insult to the mayhem.

Chase stood dumbfounded in the middle of the chaos, not able to believe his fucking eyes. All the hard work they had done, gone in a blink of an eye. Tearing off his hat, he plowed his hand through his hair, tempted to yank a handful of it out by the roots. He didn't have time for this bullshit, not today. Not when they had toiled so hard to make everything perfect. A nudge at his leg had him looking down. Goose sat at his feet, proudly offering him the remnants of one of the center pieces as if it was a goddamn prize. Pulling the slobber soaked basket of mangled fake red, white and blue carnations out of his mouth, Chase dismally watched threads of foamy dog drool fall to the ground.

"Perfect," he moaned.

"What the fuck happened out here?"

The sound of his brother's voice raised in decibels the next three counties over could hear, made Chase cringe. If he had been a nervous Nellie over today's activities, and what they could mean for their future happiness...then his brother was far into breakdown territory. Trent took the term worrywart to a whole new level, and now his carefully laid out plans had turned into a three ring circus thanks to Goose and a damn raccoon. He sighed heavily again. Over the course of the last few hours, Chase had watched his brother turn into a demonic form of Martha Stewart on steroids. He was convinced at any second the roof was about to cave in on his perfect day. A strangled chuckle forced its way out of his throat. Little did Trent know, it wasn't the structural shit he needed to worry about, but the four legged beastie kind.

"What the hell, Chase? Did we have a fucking tornado?" Trent stomped up to him, his eyes bulging, his mouth pulled into a tight grim line. "Did you see this?" he asked, wind milling his arms around frantically.