Broken (17 page)

Zoe stuck her thumb in her mouth and looked at him. It might be his imagination, but she seemed less wary of him. Maybe she was getting used to him.

 “Go put your things down and wash up. Everything’s ready,” he said, motioning to the table. “I put the extra keys I had made on top of the fridge.”

As Cassidy led Zoe off, Max wondered how best to approach the discussion they needed to have. Over dinner was out of the question. He was expecting Bill in a little under an hour. He had a feeling their talk would take a lot longer. Too much was riding on the outcome for him to rush it. He’d wait until after Bill left and Zoe was in bed. Or maybe he should wait until the weekend?

No, he needed to allow time for her to brood, to think, and fight the inevitable.

Tonight it would be.

Max was abnormally quiet during dinner. To Cassidy, who watched him covertly under her lashes, he seemed distracted. He responded politely enough to any conversational gambit she threw out, but that’s all. He didn’t initiate dialogue, nor did he make any attempt to keep the conversation going.

He’d brought home Maggio’s for dinner. Per their agreement, it was Max’s night to provide their evening meal. Had he remembered it was her favorite restaurant, or had his choice simply been a matter of convenience? After all, he owned the place, and, as he said, the contractor was coming by this evening and there wasn’t a whole lot of time to cook.

Troubled, Cassidy reminded herself she had no reason to complain. This was exactly what she’d told Max she wanted. There was no reason to feel hurt, confused, and if she were honest, a bit lost because Max seemed to have lost interest in her.

If she hadn’t known better, she’d have thought last night was a dream except she was sore and tender this morning. The remnants of his seed still clung to her inner thighs. Despite her expectations, Max hadn’t reached for her and tried to initiate another round of sex this morning. In fact, he hadn’t said a word. Merely rolled out of bed and left the room as though last night had meant absolutely nothing. It wasn’t his fault she felt cheap and…used.

Just yesterday morning Max had been speaking in terms of marriage and forever. Of them being the couple they were always meant to be had circumstances and people not interfered. She’d nixed the notion, insisting they leave the past in the past. Apparently, he’d taken her speech to heart.

Her first clue Max was giving her the distance she’d asked for was when he’d shown up last night, asking politely if he could store his groceries in her refrigerator. Like they were strangers and hadn’t shared living space before.

You were lovers then
, her conscience, which sounded suspiciously like Erika, reminded her.
Now you’re not. Your choice
.

I know
, she told it. But did she really? She’d been shocked when he’d pulled out the money and said it was for rent and utilities. He’d spoken casually of establishing a separate living space downstairs. She’d known that was the plan but somehow had expected Max to try to maneuver her into staying on this level with her and Zoe.

Max isn’t Phillip
, the voice reminded her.
He doesn’t play games. Never has
.

What if he didn’t want her anymore? What if he’d decided she was too much trouble, had too much baggage? It’s what she wanted, isn’t it? For Max to move on and concentrate his efforts on being a father to Zoe. But what if, now that she’d rejected him, he met someone else? What if, this time, he really did get married?

She ran a hand over her heart, massaging the chest muscle as though she could ease the dull ache there. Cassidy tried to convince herself it was because she didn’t want to share Zoe with another woman. It had nothing to do with Max, the man she’d lost two years ago. Still, she felt like a fool. Like she’d thrown away something precious and had only now realized it.

You could still win him back
, her heart said.

Dare she try? She still didn’t completely trust him to stick around. And what about the past? Could they really get beyond it? Cassidy didn’t know.

Max wanted them to be a family. It’s what he said and his actions supported him. Hadn’t he gotten rid of his fancy sports car and purchased a family-sized SUV, complete with brand new child seat already installed on the rear seat? All without her asking or saying a word to her of his intentions? Hadn’t it been his suggestion he live here in the house with her and Zoe so he could be close to both of them, and so Zoe could begin to accept him as her father? Didn’t that count for anything? Or was she simply being stubborn and unforgiving, as Erika had accused in so many words?

Fortunately, the contractor arrived, interrupting her morose musings.

William Desoto, or Bill, as he preferred to be called, was a short, stocky man. He was about an inch shorter than Cassidy, which put him at five-nine. He had dark hair, friendly brown eyes, and leathery brown skin that showed he spent lots of times outdoors in the sun. His body contained the musculature of a man who made his living doing manual labor.

Bill took one look at Max’s face and said, “What the hell happened to you? Begging your pardon, ma’am. You finally mess with the wrong woman?”

“Something like that,” Max agreed with an easy shrug. Then he introduced Cassidy.

“So what are we doing here?” Bill asked when the introductions were completed.

“Finishing the basement and turning it into a mini-apartment,” Max said. “It already has a separate outside entrance. There’s insulation on the outside walls but no sheetrock.”

“All right. Let’s go take a look.”

“We’ll walk around on the outside, since that’s the entrance I’ll be using,” Max said as he opened the front door.

Cassidy sent him a sharp look. If he’d be using the basement entrance, why had she given him a key to the front door?

Because he living upstairs for now
, her saner side stated.
Get a grip
!

“Is this the path you’ll be using?” Bill asked as they walked along the garage in the grass. “If so, I suggest a paved walkway and adding low lighting to illuminate the path. Solar lights should do the trick without jacking up your electric bill.”

“Cassidy, what do you think?” Max asked as he cupped her elbow to help her navigate her way along the uneven ground.

Since she was carrying Zoe on one hip, she stepped carefully, not wanting to fall. “Sounds good to me.”

When they reached the door, she put Zoe down, much to her daughter’s delight, and pulled the keys out of her pocket. The door, not being used much since long before she purchased the house, took a little doing to open.

“Definitely need to change this door to something more secure,” Bill commented. “Maybe change this light here to one a bit more decorative.”

“This one and the one at the top of the stairs. A steel door with a double cylinder deadbolt so Cassidy can control access into the house,” Max added as Bill made a note on his pad.

Despite the hour, it was still twilight outside. Cassidy reached inside and flipped the switch. Two single, bare bulbs hanging at each end of the basement switched on.

The men walked around the room, muttering comments about ceiling panels and diffuse lighting, circuit breakers and outlets, 110V and 220V outlets, and other stuff Cassidy didn’t understand other than it had to do with electricity. They talked plumbing. Drain pipes and sewage lines were mentioned and other stuff. She only understood enough to know they were discussing the logical place to add a bathroom and small kitchen, and where to put a washer/dryer hookup.

“You can use mine upstairs,” she offered.

Both men turned to look at her before returning to their discussion. Once he and Max had worked out all the details of what would be the most economical but still attractive and functional, Bill explained it all to her. He walked her through the open space, explaining what areas they wanted to close in while leaving the majority of the space open to give the illusion of it being bigger. Max added how he wanted to change the stairs to make it safer for her and Zoe to descend when they visited and add to the room’s design.

“What do you think?” Bill asked.

“Sounds good to me,” she said. What else could she say? I changed my mind. I don’t want Max turning the basement into an apartment?

As they left the basement and stood at the rear, looking at the house, Max said to Bill, “Get me some estimates on fencing. I’ll feel better about Zoe playing outside if we fence in the yard.” To Cassidy he said, “We don’t have to do the front if you want to leave it open, but I definitely recommend fencing the sides and back.”

Damn, why hadn’t she thought of it? He was right. She nodded numbly.

“How about a landscape artist to put in some low maintenance plants to help prevent erosion? The way this yard slants, eventually the snow and rain will take its toll,” Bill suggested helpfully. He pointed out areas where the ground had already washed away around the foundation of the house.

“Send Micah. She can work with Cassidy and see if they come up with an agreement. It needs to be something simple that doesn’t take up too much space. I like the sloping openness we have currently. Gives Zoe plenty of room to play. I thought of putting up a swing set,” Max said.

In that moment as she listened to Max, Cassidy realized he’d put a lot of thought into this. More, taking note of the interaction between the two men, she realized this wasn’t the first remodel project they’d worked on together. While they’d been careful to consult her, the property owner, for her opinion, it was clear both men knew exactly what they wanted to do, not just to enhance the basement, but the property as a whole.

As a result, Cassidy found herself agreeing to all their suggestions. Even when Max mentioned expanding the basement outward to add a wood deck above it which her bedroom would open out onto, she said yes. She didn’t have to pay for it.

Thoughts of payment made her realize Max wasn’t supposed to pay her any money for rent until after the renovations had been paid for. Also, where was the landlord/tenant agreement he’d said he’d draw up? She couldn’t take both rent from him and allow him to pay for all the work being done on her house. Especially since this was more than the simple sheetrock and flooring for the basement she’d agreed to having installed to make the basement habitable.