Last One Home (25 page)

Then Steve had met Cassie. They’d clashed in the beginning, and looking back, he realized why. Right away he knew she was a threat to his shriveled-up, dried-out heart. It’d been only in the last year that he’d been comfortable in this new role life had given him. He wasn’t big on change, and then there she was with her purple hair and a chip on her shoulder, challenging him at every turn. She didn’t back down and she made sure he understood that she wasn’t going to let anyone, in particular a man, railroad her.

He’d been attracted to her, almost from the first, and then he’d decided to drive her to Spokane. Even now he wasn’t sure what had happened on Saturday. It’d never been his intention to kiss her. But to witness this strong, independent woman dissolve into heart-wrenching sobs had shaken him. When he’d pulled into the rest stop he’d meant to only hug and hold her, to comfort her. Before he could stop himself, they were kissing. Rarely had anything felt as good or right as to have Cassie in his arms.

Now it was Wednesday and the feeling of holding her still lingered with him. She’d tasted of sweetness and goodness and everything he held dear. This was a woman who had walked through fire and instead of coming out scorched and bitter was as refined as gold.

Seeing her Sunday had been an unexpected bonus, although
he had to admit she’d shaken him with her talk of just being friends. He got it. He really did. She was scared. Frankly, so was he. This was as new to him as it seemed to be to her.

The truth was he’d planned to give them both a bit of breathing room. Sunday morning he’d picked up Jeremy and intended to take the boy to a park where he could ride his bike, which they’d done. Later he’d gone to the plot of land that would one day be Cassie’s home because—this was a bit embarrassing—it was a way to feel a connection with her. Jeremy had enjoyed building a fort with dead branches from the property, and so they’d lingered there.

And then Cassie arrived with Amiee. Right away happiness had stolen over him, and while the early afternoon had been overcast and cloudy, it felt as if the entire day had suddenly brightened and grown unexpectedly sunny and warm.

While Steve wasn’t sure where the relationship between him and Cassie was headed, he was content to let it take him where it would. In time she’d come around. He was willing to be patient. Maybe going out of town was good—it would give her some time.

“Steve,” his foreman said, breaking into his thoughts.

Steve shook his head, shocked that he’d been lost in his own world. “Yes, sorry.”

“Do you have another appointment?” Charlie Lane asked. The job was with Grand Coulee Dam in eastern Washington, wheat country. They were a small company compared to the other bidders, and Steve had considered himself fortunate to get the contract. He had a good estimator who’d brought in a highly competitive bid. Now, however, Steve’s company was losing money and it was the fault of the supplier. Steve had gone in to troubleshoot the project and stay long enough to make sure the job was back on schedule before he headed back to Tacoma for the Hoedown on Saturday night.

“Another appointment?” Steve asked, repeating the question. “What makes you ask?”

“You keep looking at your watch.”

He was looking at the time, wondering how long it would be before he could talk to Cassie. He had forced himself not to call her for the last three days—she seemed to need some space, and he didn’t want to scare her off. All he could do was hope that she missed seeing him as much as he missed being with her.

Originally he’d intended to wait out the entire week. Then that morning he’d woken with a strong desire to hear the sound of Cassie’s voice. If he called, he would need to wait until early evening, when he was sure she’d finished work at Goldie Locks, and then give her a couple extra hours in case she was putting in her time with Habitat.

“I have a phone call to make,” Steve explained.

“Do you want to wait to go over these schematics?” Charlie asked.

“No, now is good.”

By the time Steve was back in his run-down hotel room, he felt like a compulsive smoker who’d put off having a cigarette until the end of the day. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he reached for his cell and noticed that his fingers actually shook in their eagerness to connect with Cassie.

Her cell rang three times with no answer, and Steve was convinced it was about to go to voice mail. Should he leave a message? Or should he wait and try again later? Before he could decide, the line connected.

“Hello.”

This wasn’t Cassie. It didn’t seem possible that he had the wrong number. “Amiee?”

“Oh, hi, Steve.” The twelve-year-old sounded bright and cheerful, happy to hear from him.

“Where’s your mom?”

“She’s in the shower. I can get her if you want. She never takes long because the hot water turns cold real fast.”

“I can call back later.”

“No, don’t, because she’s been in a real funk ever since you left. You’re her BAE, you know.”

“Her what?”

“BAE.
B
efore
A
nyone
E
lse.”

Steve couldn’t help it—he broke into a huge smile. “Really?”

“Yeah, she’s eaten oatmeal for breakfast three days straight and she hates oatmeal. Hold on a minute and I’ll tell her you’re on the phone.”

Steve heard the sound of Amiee setting down the phone and then, a minute later, her calling her mother. “Mom, your phone rang and I answered it.”

A short silence followed in which Cassie asked who was calling.

Amiee answered, “Steve.” Another silence followed before Amiee picked up the phone. “Mom said she’d be here right away. She told me to talk to you until she gets dried off.”

“So how’s school?” he asked.

“Okay, I guess. My friend Claudia asked me to go to a concert with her and Mom wants to listen to the group’s lyrics before she’ll agree to let me go. All bands use swear words, you know. If she insists there be no swearing I’ll never go to a concert for my entire life.”

“I agree with your mom on that one,” Steve told her.

“You adults stick together, don’t you?” She didn’t sound angry as much as resigned. “Here’s Mom.”

He smiled when he heard Cassie say his name breathlessly. “Steve?”

“Hi, there.” He could almost hear Cassie’s heart pounding. What she didn’t know was that his own was just as loud in his ears.

“Hi, Steve.”

He didn’t really have a good excuse to call. “How are things
going on your end? Have you been to the building site this week yet?”

“Every day. Everything is coming together so quickly. The foundation got poured this afternoon. I wasn’t really able to help much, but I stayed close by. All the while I kept thinking,
This is going to be Amiee’s and my house!
I find that unbelievable.” She said this all in one giant breath.

“The work is only just getting started.”

“Stan was there, supervising everyone.”

Steve had personally asked his best friend to fill in for him. Stan was a good man and Steve trusted him to see that the work was up to his own high standards.

“Shelly and George stopped by, too. They’ve finished their equity hours but came anyway.”

“They’re good people.” He savored hearing the joy in her voice.

“How are you doing?” she asked. “I hope you were able to resolve whatever the problem was at work.”

“It’s all good.” He didn’t dare admit he was lonely and bored. “Were you busy at work?”

“Three haircuts, a color job, plus two perms, so yes, you can say I was busy, which is good. I’m building up my clientele, which helps with my finances. Once I have regular customers I’ll be able to make a decent living and I won’t need to worry so much.”

“You’re a good stylist, Cassie. In fact, I was thinking I should book another haircut.”

“You don’t need to do that. I’d be happy to cut your hair anytime.”

“Tell him, Mom.” Steve could hear Amiee pleading with her mother in the background.

“Tell me what?” he asked.

“It’s nothing.”

“Cassie.” He whispered her name low and deep. “Tell me.”

He heard her exhale as if bracing herself. “I heard from Duke … a letter.”

Cassie’s ex-husband, the bastard who’d beat her. “He knows where you live?” God help him if he learned Duke ever came near Cassie again. He didn’t know what he would do, and whatever it was would probably land him in jail.

“No … he has no way of knowing where Amiee and I live. The letter took six weeks to reach me. Duke wrote to the neighbor lady, an older woman who was more his friend than mine, but a friend. Doris took the letter to the women’s shelter and they forwarded it to me.”

“And?”

“Duke’s in prison for manslaughter charges. He’ll be there for a very long time.”

“Good. So what did Duke want?” If he wanted Cassie back, the brute would have a real fight on his hands.

“He said that he loved me and Amiee.”

Steve snorted with disbelief. “You don’t beat the people you love.”

“I know.”

“Are you going to write him back?”

“No. I’ve learned my lesson. I can’t believe a word he says and I won’t put myself or my daughter in a position to be hurt again.”

“Smart decision.”

“But Duke did say one thing that gave me pause. Hold on a minute … let me step outside.”

Steve heard some movement as Cassie had stepped outside of her apartment.

“Are you still there?” she asked. “I just wanted to go out here where Amiee can’t overhear.”

“I’m here. Tell me what’s got you concerned.” The muscles in his neck were tense.

She hesitated. “Duke asked about Amiee … he said he’s done a lot of stupid things in his life but the only good thing was marrying me and fathering Amiee. He said he understood if I didn’t want anything more to do with him, and I don’t. Duke is completely out of my life.”

“Yes?” said Steve.

“Toward the end he believed every bad thing that had happened to him was somehow my fault. If he lost his job, he blamed me, if he stubbed his toe, I had somehow caused it to happen. If I stayed I’m convinced he would have …” She sighed. “Oh, never mind.”

“He would have murdered you,” Steve finished for her.

“Yes.” Her voice became a broken whisper. “If I hadn’t fled the night I did, I believe Duke would be in prison for murdering me. I’m as convinced of that as I am of standing right here talking to you.”

“Then why would you even consider having anything more to do with him?” Steve asked, fighting back outrage.

“Not me. Amiee. He said he loves his daughter and wants her in his life. He pleaded with me to allow him to at least write her.”

Steve hesitated. “Do you know what you’re going to do?”

“No, I have no idea. I protected Amiee … she was too young to fully understand what was happening between her father and me. Even when we were living in the shelter, she asked when we could go home again. She said she missed her daddy.”

Steve knew he wasn’t in a position to give her advice on this question. It was a decision Cassie had to make on her own.

“I’m so glad you called,” Cassie whispered. “I’ve been upset the last few days over this. I needed a friend to talk to, a sounding board.”

Friend
. Steve was beginning to hate that word.

“And I’m glad you confided in me. You can trust me, Cassie. I won’t let you down.”

She didn’t say anything for a long moment, long enough that Steve wasn’t sure she’d heard him. “Cassie?”

“Thank you,” she said.

Nichole and her best friend, Laurie, landed in Phoenix Friday afternoon and stood in line for a taxi that would deliver them to the Phoenician Garden Hotel and Spa. It was ninety-eight degrees, in stark contrast to the mid-sixties and rain drenching Portland, Oregon.

“I am going to soak in this sunshine,” Nichole said, as she dragged her suitcase out of the airport and toward the taxi line. She closed her eyes and raised her chin, letting the warmth wash over her upturned face. “I can’t tell you how much I need this break.”

“Me, too,” Laurie agreed. “Thank you so much for bringing me! I can’t believe that Jake was able to get us the prices he did.”

“He’s the best,” Nichole said. Laurie’s gratitude was touching, but this long spa weekend wouldn’t have been nearly as much fun alone. And it would be fun, even if she already missed Owen. He’d cried when she’d left him with her mother-in-law, but Leanne had been delighted to have this special time with her only grandchild. Nichole had half expected Jake to regret arranging this, but he’d been in good spirits that morning when he’d dropped
her off at the airport. They’d hugged and kissed before he had to hurry to the office.

Their turn for the taxi finally came, and none too soon. Standing this long in the intense sun had become uncomfortable, though Nichole laughed at herself, given that she’d been uncomfortably chilled just a few hours ago. Nichole gave the driver the name of the spa and off they went.

When they arrived, the outside of the hotel was everything the Internet site had promised. The valet opened the cab door, and even before they could ask, a bellman wheeled a cart to the car and collected their luggage. They were escorted to the front desk, where a clerk greeted Nichole.