Page 74 of The Rented Bride

“Sophia, the custard cups are in the cabinet above your head.” Her mother pointed to the cabinet. “Put them on this tray.”

Cassie set the velvety custard on the counter. Sophia began arranging the cups on a tray. “Mom, dinner was delicious.”

“I’ll make something special for Sunday, too. Maybe I can get you to come home more often if I appeal to your sweet tooth.”

Cassie would be back in Colorado on Saturday night. But before she had to invent an excuse, Mia entered the kitchen, a cell phone pressed to her ear. “Sure, Cassie is here.”

Cassie paused in pulling a cup from the cabinet and looked at Mia. “Is that my phone?”

Mia nodded. “James Weston?”

Cassie fumbled the cup she held and it clattered against the others on the tray. Several tumbled onto their sides. Please, don’t let anything be wrong. Was it his health or was he calling about Trent?

“Cassandra,” her mother admonished.

Sophia and Danielle stared at her.

“I-I’m sorry.” She set a couple of the cups upright. “I’ll take that, Mia.”

Mia stopped a couple paces from her. “The phone was on the floor in the living room. It rang, so I answered it.”

The phone must have fallen out of her purse when she’d tossed it onto the carpet.

“It’s okay. Thank you.” She snatched the phone from Mia’s grasp. Her sister’s brows furrowed in curiosity.

“It’s okay,” Cassie assured her. Cassie discreetly covered the microphone with a finger. “James is a client.”

“Clients call you late in the evening on your cell phone?” her mother demanded. She glanced to Sophia. “Does that make sense? No, Cassandra, what are you hiding?”

“Clients call day and night, and yes, they call my cell phone. I have to take this.” She started for the kitchen door.

“Where are you going?” her mother called.

“Outside. It’s loud in here.” Cassie needed to escape her mother’s radar range.

“Then use the study,” her mother said.

“That’s okay.” She didn’t wait for her mother to protest further, but hurried to the mudroom off the kitchen, then out the door into the backyard.

Once outside, she answered. “James, is everything all right?”

“Just fine,” he replied. “I just called to say hello.”

She released a breath, her heartbeat slowing. “Oh good.”

“It sounds as if I interrupted you.”

“You’re never an interruption. You can call me anytime. I’m just having dinner with my family.” Should she have said that? What else would she say? She wasn’t good at lying. It hadn’t occurred to her that James would call. She wasn’t even aware he had her number.

She sauntered across the yard to the swing set near the back fence. No doubt, someone from her family was watching at a window. She couldn’t chance them overhearing her conversation.

“How are you feeling?” She reached the swing set, lowered herself onto one of the swings and began rocking.

“I’m all right,” he replied. “Trent is away for the day. Brettonwood is too quiet without you both here. I admit, I got a wee bit lonely.”

Her heart squeezed. She wished she could have stayed because, dammit, she missed them both, too. She wanted to ask where Trent was, and who he was with. Was it a woman? She could add jealousy to her list of virtues.

“I should let you go,” he said. “I just wanted to see how you were doing. Let you know I miss you.”