After one of the most exhausting weekends of her life and all the fuss with Andi, Cassie was relieved to get back to work.
Yet again Cassie had spent longer at the hospital the day before than she'd planned, simply because Andrea's parents needed a break to head back to their hotel and get some sleep. Cassie stayed by her best friend's bedside all day, doing her best not to bring up uncomfortable conversational pieces like, "By the way, did you know your asshole husband threatened my life too?" Andi was still wallowing in a vat of self pity and a belief that she had brought this ordeal upon herself. If Andi had been anyone else, Cassie probably would have cussed a blue streak and shot her friend with a heavy dose of the truth. But this was Andi, and Cassie was so used to looking after her much more fragile friend that she just couldn't kick her while she was down. Then came the news Andrea would be staying with her parents rather than with Cassie while she recovered.
Cassie herself was feeling so exhausted from this entire experience – had the abuse really started nine months ago? – that Cassie was actually grateful to be able to put some space between herself and her friend right now.
Obviously, it wasn't going to be that easy.
Cassie tried not to show the shock she felt when Pete himself showed up at her floral shop Tuesday afternoon, as easy as you please.
"What are you doing here?" she demanded.
"How is she? Please, I just need to know that she's OK," he begged. He did look like he'd been suffering too, which was some comfort. His eyes were bloodshot and his skin was a sickly color – he'd probably been drinking himself sick since Friday night, she surmised. Yet, Cassie also noticed that Pete was wearing clean clothes and had found time to shave sometime while his wife was lying in the hospital.
"She'll live, no thanks to you," Cassie told him. She sent a glance toward her assistant manager, who was aware of the situation involving Andi. Even if Tess didn't recognize Pete, she obviously recognized from Cassie's behavior that he was the man the police were looking for. "Tess, please call the police and tell them Pete Hendricks is here."
"Wait! Cassie," he pleaded. "Just tell me where she is. I need to see my wife. I called the hospital, but she's not there anymore. I know she's not at your place – I've been watching it. So where is she?"
"Bastard," she spat out. "I wouldn't tell you where she was even if you threatened to cut me open with your hunting knife," she taunted, also reminding him of the threat he'd left on her machine.
The change that came over him was pretty dramatic. His face lost all trace of worry for his wife and twisted into an angry slant toward Cassie. "You bitch!" he moved as if he would launch over the counter and grab her. "I know you've had the police looking for me. I saw them at the house. None of this would have happened if you'd kept your nose out of where it didn't belong. Just tell me where she is!" he yelled.
"Hey!" someone shouted from the doorway, and Cassie realized it was Kevin! He'd startled Pete so badly, Pete forgot he was going after her and instead jumped over the counter, pushed past her, and ran into the back office. She realized he had to know there was a back door there when she heard it slam open.
Kevin shouted for her to call the police as he raced past in hot pursuit. Not to be left out, Cassie took off after them, hoping Kevin caught up with the bastard and she could help beat the shit out of him.
She got as far as six blocks before she was too winded to go any further. Breathing hard, hands on her hips, she searched to see that Kevin was breathing just as hard as he walked back toward her, limping slightly and rubbing his left leg as if he'd pulled a muscle or something. When he got close enough, he said, "I lost him. Dammit!" Then he looked at her and demanded, "What the hell do you think you're doing? You were supposed to stay back there where it was safe. What if he'd had a gun?"
She blew out a breath and said, matter-of-factly, "If he'd had a gun, I guess he would have shot you by now."
"Dammit, Cassie, this isn't a joke."
"Am I laughing?"
He closed his eyes, shook his head, and then grabbed her by the arm. "Come on."
She jerked her arm free but kept up pace beside him as he walked back toward her store. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
"I was in the neighborhood."
"Yeah right. You would have had to drive ten miles out of your way to get in this neighborhood. Try again."
He stopped, glanced around, looking anywhere but at her, and said, "I was keeping an eye on you. I heard shouting, and when I got closer, I caught that guy about to use you for a punching bag."
"You were WHAT?"
He finally looked at her. "Your family is very worried about you."
"I can't believe this," she grumbled as she turned and walked away. "Don't you have a business to run yourself? What? Is Heather paying you to do this?"
"Of course not," he said, obviously offended. "I'm doing it as favor to a very good friend."
"Since when did you and Heather get so close, and does Jake know?" she asked, and regretted it a second later for what it implied about her sister.
"That was low, Cassie." He sent her a hateful look. "The friend I was referring to is you."
"Dammit, I know it was low," she agreed, so she kept her mouth shut the rest of their walk. When they got back to the store, the police had arrived and were talking to Tess. They took statements from everyone and then advised Cassie to think about staying with family or friends until Pete was arrested.
"I'll be fine on my own," she insisted, but she wasn't totally stupid. "He said he'd been watching my house, so maybe you could have someone patrol my neighborhood in case he's still hanging around."
The police agreed to do that much, and when they left, Kevin stopped pacing and sent her a look that was full of meaning. She sighed and demanded, "What?"
"He's been watching your house and yet you still want to stay there?"
Cassie rubbed her eyes, feeling suddenly very tired – she hadn't slept much the last couple of nights – and admitted truthfully, "I don't think Pete would ever hurt me. He might try to scare me into thinking he would, but I don't think he has the guts to touch me because he knows I'd hit him back. Andi never did."
"That's taking a hell of a chance," he pointed out. "Fine. I hope you don't mind company then. If you won't leave, I'll just have to spend the night on your doorstep until this guy is arrested."
"Oh please. Just drop the macho act." She picked up a bundle of flowers and began arranging them in a vase. She had a wedding order to fill for this weekend. "I'll call my sister and tell her you saved my life today or some crap like that, and you can go about your business. OK?"
"Heather and Jake didn't ask me to do this; I followed my instincts. Besides, I took some time off, which is what you should have done when all this happened," Kevin informed her. "I'm not going anywhere, darlin'."
She sent him a look that would have cowered most men, then went about arranging her flowers while she ignored him. Well, pretended to ignore him was more apt. Secretly, she noticed every little detail about him, all of the changes the last few years had brought. He looked good. His hair was still short, but longer than it had been when they were together. It was also lighter, probably bleached by the sun while on one of his expeditions. He had a little bit of stubble on his face, but it suited him.
"You know, I can't figure you out," Kevin said after a point. Had he realized she was looking him over? Nah, she decided. He folded his arms and sent her a serious look. Then he said, "You get scared to death and run at the thought of having a serious relationship with me, yet when someone actually threatens to do you physical harm, you just buck up and say 'bring it on'? I don't get it."
She was sort of startled that he'd come right out and mentioned their past relationship, so it took her a few seconds to process the taunt for what it was meant to be. Funnily enough, instead of tensing, she felt herself relaxing. "Nice try, but it won't work," she said. "Besides, I thought you would have gotten over that by now."
"What, us?" When she sent a look instead of saying "duh!" he smiled. "I don't think I ever will, sweetheart, and you know it."
"That's your problem, not mine."
"No, it's both of our problems because you're in the same boat," he accused, then stood up and headed for the door. "I'm heading home to pack a change of clothes. I'll be back later."
"Don't bother," she yelled after him, but the door had already shut. She sighed. As if she didn't have enough problems, now she had to deal with an ex on a macho trip?
What next? she wondered.
***
When Cassie made it home that evening, she breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't see Kevin's car sitting in the driveway in front of her condo, or anywhere on the street. Well, she wasn't surprised, maybe he'd taken her at her word and left her alone, but she was surprised at how disappointed she felt that he wasn't here.
"Yeah, right, Cass," she berated herself as she shut off her engine. "As if you want to get messed up with him again. Remember how much it hurt last time?"
She shook herself out of that funk and determined not to think of Kevin Cooper any more. Besides, she had other things to focus on – namely making sure Pete Hendricks wasn't stalking her to get to his wife. Slinging her purse over her shoulder, Cassie waved at her neighbor, the elderly Mr. Johnson, as she walked to her door. She took careful glances around, down the street, around the corner, at her neighbor's yards, as she put the key in the door and tried not to look like she was hurrying inside out of fear. If Pete was watching her place, which she highly doubted, she didn't want to give him any satisfaction.
She shut the door, tossed her keys on the table by the window and reached to turn on the lamp.
