Page 12 of A Chance to Believe

‘Jim met him when he was on holiday, like a million years ago and offered him the job. Parker reckons he was looking for an out from the pressure anyway.’

Question answered. She knew how tough restaurant work was, especially in a successful one. The pressure was enormous, and she’d only done a brief stint while she was a student at the conservatorium. She glanced at the clock. ‘Should we be heading for the dining room?’

Kimberly muttered something unrepeatable. ‘Yeah, I better dash. I was supposed to do something before dinner and Parker gets so naggy when anyone is late.’

She vanished up the stairs, taking them two at a time with her long legs. Cassie turned the other way, hoping she remembered the way, her stomach tightening at the thought of meeting Shayne again. The attraction was still there and occasionally she’d wondered if he still remembered how good they’d been together.

Whatever hopes she might have been carefully sidelining, it was unlikely there would be a future for them as a couple, only as co-parents. Which is what she wanted. Of course it was. Shayne might be honourable about caring for his children, but he didn’t marry for the sake of those children. Considering his youth the first time around, that argued for a determination rare in a young man. There must have been a lot of pressure from his family and hers. As a mature man, she doubted if anything would prevent him from doing what he considered the right course of action.

The table was set in the dining room, a single pendant light above sparkling against the glistening tableware. The casual style of the lunch-time setting had been replaced with something more formal, without being lavish. A plain white damask tablecloth covered the table and silverware, and glasses were placed in the same spots that had been used at the midday meal. A pitcher of iced water and a mini charcuterie reminded Cassie her own water bottle was empty and, apart from a glass of water from the kitchenette in the annex, she’d had nothing since lunch.

‘Dive in.’ Ben limped from the shadows like some paranormal night being, or perhaps a Viking. The resemblance to his niece was accentuated by his braided hair in a single plait and he’d tied his beard into a ponytail with a strip of leather. It hadn’t been so noticeable before when it had been a tangled bush, but two pale streaks came from the corners of his mouth, silvery against the rusty gold. She dragged her attention away to study the small timber platter with its assortment of cheeses, meats and fruit, with a selection of crackers and nuts.

She chose a little of everything, using the side plate from her place at the table. ‘Is this usual?’

‘Parker believes we should eat like civilised beings, at least on the weekend. Tomorrow the parents will be here for lunch and Kimberley will have a barbeque for her friends in the late afternoon, so the evening meal will be something simple, unless you want to join the teenagers.’ He pulled his chair out and sat, scooping up a handful of nuts.

‘I don’t think Kimberley wants me there, so I’ll stick to my room.’

His lids lowered. ‘I intend to be out, so it will be you and Shayne on your own.’

‘Don’t you join the party?’

‘Teenagers haven’t quite learned the social skills not to stare at the cripple, so I remove myself.’

‘There’s plenty of room in the house if you want to hide.’

He laughed. ‘That sounded like a man wallowing in self-pity. I have a standing arrangement to eat at a friend’s place if I ever want to avoid one of Kimberley’s events.’

‘You do make yourself conspicuous.’

Stroking his beard, Ben quirked one side of his mouth. ‘You’re more than a pretty face, aren’t you? You’ll hold your own against Shayne. He’s not used to that.’

‘How do you mean?’

‘He’s been the boss for years. In his experience, he tells people to jump, and the only response is usually “how high?”’

‘Autocratic?’

‘Autocratic,’ a deeper voice responded, and she sat up straighter in the chair. Shayne was freshly showered, his thick hair combed into place. He was wearing clean moleskins and a classic checked shirt with studs instead of buttons.

He reached past her to pick up a piece of chorizo sausage and paused with it, his fingers hovering close to his mouth. She shouldn’t look at his mouth. Except now she was wondering about being kissed by a man with a beard.

‘I actually prefer to be described as a man who knows what he wants and is prepared to do the work to get it.’

She bit back a query about what he might want. It was best not to know. Instead, she went off at a tangent.

‘Kimberley tells me she has a party happening tomorrow. Does she have a lot of friends?’

‘Kim is the sort of person who sticks to a close group of good friends. The rest come because of the pool and the food.’

‘There’ll be a lot of them here tomorrow?’

‘Most of her class. It’s the first party since they went back to school, so it’s likely to be noisy.’

‘Will there be alcohol?’

‘No. I’ll be policing that on and off, even though I let her manage it herself. The last thing we need is kids killing themselves on the drive back into town. It happens too often.’

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