Page 15 of A Chance to Believe

Shayne grinned at her wry tone. ‘Could be dicey. I guess we’ll have to play it by ear.’

‘How will your grandmother feel about it?’

‘I’m not sure how she’ll react. If Mum gets snarky about us not being married, there’s a good chance Nana will take our side just to score off Mum.’

‘Don’t they get along?’

‘They get along fine so long as they don’t have to live together. That’s why she moved into the annex after my grandfather died. Before that, they had their own rooms.’

‘How did that work?’

‘We all ate together, but Nana had her own sitting room with a little kitchenette off the master suite and she was into gardening, so it was easy for her to avoid Mum. When Pop died, she duly handed it over to Dad as the new master of the house and moved into the annex.’

‘Why did she leave?’

‘She had some health problems and had to give up the gardening. After that, she seemed to get depressed. When Dad had to retire, she moved into the nursing home to die.’

‘But she didn’t die.’

‘She’s better than ever. Thriving in the community atmosphere.’

‘That’s amazing.’

‘We’re lucky. The nursing home is a community run concern with an active auxiliary. They’re a great team and the staff are wonderful.’

‘I didn’t expect there to be so many facilities in such a small town. What’s the name of the home?’

He chuckled. ‘Happy Landings.’

She stopped dead in the hallway. ‘You are kidding me, aren’t you?’

‘Not at all.’

Her laughter was a delight, ringing out around the high room. A warm sensation invaded his heart. It felt good to see her smile and laugh. He wanted to do it again. Her eyes locked with his and his breath stalled.

A clatter at the front door broke the moment, and he spun around.Great timing.He wasn’t sure if the thought was sarcastic.

His mother broke the sudden silence. ‘Who is this? I don’t believe we’ve met.’

Chapter 4

Cassie gulped back the laughter and the awareness of that moment when the connection with Shayne had clicked in. These were his parents, and they would not be impressed with her arrival in their son’s life.

She would have recognised his father anywhere, an older version of Shayne with a shock of still thick white hair. She wished they’d finished his rundown of his family before they arrived. Francis Smith looked younger than she expected, considering his health.

His wife was the indeterminate age of a woman who looked after herself. Her shoulder-length bob echoed Shayne’s colouring, a dark blonde underlay with professionally added platinum streaks. There was no guessing what her original colour might have been, but blonde was likely from the colour of her skin and her pale eyes. She was a good bit shorter than her husband, with womanly curves kept under control by the elegant three-piece Chanel-style suit in a pale rose pink. There were even pearls at her throat.Classic.

Behind them was a woman who must be the grandmother, as tall as Cassie herself and as lean as Cassie had been before the pregnancy. A woman used to an active life, wearing well-cut emerald trousers and a neat long-sleeved blouse in a lighter shade of green that looked good with her silvery white hair.

Shayne came to life, stepping between the two groups. ‘This is Cassie Long. Cassie, I’d like you to meet my mother, Dawn, and father, Francis. Nana is usually Dot.’

Francis took her hand and smiled at her, so reminiscent of his son. ‘Welcome. It’s good to meet you.’

The women made no attempt to shake her hand. Dawn was trying not to look at her stomach and Dot was openly staring.

‘Are you pregnant?’ The blunt question came from the grandmother.

Cassie sought Shayne’s reaction. He smiled reassuringly and took her hand. ‘Cassie is pregnant with my babies. She’s come to get to know the family and the town before they’re born.’

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