Embezzled Love (11 page)

Chapter Twelve

Cassie lounged in the warm, bubbly water, letting the heat comfort her aches and pains. Her arms hung like spaghetti on the tub sides, and with eyes closed, she enjoyed the peace.

The sliding door opened, and a huge splash ended her serenity. Evan plopped into the tub, sending a tidal wave into her face.

"Got room for me, baby girl?"

With curled fists, Cassie wiped water from her eyes. He hadn't even bothered to undress. Tucking her feet closer to her torso to give him space, she flashed him an icy glare. "It's a little late to ask, don't you think?"

"I thought you liked surprises?"

The suds burned as she looked at him through narrowed slits. "I do, but pleasant ones. I hadn't planned on washing my hair, but since you got it all wet, now I have to."

Evan stood, his lips pulled into a pout. Water dripped the length of him, and bubbles clung to his clothes. "If you don't want my company, I'll leave."

Cass peered up at him. "You look ridiculous." She burst into laughter.

Shaking suds from his sleeves and hands, he blended his chuckles with hers. "Trust me, I surprised myself. I only came up to tell you supper's almost ready."

"Good, I'm starving." She pushed aside her sopping hair and threw a wet wash cloth in his face. "Why don't you get out and dry off while I duck under the shower and finish the shampoo you started." She started to warn him about getting water on the floor, but realized it was far too late for that.

Evan wrapped a large towel around his soggy clothing and climbed out onto the bathmat. Cassie slid the shower door closed, and listened to him grunt and groan as he attempted to peel off his wet attire. Fighting the urge to sneak a peek, she quickly finished her shampoo, did a quick towel dry of her hair and wrapped herself in a huge bath terry. She emerged to find only a stack of wet clothes piled on the counter and 'I love you' etched across the steamy mirror.

At the vanity, she pulled a comb through her damp hair and winced. Unable to see her reflection, she caught sight of Evan with her peripheral vision as he appeared from the walk-in closet. She turned and stuck out her tongue at him in a childish gesture, but her purely adult gaze wandered over him from head-to-toe. Dry and clad only in a pair of flannel pajama bottoms, his chest hairs matted into curls from the dampness, and his flushed cheeks made his eyes look bluer than usual. The fuzzy path trailing beyond his waist band caused a tingle in her tummy and made her question her hunger.

She diverted her attention back to untangling her wet hair and Evan went downstairs. As the moisture left the air, the mirror cleared. Evan's words of love faded, then disappeared. She prayed it wasn't an omen.

* * *

Cassie swallowed the last bite of her pork chop and flashed Evan a satisfied smile. "Yum, that was delicious. You can cook for me anytime, cowboy."

Evan opened his mouth to respond just as the phone rang. He leapt to his feet. "I'll get it."

Listening to a one-sided conversation confused Cassie, but the broad smile on Evan's face spoke volumes.

Curiosity niggled her until he hung up. "Who was that?" She tried to tamp down her eagerness, but her voice betrayed her.

"Someone with good news for a change." He returned to the table and sat.

"Well?"

"We're in business, baby girl." He clapped his hands. "That was Stan Carter."

"And he is…"

"Stan owns a landscaping company in Glendora. I met with him yesterday while you were at work, and he's agreed to hire me part-time. Better, we can operate under our own business under his license. As soon as we come up with a name, we can start writing contracts for our new venture."

"Wow, you've really been busy. How come you never mentioned Stan before?"

"I didn't want you to worry about anything. Waiting until everything was settled made more sense. So, how does C&E Outdoor Designs sound to you?"

"For Cassie & Evan? How cute. I love it."

"Good, then we're set. Stan has more business than he can handle and wants to throw some our way to get us started."

"What's the catch?"

"All he wants from me is occasional help in drawing up landscape plans." Evan leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands behind his head. "I'd say things are looking pretty rosy."

Words couldn't express the joy in her heart at his evident contentment. Their future was starting to look bright. Standing, she began clearing the table. Evan sprang to his feet and removed her hands from the dirty dishes. "I'll do that. You go sit on the couch and rest."

"O-okay, but if you're not careful, you're going to spoil me." She stretched out on the sofa while Evan loaded the dishwasher and put away the remnants of dinner.

Finished, he came and joined her, lifting her feet and settling them across his lap. "We seem to like this position." He chuckled.

"I love having my feet up," she confessed. "I guess because I sit with them dangling under a desk all day, I favor propping them on something—like you."

"I like being your footrest. My ex-wife wouldn't let me touch her feet."

"Really? Ticklish?"

"Very."

Cassie snuggled against the end cushion and wriggled her toes. "You haven't told me very much about your ex. What was she like?"

"Great, when we first got married, but after the kids came, things changed."

"Changed how?"

"She didn't have time for me anymore." He released a sigh. "Giving up my two daughters broke my heart, but the divorce wasn't my idea. She wanted me to sign away my parental rights so her new husband could adopt my girls, but I just couldn't do it."

"That's understandable."

"I haven't seen them in so long. I probably wouldn't recognize them on the street." His eyes filled with sadness. "Of course, I'm sure from everything their mother has told them, they probably think I'm the biggest loser on earth." Tears pooled in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks. He swiped them away.

"I'm sorry." His voice crackled. "I didn't mean to cry in front of you."

Cassie removed her legs from his lap, inched closer and put her arm around him. "Don't apologize because you miss your kids. I'm touched you feel so strongly about them." She pushed down the hurt of never having children of her own. "Maybe we can find a way for you to see them."

He shook his head. "Ain't no way that's gonna happen. She took out a restraining order against me, based on what happened in Maricopa. That fella I told you about…the one who wanted to ruin my business…he's why. They were having an affair behind my back, and when I found out, he filed charges to run me out of town.

Evan's tears reappeared, the veins in his neck bulged. "I hate that son-of-a-bitch."

Cassie soothed him, petting his hair as if he were a distressed puppy. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart. I didn't mean to bring up something that would make you sad. I can't fix your past, but I promise we'll build happier memories."

* * *

Cassie awoke to a commotion outside. She rolled over to wake Evan, only to find him gone. Strange he would get up so early on a Saturday morning.

Her mouth gaping in a yawn, she forced herself to leave the warmth of her bed, walk to the window, and investigate. She pushed the curtain aside and peered out. Blinded momentarily by the ascending sun, she blinked to adjust her vision and saw a small tractor, a bobcat, she believed they were called.

Evan stood chatting with three men, while another dug gaping holes in her beautiful lawn. "Oh, my God," she shouted while lifting the window. "Evan…Evan, what are you doing?" Her words went unnoticed, covered by the roar of the grass-eating monster.

She rushed to the closet, pulled her robe from its hook and shoved her arms through the sleeves. With her feet firmly implanted in her fuzzy slippers, she flew downstairs. Her soles barely grazed the steps in her attempt to stop the destruction of her property before the crew went too far.

Cassie burst out the back door and scurried to where Evan stood. "What's going on?"

"Good morning', baby girl. Sorry we woke you, but we wanted to get an early start."

"Yes, but start what?" Her voice no match for the tractor's din, she motioned to the nearest hole. The watchful stares of the strangers in her yard made her uneasy.

"Can I speak to you inside for a moment?" She raised her voice so Evan could hear her.

He craned his neck toward her. "What?"

"Inside…I need to speak to you inside," she yelled.

Evan followed her into the house. When he tried to wrap his arms around her, she pushed him away. "What the hell are you doing to my yard?"

His eyes widened. "I'm making improvements, why?"

"How do you consider digging a huge hole in my grass an improvement?" She crossed her arms. "Evan, I love my backyard just like it is."

"Baby, if you love it now, you're gonna go crazy for it when I'm done. I'm putting in a big fishpond, complete with a waterfall, all the plants and a footbridge."

"Why?" She rolled her eyes. The idea sounded nice, but a fishpond?

"If we want your home to be the showplace for our business, I need clients to be able to view my work…sort of like a menu. When I'm done, the place won't look the same."

Cassie slowly shook her head. "That's what I'm afraid of."

He lifted her hand and brushed his lips across the back. "Don't worry. I promise your yard will be a thing of beauty." He gazed into her eyes. "You trust me, don't you?"

Still upset, she yanked away from him. "At this point, I guess I have no other choice." She pictured her beautiful sod and wanted to cry. "By the way, who are those guys?"

"Some of Stan's crew. I hired them for the weekend." His eyes glistened with excitement. "I hope you don't mind supplying a little up-front money. I don't have enough cash to pay all three."

Great, she had to pay for the annihilation to boot? Her jaw tensed. "I-I guess I can handle that. How much do they earn per hour?"

Mexican labor is cheap, even in California. I promised them six dollars an hour.

"I'll have to get dressed and go to the bank before noon. I don't have enough cash on hand." She looked down her nose at him. "Do you have any other surprises I should know about? Swimming pools, tennis courts, riding stables?"

Evan laughed. "Nope, just a great big pond we can load with lots of Japanese Koi."

"Aren't those expensive fish?"

"Nothing's too good for my baby. Besides, I ordered a new credit card for the business. It should be here any day."

Chapter Thirteen

Cassie pulled into her driveway and found it blocked by a cement mixer and stacks of bags. Not seeing Evan, she walked toward the back of the house. Stopping dead in her tracks, she gasped. Her yard looked unrecognizable. Mounds of dirt littered the once beautiful green lawn, and a pile of rocks had been poured next to a gaping hole. Shirtless, Evan crawled about setting the stones in place for what Cass assumed to be the pond foundation. She tiptoed closer then stood with her hands on her hips. "Uh hmmm."

He looked up, glistening in sweat. "Oh, hi, purdy lady. I didn't hear you come home."

"Probably because the debris in the drive has taken over my parking space."

"Sorry about that." He knuckled away wetness before it dripped into his eyes. "The guys left around 3:30 and I thought I'd do a little more stonework before calling it a day."

Cassie glanced around the yard then threw up her arms. "Oh, Evan, things are such a mess. Mom'll be home next week, and she's going to have a fit."

Evan stood, brushed the dirt from his hands, and put his arm around her. "Close your eyes and visualize. You're lookin' out the back door. In the middle of your beautiful lawn, you see a gorgeous, serene, pond where blue bubbles cascade into a waterfall that spills over lots of water lilies. Just beyond, an arched bridge crosses from one side to the other over more greenery and colorful Koi. Now doesn't that sound appealing?"

She opened her eyes. "Well, when you describe it like that, yes, it does, but…"

"I know, when you see what things look like now, it's hard to imagine what I described. Just leave everything to me, baby girl. I'll make this pig's ear into a silk purse in no time."

She released a loud breath. "I guess I have no choice, because what I'm looking at right now doesn't resemble anything you described. I'll decide how good you are when I see the finished project." She turned and opened the door. "Are you coming in?"

"Pretty soon. There's still some daylight left and I don't wanna waste it."

Cassie went inside. An unusually large stack of mail sat on the kitchen counter. She dropped her purse next to the couch and sorted through the envelopes. Many of the return addresses were unfamiliar, but she felt too tired and hungry to concern herself with the postal barrage at the moment. She deposited the pile on her desk and went upstairs to change out of her work clothes.