Dead End by Shirley Wells

Author:Shirley Wells
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2014-06-27T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Four

Cass pulled on a pair of jeans and a pink cashmere sweater. The day had been long and frustrating, and she wished she could curl up in front of the TV and do nothing.

Brad pushed her hair back from her face. “Your father would understand if you gave the hospital a miss this evening, sweetheart.”

“I know he would, but I’d never forgive myself. And it’s not a hardship, is it?”

“It is when you’ve had a difficult day. But I know you. Nothing I say will keep you away from his bedside. However—” he tried to sound stern “—you’re not leaving here without some food inside you.” He took her hand and pulled her to the kitchen. With his free hand, he dragged out a stool. “Sit.”

She laughed. “I don’t have time, Brad.”

“No arguing. I’ll make you one of my famous cheese-and-tomato sandwiches.”

Cass watched him carefully grate cheese and slice a tomato. She loved having him in her kitchen, loved the way he made her feel so precious.

“Enjoy.” He put her sandwich in front of her, gave her a long sweeping bow and withdrew.

“Thank you. Seriously, Brad, thanks for being here. It means a lot to me.”

“Eat.”

“When Dad’s better...” she began, but he waved her words aside.

“As soon as you’ve eaten, I’ll drive you to the hospital. Would you like me to wait for you?”

“No. You go home. I’ll get a cab back. I’ll call you when I get in, shall I?”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to wait? I don’t mind.” He tapped his fingers on the counter. “It’s so difficult while we live so far apart. If we lived together—”

“Brad, I—”

“I know, I know.” He put a finger to her cheek. “I know, sweetheart, and I don’t blame you. After all the stupid things I’ve done, I really don’t blame you for not trusting me.”

“Brad, no! You know it’s not that. Of course I trust you. We’ve been over and over this.” She was appalled that he could think such a thing.

“Yes, we have. Sorry. It’s just that I don’t feel very trustworthy.”

“It’s Dad,” she said, knowing he couldn’t understand. “Until he’s better, I don’t want him getting in a state about us. I hate lying to him and, by not telling him that we’re back together, I feel I am lying. But you know I trust you, darling. I’d trust you with my life.”

He tried to joke. “But not with your bank account.”

It wasn’t even close to funny and she couldn’t raise a smile.

“Hey, I’m being an idiot,” he said. “Sorry.”

“Let’s just leave things as they are for a while.”

“Of course.” He took her hand and stroked it. “It’s my own stupid fault for telling all those lies. At first, I thought I had to impress you. You were—are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Even now I have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming. If I hadn’t pretended to be someone I’m not, maybe your father would have been okay with me.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.