A Child's Heart (Trent & Cassie's Story) A River City Novel (33 page)

Robin stared at her sandwich.

Cassie was certain she was making some sort of
headway. "You really would have your own place and some freedom
that you've never had, probably in your entire life. At least here,
you are only a few steps away from your family. You can watch Shawn
play in the backyard and be a real grandmother, instead of a
substitute mother. It'll be much less work on you." She took
another bite of her sandwich and washed it down with iced tea. "I
know Shawn would love having you this close, and Trent won't worry
about you as much if you are here."

"I'm not ready to give up my home."

"Oh, but you wouldn't be. It will be your home, your
space, your things. Wait until you see what Trent has done to the
kitchen, and he'll probably install the new bathroom this weekend.
He wants everything perfect for you. He wants you here with
us."

"He does?"

"Yes. Very much. He reminds me a little of my dad. My
father hides his feelings, and I see that in Trent all the time.
It's some sort of macho thing. Men have to pretend that they can
handle anything, but they have all the feelings we as women
have."

"But my roses--"

"We'll move them or buy new ones. You'll have your
own door. You can come and go as you please. You'll also have
Shawn, without the daily responsibility. Maybe you need to look at
that living area again with a fresh perspective."

***

After lunch, Cassie took her future mother-in-law for
a tour of the little apartment.

"It looks different," Robin said as she walked
through the place.

"It is. That terrible green, shag carpet is gone, and
the kitchen has been remodeled. Trent measured everything. Your
hutch will fit right here." Cassie watched as Robin ran her fingers
across the new countertop.

"I love the color and the cabinets match my dining
room furniture."

"Thank Trent for that."

"There's not much closet space."

Cassie shrugged. "It's a nice-sized coat closet, and
the closet in the bedroom is a fair size. Plus, there's plenty of
storage in the garage for things like Christmas decorations, and
you know Trent will bring you anything you need."

"What if my sister comes for a visit? Where would she
stay?"

Cassie swallowed hard to keep from
laughing.
Where would she stay in that
tiny, three-bedroom house that you have?
"Well, you could get a convertible sofa, or she could stay
with her nephew in our guest room."

"I can’t afford a new sofa."

Excuses, excuses!
"I think you're wrong. Once you rent your old
house, you'll have a tidy income from that. We're not charging you
rent. You are family, and you belong here."

Robin spun on her heel. "No rent?"

"Of course not. Your heat and air conditioning is our
heat and air conditioning, but you have your own thermostat. No
more bills for living. It's one address, not two. No property
taxes, no water bill, nothing but the security of knowing that we
are right on the other side of that wall."

~~35~~

Cassie picked Shawn up from daycare and took him to
therapy before heading back to the museum. Trent would pick Shawn
up and bring him home. It was different for all three of them, but
it was working. And Shawn loved the idea of being able to be with
friends five days a week. No longer restricted, he could run and
play like everyone else.

When Cassie returned that evening, Shawn was already
in his pajamas, and Trent was wearing a grin.

"We had pizza!" Shawn threw himself into Cassie's
arms.

"You did? Did you save any for me?"

"Daddy said we had to save you three slices."

"Three? I'll get fat if I eat three."

"Daddy said you'll never get fat, because you always
forget to eat."

She raised her eyebrows at Trent. "It's not that I
forget, it's that I often don't have time to eat."

"Did you eat this evening?"

"No. I grabbed a bottle of iced tea from the vending
machine."

Trent shook his head. "That's what I mean."

She followed her men into the kitchen and washed her
hands at the kitchen sink. "So, aside from eating pizza, what have
my men been doing while I worked?"

"Can I show her?" Shawn almost squealed with
delight.

"Yes, you
may
show her." Trent opened the oven
and removed the pizza slices. "I swear that boy has one speed
anymore - fast."

"I'm sure it must make you feel very good to watch
him running and playing."

Trent nodded and slipped two slices onto a plate,
then passed the plate to her.

As Cassie sat, Shawn brought a piece of graph paper
to the kitchen table and put it in front of Cassie. "Your new
kitchen, and Daddy let me draw it."

"You drew this?" She looked at the less than perfect
lines.

"Yep! Daddy and I took all the measurements, and I
wrote them real careful, and then I used a ruler to draw all the
straight lines."

"What do these lines with the arrows mean?" She put
her finger on a long line.

Shawn bubbled with enthusiasm and explained
everything.

She wasn't certain which one of her men made her
heart swell more, Shawn for being such a bright little thing, or
his father for all his patience to show his son.

About halfway through her second slice of pizza, she
decided she was full and pushed her plate away. Trent reached over
and picked up what remained of the slice and ate it. He wiped his
mouth and fingers, then announced, "It's past your bedtime, young
man. Give Cas her goodnight kiss."

"I'm not sleepy." His little eyes grew extra
wide.

Trent chuckled. "Time for kisses."

Cassie held out her arms and Shawn threw himself into
them. "Goodnight, my sweet young man. I love you."

"I love you, too, Cassie." He dropped a noisy kiss on
her cheek and then took his father's hand.

She watched them walk into the living room and
disappear up the stairs. She picked up the piece of graph paper and
studied it. It had to be the wall in front of her. Shawn's pencil
lines were thick and thin, and he didn't quite stay on the blue and
green lines of the paper, but he was close. His childish scrawl
designated the length as thirteen feet, ten and seven eighths
inches. She wondered if Trent had taught him to measure to such
fractions, or if the boy already knew how to do it. Tears welled in
her eyes and she swiped them away. He was well. With luck, he'd
grow up and have a normal life.

Her phone rang, pulling her from her thoughts. She
looked at the Caller ID and smiled. "Hi, Dad. What's up?"

She listened to him and then told him about the
house. "I love it. I'm about a block from a bus stop, less than a
half mile from work, and it's got a pretty little yard." "Yes, I
know. Yards take work, but I'm hoping next year to have a few
tomato plants." "No, I don't need to hire a lawn service or a
gardener. We're going to do it ourselves." Her cheeks pulled her
lips upward. "Trent loves doing yard work, well, I'm not certain
that he loves it, but he's very good at it." "I'm not sure. I think
Trent used up his vacation time when Shawn was in the hospital, but
the thought of flying home for Thanksgiving is very enticing."

"What? Dad! Oh, gosh! Yes, thank you!" "Oh, Dad, I
love him and I love Shawn. Wait until you meet them, you're really
going to like both of them." "Yes, I promise, I'm happy." She
listened to her father talk about his latest case and silently
thanked her lucky stars that Trent had no ambition to be a lawyer.
She couldn't imagine a more boring job.

She watched Trent enter the
kitchen and clean up. He put the leftover slice of pizza in the
refrigerator and wiped everything clean. He opened a cabinet and
withdrew two stemmed glasses before he attempted to open a small
bottle of dessert wine. Certain he knew nothing about wine, she
wanted to giggle. She chomped on the insides of her cheeks and
listen to her dad. Her dad had taught her that time was money, and
as far as she was concerned, her dad had bought as much time with
her as he wanted. But watching Trent pouring a blueberry wine after
eating pizza with pepperoni was hysterical. She pointed to the
phone and mouthed,
it's my dad.

Trent nodded, sat across from her, and waited.

When she finally disconnected the call, she grinned.
"What has put you in such a jovial mood, and why the bottle of
wine?"

"Time to celebrate." He passed her a handful of
papers. "Seems I've been accepted. Just be honest with me, how many
strings did you have to pull?"

She looked over the papers. "None. I never once even
called over to check. There was no reason for them to reject you.
Your grades and standing in high school were excellent, plus you're
an adult returning to the academic world." She picked up her glass
of wine. "To River City's award-winning architect."

He clinked his glass to hers. "I'll drink to that,
and to the woman who showed me it's possible."

"It's more than possible." She took a sip of the
sweet wine. "My dad dropped a ton of money in my bank account. He
wanted to make sure I had enough money to fix this place up."

Trent stared at her. "I feel like a kept man."

Cassie giggled. "Oh, I intend to keep you for the
rest of my life." She pushed her shoulders back and looked at
Trent. "Another thing. Will you get a long weekend for
Thanksgiving? My dad wants to send us tickets so that we can fly
home for a visit."

Trent nodded. "I'll have all the normal days off.

"That gives me an idea. Let's plan a wedding."

"Ah, I can't afford a ring and all the other
stuff."

She could feel the heat flowing over her cheeks. "You
gave me a set of diamonds. Just because the world can't see
them--"

"You'd better not go showing them off."

"No way! And I do love wearing them. Having that part
of my anatomy pierced has definitely increased my awareness of my
femininity."

"Maybe I need to make certain you never forget?"

"Impossible. Besides, I love the way it looks when
I'm naked, and I love that you must remove it."

"I like that it's a secret." His grin spread across
his face and lit up his eyes. "I'm not into kinky, but I'm certain
that most people would consider it to be so. I'm also not into pain
or any of that bondage stuff normally associated with such things.
I just happen to think it's intriguing."

"I'm glad you like it."

"What would you have done if I didn't?"

***

Trent picked his son up from therapy and brought him
home. He'd spent almost two hours with his advisor, and had mapped
out his next few years. Most of his classes, he was taking online.
Tuesday and Thursday evenings, he'd have to attend classes on
campus. He wasn't certain how he was going to manage to study and
work full time, but Cassie assured him that he'd be fine.

His own physiotherapy was progressing, and his doctor
was pleased. He no longer had to wear the sling. The arm had good
mobility, and his fingers no longer swelled or felt numb. He still
favored the shoulder, but the doctor assured him that everything
was normal.

He stopped by his mom's house to cut the grass and
found his mom busy with several boxes.

She looked up and asked him if he would bring her
some of the things that were stored in the attic.

"Not a problem, unless it's extra big or heavy. I've
still got to be careful with the shoulder. Is there something you
want in particular?" He pulled the cord that held the collapsible
staircase.

"I'd like you to bring it all down. Some of that
stuff has been up there since you were Shawn's age. I need to sort
through it. I was thinking of having a garage sale."

Trent raised his eyebrows. "Thinking about moving
someplace?"

"Well, there's no reason for me to stay here all
alone. You've moved out and taken my grandson with you."

He couldn't stop the chuckle. "Did you expect me to
leave my son?"

"I hope I raised you to be better than that." She
crossed her arms over her chest and got that don't-push-me
look.

He went into the attic over the garage. Heat accosted
him. "There's lot up here, Mom. Is there anything in particular
that you'd like me to bring down first?"

"Those old boxes in the very back."

He pushed a stack with his foot. "Some of this stuff
is heavy, and it's hotter than Hades up here. Do you mind waiting
until I can find someone to help?" He climbed down the steps and
wiped his forehead with the hem of his tee shirt. "I'll ask Cas to
help. I can't do it alone."

He followed his mother inside and poured a glass of
iced tea. "I'll stop by tonight."

"Never mind."

"Mom, what is your problem with Cas?"

"I don't have a problem with her. I have a problem
with my son living with her."

He shook his head as he pulled out a kitchen chair.
"We're getting married. Which reminds me, I need my birth
certificate, and baptism…and whatever other Church records you
might have. If I can send the copies, it'll make things
easier."

"What do you mean?"

"Cas wants to be married in the Church where she grew
up.

His mother's eyes widened. "Married? You're going to
actually do it?"

He nodded and waited for her retort. When he didn’t
get it, he continued, "Her dad is sending airline tickets for four
people this Thanksgiving. That's Cas, Shawn, you and I. Cas plans
to send wedding announcements around the end of September. It's
going to be a very quiet affair. Besides, I don’t have any extra
time off, and Shawn will start kindergarten at Willingham Academy
this fall."