“And? How were they?”
“Cassie gave me one to bring along for a snack.” He said the words without thinking, and the picture of her unwinding her cinnamon roll and licking the icing from her fingers made him almost break out in a sweat.
“Cassie?”
Uh-oh. He should have been watching his tongue. This investigation really did have him rattled. “She owns the bed-and-breakfast.”
“Is she old and gray?”
Again, as if a photo flashed in front of his eyes, he saw Cassie’s pretty face, her long brown wavy hair, her chocolate-brown eyes. “She’s probably about my age, but do not make anything of it.”
“Didn’t you say the bed-and-breakfast offers breakfast and dinner?”
“It does if anyone signs up for it.”
“You’re a growing boy. Take advantage of it.”
What his mother was really saying was that he should sit down for meals, get to know people and not isolate himself. Isolation not only kept his job safe but his heart, too. You couldn’t spill something you weren’t supposed to when you weren’t around anyone to spill it to.
“I know you,” she went on. “You’ll do what you want to do in spite of what I say. But I love you anyway. I’ve got to go now or I’ll be late. You take care and stay out of trouble.”
His mother still spoke to him as if he were sixteen. But they’d been through his lifetime together, watching out for each other. He loved her dearly. “You have a good day, Mom. I’ll let you know if I can come for a visit.”
His mother ended the call. When he thought about their conversation, he remembered her advice.
Should he have dinner with Cassie tonight?
Cassie was grateful when Trina and Joe Warner checked in. Sometimes guests didn’t even bother to cancel their reservations when they weren’t going to come, so she was never sure if a reservation would be kept. Not until her guests actually arrived.
Trina and Joe were in their early sixties, retired and on a road trip to visit family in Oklahoma. After check-in, they’d freshened up, then had come downstairs to join her as she cooked them dinner. Actually, she was cooking enough for four. It was possible that Nash might want to warm up something when he returned to the B&B.
Nash Tremont. She’d been thinking about him too much today...the way his brown hair dipped over his brow, the way his Stetson had set at just the right angle as he’d left this morning. What was it about the man that seemed to make her giddy?
The Warners had plenty to chat about and Cassie could easily see that many guests who stayed at a bed-and-breakfast enjoyed meeting people from different locales. She filled them in about Austin sites until dinner was ready. Tonight she’d cooked a beef-and-beans enchilada casserole along with cornbread biscuits and a salad.
She was pouring the Warners glasses of iced tea from an antique pitcher she’d found in a consignment shop when Nash came in. He frowned when he saw her and the couple at the table. Being the good hostess that she attempted to be, she was ready to acknowledge him when he raised his hand to her as if he wasn’t going to stay, but rather go up to his room.
Her manners made her ask, “Are you sure you wouldn’t like to join us? There’s plenty. And I have chocolate cream pie for dessert.”
The Warners waved at the casserole on the table. Joe was already scooping out a serving. “We watched her make it,” he said. “Ground beef, chili powder, cumin, beans, chili peppers and sour cream. Tortillas in the bottom and the middle.”
Nash’s nose twitched as if it was catching the scent of dinner and it might intrigue him. He smiled at the couple, then Cassie, but Cassie thought it took an effort. She guessed he was going to refuse her offer of dinner.
However, he surprised her when he asked, “Did you say chocolate cream pie?”
Cassie laughed. “So the casserole won’t do it but chocolate cream pie will?”
After a shrug, he gave her a boyish grin. “Like my mama always says—I have a sweet tooth that just won’t quit.” He came over to the table and Cassie noticed again his no-nonsense stride, his confident posture, the twinkles she’d glimpsed in his eyes this morning. She made introductions. He took the chair at the side of the table where he could face the door.
Trina served herself a portion of the casserole and spooned a generous serving for Nash onto his plate. After he thanked her, he met Cassie’s gaze. “It smells good. And I do like chilis.”
After Cassie poured Nash a glass of iced tea, too, she took a seat next to Trina across from him. He’d taken off his Stetson and placed it on the sideboard. She didn’t know if he knew how to ride, but she could easily imagine him on a horse. When she was a little girl, a school friend of hers lived on a ranch. Cassie escaped to Deborah’s place as often as she could. Debbie had two parents who loved her, took care of her and cared about Cassie, too. She’d been grateful to have a motherly figure watching over her since her own mother hadn’t been able to do it.
Silence reigned at the table as everyone dug into the portions on their plates or took a cornbread biscuit from the basket Cassie had lined with a napkin.
Joe slathered his biscuit with butter. “Delicious.”
His wife nudged him. “You haven’t even tasted it yet!”
“I can tell from its lightness.” He took a bite. “Like I said—delicious.”
Everyone at the table laughed.
“How long have you been married?” Nash asked.
“Forty years this summer,” Trina answered.
Joe patted his wife’s hand. “The best years of my life!”
Cassie swallowed hard. Was that kind of marriage even possible? She thought again about Debbie’s parents. Yes, she supposed it was. She explained to Nash, “Joe and Trina stopped here on their way to Oklahoma. They’re visiting family.”
Nash’s gaze met Cassie’s and she knew why. He’d told her he was from Oklahoma. Maybe he didn’t want her to bring it up. She, of course, wasn’t going to spill his personal background.
“What part of Oklahoma?” Nash asked. “I was born and bred there.”
“We’re heading for Tulsa. Where did you live?”
“Oklahoma City. I was raised by my mom. She insists she did a good job. But I’m not sure how many people would agree with her.”
Joe took another biscuit and chuckled. “If she’s proud of you, that’s all that matters.”
As they ate, Nash asked leading questions of the Warners, and they delved into the subject of their children...and their grandchildren.
Cassie thought again that Nash knew how to deflect attention from himself. She noticed it because she knew how to do it, too. The people she’d come to know in Austin believed her parents were dead. She hadn’t corrected them because she didn’t want the truth to get out.
After coffee and chocolate cream pie, Cassie asked the Warners, “Will you be stepping out tonight?”
The husband and wife looked at each other and shook their heads. “No. We’re going to enjoy our beautiful room and just watch some TV. Tomorrow, we’ll go sightseeing to some of those places you mentioned.”
Joe stood, patted his stomach, which protruded over his belt, and waited for his wife to stand, too. After good-nights all around, they crossed to the staircase and