Page 17 of Legally Yours
Cassandra laughs outright. “That’s mild. Wait until he really gets going!”
Finally, we go to bed. I have to sleep with her in her bed, and I’m not complaining. Lying next to her in her family home, the scent of her traveling across to me, I wonder if I’m getting carried away.
16
CASSANDRA
After we get home from Georgia, Liam calls his mother and makes arrangements for us to join her for dinner one evening during the week. I’m nervous. Period. I already know from what Liam has said that his mother really likes his ex-fiance.
I try to use my nerves to help me create a more-positive first meeting. I choose a conservative dress with heels. I style my long, dark hair in a French braid.
Liam gets out of the shower and dresses in dress pants and a long-sleeve shirt without a tie. He looks at me. “Beautiful. You are perfect.”
He comes up to me and brushes my cheek with a kiss. Then he draws back, looks at my lips, and kisses me again. My eyes widen, not because I’m stunned at his action. But because I feel such an electric sensation. What was that?
Liam smiles gently at me. “We all set to go then?” he asks.
“Sure,” I reply, still trying to recover from his kiss.
He drives to his mother’s home. The closer we get, the more the butterflies in my stomach start fluttering, dancing around. I hear my heartbeat in my ears. “What about your father? Will he be there as well?”
Liam pauses for a second. “He died when I was in high school. My mother is the only relative I have left.”
I gasp sharply. Now I feel terrible! “Oh! Liam, I am so sorry!”
I look at him, then at the direction he’s gazing into. I see a young woman leaving the house.
“Eunice is here?” Liam’s voice is a low growl. He looks shocked and hurt. He closes the door and takes my hand as we walk to the door.
I’m stunned as I realize Liam’s mother still has a friendship with the woman who cheated on her own son. I’m confused.What is going on here?
We enter the house, Liam escorting me in before him. His mother is sitting on an ornate chair in the foyer. Her expression when she sees me isn’t really welcoming. But she is cordial toward me.
“Cassandra, meet Nathalie Anderson, my mother. Mother, Cassandra.” He stays close to me, with a comforting hand at my waist.
I smile and nod politely. “Mrs. Anderson, it is wonderful to meet you.” I extend my hand toward her.
Nathalie barely touches the tips of my fingers with her own. “Cassandra.” Her voice is cool, though courteous. “Dinner is almost ready. Cook is working on the finishing touches.” Come.”
Leaning heavily on her cane, Mrs. Anderson leads us into an ornate sitting room. With Liam’s help, she sinks into a deep-blue armchair.
Liam returns and indicates I should sit next to him. I do. In fact, I’m sitting very close to him, just so I can draw whatever comfort I can.
“Liam, I suppose you saw Eunice leaving?”
I look at Liam.
“I did. Mother, our relationship is over. I won’t marry her.”
Mrs. Anderson closes her eyes momentarily, sniffing in a long breath. “But Liam! She’s sorry for what she did!”
“Mother, can we change the subject? You invitedmy wifeand I to have dinner with you.”
At that moment, someone I think might be the cook steps into the sitting room and whispers into Mrs. Anderson’s ear, then leaves. Liam’s mother gives me a cool smile and stands with Liam’s assistance. She leads us to the dining room, where Liam helps me with my chair once he has seated his mother.
Our dinner is anything but fun, though it is delicious. But the atmosphere makes it awkward. I eat to be polite, regretting that I can’t manage more.
Mrs. Anderson does attempt to include me in conversation. But her attitude is one of coolness and distance. “My dear, I understand you are a model?”