Chapter Five
Standing inside Cassidy’s apartment, Kade understood a little better why leaving wasn’t difficult for her. The furnishings were neat and clean, but sparse. The kitchen and bathroom appeared to be near original, which made them older than him.
“It will only take me a few to pack,” she called from the bedroom.
He walked over to the doorway. “Can I help?”
Standing in front of her closet, staring at the clothes hanging from the rod, she sighed. “Is it cold in Texas?”
“In the winter, yes.”
Her head bobbed as she fingered a few sundresses.
“It’s also pretty darn hot in the summer.
” His gaze drifted to the two suitcases resting on her bed.
It dawned on him that she expected to pack her entire world in two suitcases.
He should probably offer to store her belongings for the year.
“I could look into storage units for whatever you’re not taking with you. ”
Grabbing an armful of clothes, she spun about. “There’s nothing here I want to keep. I’ve already texted a friend from work. She’s going to come by, get my key, take what she wants, and sell the rest.”
“Are you sure?”
Her gaze scanned the room that reminded him more of an efficient bachelor pad than the warm and welcoming home you’d expect from a woman. “I’m sure.”
By the time she’d filled the two suitcases with her clothing and a small toiletry bag, her friend had arrived, gleeful to have a free shopping spree and promising to send Cassidy fifty percent of whatever she earned from the sales.
A pang of guilt stabbed at him. How could he possibly ask anyone to leave their world behind to play house with him for one year? Had he ever done anything more selfish in his life? It wasn’t like this was life or death, or that the ranch was in the same dire straits as several months ago.
While the friend was opening and closing kitchen cabinets he walked up to Cassidy, standing over a dresser.
“It’s all second hand.”
“Excuse me?”
She closed the lid on a small wooden box and tucked it into the still open suitcase. “Everything in here is second-hand. Most of it I picked from the trash. Didn’t even pay for it.”
That surprised him. Not that it was second-hand, but nothing looked as though it had been scavenged from a dumpster.
“So you can relax.”
Now his eyes popped.
A smile replaced the lost look he’d seen in her eyes a moment ago. “Did you know you’re easy to read?”
Was he? He shook his head.
“Maybe not to everyone on the street. But kids in foster care learn how to read the lightest of nuances. We have to know if we’re wading into dangerous waters, or able to bask in the sunshine.”
“Interesting metaphors.” And he didn’t like the idea that she’d had to learn to read people to protect herself. That, of course, wasn’t exactly what she’d said, but it was clear nonetheless, and he didn’t like it. Not one bit.
“I just want you to know that leaving all this behind seems to be harder on you than me.”
Heaving a sigh, he studied her. “You’re sure?”
“Are you going to spend the next year asking me that?” Her smile softened her words.
He bit back a smile. “I’ll try not to.”
“Good.” She closed the suitcase, zipped it shut, and looking around the room nodded. “Ready when you are.”
Once again, he was booked on the red-eye to Midland with a stopover in Dallas.
Only this time he was traveling with a wife.
Sort of. They said little on the cab ride to the airport.
He kept an eye on her as they drove through the city, looking for any signs of regret, or simply changing her mind.
Priding himself on also being able to read people, he saw nothing.
Her expression was as blank as a new sheet of paper.
Not wanting to surprise too many people, once they’d checked in, he excused himself and walked to a quiet corner and called Preston. He’d texted already that he’d missed his flight and would be home tomorrow morning, but hadn’t said anything else.
“Hey, bro. You planning on missing the flight again?” His brother wasn’t nearly as funny as he gave himself credit for.
“Ha ha. Listen. There’s been a little change of plan.” Little—was that ever an understatement.
“Oh?” His single word response held more hesitancy than surprise.
“I sort of got married.”
“Sort of?” This time shock clearly tinged Preston’s voice.
“Okay. I got married.”
“I thought we told you we didn’t need that much more money.”
“You did. And that’s not why I got married.”
“Oh?” This time his voice straddled somewhere between surprise and doubt.
“But it is why we’re staying married.”
“Oh.”
“Can’t you say anything else?”
“Sure. What the hell are you talking about?”
As quickly as he could he explained about meeting Cassidy, going out on the town, having more fun than he’d had in a very long time, and waking up married.
“And she understands that Mom doesn’t know about the marriage scheme?”
He nodded, his gaze on her sitting quietly across the gate area, watching him watch her. “She does. I think it will be fine. A good thing. I mean, we can use the extra money, right?”
“You know we can.” Preston went quiet for a long minute. “I’ll give the others a heads up. What do you want me to say to Mom?”
“Nothing. This isn’t something I want to spring on her over the phone.”
“I’m not so sure that springing it on her in person is going to be any better.”
“I know, but that’s what I’m going with.”
“Understood. I’ll see you both tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
“And Kade?”
“Yes?”
“Congratulations, big brother.”
Miles and miles of open land stretched in every direction, broken only by fence lines that seemed to go on forever and clusters of cattle grazing in the distance.
Somehow the sky felt bigger here, bluer, not a single cloud to be seen for miles.
The drive from the Midland airport had been long, flat, and uneventful.
As Kade turned off the main road onto a long, gravel driveway, his truck kicked up a puff of the dusty Texas dirt that had surrounded them most of the morning.
Her first glimpse of the Sweet Ranch unfolding before her, Cassidy peered through the windshield.
In the distance, a massive house, a sprawling fortress of stone and timber, stood against the vast, open sky.
It was exactly as Kade had described it, yet seeing it in person felt different, more real.
More intimidating. Barns and outbuildings dotted the landscape, and the sheer scale of the place was staggering.
This wasn’t just a home; it was a legacy.
Her fingers gripped the edge of the dashboard, not from fear, but from the sudden overwhelming sense that she’d stepped into a different universe.
One where people owned land measured in acres instead of square feet.
Where families stayed for generations instead of foster placements measured in months.
“You okay?” Kade glanced over at her, concern creasing the edges of his eyes.
She nodded slowly. “It’s… big.” The word felt ridiculously inadequate.
“It’s home.”
Home. The word rattled around in her chest, foreign and familiar all at once. She’d never had a home. Not a real one. Only once had she come close, but even that had in the end proven to be temporary. Everything in her life had been temporary.
The car came to a stop in front of the house and a woman emerged onto the sprawling front porch, wiping her hands on an apron. She was smaller than Cassidy had imagined, but she moved with a quiet, undeniable strength. This had to be Alice Sweet.
“Ready?” Kade asked quietly.
Was she? Cassidy sucked in a breath and reached for the door handle. “As I’ll ever be.”
Kade was out of the car before Cassidy could unbuckle her seatbelt. His hand extended to her, she exited the old truck and he shortened his long strides to match hers. Unsteady legs moved one in front of the other. This was it. The point of no return.
“Thought you were going to be home yesterday.” Alice gave her son a soft smile and gentle kiss on the cheek. The gesture made Cassidy smile, such genuine maternal affection. Then the woman’s gaze shifted to Cassidy, her eyes, the same piercing blue as Kade’s, filled with a gentle curiosity.
His hand found the small of her back in a gesture that was both a steadying presence and a silent claim. “Mom, this is Cassie.”
Cassie? Where had that come from? She shot him a quick, questioning look, but he was focused entirely on his mother. Cassie—she kind of liked it. New name for the new her.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Alice said, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. There was a reservation there, a mother’s natural caution.
“The pleasure is all mine.” Without any thought, Cassidy’s hand gravitated toward Kade’s like a magnet seeking true north, relieved to discover his hand reaching for her as well. Strong fingers wrapped around hers, channeling strength and support through that simple contact. She held on tight.
His mother’s gaze followed the movement, her eyes studious, pensive, as if able to see past the facade and read every thought and memory.
Kade squeezed her hand, a silent signal. “She’s my wife.”
Dark eyebrows rose high over deep blue penetrating eyes and Cassidy’s stomach lurched high in her throat, almost robbing her of any air.
Her gaze shifting from her son to Cassidy, a slow, radiant smile bloomed across Alice Sweet’s face, transforming her features and making her eyes sparkle. “I see,” then she stepped forward, her arms open, and pulled Cassidy into a fierce, welcoming hug.
Startled, Cassidy stood stiffly for a moment before releasing Kade’s hand, drawing her own arms up and returning the warm welcome.
This was so much more than a business deal. She was standing on the porch of a home that had stood for generations, beside a man she barely knew but was legally bound to, being hugged by a mother-in-law who had just accepted her without a single question. This was a whole new kind of crazy.
When Alice finally pulled back, her eyes were bright. “Come on in, both of you. I’ve got a pot roast in the oven and you must be exhausted from all that traveling.” She looked at Kade with that same knowing smile. “We’ll get you both settled.”
Cassidy glanced up at Kade as they crossed the threshold, their hands still linked. He met her gaze and gave her fingers a gentle squeeze.
She didn’t understand how she could be welcomed so easily, no questions, no complaints, no rants, no insults.
This world she’d slipped into was proving more bizarre than she could ever have imagined.
Walking inside with her hand once again firmly ensconced in Kade’s, there was only one thing she was sure of: whatever came next, at least they were in this together.