“I have a swimsuit you can use. You can put shorts on over it if that would make you feel more comfortable.”

“I don’t know, Laura Sue. We’ll see. Help me to my room. I’ll get cleaned up before dinner.”

Chapter Nineteen

“I hear voices,” her mother whispered.

“Yes. Cassidy has company,” she said as she settled back in her patio chair. “And there’s no need to whisper. They’re not.”

“I like this cocktail. Frankie was partial to beer.” Her mother took a sip. “A little strong for me, though.”

“I barely put a splash of bourbon in it.”

Her mother took another sip. “It is a nice evening, isn’t it? I hear frogs calling, but there was no mention of rain.”

“I think they’re in the woods behind Cassidy’s house.”

She had yet to put the steaks on—the potatoes weren’t quite ready. But there was a delicious, enticing smell coming from Cassidy’s outdoor kitchen. She was grilling out too, it seemed.

And playing in the pool, she added. She’d heard splashing…and laughing. Most of the laughter appeared to be coming from the model. She wondered what Cassidy was doing that was so amusing. She also wondered what it was that she was grilling. It made her mouth water.

“Time for the steaks,” she announced. She put her drink on the small table between their two chairs and turned the grill up a bit, wanting to sear the steaks before turning the temp a little lower.

“Do you still sit out here before you go up to bed?”

“Some nights,” she said. Actually, most nights. Especially this week since she’d been avoiding her laptop. A splash in the pool made her lift her head up.

“Oh, they’re swimming,” her mother whispered.

“Probably naked,” she murmured.

“Are you still spying over there, Laura Sue?”

“Of course not. I told you, I gave that up.” She turned the temp down on the grill and closed the lid. “How do you like your steak?”

“Just a little pink, nothing more. In fact, no pink would be better.”

Laura wrinkled up her nose. “That’s overdone.”

“I don’t care. I refuse to have red juice on my plate.” She smiled smugly. “Frankie made them perfectly.”

“Wait until you taste my seasoning. You’ll forget all about Frankie’s steaks then.”

“I will admit, he was mainly just salt and pepper. What did you use?”

“It’s a Tuscan blend for the seasonings. I mix a dash of balsamic vinegar with olive oil to moisten the steak, then season it. And if we had a rosemary bush, I’d put a couple of sprigs of that on it.” She pointed to the corner of the flowerbed. “In fact, I think I could squeeze a bush in here. What do you think?”