So she opened the doors, pleased by the coolness of the morning after such a hot day yesterday. She strode purposefully around the pool and into the grass, taking note of the good job Laura had done with the lawn. She walked over to her spot by the fence and paused, taking a deep breath before speaking.

“Hey…you out there?” There was only a slight pause before she heard Laura answer.

“I am.”

“Feel like company?”

“Sure. Come on over.”

Cassidy smiled. That all seemed normal. Laura sounded the same as always. Maybe there wasn’t anything to talk about after all. She made her away around the shrubs at the side of the house and onto the driveway in the front, walking up to the gate. She punched in the code and waited while it opened, then went out onto the road and over to the Morrisons’ place. As was the norm, the lawn here was perfectly manicured, the flowers bright and vibrant…reminding her that she’d not even taken a glance at her own flowerbeds, the ones that Laura had worked so hard on.

Laura gave her a welcoming smile. Cassidy returned it, wishing now that she hadn’t avoided her yesterday—last night.

“Hey.”

“Good morning.” Cassidy sat down. “I see your bird feeders are active.”

“You just missed me throwing a stick at a squirrel,” Laura said with a grin. “He was chasing off my cardinals.”

“Wonder why I haven’t put a feeder up?”

“Because your yard girl would be in charge of filling it during the week and your yard girl has enough to do.”

“Speaking of that, the yard looks nice…as always.”

“Thank you.” Laura took a sip of her coffee, eyeing Cassidy over the top. “You got home late last night.”

“You saw me?”

Laura nodded. “I was out here. I saw your lights.”

“Yeah…I had some work I needed to finish up,” she lied. “Then grocery store on the way here.”

“You came alone?”

She was sure Laura meant the question to be indifferent or at least sound that way. But her tone was a little guarded, almost as if she was afraid of the answer. Cassidy was so glad that she hadn’t given into her insecurities and invited someone along. She met Laura’s gaze, surprised by the uncertainty she saw there, surprised that she couldn’t pull away from that gaze.

“I’m alone, yes.” Laura turned away quickly but not before Cassidy saw a flash of relief in her eyes. She leaned forward, resting her arms on her thighs, her gaze on the feeders and not Laura. “You still coming over today? Pool?”

“Ribs and chicken.”

Cassidy laughed. “I see where your priorities are.” She leaned back. “How’s your hand, by the way?”

Laura held it up. “It’s fine. Healing.” Laura rubbed a finger across the bandage. “I keep this waterproof bandage on it so it’s fine.”