Love With A Stranger (17 page)

While Jason was eating alone and worrying, Cass was having a rather nice time at home while Peter grilled steaks by the pool for her and Linda, who prepared baked potatoes, a garden salad, and rolls to accompany them. Cass was stretched out in a cushioned chaise while Peter and Linda stood near the grill and chatted.

She noticed that Peter was being charming and genial with the nurse, though not flirtatious, which she was certain disappointed Linda who seemed enchanted by him. Peter—dressed in casual navy slacks and a red shirt from his golf game this afternoon at the Sea Island Club—was in a jovial mood tonight, one he claimed was brought on by shooting an eagle and several birdies on six holes. He laughed and smiled often, told amusing jokes, and made certain he drew her into the conversation every few minutes. He looked sexy with that ever-present lock of ebony hair falling onto his forehead near his left temple. As with Jason, Peter’s tan had deepened with his increase of outdoor sports. With his dark coloring, the shade of his fiery shirt was flattering. She had to admit, he was attractive and virile. There was an earthy, seductive sensuality about him and she understood why so many women found him irresistible. She couldn’t deny that Peter Grantham was a superb catch, if his reputation wasn’t true. As if he read her thoughts, that was the very topic about which he joked next.

“Did you enjoy church and lunch this morning?” Peter asked.

“Yes, I did. Linda and Jason are good company, and it was nice to get out of the house for a while. Perhaps you’d like to attend next Sunday.”
If he comes, Linda, you owe me big for this favor.

“The congregation would probably faint if I walked in. I’m
afraid too many people around here put too much stock in unfounded gossip about me. They might think the world is coming to an end this week if I attended.”

“No, they wouldn’t,” Linda refuted. “I’m a member there and I would love to have you attend. You can sit with me and Cass and I’ll introduce you to everyone. They’re nice people, so they’ll behave themselves.”

Peter told the nurse, “I’ll think about it. First I have to go to New York on Wednesday morning, but I’ll be back on Saturday afternoon.” Peter looked at Cass. “There’s a big real estate deal I have to check on and either accept or reject it. Would you like to tag along, Cass? We could catch a play, and you could go shopping while I’m busy, or laze around and enjoy room service.”

“Not this week, but perhaps another time. Thanks for the invitation.”

“I’ll keep you informed about my business trips in case you want to go along on one of them.”

After eating their meals and doing the clean-up chores, Peter asked, “Anybody game for a swim? I could use the exercise.”

Cass laughed and said, “Not me; it’s too chilly for my blood.”

“What about you, Linda?” Peter asked.

The nurse was delighted he had started using her first name. “Sounds good to me; I have a swimsuit upstairs. I’ll go change.”

While Linda was gone, Peter asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to go to New York with me? It would be a wonderful diversion for both of us. Don’t forget, Linda is leaving on Tuesday, so you’ll be here alone.”

“I know, and I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but it’s too soon for me to enjoy a holiday like that. Another time?”

“I’ll hold you to that promise. While I’m gone, if you get
scared or lonely at night, just asked Inez to sleep over until I return. And I’ll phone and check on you every day.”

“I’ll be fine, Peter, so don’t worry about me, but thanks.”

After Linda and Peter finished their swim Cass joined them as they all went into her house to watch a movie he had rented at the video store.

As it began, Peter said, “I’ve been wanting to see this for a long time. My secretary told me it’s hilarious. If you two get bored, just tell me and I’ll take it over to my place and finish it there. That won’t hurt my feelings.”

As they watched the comedy, all three laughed, sipped their colas, and nibbled on the popcorn they had prepared.

After it finished playing and was rewinding, Peter asked, “Is there anything you want me to pick up for you tomorrow Cass?”

“Nothing I can think of. Inez keeps everything well stocked.”

“What about if I bring you fresh shrimp right off the boat for supper? I can have it here by five o’clock.”

Cass smiled and thought,
You’ll owe me again, Linda, if this works.
“That will be fine, if you’ll join us to eat it.”

“I would love to, but I already have a business dinner with a new client for our electronics company. I’ll take a rain check if you’re issuing them.”

“Consider yourself invited for another night. Thanks for buying and cooking the steaks; they were delicious. And the movie was very funny. This has been a most pleasant and relaxing evening.”

“We had a wonderful time, Peter,” Linda added. “Thank you.”

Peter replaced the tape in its clear container, smiled, and said, “I thoroughly enjoyed myself, ladies, and I bid you good night.”

* * *

While Cass and Linda were strolling on the beach Monday morning and Inez was at the store, Kristy Stillman Franklin left a message on Cass’s answering machine.

When Cass returned home and found it, she was elated, filled with relief. She wished she could speak with Kristy that very minute, but Kristy had said she was leaving town immediately because she had rented her house to a golfer who was playing in the Master’s tournament this week. Many local Augustans did the same thing to earn extra money, as most rentees paid enormous amounts to have large and well-located homes at their disposal for resting and for entertaining.

Cass could hardly wait for Kristy’s return home so they could talk, really talk for the first time in years. Kristy sounded just as eager as she was to renew their friendship. Since a talk was impossible today, she went shopping with Linda just to browse and have an outing, though she suspected that Linda was using that excuse to lure her out into public to get her more at ease about doing so.

They looked at clothing at several fun clothing and shoe stores at True Oaks Shopping Center and wandered through Goad’s Gallery at the Shops at Sea Island where Cass purchased a silk screen and a painting by the talented artist and owner. She also purchased a lovely beach scene that Linda kept admiring and presented it to her as a combination thank-you and farewell gift. After those items were placed in Linda’s car, they made several purchases at G. J. Ford Bookshop.

Their last stop was at the Winn-Dixie grocery store at Retreat Village so Cass could pick up boxes to use to pack away Tom’s things later this week, a task she both looked forward to and dreaded.

During their day together, Linda talked about what a good time she had last night and how attractive Peter was. Cass hoped she wasn’t making a mistake by not warning her friend
away from Tom’s son, but Linda was an adult and could make her own decisions and form her own impressions. What’s more, she couldn’t risk her comments finding their way into Peter’s ears if he and Linda decided to date, which she doubted would happen. All she could do was hope and pray that Linda didn’t get hurt emotionally.

On Tuesday morning, Cass and Linda hugged and said their good-byes and made plans to continue their friendship with future visits.

“If you need me, Cass, call me and I’ll come over if I’m not working. If I am, at least we can chat. I’m going to miss you and this cushy job.”

Cass laughed at her amusing expression before she said, “I’m going to miss you, too. Call me after you get settled at home.”

“I will, and you take good care of yourself.”

“I promise to obey Jason’s orders to the letter,” Cass vowed, though she was a little surprised and disappointed that Jason hadn’t come by last night or this morning, since he knew Linda was departing. He had simply spoken to Linda by phone and given her instructions to pass along to her. She hadn’t seen or talked to him since Sunday after lunch, and, she realized, she missed his smile, missed his voice, missed him in entirety.

As Cass relaxed and read that afternoon in her private suite, the next call she received wasn’t from Linda or Jason; it was an unexpected one from a man she had seen recently.

Inez came to where Cass was reading in the den to tell her there was a phone call for her, as the housekeeper had been instructed not to screen her calls or visitors any longer.

Cass thanked her and lifted the receiver nearby. “Hello, this is Mrs. Grantham speaking.”

“Mrs. Grantham, you’ve been a hard lady to reach. I wanted to extend my condolences for your husband’s death and to see if there’s any way I can assist you if you’re interested in selling your home.”

“I beg your pardon? Who is this? What do you want?”

“I’m sorry, ma’am. I was so excited to finally reach you that I forgot to tell you my name. This is Samuel Tarver of Tarver Realty Company on St. Simons Island. After your tragic loss last month, I drove by your home and took several pictures, then tried to contact you to see what your plans are; widows often want to move and make a fresh start or get into a smaller place. I was told you were out of town, but one of my agents thought he saw you having dinner with friends Saturday night
at Blanche’s Courtyard; he remembered you from pictures in the local newspaper.”

Cass was relieved to discover that one of the inquisitive drivers and the man at the restaurant were nothing more than eager real estate agents wanting to drum up business. Perhaps that was also true for some of the other people whom she had believed were being nosy about her and Tom. Perhaps some had been hopeful buyers of her property. “I appreciate your interest, Mr. Tarver,” Cass responded, “but I haven’t made a decision in that matter, and won’t be doing so for at least several months.”

“Would you mind if I sent you my card and a letter of introduction so you can consider me and my company if you do decide to move? I’m sure I can get you an excellent price and quick sale. You have a lovely and valuable piece of property, and the market is in your favor at this time.”

Cass was relieved and impressed that the man didn’t seem pushy and persistent.

“Of course you can send that information, and I will give you the opportunity to speak with me if I decide to relocate here or elsewhere. But I’m not ready to discuss the matter at this date. I have other personal and business matters occupying my time and energies.”

“I understand, ma’am, and I appreciate you taking my call today.” Mr. Tarver’s tone was genuinely polite.

Wednesday morning after Peter left on his private jet for New York, Cass decide to start making a few changes in herself and her home to help chase away Tom’s ghostly presence. She would begin slowly to not antagonize Peter by making it appear as if she hadn’t loved Tom and was eager to remove all traces of him from her existence. She wouldn’t redecorate the entire house but would make alterations in needed areas, such as the upstairs suite where Tom had defiled their marriage bed.

First, she removed her wedding rings. She put them in her closet safe temporarily until she came up with the right idea for using the diamonds and gold in another piece of jewelry, if she didn’t decide to sell them. She had burned the video tapes last night while she had privacy, and had placed the naughty lingerie in a paper sack and deposited it in the trash. Fortunately the garbage company picked up on Sea Island on Wednesdays so there was no chance of Inez going through the bags.

At nine o’clock, Cass showered and dressed in a khaki chambray tunic top with khaki-and-white striped sleeves and coordinating striped pants. She slid her feet into beige Nubuck slings by Bruno Magli. On her right hand, she put on an emeraldand-diamond ring; on her left, she wore a diamond-encircled five-karat Russian Alexandrite—her birthstone—which Tom had given to her when she turned thirty-five last June. She clasped a gold watch and bracelet on her wrists and inserted creamy pearl studs in her pierced ears. She applied a light covering of cosmetics, sprayed on Ciara perfume, and brushed her long hair.

She was delayed for ten minutes while speaking with Linda who had phoned to see how she was doing. After Cass revealed her plans, Linda said she wished she could join her but she was packing to head for a new assignment this afternoon.

After telling a surprised Inez she was going shopping, Cass drove to a fine furniture store in Brunswick and selected a new bed with an intricately carved walnut headboard, which would match the other furniture in her suite. The store agreed to deliver it that afternoon to Cass’s delight. She went to Glynn Place Mall on the Golden Isles Parkway and purchased new bed linens and accessories at one of the four large department stores located there, all in a feminine Victorian pattern in shades of pinks, mauves, creams, and greens. She knew her choices would make her suite look different from the blacks, browns, and
beiges of the English Manor design which the decorator had used and Tom had loved, but not her.

While she was at the mall, she visited several other stores and shops and made more purchases to enhance the look she had in mind. Before heading home, she splurged on a late lunch of a hamburger with all of the trimmings, french fries, and a diet 7-up.

Cass was glad Inez had left at two o’clock for a dental appointment because it prevented the woman from witnessing her actions and annoying her with questions and comments. The new bed arrived at three o’clock, and she paid the deliverymen extra to disassemble the old headboard and store it in the garage for her until she decided what to do with it. As soon as the men were gone, she carried the boxes loaded with old linens to the garage and placed them there, too.

Afterward, Cass made the bed with a new mattress pad, sheets, pillows, coverlet, and dust ruffle. She placed an assortment of decorative shams and throw pillows on it in various sizes and shapes. She stood on a ladder to hang the matching swags and ivory sheers, then added a painting over the bed of a Victorian lady sitting on a window seat and reading a book of poetry. Where she had removed souvenirs of Tom’s from past holidays, including the Atlas statue he had given to her, she set other items here and there: miniature pictures of flowers, a ceramic Lenox rose, a candleholder with a pedestal-style base with tiny pale-pink and dark-mauve roses and ivy draped over it, and a handpainted oval ring box.

When she finished, she walked around the room and paused in several places to admire the striking and soothing results. Now this bed would be hers, and no ghosts of Tom and his lovers would trouble her at night.

There was no need to redecorate her bath and dressing room,
as Tom had had his own bathing and grooming area on the other side of the bedroom.

She headed down the hallway to do a few things downstairs, but halted at Tom’s old office to close that door until she could redo it into a sitting room or an office for herself.

Using a laundry basket, she removed pictures and other reminders of Tom in the living room and den. Where a large picture of Cass and Tom had been sitting on a fossil stone mosaic console in the formal room, she placed the Goad silk mini-screen. She stepped back and eyed the replacement. She smiled because it was lovely; it was hers; it was perfect for that spot.

Where Tom’s portrait had hung over a fireplace in the den, she suspended the new painting she had purchased this week, a serene watercolor featuring the local marsh view. She packed the portrait in the painting’s box to protect it against damage until she could give it to Peter, if he wanted it.

Since it was past six-thirty, Cass took a break to eat some raw carrots, a ham sandwich, no-fat yogurt, and an apple, washing down the food with a caffeine-free cola. As she snacked, she watched the last twenty minutes of the national news and the first ten minutes of a talk show. Concentrating on the television allowed her to stop thinking about Tom and her impending chore.

After she finished and cleaned up the kitchen and breakfast room table, Cass headed upstairs to begin her next task. She decided not to box up Tom’s clothes until she asked Peter if he wanted to go through them. The men were almost the same size and Tom’s garments were expensive ones from top designers, so Peter might want some of them. While she had privacy, she went through every pocket of every item to make certain Tom hadn’t left a revealing note or item there for his son or another person to find, but discovered nothing. Using a stepladder, she did the same with the shoe boxes and other containers
on the closet shelves, then checked the drawers of the built-in chest.

Cass then went to Tom’s office and sat a box on the floor. She placed his scrapbook and photo album in it to give to Peter. She examined the contents in every drawer, file folder, and on every shelf. Once more, she decided to ask Peter to go through them to see if there was anything he wanted to take for himself.

As she worked, Cass recalled the diary that she had placed in her closet safe until she was in the mood to break the lock and read it. If there was nothing scandalous written there, she would give it to Peter. But if dark secrets were exposed, she would destroy it, as it would be cruel and unnecessary to subject Peter to the same kind of torment she had endured upon learning the bitter truth.

It was almost eleven o’clock and she had accomplished a lot, so she showered and put on a shiny emerald nightgown, its satin material feeling sensuous against her bare flesh. As she lay down between the new sheets, she thought how good it felt to be in a bed that the traitorous Tom hadn’t slept in. She smiled and enjoyed her new and clean surroundings. Even the smell in the room was different, fresh and invigorating. Her head was clear now that she didn’t have to take medication, but she was drowsy and relaxed and calm despite her exertions and excitement.

Thursday morning, the housekeeper asked in horror, “What have you done, Mrs. Grantham? Where are Mr. Tom’s pictures, his treasures, his bed, and his linens?”

Cass witnessed a look of shock on Inez’s face. She continued to arrange the flowers and greenery she had gathered from outside in a lovely vase. “I made a few changes yesterday after you left to help get rid of the gloomy atmosphere in the house. Don’t they look wonderful?”

“Oh, my heavens, it’s awful! What is Mr. Peter going to say?”

Cass halted her task, looked at the woman, and asked, “Why would he have anything to say, Inez? This is my home, not his.”

“But Mr. Tom would be terribly upset! He would—”

“Tom is dead, Inez, gone forever. I only removed things that were painful reminders of him, so—”

“But you shouldn’t forget him! Not this soon, ma’am!”

It was obvious to Cass that Inez was not thinking clearly or she would remember that she was the employee and was speaking offensively to her boss! “It’s been over a month since Tom’s death, Inez. If I want to keep my sanity and find some happiness again, I can’t mourn him day and night. I can’t let this house become a memorial to him; I must put away my past with him and get on with my life. That’s what Peter told me to do several times.”

“But I’m sure Mr. Peter didn’t mean for you to act so foolish. You even took down Mr. Tom’s picture over the fireplace and others in the den.”

Inez’s last statement sounded as if the woman was accusing Cass of committing a crime. “Would you want your dead husband staring down at you every day after he was gone? How can I relax in the den with that constant reminder of him?”
and his blasted treacheries!

“I would cherish my husband’s memory and look at it every day.”

“I guess that’s where we differ, Inez, and people do have different ways of grieving, recovering, and starting a new life. Don’t worry, Tom’s memory won’t fade; several donations were made to charities and foundations in his honor.”

“But you’ve shoved him out of his home, ma’am. That’s wrong.”

“This is no longer Tom’s home, Inez; it’s mine; you work for me now, and Peter. I have to do what I think is best for
me, so I’ll make any changes that are necessary for me to do so,” she added in a tone of warning to silence the irritated and brazen woman. “The old bed and its linens are in the garage. If you would like to have them, they’re yours.” Cass noted that the woman looked as if she had slapped her in the face.

“Oh, no, ma’am, I couldn’t sleep on Mr. Tom’s bed!”

Nor could I, you old witch!
“Then I’ll donate them and Tom’s clothes to a local charity or church fund to help the unfortunate. As soon as Peter goes through them to make certain he doesn’t want any of them, I’ll box them up and deliver them myself. Since these changes so obviously annoy and anger you, I wouldn’t dream of asking you to run that errand for me.” Cass hoped that pointing out how the woman’s conduct appeared to her would cause Inez to grasp her unacceptable behavior and correct it. “Now, is there anything else you want to say or ask before you return to your chores?”

“No, ma’am, nothing.”

Cass deduced that her ploy worked, because Inez didn’t argue with her again before she left the room, but neither did the sullen housekeeper apologize for being impolite and bossy.

Cass was delighted when Jason phoned later in the evening to see how she was getting along since Linda’s departure. She told him she was feeling fine and had been doing a little redecorating. She even whispered into the receiver that Inez was most displeased with her for making those changes. She also told him that Peter was away, and she missed Linda’s company. “I could have used her help carrying packages while I was shopping yesterday.”

“It’s good to hear you’ve been going out and you’re staying busy. I have this afternoon off, so why don’t I stop by at one to check on you before my golf game?”

“That would be nice. I have appointments with our lawyer and accountant at three and four-thirty, so your timing is perfect.
And would you check to see if Mary Ellis still has an opening? I’ll need to make a change in housekeepers soon.”

“I’ll be happy to do that favor. You’ll find Mary delightful to be around and she’s a wonderful worker, honest, dependable, good-natured.”

“Anything and anybody would improve my current situation, but she sounds like a treasure.”

At twelve-forty-five, Cass sent Inez to purchase a few items at the grocery store so the woman wouldn’t be there when Jason arrived. As she showed him the changes she had made in the house, she queried him about Mary Ellis.