Page 25 of Risky Move

“That’s obvious.”

Cassie watched as Amelie’s eyes swept across the beach. “Did Cam tell you where the college kids hang out?”

“Haven’t asked him. Guess I will now. This place is d-e-a-d.”

A glance at her watch confirmed they’d only been at the beach for about an hour. “Why don’t we just relax and enjoy the sun? This is my first time at a beach. The water’s so beautiful.”

“Oh, you should see the Mediterranean…unbelievably blue. Gorgeous.” Amelie lay on her stomach and pushed up on her elbows as she continued to scan the people.

Her eyes closed, Cassie resumed her fantasizing about the sexy doctor who probably has no clue what he does to her.He can’t know that he makes my temperature rise just by entering a room? Or how much I want to touch his biceps or those abs? Geez, when he swims his laps, I can’t take my eyes off him. Wish he could treat me if I was ever in the ER. Though, my luck, I’d wind up with some older doctor who’s ready to retire.She closed her mind when her thoughts drifted to Jenna and Daniel. She’d never wish anything that could take them to the Emergency Room.Can’t believe that even flashed through my mind. No, he needs to notice me at home. Like the night we kissed, the other day in the swimming pool…maybe he can catch me skinny dipping some night?She laughed to herself. The only one who’d likely discover her was Caryn or Andrew.Total non-starter.

After an additional thirty minutes in the sun, Cassie reluctantly agreed to scout other beaches in the area to find people their age. The GPS guided them to several areas south of Tampa, but none of the beaches appealed to Amelie. Finally, Cassie suggested they just head back to Tampa.

“It’s getting toward mid-afternoon. I don’t want to get stuck in traffic.”

Amelie asked Cassie to stop at the grocery store on the way back. Conveniently, a liquor store shared space in the same strip mall. After putting her sack of groceries in the car, Amelie headed toward that store. Cassie watched for a bit, thoughts of her mother’s and grandmother’s tendency to drink excessively crowding her brain. She knew they went to AA periodically, but neither thought social drinking—a glass of wine with lunch or a martini before dinner—presented a problem. Now that Cassie lived elsewhere, she could look at the situation more objectively.

She knew Lauren had talked to Amanda and encouraged her to take AA seriously. But Lauren refused to discuss the subject with her own mother, Cassie’s grandmother. Not that Cassie blamed her.With Lauren’s nightmare childhood, I can see how hard it is for her to spend time with her mother, Allyson—which may be the reason she and Dave eloped instead of planning a big wedding.

Amelie interrupted her thoughts when she called back to her. “Are you coming?”

“I’ll wait here. I need to check in with Caryn. It’s getting late.” Sometimes the thought of falling into the same pattern as her mother and grandmother caused Cassie to detest the sight of alcohol. Things had improved, though, since moving to Tampa. She couldn’t ask for better role models than Lauren, Caryn, and their friends.Can’t imagine any of them acting irresponsibly with alcohol.But it didn’t take much to remind her of the path her mother had chosen.

* * *

Lauren and Caryn sat by the pool when Cassie walked in after fighting early rush hour traffic. She asked if Caryn needed her to help with anything. “I’m sorry it’s late. I need to figure out the traffic patterns—like when rush hour begins.”

“Come, sit and relax,” Caryn invited, patting the side of the pool. “Dip your feet in the water—guaranteed antidote for crazy Tampa traffic.”

Cassie saw Lauren’s surprised expression as she lowered herself to the tile.

“I thought you drove to the beach. Was it cloudy by the Gulf?”

“Yes, we spent about an hour at the beach in Clearwater. Sunny and beautiful.”

“That’s a wonderful area,” Caryn added.

“And a great place to take the twins, maybe next summer. Downside, we were the only young people there.” She shrugged. “I didn’t care—just enjoyed soaking up the sun and listening to beach sounds. Almost fell asleep.”

“Too tame for Amelie?” Lauren guessed.

“No guys to check out or flirt with. We were only there an hour before Amelie suggested we look elsewhere for a beach with more action.” Cassie’s laugh sounded forced. “I got more sun driving with the sunroof open than sitting on a beach. Drove about thirty miles—found nothing she wanted to try.”

“I’ll go to the beach with you soon,” Lauren promised. “A crowded beach is not my idea of relaxation. We need to go to the restaurant Dave found south of here. The beach and the sunset were unlike anything I’d ever seen. Just spectacular—plus, the menu’s wonderful.”

“I’m sure Dave would rather spend a romantic evening with only you,” Cassie teased. “You’re still newlyweds.”

“Nah, the honeymoon’s over. We’ve had our first fight.”

“I don’t believe that,” Caryn said. “What caused the argument?”

Lauren laughed, shaking her head. “Sounds so stupid now, but for a while things got hot.” She looked at Caryn. “Remember when Jim Wesley recently called to see if we were interested in taking on some of those seminars, they thought they’d handle in-house?”

Cassie saw the look of disgust cross Caryn’s expression. “We declined that. What did Dave find objectionable about that?”

“I mentioned it in passing, but before I could tell him that we said, ‘No way in hell,’ he started telling me he didn’t want me working for ‘that man.’” Lauren made a face. “And you know how much I enjoy someone telling me what to do.”

“Even such a gorgeous, hunky husband?” Cassie teased.

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