Page 38 of Crazy Little Thing Called Love

“I saw on the Kismet town webpage that you’re getting married.”

Seriously? It had only been a few days and they’d only told Del’s family. It shouldn’t surprise her. Word got around in their small town.

“Apparently you’re engaged to Kismet’s most eligible bachelor. Isn’t that a coincidence since you need a husband to get Gran’s house?” Mandy sneered. “The house is mine!”

As Cassie took a deep breath, the rich scent of coffee cleared some of the throbbing in her head. “Gran left the house to me.”

“If you’re married. You’re not.”

“I will be, soon.”

Her cousin snorted. “Yeah, how convenient for you. Gran makes a stipulation of marriage in her will and suddenly you, the perpetual single woman, have a fiancé.”

Hey. She wasn’t perpetually single. She didn’t date all that much, but she had other things going on in her life—friends, her jewelry business, her charity work. Cassandra Brown lived a very full life; she did not need a man. Not until recently anyway.

“What did you do, go out and hire a husband?”

The cruel barb hit a little too close to home. “No, Mandy, I didn’t hire a guy to pretend to be my husband.”

But she was investing in his business. Did that count? Her stomach churned. Guilt or impending hangover vomiting? Either way, it wasn’t good. Time for coffee, stat.

She pulled down a mug from her cupboard and filled it all the way, blowing on the hot beverage before taking a sip. Usually, she added cream to cut the strength, but today she needed full octane.

“Why are you so upset?” she asked. “You and Trent already have a place, and you live two states away.”

“We live in Trent’s parents’ basement,” Mandy ground out. “Not ideal for raising a family.”

Cassie choked on her coffee. The liquid went up her nose, burning and stinging her nostrils. Eyes watering, she set her mug down and thumped her chest a few times. Great, like she wasn’t suffering enough.

“You’re pregnant?”

“Shit, no!”

Oh, thank God. She hated to speak ill of anyone, especially family, but Mandy and Trent would make terrible parents. Never had she met two more selfish, childish people in all her life. Some days she wondered how they were even related.

“But, ya know,” Mandy said, “someday we might want kids or whatever.”

Yeah right. Kids required time, money, patience, and love. All things her cousin seriously lacked. Cassie wanted kids one day, though. Just the thought of holding a tiny little bundle, giving them all the love and attention she had, filled her heart with such yearning. When she did have children, she knew she’d be a better parent than her own had been. Stability, love, attention—she’d shower her kids with all of the above. Once she found the right guy to be a loving and attentive father.

Her mind wandered to Del. He’d certainly be a fun dad. She could see him taking the kids to the river, teaching them to tube down the small rapids. No doubt he’d teach them how to prank their siblings, and her. A smile curled her lips as she imagined him taking the kids to the park and running arou—

Whoa! Hold the phone. Had she actually been daydreaming about having kids with Del?

Grabbing her coffee from the counter, she tipped the mug and downed half the contents. Her tongue and throat immediately protested, but she needed the shot of caffeine to wake up. Ignoring her burned tongue, Cassie shook her head—bad idea. She was still drunk, or hung-over, or whatever. The phone call with Mandy and her irrational ranting about babies and hiring husbands had obviously sparked all this.

Sure, that was why she imagined what it would be like to be married to Del for real and have kids with him. No other reason. None at all.

“Why are you being so selfish?” Mandy shouted.

Her cousin’s accusation brought her out of her scatterbrained thoughts. “How am I selfish?”

“You’re stealing Gran’s house.”

“She gave it to me first.”

“But you can find another place to live!”

Cassie sighed, finishing off her coffee without waiting for it to cool. Her mouth was already burned to hell, what did it matter now? “Yes, I could, but I don’t want to. I love this house, Mandy. Besides, would you guys honestly move to Kismet if you got the house?”

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