Page 71 of Rebels and Roses

“Sixteen weeks,” Cassie replied with a watery smile. “We’d just started telling people and buying for the nursery. We didn’t want to do it too early in case something bad happened. I guess something bad did happen?—”

The young woman broke off, her shoulders shaking with sobs. Jane quickly crossed the room and placed her arm around Cassie. The woman’s grief was palpable.

“Why don’t you sit down and let us make you a cup of tea?”

“I can’t ask you to do that,” Cassie protested, but she did sit down. Her dog immediately curled next to her in comfort. “You’re a guest in my home. I should be making tea for you.”

“You didn’t ask, I offered,” Jane said. “And I’d love to make you tea. Please let me.”

Cassie nodded, more tears streaming down her already red cheeks.

“Tom would make me tea sometimes.”

“Why don’t you ladies chat? I’ll make the tea,” Cooper offered. “I’ll be right back.”

“The tea bags are in the cabinet above the stove,” Cassie said, sniffling into a fresh tissue from the box on the end table.

“I found them. Won’t be long. Do you want anything in it?”

“No, thank you.” Cassie looked back at Jane who had sat down on the sofa opposite. “You must be thinking I’m losing my mind, sitting here crying like this.”

“No,” Jane replied softly. “I think you’ve lost someone you loved very much. There’s no shame in mourning Tom. How long were you together?”

“About a year.”

Jane tried to hide her surprise, but not well enough.

“I can see I shocked you. Yes, it did move fast. But I knew how I felt about Tom the minute I met him. We met at a party, and by the end of the night I was in love. He wanted all the same things I did - commitment, a family. I’d finally found someone who wasn’t terrified of being tied down to one woman and kids. He was seeking permanence in his life, he said. His parents weren’t very loving or demonstrative, and he wanted to do better for his children. That spoke to me on a very deep level.”

“When you know, you know,” Jane replied with a smile. “I’ve seen it happen that way.”

“It really was magical.” Cassie looked down at her hands before continuing. “At first, I thought he was single. Then I learned that he had a girlfriend, but he was trying to end things. He swore to me that he was going to break up, but she was sick, and she needed him. As soon as she recovered, he would leave, and we would be together.”

Oh Tom, what a tangled web you have weaved. You were lying to two women. Did you think you’d never get caught?

Cooper rejoined them, placing a mug of hot tea on the table next to Cassie before sitting next to Jane on the couch.

“We are sorry for your loss,” Cooper said. “When was the last time you talked to Tom?”

“Tuesday night. He called to see how I was feeling. I had some nasty morning sickness my first trimester, but I’ve been feeling a lot better.”

“Nothing after that? A text or an email?”

“No, when he was gone on business, he didn’t call every day. I knew he was busy.”

Business? This poor girl didn’t have a clue.

“He lived in Denver, and you lived here in Chicago. How did that work?” Cooper asked.

“Since he traveled so much for business, he would make a stop here. I saw him probably a couple of times a month. It wasn’t perfect, but we made it work. He was looking for a job here in the city. We wanted to be settled before the baby came.”

Hadn’t Erica noticed that her almost fiancé was gone a hefty chunk of the time? Didn’t she ever question Tom, especially as she knew he had an addiction problem? Had he been so charming that two women - and potentially more - completely bought his lies? Or had they known he was lying, but they hadn’t wanted to admit that they’d been taken in by a smooth operator?

Cooper cleared his throat, shifting on the couch cushion.

“This is difficult to ask, but I have to. Did you know about Tom’s problems with addiction, Cassie?”

The young woman took in a shuddering breath, her eyes once again bright with unshed tears.

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