Cassandra and Mrs. Dempsey just shook their heads, both eating their pie at a much more leisurely pace.
“So,” Cassandra said. “How are you liking waiting tables at the Sunrise Diner?”
“Cass,” Mrs. Dempsey said quietly.
Cassandra shrugged. “No harm in me talking to her about it.”
Bree didn’t mind talking about her job. Did Mrs. Dempsey think she was sensitive about it?
“I like it. Dan and Cheryl have always been very supportive.”
“Do you miss working with computers?” Cassandra asked.
Bree stared down at her pie. Tanner probably hadn’t told his family very much about her past. This conversation had turned stressful amazingly quickly. What was the most appropriate way to answer Cassandra’s question?
She brought a piece of pie to her mouth, more to buy herself time than anything else. How did she feel about computers? Pinpointing it wasn’t easy.
“It’s complicated,” she finally said.
“How so?” Cassandra asked.
“Cass...” Mrs. Dempsey said again.
“I’m not doing any harm, Mom. Just trying to understand.”
Bree was somehow causing tension between Cassandra and her mother. She didn’t want that. “I’m good with computers, but because of some of the stuff that happened when I was a kid, they sometimes hold triggers for me.”
Cassandra nodded, her eyes narrowing. “Do you think you’ll ever work with them again?”
Bree shifted in her chair. She wasn’t sure why Cassandra was asking her that. Were they worried she might do something illegal and drag Tanner down with her? They had to know that she had ties to the Organization. Did they think she was involved with the evil stuff they’d done?
Before Bree could think of what to say, Cassandra continued. “I’m a hairdresser by trade. I have my cosmetology license.”
Bree blinked at the change in subject. “Oh. I’ve never seen you working in town.”
“I don’t, at least not very often anymore. I stay home with the kids now. But I’m starting a part-time project. A mission, sort of.”
The guys came back in from the kitchen, all three of them grinning but looking a little disheveled. “We shared.”
“Is my kitchen still in one piece?” Mrs. Dempsey raised one brow.
“Yes, ma’am,” all three said dutifully.
“I was just telling Bree about the shelter,” Cassandra said. “I had an idea and wanted to get her opinion.”
Tanner sat in the chair next to Bree and put his armalong the back, playing with the hair at her nape. Everyone in his family noticed the possessive touch, but none of them seemed upset about it. That was good, right? It meant they liked her?
“What did you want Bree’s opinion about?” Tanner asked.
Cassandra ignored his question and looked at Bree. “I’m part of a privately funded group in Grand County that is starting a women’s shelter. We are just far enough outside Denver to help women from there trying to get out of domestic violence situations.”
Bree nodded, still not quite understanding what opinion Cassandra wanted from her, but if it was enthusiasm for this venture, Bree could definitely give that. “That sounds amazing.”
“A friend of ours in Colorado Springs—” Cassandra gestured between herself and Tanner “—Keira Weber, started one there. Not only is it a safe place for women to stay, she teaches them a trade, how to cut and style hair.”
Bree nodded. That was a great idea, too. Logical. Practical. It not only helped the women get back on their feet, it provided them a means to provide for themselves long-term. “It sounds like a very noble venture, and a smart way of going about it.”
Cassandra smiled. “I wanted to get your opinion about offering some basic computer classes to these women. Providing them skills that would be most useful in an office workplace.”
