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She scowled. Somehow he’d tricked her. She wasn’t quite sure how, but retreat seemed the best option. “I’d like to go home now, if you don’t mind.”
“Fine,” he readily agreed, which only ticked her off all the more. No doubt he felt he’d won a major victory in their datingwar. She wished he didn’t appear so smug about it. Or so incredibly enticing.
Put a damper on it,girl!
And she tried. She sincerely tried the entire way home. But she fast came to the conclusion that the only thing guaranteed to ease her hunger would be to leave the feast. And that meant leaving Ty. The instant they reached her apartment complex, Cassidy jumped from the pickup, only to be brought up short at the steps to her building. Hutch sat on the stoop, ascruffy mop resting in a tangled heap besidehim.
“I blew it, Mom,” he began.
With a muffled groan, she turned to face Ty, not in the least surprised to find he’d followed her. “Looks like we’re going to have to change that application form again,” she warned.
“Really?” His calm reaction washed over her like a balm. “Why’s that?”
She pressed her lips together to keep them from trembling. “We’ve just been evicted.”
Progress Report
I told Mrs. Welch she didn’t have to watch me after all. Iwanted to get everything done without her figuring out what I was up to. Ihave to shut the computer down for a day or two, so I’m making a few last notes until I’m online again. Plan B has been set in motion and everything’s proceeding right on schedule. Mom’s due home any minute, so I have to get going. Want to be downstairs when she arrives. Iwrote up my plan for Experiment #2, just in case this all works out. Iknow it’s a bit premature, but—
Oops. The landlady’s banging on the door. Gottago.
Chapter Five
Experiment #2:Relocation
Goal:Okay, this is gonna be tricky. If Ty’s protective instincts check out, he’ll take care of Mom when she loses the apartment. I’m hoping he’ll take us home with him. Of course, Mom is gonna say no. So I’ll just have to find a way of making her agree without her realizing I’m behindit.
Procedure:Limit Mom’s options so she has to let Ty help whether she likes it ornot!
Evicted.Cassidy didn’t wrap it up in pretty words, Ty noted. Although how pretty she could have wrapped an eviction notice he couldn’t quite imagine. His brows drew together as he considered her situation. What sort of sorry SOB would toss a helpless woman and child out on the streets in the middle of the night?
“You’ve been evicted?” Ty demanded of Hutch. “You sure?”
At the boy’s confirming nod, Cassidy’s shoulders slumped for a fraction of a second. Then she stiffened her spine and set her jaw. “Okay. We can deal with this.”
“So that’s where he gets it,” Ty murmured.
She turned dark eyes in his direction. “Pardon me?”
He made a fist and lightly tapped her rounded chin. “Hutch always sticks his out, too. Igather it’s a family trait.” He’d knocked her off balance with his comment, which gave him a chance to address Hutch. “What happened?”
“Our landlady, Mrs. Walters, saw me with Miz Mopsey.”
“Who?”
At the sound of her name, the mop beside Hutch shifted ever so slightly so that the tangle of off-white strings poofed out as if they’d been zapped with an electric charge. The dog offered a halfhearted, guilty-sounding bark. Hutch patted what might have been the head. “Animals aren’t allowed here, so we’ve been keeping her secret.”
Ty lifted an eyebrow. “Jeez, it’s a dog. Who’d have guessed.”
Hutch scuffed his toe. “I’m sorry, Mom. Mrs. Walters caught me sneaking the mop out for a walk and made me pack everything up. We have to leave now.”
“She can’t do that. It’s illegal,” Ty stated. “Why don’t I talk to her?”
“No!” Hutch erupted off the step. “She...she was mean. Idon’t want to live here anymore. She wouldn’t let Miz Mopsey stay inside even for one night. So we don’t have any choice. We have to leave. Right away.”
Right away, huh? Interesting. Ty folded his arms across his chest and did some jaw-setting of his own. “Trust me. Ican change her mind.”
Beside him, Cassidy stirred. “Thanks all the same, but this isn’t your problem. It’s mine. And it isn’t just Miz Mopsey. We’re also behind on the rent.”
