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She really was stunningly beautiful when she smiled. Warm and beautiful, actually, with a touch of vulnerability that belied her matter-of-fact attitude and her capable do-anything frame. But she seemed far too ready to blame herself when things went wrong.
‘I wish. Then I could make it stop. The house has been in my family for generations and it’s always been safe from flooding.’
‘But not on your watch?’ Jack realised he’d hit a nerve from the slight downward quirk of her lips.
‘There used to be a drystone wall, banked up on the inside, which acted as a barrier between the house and the river. My grandparents levelled a stretch of it to give easy access to build an extension at the back. When they died they left the house to Lynette and me and, as she and Steven already had a place up in the village, I bought her out. I was pretty stretched for cash and thought I couldn’t afford to reinstate the wall for a few years. Turns out I couldn’t afford not to.’
‘You’re being a bit hard on yourself, aren’t you? I’d be devastated if my place were flooded.’
Cass shrugged. ‘I’m concentrating on Lynette and the baby. Bricks and mortar can wait.’
Jack nodded, sipping his tea.
‘So how about you?’ She seemed intent on changing the subject now. ‘You have children?’
‘A little girl. Ellie’s four.’
She smiled. ‘That’s nice. I’m sorry we’re keeping you away from her.’
If he was honest, he was sorry about that too. Jack knew exactly what it was like to have to come to terms with the idea that his father was never coming back, and he’d promised Ellie that he would always come back for her. Right now the storm and the floods made that impossible, and the feeling that he was letting Ellie down was eating at him.
Cass didn’t need to know that. ‘I’m concentrating on Lynette and the baby too.’ He received a bright grin in acknowledgement of the sentiment. ‘I’d really like to call my daughter to say goodnight, though. Would you mind if I borrowed your phone?’
‘Yes, of course.’ She stood up, handing her phone over. ‘I’ll leave you to it.’
‘That’s okay. Say hello to her.’
She hesitated and then sat back down with a bump. Awkwardly, she pointed to one of the icons on the small screen.
‘You could try a video call. She might like to see you.’
‘Yeah, she would. Thanks.’
Jack couldn’t remember his sister’s mobile number so he called the landline, repeating Cass’s mobile number over to Sarah. ‘My sister’s going to get back to us.’
‘Your wife works too?’
‘I’m a single father. Sarah has a boy of Ellie’s age and she looks after her when I’m working.’
‘Sounds like a good arrangement.’ She seemed to be getting more uncomfortable by the minute. If he hadn’t already come to the conclusion that Cass could deal with almost anything, he would have said she was flustered.
He didn’t have time to question why because the phone rang. Cass leaned over, jabbing an icon on the screen to switch on the camera and answer the call.
* * *
He was so in love with Ellie. Cass had reckoned that a wife and family would put Jack firmly out of bounds, which was the best place for him as far as she was concerned. But he was handsome, caring, funny...and single. She was going to have to work a little harder now, because allowing herself to be tempted by Jack was just an exercise in loss.
‘Daddeee!’ An excited squeal came from the phone and Cass averted her gaze. Jack held the phone out in front of him, his features softening into a grin that made her want to run away screaming.
‘Ellie! What are you up to, darling?’
‘We’re having tea. Then Ethan and me are going to watch our film.’
‘Again, sweetie? Doesn’t Auntie Sarah want to watch something else on TV?’ He chuckled as a woman’s voice sounded, saying that if it kept the kids quiet, she was happy.
‘Listen, Ellie...’ He waited until the commotion on the other end of the line subsided. ‘Ellie, Daddy’s got to work, so you’ll be staying with Auntie Sarah for tonight.’
Silence. Then a little voice sounded. ‘I know. Miss you, Daddy.’
