“So you came all the way down here?”
“I have a car so I drove down. It’s parked outside.”
“Ah, yeah, I saw it. The little white Vauxhall?”
“That’s the one.”
“Where’re you sleeping?” Harriet put on a pair of rubber gloves and wrung a cleaning cloth out at the sink.
“Sleeping? In—in the spare bedroom, of course.”
Her nonstop questions were disconcerting for Cassie.
“Oh, I didn’t mean where in the house, I just wondered if you’re sleep-in or sleep-out.”
“Sleep-in,” Cassie confirmed, but she doubted whether that was what Harriet had meant by the question.
Seeing Harriet was hard at work cleaning, and since Cassie had had enough of the unsettling conversation, she left the room and went to check on the children.
Lounging on the bean bag and engrossed in his book, Dylan reassured her he didn’t need anything and had no homework. Madison, on the other hand, had completed her puzzle and was frowning over a math worksheet.
“These sums are confusing,” she complained.
Perching on the bed, Cassie leaned across the desk and did her best to help her by explaining, rather than solving the problems for her. She thought she had made some headway when the front door opened again and this time it was Ryan.
“Hello, all,” he called, and Madison shouted back an excited, “Hi, Dad!”
Cassie leaped up from the bed and rushed to the front door. She was looking forward to seeing Ryan after his day at work, but felt anxious when she remembered about the delivery of the envelope.
She was fast, but Harriet was faster, and Cassie found her already at the door.
“Hel-lo, Mr. E,” she greeted him, smoothing back her pretty pink hair.
“Afternoon, Harriet.” Ryan gave her a friendly nod before turning to Cassie.
“I’m so sorry, I was in a rush this morning and completely forgot to tell you we have a cleaner come in twice a week.”
“That’s no problem. We’ve introduced ourselves.”
With Harriet practically treading on her toes, Cassie decided it would be better to wait before telling Ryan about the unpleasant delivery man.
“Good, good.” Ryan turned toward the bedroom but Harriet stepped in front of him.
“Did you notice?” she asked, shaking her head back.
Ryan stared at her and then glanced at Cassie, perplexed.
“Notice?”
Harriet sighed.
“My hair.”
“Oh.” Frowning, Ryan looked.
“It’s pink.” Harriet smiled, twirling a lock around her finger.
“Ah, so it is. Did Madison see yet? You know how much she loves pink, right?”
Ryan sounded at a loss, as if he wasn’t getting what she was trying to say. And Cassie thought that Harriet was becoming frustrated. She wondered if Harriet had wanted to prove that she was more valued by her employer than Cassie was.
To Cassie’s surprise, Harriet then said, “I made you your tea already, Mr. E. Where would you like it?”
“That’s very kind, but I had tea at work. Perhaps the children want some?”
She didn’t miss the flash of anger that darkened Harriet’s face.
“I’ll ask them,” Cassie said, and headed down the hall, wondering why Harriet was so upset.
After she’d put dinner into the oven, she and Madison ended up sharing the tea in the family room while Harriet mopped the kitchen floor. Harriet seemed to be putting a lot of energy into her efforts. The bucket clattered across the tiles.
As soon as she was finished, Cassie returned to the kitchen, anxious to move ahead with her cooking. As she opened the oven, the delicious aroma of spicy pumpkin and cooking pastry wafted out. Ryan, who was passing, stopped in his tracks.
“Did you make food? Cassie, you’re an angel. It smells wonderful.”
From the broom cupboard, Cassie heard a loud bang as Harriet shoved the mop inside.
“Thanks. I hope it tastes as good as it looks. It will be ready in about half an hour,” she said, putting the bowl of mash in to warm up and the pot of gravy onto the burner.
The cupboard door slammed.
Harriet marched out of the kitchen, pushing past Cassie.
As she passed her, she muttered something, and a moment later, the front door slammed and she was gone.
Perplexed, Cassie turned back to the stove.
She didn’t like Harriet, and wondered if she might be bipolar. She’d seemed very moody and the cryptic words she’d snapped in an undertone as she departed hadn’t made sense.
Cassie thought she had said, “Don’t get too close.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
As soon as Harriet had left, Cassie hurried to find Ryan, picking up the manila envelope on the way.
He was in the family room, paging through a brochure advertising boats.
“Ryan, someone delivered this earlier today.” Cassie handed him the envelope. “The delivery person took a photo of my passport. I don’t know why, and I’m worried that it might somehow get you or me into trouble.”
She felt bad saying the words, as if she’d brought the trouble here herself.
Ryan frowned as he turned the envelope over.
“You mustn’t worry. This is probably something I need to sign for the divorce. I had papers delivered last week that looked similar. I was home at the time so took them myself.”
As he made to open it, his phone rang. Cassie realized it would be rude to listen in. She forced herself to walk out of the room, even though she longed to hover nervously nearby so that he could open it, and she could be sure.
She guessed that if a legal document was delivered, proof of identity of the recipient would be required. That must be why the unfriendly man had photographed her passport.
Even so, she remembered how he’d threatened that he’d be back soon if the notice was not attended to. The repairs at Ryan’s business seemed to be reaching a crucial stage, and with so much to think about, she hoped that the document would not slip his mind. If there was anything to sign, she needed him to sign it, because she felt uneasy at the thought of the dark-haired man coming back.
*
On Tuesday morning, Madison reminded Ryan that she would be having extra math lessons
