It Takes a Village

Thanks again to everyone who read, reviewed or favourited the previous chapter. I'm so pleased that you are enjoying this so far.

In this chapter we start to see how Cassie & Sam's friends and family start to meddle to bring the two of them back together.

Chapter 3: Guilty in Here

The dinner party had wrapped up not long after Cassie returned. Stephanie's berries and cream cheesecake was almost entirely demolished and some of the guests were starting to yawn. Grace and Lori helped Cassie with the clean up while everyone else filtered out to their homes or their beds.

"I can't believe there's going to be a baby Russell. I won't be the youngest in the family anymore" said Grace as she loaded dinner plates into the dishwasher.

"You'll always be my baby sister," Lori replied.

This made Cassie smile. She was so happy that her stepdaughter had come home and was starting to find her happiness again. Lori was working as a freelance journalist now, writing guest blog posts for all kinds of different topics and interests. She had to confessed to Cassie all about her broken heart and how her ex boyfriend Darren had been unfaithful. Being back in Middleton was healing her and bringing the old Lori back to the surface.

"It was a lovely evening, though." Lori continued. "I'm so happy for Brandon and Tara, they're going to make great parents. It was nice to have everyone here to celebrate with them, but it's a shame that Sam and Nick couldn't make it."

Grace looked away, busying herself by filing the cutlery away in the dishwasher compartment.

"Nick isn't really up to socialising yet, maybe next time." Cassie replied.

"Linda could have stayed home with Nick, and Sam could have come."

Grace rolled her eyes, so much for the subtle approach that wouldn't arouse Cassie's suspicions.

Cassie paused before she replied. She knew most of Middleton hadn't warmed to Linda, mostly because the feeling was mutual but Cassie wanted to take the high road.

"That wasn't our decision to make, there'll be plenty of other occasions for us all to be together."

It was better that no one else knew that Sam hadn't even been aware there was going to be a gathering, it would only make them dislike Linda more. If she did decide to stay in Middleton once Nick was fully recovered, she didn't want the townspeople to have any additional reasons to take against her.

The three of them continued the cleaning up in silence and then went up to their bedrooms. Cassie paused on the landing and looked out of the window that faced Sam's house, but his bedroom was already in darkness.

On Sunday afternoon Grace and Courtney went to visit Nick at the Radford house. Linda had decided to drive to the nearest city to do some shopping. It was getting warmer each day and when she had moved from New York to Middleton she had only brought items from her winter wardrobe.

While Sam was reading medical journals in his den, Grace was filling Nick in on the plan to reunite their parents. Before Nick's accident they had rarely talked about the blossoming relationship between Sam and Cassie, but now it was over they both realised how important it had been. Grace hoped that Nick would also be on board.

While Grace was with Nick and Courtney, Cassie was actually enjoying a nearly empty Grey House. Lori was catching up with an old schoolfriend and George was putting in new bedding plants. Cassie was in the kitchen, melting down old candles to repurpose them into new ones with dyes and essential oils. She left them to set and started to brew a pot of tea for her and George. She added a slice of her orange polenta cake and took the tray out to the garden.

It was warm and sunny in the Grey House garden, green shoots appearing on the trees and shrubs. In a couple of months it would be a riot of summer colours and gorgeous scents.

Cassie was so stunned by the sight before her that she nearly dropped the tray. Quickly setting it down on the patio table, she raced to George who had collapsed next to one of the flower beds he had been tending.

"George!" she shouted and he quickly closed both eyes and let out what he felt was a convincing moan. "George, can you hear me?"

The panic in her voice gave him a surge of guilt, so he opened his eyes again and tried a smile.

"I'm okay Cassie, I just overdid it. I keep forgetting I'm not twenty five anymore!"

This did make Cassie smile a little. "Don't we all."

"If you can just help me up, I'll be fine."

"No, I don't think you should be moved," She hesitated and then took her phone out of the back pocket of her jeans. "I think I'd better call Sam." She would never forgive herself if there was something more serious wrong with George and she'd overlooked it.

"On a Sunday?" He protested half-heartedly.

The plan seemed to be working but felt guilty as all hell about it. If it worked though and it brought Cassie and Sam back together, it would be more than worth it.

"Sam, hi. Hello?" He had picked up on the second ring. "It's Cassie. I'm so sorry to call you on a Sunday afternoon but it's George, he took a fall in the garden.

George lay back and closed his eyes, listening as Cassie calmly answered Sam's routine questions and breathed a sigh of relief once he heard Sam tell her that he was on his way over.

Sam picked up his medical bag and went straight to where Nick and the girls were hanging out in the living room.

"I've got to head out for a bit. Grace, I don't want to panic you but your Mom just called to say that your grandpa isn't well. He was working out in the garden but he's had a fall. I don't think there's anything to worry about, but maybe you'd better stay here."

Grace nodded. "Please let me know as soon as you know something." Cassie had already texted her and she felt terribly guilty for putting her Mom through this and for disturbing Sam's Sunday afternoon. When they were together again, she could forget all about this.

Sam walked quickly across to Grey House and found Cassie by the doors to the kitchen. The awkwardness she had begun to feel around him lately was gone.

"Thank you so much for coming!" Cassie led the way to where George was sprawled on the grass.

From a distance Sam could see that George's colour was good and he seemed to be breathing okay. Maybe he had just overexerted himself in the garden.

"Hi George, how are you feeling?"

Despite the damp grass soaking through the back of his clothes and a slight ache in his back from laying down on the hard ground, George actually felt pretty good expect for the slight pangs from his conscience.

"I just felt a little light headed, I think I might've overdone it."

"Let's get you inside and I'll check your pulse and your blood pressure." Sam helped George to his feet and they made their way inside, Cassie going on ahead to open the doors for them.

Sam helped George into an armchair in the sitting room and then went back outside for his medical bag. Cassie followed him.

"Do you think he's going to be alright?" She folded her arms across her body for warmth. Her pale pink sweater was appropriate for the mid afternoon Spring weather but she still shivered.

"I think he's fine. He probably just gave himself a shock but it doesn't hurt to be certain at his age."

Cassie nodded, feeling reassured and followed Sam back inside.

Sam took George's blood pressure, which was a little elevated but still normal and check his pulse. He recommended that George take it easy for a couple of days and helped the older man upstairs to bed.

When he came back downstairs, Cassie was making tea and he thought he spotted a cake tin on the kitchen counter.

"Would you like some tea?"

Sam hesitated, his common sense told him to go before he said or did something stupid. He was still stung from finding out that he hadn't even been on the guest list for dinner the night that Brandon and Tara announced their pregnancy to their family and friends. Cassie only wanted him there now because he was a doctor and George had had an accident, didn't she?

"Yes please, that would be nice." The words were out and he was moving to take a seat at the kitchen island before he had fully finished thinking it through because of course he wanted to sit and drink tea with Cassie Nightingale.

"It's the least I can do after you rushed here on a Sunday afternoon. I hope I didn't interrupt you from anything?"

Sam shook his head, he had just taken a sip of Cassie's tea-that-tastes-like-coffee and was flooded with memories.

"Cake?"

"I'd love some."

Sam used the fork Cassie had set in front of him to slice off a small chunk of the orange polenta cake and popped it into his mouth. It might not be yellow cake with chocolate frosting, but it was bliss.

Cassie smiled as she watched him enjoy the cake. For a few moments, it was like the last couple of months had never happened.