5

      “ALIMONY, PALIMONY…but pet-imony? Remember, you heard it here first, folks. It looks as if the world really is going to the dogs. As if our courts aren’t already overloaded with senseless lawsuits that clog the system and stand in the way of justice, it seems yours truly has been hit with a ridiculous lawsuit that will make all others pale in comparison. In fact, I’m willing to conduct a public-opinion poll here at the radio station to see if my faithful listeners don’t agree that the lawsuit I’m sharing with you today shouldn’t win first prize in the Stupid Lawsuit of the Year Contest…”

      Cassie switched off the kitchen radio and began devouring her bagel with the ferocity of a man-eating tiger. Her only satisfaction was the fact she’d been the one to draw first blood. Thanks to modern technology and that wonderful little invention called the fax machine, his truly had been served with her lawsuit less than four hours after he strolled confidently out of her office.

      “Stupid Lawsuit of the Year Contest, my elbow,” Cassie mumbled under her breath, then whistled for the ball of white fluff that was lying in the middle of the kitchen floor. When Duchess refused to acknowledge her, Cassie left her chair and drew the tiny bundle into her arms. “You have to eat something, sweet girl,” Cassie cooed as she stroked the dog’s soft fur. “You have little puppies to think about now.”

      The old woman standing beside Cassie sent Duchess a worried look of her own. “I prepared her food just like Dee instructed,” she said.

      “I know you did, Louise. I’ve tried to get her to eat this morning, but she won’t even take a nibble.”

      “Well, the poor little thing’s gonna have to eat something.” Louise sighed, wiping her wrinkled hands on her bright-colored apron. “She’s as limp as a dust mop now. She sure can’t go on like this much longer.”

      Cassie gave the dog a final pat and smiled when Duchess rewarded her with a halfhearted kiss on the chin. After handing the dog over to her new nursemaid, Cassie picked up her attaché case from the kitchen table and glanced at her watch.

      “I’m running late, Louise, but I’m going to call Dee as soon as I get to the office. In the meantime, you might try tempting Duchess with those milk-bone treats she likes. I bought her some new toys, too. They’re in a box in the sun-room.”

      “Don’t you worry about us. I’ll take good care of her,” Louise said as Cassie headed down the hallway. “Me and Miss Duchess will do whatever it takes to get some food inside that little tummy of hers.”

      Cassie pulled out of the driveway minutes later, feeling a twinge of guilt for running off to work when Duchess was in such a fragile state. After the initial shock had worn off, Cassie was actually looking forward to having a few more bundles of white fur romping through the house. Or was her ticking biological clock just using this opportunity to bring out her maternal instincts?

      Sliding her hand over her taut stomach, she wondered briefly what it would be like to have another life stirring inside her. She’d never given much thought to marriage or to motherhood before, especially since her work had always been the driving force in her life. But now that she thought about it, she realized that she would want a large family. Possibly because being an only child had been such a tremendous burden to bear.

      More than once Cassie had wondered if having brothers and sisters may have made life with Lenora a little easier. Dee scolded her on a regular basis for being the “dutiful daughter,” and she had been, but Cassie had done so out of love, not fear. Despite Lenora’s overbearing personality, Cassie loved her mother dearly. And like her father, she had just found it much easier to bend to Lenora’s will.

      Thinking about her parents now, Cassie realized how quickly things had gotten out of hand in their short absence. Duchess was pregnant, and Cassie may as well have been pregnant since everyone in Asheville was buzzing about the rumor Evelyn Van Arbor repeated to anyone who would listen. Cassie hadn’t missed the snide looks people sent her way, or the fact that everyone she ran into lately had their eyes focused directly on her stomach.

      “Oh, well, I don’t have time to worry about the rumor now,” Cassie said aloud as she pulled into her reserved parking space. She had more important things to occupy her mind at the moment.

      Things like whether or not Dee had the ability to pull a magic potion out of her bag of doggy tricks and make Duchess well again.

      “NICK, OLD BOY, you’ve really hit pay dirt this time.”

      Nick barely grunted when the station manager strolled into his office with a silly grin plastered across his fleshy cheeks. Ignoring Nick’s cool regard, the man perched a hip on the corner of the desk, looking like the Cheshire cat who followed Alice around in Wonderland.

      “I’m not kidding, Nick,” his boss said when Nick still failed to respond. “The damn phone’s been ringing off the hook all morning, and the e-mail’s piling up faster than a bar tab at a Shriners convention. Everybody in town seems to have an opinion about this lawsuit of yours, and so far, those for you outnumber the nay-sayers ten to one.”

      “I’m flattered,” Nick mumbled, though he really couldn’t care less.

      Sure, he’d been fired up when he went on the air that morning, especially on the heels of receiving that lawsuit. But by the end of the day Nick’s rage had evaporated around him like the lifting of an early morning fog. And what settled in its place was much worse than anger.

      Like a multimega amplifier, the same name kept reverberating through Nick’s mind in an endless chant: Cassie. Cassie. Cassie.

      “Are you listening to me, Nick?”

      “Sure, I’m listening,” Nick said as he reluctantly met the man’s gaze.

      “I’m serious about this, boy. I want you to milk this story for all it’s worth. I mean, I want this story broadcast right down to the minute when the judge bangs his gavel and ends the courtroom proceedings.”

      “I’m hoping the judge will throw the damn case out of court,” Nick grumbled.

      “Even better,” the station manager assured him. “Think about it, boy. You’ll be an instant hero to all those little people out there who have their doubts about their ability to fight city hall and win.”

      Deciding his boss had evidently lost a few shingles since the last storm, Nick shook his head. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves on this, Bob. I talked to my attorney yesterday and he said there’s a good chance I’ll lose this case.” Pointing to the legal document on his desk, Nick added, “Those papers charge me with being in flagrant violation of the City of Asheville’s leash law. And whether I like it or not, my dog was running loose.”

      The manager frowned for a moment, but the frown quickly faded. “Hell, who cares whether you win this case or not? The way our ratings are going up, I’ll pay your damn court costs myself. We’re on a roll, son. Don’t drop the ball now.”

      Nick should have felt comforted by the friendly slap on the back before his boss left the room, but he didn’t. Leaving his chair, he walked to the window at the end of the room and stared out at the majestic Blue Ridge Mountains that surrounded Asheville like a protective barricade. He’d fallen in love with the sleepy town several years earlier when he’d attended a radio convention as the guest speaker. Though his friends in Atlanta declared him insane when he turned his back on the big-city lights and headed for a town with a population of less than 100,000, Nick hadn’t regretted his decision once since his arrival.

      In fact, it was almost as if some outside force like an imaginary magnet had drawn him to the mountains.

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