Temptation

A Little Break

Cassie was not off to a good start. This morning, her and her mother got into an awful fight because, apparently, Cassie is in charge of buying groceries, picking up her mother's prescription, cleaning up the house, things that she doesn't have time to do and her mother doesn't see that. Kate even brought Ben into the mix, saying he was a bad influence. 

She just needed a break. She hasn't had one since she moved in with her mom. The only breaks she gets is when she's with Ben, which is one of the things she loves about spending time with him. He makes her forget about all of her problems. 

As she sat in her classroom, watching the kids working on their worksheets, she wondered if she should give him a call. Just talking to him would probably do the trick. So, as quietly as she could, she got up from her desk and went out into the hall. 

She stood next to the door so she could watch the kids through the window, then dialed Ben's number. "Well hello there, beautiful," he answered. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" Cassie was already feeling better. 

"Hey," she said. "I was calling 'cause...I don't know. I've been kind of having a shit day and...sorry, maybe I shouldn't have bothered you." Now, she was starting to go back to feeling how she was before.

"Hey, hey, hey," he quickly said. "Darling, if you're having a shit day, I want to hear about it. I'm actually quite pleased that you called to talk to me about it." She quirked up a small smile and bit her bottom lip. "Did you want to talk now?"

She looked over the class and saw some of them were starting to notice she was gone, causing them to start talking. "Actually, I'm not sure I have time," she told him. "Honestly, I thought...this is embarrassing...I thought hearing your voice might help a little." 

He deep chuckle practically vibrated through her phone. "Well, how about I do one better and take you for lunch? I can pick you up and we can go some place close so you can get back in time?" A smile appeared as she said, "That sounds nice, but school actually gets out at lunchtime today, so I don't have to be back."

"Now that is great news because I get out early today, too. Must be a city-wide arrangement? Anyways, I can pick you up at your house then and we'll go somewhere far off so no one can ever find us?" Cassie laughed, "Now that sounds amazing! Look, I have to go, but I'll see you in an hour."

"Until then, darling. Have a good rest of the day at school." Smiling, she told him, "I will. Bye, Ben." She hung up, then went back inside the classroom. There was a little chattering here and there, but not much that she would mind. 

The school day ended just a few minutes after that and she said goodbye to the kids and said she'd see them next week. Thankfully, it was the start of the weekend. After she was all set, she drove home and got to face the wrath of her mother. 

"If you do the shopping, then why are we out of milk?" Her mother angrily called from downstairs. Cassie sighed, then called back, "Because you used it all when you made dinner and dessert the past two days and it apparently called for two cartons of milk!" 

She angrily opened her drawer and threw on a more comfortable shirt and some comfy jeans. The doorbell rang and she suddenly felt a wave of relief wash over her. She made her way downstairs and opened the door. 

"Thank God," she breathed when she saw Ben. He chuckled and said, "Well, I can honestly say I've never gotten that reaction from a woman before. You ready?" She nodded and said, "Absolutely, let's go. Mom, I'm leaving!"

Before her mom could respond, she shut the door and took Ben's hand. He gave it a firm squeeze and walked her to his car. As they were driving, he noticed she was completely worn out. "Darling, if you're not up to it, we can just stay in," he told her. "You look exhausted."