“Wait,” Sabrina said, running after him but not before giving their mother a frustrated glare. “We don’t have a dog!”
Amy turned her unexpected laugh into a cough. “Hello, Miss Lee, it’s nice to see you again.”
Cassandra looked up, appearing more rested than she had earlier. “Please call me Cassandra. It’s lovely to see you again,” the other woman said, but her voice sounded uncertain. She was obviously confused by Amy’s presence. She settled her glance on her son. “John, we were discussing wedding plans.”
“It looked as if you were torturing Kevin,” Roper said.
He was too far away for Amy to nudge him in the ribs, so she settled for a warning look instead.
His mother ignored his
comment. “Did you know they haven’t chosen a reception hall yet? They can’t pick a place unless we know the number of guests on the list and what the venue can hold. I already have one hundred of my own—”
Roper nearly choked. Even Amy’s head started to pound. She couldn’t believe how the actress bulldozed her way into everyone else’s life. No wonder Roper was concerned about finances.
“Didn’t you hear us say we wanted a small wedding?” Sabrina asked as she rejoined them in the living room.
“Is Kevin okay?” Roper asked.
Sabrina nodded. “He’s fine. He just needed some fresh air. Mother, did you hear me? We want a small, intimate affair.”
Cassandra waved her hand back and forth in the air. “No, that’s what you think now. But when you look back, you’ll realize you wanted a big wedding, so that’s what we’re going to make sure you have.”
Sabrina looked at Roper with big, pleading eyes.
For the first time, Amy realized exactly why he felt so strongly about not abandoning them to go to Vaughn’s lodge. Each member of his family needed him for their own reasons. But they would take and take until there was nothing left—and that included cash. And it wasn’t as if anybody was actually in the wrong. They were just needy. Roper had fallen into the caretaker role and now they all expected it of him, at his own expense.
Roper stepped between his mother and sister. “Mom, look, it’s their wedding. I think they can make their own decisions.”
Cassandra tipped her head in her elegant way. “And you know this because you’ve been married before?” she asked him with sweet sarcasm. “I know best.”
“Because your big wedding and subsequent divorce make you an expert?” Roper asked.
“Argh!” Sabrina stormed out, heading to what Amy assumed was her bedroom.
Cassandra placed her pad and pen on the table, rose and strode to the window, all without meeting Roper’s gaze.
Amy couldn’t imagine the stress these kinds of confrontations put on him. Watching the commotion today, Amy was even more certain now. All the reasons he didn’t want to go to the lodge were the exact same reasons he needed to go so badly. So he could take care of himself for once and let his family learn to stand on their own.
Amy walked over and put her hand on Roper’s shoulder for support. He surprised her by covering it with his own.
“Weddings are stressful,” Amy said. “Perhaps there’s a way you all can sit down and talk and really hear one another,” she suggested.
Cassandra swirled around. “I never did find out what exactly you are to my son. You mentioned working for the Hot Zone, his public relations firm?”
“Officially Amy’s my go-to person at the Hot Zone.” Roper jumped in and spoke for her, something Amy didn’t want or need him to do.
“You see, Cassandra, the Hot Zone felt that given Roper’s current situation, he could use someone to help keep him on track with his physical therapy before the start of the season,” Amy said, eager to speak for herself.
“Sort of like a handler,” Cassandra said.
Amy nodded. “Exactly.”
His mother studied Amy for a long while, enough to make her uncomfortable. But she held her ground and refused to fidget even though Cassandra didn’t hide her blatant attempt to take stock. “So you’re here with him today because he needs help handling his family?” Hurt suffused Cassandra’s tone.
Amy’s heart constricted. She didn’t want wounded feelings. “I’m just here for support,” she said, deliberately backing off.
She saw Roper’s dilemma so clearly now. His aging mother was unsure of her place in Hollywood and in her children’s lives. It wasn’t Amy’s place to butt in. She could guide Roper, but she couldn’t tell his family what to do. She realized that now.