I set down my fork and sigh thinking, this is going to be my last breakfast at the palace for a while.

"Ready?" William asks, looking at me from across the table.

"Yeah." I nod and get up from my chair.

William meets me at the door and envelopes me into a tight hug.

"I know how much you hate for me for this." He says, kissing my forehead.

I sigh. "I don't hate you. I just don't want to be away from you."

"Me neither." He agrees as he pulls me in for a kiss.

I lean into him, deepening the kiss. We keep kissing till a little kick makes me gasp and William grins, rubbing my stomach.

"Take care of yourself." He says, giving me one last kiss before taking my hand and leading me to the car waiting outside.

He holds the door open for me as I get in and then closes it after me. The driver starts driving towards our destination.

I lean back in my seat and look out of my window at the cars passing by. After a few minutes the neighbourhood starts getting familiar. Looking at the familiar houses and places gives me some peace and forces me to smile at all the memories I have of these places.

Soon the car stops and the driver walks over to my side to open my door. I get out and look at the house in front of me. It's where I'll be spending this one whole month.

I take a deep breath and start towards the front door. I raise my hand and knock. At once the door opens and my mom appears.

"Cassandra! I just got a call from William telling me that you'll be staying with me." She says, pulling me into a hug.

"I know. I need to take a break for a while." I tell her as we pull away.

By now the driver's standing behind me with my two suitcases. I instruct him to wheel them in and leave them in the living room.

I settle myself on the too familiar couch while mom closes the door after him. When she returns she asks.

"Why didn't you tell me any sooner?"

Not telling anyone about that letter is part of the plan. Even though I hate lying to my mother, I know that I have to.

"It was a sudden decision. Besides, William is so busy these days. I'm all by myself half the day." I explain.

"Oh! Well, I'm really glad that you're here. It's been so lonely since you left. Ella comes to visit once in a while but it's still not the same. I've missed you so much." She tells me, kissing my head.

"Do you want anything to eat?" She asks.

"No, I had breakfast before leaving. I'll just get myself some water." I say, getting up and heading towards the kitchen. I pour myself a glass of water and then go back to the living room, to hear her say.

"I can't make it tonight. I'm really sorry."

When she sees me there, she ends the call.

"Did you have plans for tonight?" I ask her, surprised because she never did anything of the sort since dad died.

"No. It's not big deal. I cancelled. I'm seeing you after months." She says, setting her phone down.

I groan. "Mom. I'm not going anywhere for an entire month. I'll be right here when you get back tonight. So, whoever that was call them and tell them that you'll make it."

"Cassy..." She starts to protest but I shake my head and cover my ears to let her know that I'm not going to take no as an answer.

She sighs and picks up her phone.

"Hi! Liam, I'll make it." This makes my eyebrows shoot up and then she adds. "Yes, seven it is."

"Liam? Who's Liam?" I ask, the moment she ends the call.

"There's no need to get excited. He's just a guy who works with me at my office." She tells me, reminding me that she now has a proper job at a publishing company.

"Mom! Come on. Admit that you like him." I squeal like an excited little girl.

She stares at me for a moment. "I can't say that. We haven't even gone out yet. This is the first time he's asked me out."

"But if he asked you out then he must like you." I tell her.

"I just..." She trails off.

"What?" I ask, suddenly serious.

She sighs and looks down at her hands. "Your dad might not have been loyal to me. But I feel like I'm betraying him by doing this."

I shake my head and come to her defence. "No, you're not. It's been five years since then. You have every right to move on. Don't ever let that thought hold you back."

She nods. "Alright. We'll see how it goes tonight."

I smile at her. "I'm proud of you, mom."

She laughs and gets up saying. "Do you want to unpack? I definitely need to take a shower."

"Yeah, I'll do that." I say.

For the next hour I put away my things back into my old cupboard and then make a trip to the linen cupboard to get a blanket. I lie down to get some rest and am asleep in a few minutes.

----------------------

I feel a hand on my shoulder and slowly open my eyes to find mom looking down at me. She's wearing the same dress she wore to my wedding. Like the last time she wore it, she looks really pretty.

"What time is it?" I ask, rubbing my eyes.

"Seven." She replies and at the exact moment I hear the doorbell ring.

"That must be Liam." She says, smiling.

This reminds me of something I meant to tell her. "Mom, please don't tell him that I'm here."

In answer to her raised eyebrows, I add. "For security reasons."

"Oh! Stupid me. Of course, I won't say anything." She leans down and kisses my forehead before walking out of the room and minutes later I hear the front door close.

I start to drift off again but I'm woken up by the doorbell ringing. Who can it be?

I get out of bed and make my way to the front door. I know that there's a guards watching the front door at all times, so it can't be anyone related to the letter.

"Hey." I say, the moment I open the door.

"How are you?" William asks, stepping in and I close the door. I lead the way to the living room, saying. "Good."

"What are you down here?" I ask, folding my arms.

"Keeping my promise." He replies, smiling at me.

"But it's barely been a few hours." I say.

"I know but I already miss you." He says, putting his hands on my waist.

I bury my face into his neck. "I missed you too."

"Where's your mom?" He asks, when we pull away.

"On a date." I smirk at him.

"A date?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Hard to believe, right?" I smile walking towards the kitchen.

"Have you had dinner?" He asks.

"No, I was about to start cooking." I tell him taking out a pan and then reaching for the cupboard where mom keeps the packets.

"What are you going to make?" He asks, sitting down on one of the stools.

I show him the packet, saying. "Pasta."

Cassy still loves pasta ;)

This story went up to no. 12 in ChickLit! It wouldn't have been possible without all my wonderful readers :')

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