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“You think he’s going to be okay to travel?”
“Oh, yeah, no problem. Mainly, I’m going because I want to be with you at your hearing on Tuesday and there’s a guy in Glacier City I need to meet with.”
“Who is it?”
“A computer software developer. It’s a business opportunity. I’ll tell you about it later. Right now, I want to talk about you.”
She winced. “You don’t have to come to the hearing.”
“Yes, I do, if that’s what’s troubling you.”
“Why do you think something is troubling me?”
A quirk of his brow was all it took.
She sighed. “I’m fine. Just a little stressed.”
“Because of the hearing?”
“Partly. I don’t want to whine about it, though. I knew this job was going to be difficult.”
“If you were going to whine, which I know you’re not because I didn’t raise a whiner, but if you were, what would you say right now?”
“That Dr. Boyd has it in for me. Part of the problem is that people in town seem to think I’m some sort of all-powerful healer, or that I think I am. Now I’ve got people seeking me out, and I’m afraid of making a mistake, afraid I’m going to say something that could get me into trouble. Maybe I already have.” Tag had warned her, but Ally hadn’t realized how much she feared it until now. She wouldn’t change who she was, but facing the consequences still scared her.
“Ally, all you can do is the best you can do. It was unfortunate that you got started in Rankins the way you did, with Louis and the clay. It made people notice you. But, as you mentioned, it also made people notice you. You’ve told me yourself—you’ve been able to guide several people who wouldn’t have come into your path otherwise.”
“I know. But I don’t want to disappoint you. I know how much this job means to you.”
“Me? You could never disappoint me. You’ve exceeded my hopes and expectations in every single way. If this job isn’t meant to be, a different, better one is.”
She managed a weak smile. “Wow. No pressure.”
He chuckled. “Nope. None. That’s the beauty of unconditional love. You don’t have to earn it.”
“It’s not your love I’m worried about,” she muttered.
“Oh? Whose love are we talking about, then?”
Ally felt her cheeks go hot. She hadn’t meant it that way, but now that he said it, she couldn’t help but think it, feel it. “I mean, it’s your respect and admiration that concerns me.”
She knew her grandfather. The man didn’t miss a beat.
“I’m sensing discord in your relationship with Pilot.”
She laughed. “You know his name is Tag.”
“I know, but it’s such a funny story, that you thought his name was pilot. What kind of a name is Tag, anyway? It’s not a name—it’s a game for children.”
“Taggart is his name. It’s his mom’s maiden name.”
“Mmm. Well, that’s a little better.”
“You have no room to talk—you know that, right? Alsoomse isn’t exactly found on every souvenir key chain rack in the country.”
The sound of his laughter was such a comfort. “You got me there. But it worked, didn’t it? Naming you what I wanted you to be?”
“It did.” When it came to her independence, at least, she could be confident.
“Don’t think I haven’t noticed how you’re skirting the issue here. What’s up with you and Taggart?”
“Nothing. And I told you before—it’s not a relationship.”
“You might want to mention that to him.”
Ally felt as if her heart had grown crampons and was climbing its way up her throat. “What do you mean?”
“I know we’ve never had a chance to navigate these waters where dating is concerned. I was always kind of relieved, seeing as how you didn’t have your grandmother around. But now I’m thinking it’s unfortunate, because you’ve been thrown into the deep end, haven’t you?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I see the way he looks at you. And the way he looks at poor Davey while he’s pining after you. It makes me a little afraid for Dave.”
