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Annie shook his hand. “Thanks for letting me tag along.” Her gaze went to the woman. “I think we’ve met. You’re Priscilla, aren’t you? You might not remember me, but I was the ranger who found you when your canoe capsized last spring.”
Priscilla’s hazel eyes widened. “I remember! You were a godsend that day. My sorority roommate and I were freezing cold from the wind that started after we took that dunk in the lake, and I honestly thought we might die of hypothermia.” She settled in the chair her husband pulled out for her. “I’m so happy to get a chance to thank you again.”
“I’m glad I happened along,” Annie said.
The women fell into chatting about the rescue and the men talked about their joint passion for climbing. They’d both been to Yosemite on trips and shared other adventures on mountains.
Mike sat and picked up the menu, but Jon’s stomach was so jittery, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to eat. Maybe he should spill what he had to say right away and get it over with. Mike could withdraw considering him for the team, and they could enjoy dinner together without expectations.
But the words stayed locked behind Jon’s teeth. How did he bring up such an unusual subject as the situation that faced him back in Rochester?
The server came to take their drink order, and Jon grabbed on to the delay. His thoughts were a jumble as they ordered drinks and appetizers. He ordered clam chowder first. “I almost never see gluten-free clam chowder.”
“You have to eat gluten-free?” Mike asked. “Our fifteen-year-old daughter has to eat that way. It can be challenging.”
“Our daughter does too. She’s eight,” Jon said. Once the words were out, he realized what he’d said when Annie’s eyes widened, and her face went white. “I mean, Annie’s daughter.”
Was his subconscious trying to release the truth? Annie was going to kill him. He sent her a pleading glance but tore his gaze away when he saw the shock in her face. What was wrong with him?
Jon exhaled and set down the menu. “There’s something I need to tell you, Mike. It came up since I interviewed with you.”
He launched into the circumstances around Olivia’s arrest and the dire straits of the practice in Rochester. Mike’s expression stayed alert and interested, and he showed no real dismay at the news. He nodded a few times when Jon told him about calling and talking to the police.
“I wanted you to know up front about this problem,” Jon ended. “I realize it will likely affect your decisions going forward.”
Mike leaned back in his chair. “I won’t lie and say this isn’t a shock, but I won’t make my decision based on something out of your control. Let’s get to know one another better tonight. I’ll take some time to consider what I want to do. It took guts to tell me what happened, and I like courage. Sometimes we surgeonshave to make difficult choices, and it helps to know you have some ethics.”
Jon’s gaze went to Annie, and the color had come back to her cheeks. She smiled at him, so at least she wasn’t still furious at his faux pas. At least not publicly. He didn’t doubt he’d hear about it when they were alone.
“I appreciate that. If there are any more developments, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
They ordered their dinners and spent the rest of the time talking about hobbies. Annie told Priscilla about her side hustle of weaving Finnish rag rugs, and Priscilla asked about buying some. Jon mentioned he loved cold-water surfing and discovered Mike was a surfer as well.
Full of seafood and good company, they said their goodbyes, and Jon took Annie’s hand to walk to his car. “I messed up, Annie. I’m sorry.”
She pulled her hand away and stopped to look up at him. “I don’t want Kylie to find out about this accidentally, Jon. You’ve got to be more careful.”
“I will,” he promised.
He could see she still wasn’t ready to talk to Kylie, but he bit back the arguments. Anger had destroyed their relationship once, and he couldn’t let it happen again.
***
The road back from Houghton to the marina was dark and winding. Jon didn’t have much to say, so Annie was able to stare out at the dark forest zipping by her window and think about the evening.
She knew Jon hadn’t had that slip of the tongue on purpose, but it didn’t mean it was any less dangerous. Kylie’s reaction to hearing the truth accidentally would be devastating. Annie needed to be the one to tell her, but try as she might, those words eluded her.
Kylie adored Nate. Annie had never seen a daddy and daughter any closer. No matter how much she or anyone else might try to reassure Kylie that her love for Nate didn’t have to change, it would appear as if Jon was moving into Nate’s position. Ten years from now, she might barely remember Nate. That was the actual truth.
Kylie had been six when Nate died. Annie remembered only the dramatic points of her own life at age six. Even all the Christmases had blended together. She remembered getting lost in an abandoned copper mine, but she couldn’t quite lay her finger on what year that was. Her childhood ran together in a kaleidoscope of snippets frozen in time.
The memories of Nate and her parents would be like that to Kylie someday, and as much as Annie wanted to preserve every cherished mental snapshot for her daughter, it wouldn’t happen. And it hurt Annie’s heart to know she had to take a wrecking ball to what Kylie treasured most. Annie knew firsthand what it was like to have your life smashed.
Her phone rang with a call from the sheriff. “Hey, Mason, did you get my text?”
“I did. Thanks for the information. I checked out Chad Smith too. No record of anything. Not even a speeding ticket. And we ran prints on the kayak. We found only prints from Grace.”
Annie rubbed her head. “We’ll keep digging.”
