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“I’m hungry,” Al said. “Figured I’d get us a table and have breakfast before you got here. But here you are.”
“Yeah. Here I am. Sit, please. It’s been too long.” He hadn’t seen the psychologist since the last board meeting at New Horizons.
Sam liked Al Levinson. He was a good man and an excellent therapist. And he had the job that Sam had always dreamed of—consulting with SDPD. It was the kind of job Sam had wanted the whole time he’d been earning his degrees. Now that he’d had a tiny taste of it, he wished for the job even more.
And, because he was honest, he could admit that working with Kit again was a serious factor. Someday, maybe.
Al sat down, glancing at the full cup of coffee at his place. “For me?”
Sam had poured it for Kit, but she hadn’t touched it. “It’s probably cold by now. Let me get you another cup.” He waved to the server, pointing to the cup. She gave him a nod, holding up one finger. “Elena will be right with us.”
Sam had told her that he’d be seeing a few people this morning and she’d promised to give him privacy. No surprise as Sam was an excellent tipper.
“You must come here often,” Al said.
“Every day. My office isn’t far from here. I usually take my coffee to go, though. It’s nice to sit and not be in a rush.”
Elena slid up to their table, switching the cup of cold coffee for an empty cup and his empty carafe for a full one. “What can I get you boys?”
Sam had lost his appetite after watching Kit walk away, but he should eat something. “Eggs and bacon, please.”
“Same,” Al said, settling into his chair as Elena left them alone. “Was that Kit McKittrick’s coffee?”
Sam frowned. “How did you know?”
“One, I saw her walking on the other side of the street when I was coming to meet you. I waved, but she had her head down.”
“What’s two?” he asked, torn between being sad that Kit was hanging her head and relieved that leaving might have been as difficult for her as it had been watching her do so.
Al pointed to Harlan’s carving of Siggy still sitting next to Sam’s cup. “Harlan McKittrick has been making carvings for years. He donates them to fundraisers. Some of them bring hundreds of dollars. I have two of them at home.”
“He made it to thank me for helping with Rita. It’s my dog, Siggy.”
Al smiled. “Cute name. Cute dog, too.”
Sam didn’t want to be rude, but the small talk was killing him. “What’s this about, Al? You’ve never asked me to meet with you outside the boardroom before.”
“The truth is, your name came up a few days ago when I was meeting with Navarro and McKittrick about a case. Well, you know which one.”
Sam nodded warily. “You know how that ended, right? I’m one of the good guys.”
Al chuckled. “I know. I know you were a suspect for a little while, but don’t feel bad. They suspected me, too.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “I didn’t know that.”
Al shrugged. “Not something I’ll publicize, but I can’t blame them too much. I’m on the board of directors at Orion School.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “Oh. And you didn’t tell them?”
“I didn’t think about it. I’ve always had a peripheral role, mostly fundraising.”
“You’re really good at that.”
He smiled self-deprecatingly. “I am, aren’t I? I should have told them when we first started talking about the drama connection, but it truly didn’t occur to me. None of the victims went to Orion and...” He shrugged. “But you asked why I asked you to meet me.”
“Not to put me on a leave of absence from the board of New Horizons?”
Al blinked at him. “Heavens, no.”
