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“Yes!” Jonathan, apparently oblivious to the hesitation, leaned back in his chair and pumped his fist in the air. “I told Dr. Ford this was the job that would get you back.”
“Don’t get too excited yet. I’m only agreeing to be interviewed. I still have to convince the board of directors to choose me.” He’d looked up the other two candidates, and they both were highly qualified and excellent choices. There was a decent chance that deciding if he was ready to leave Emerald Cove was a moot point.
“I like your odds,” Jonathan said. He lifted his iced tea glass for a toast. “Here’s to you being back where you belong.”
Grant picked up his glass and clinked it with Jonathan’s. “To being where I belong.”
He just hoped fate knew where that was and he wasn’t making a giant mistake.
Chapter Seven
The sun had arched allthe way across the sky and was starting its descent into the opposite side of the ocean by the time Molly and Grant were getting close to Emerald Cove. Molly was aware she’d talked nonstop since they’d gotten in the car, but she couldn’t help it. It had been one incredible day.
“Thank you again for taking me with you. I don’t know what kind of strings you had to pull, but they were worth it.” She hadn’t been this energized about her career in a long time. “And your friends are amazing. Did you know Dr. Simmons said he’d be happy to Zoom with me for Shelley’s entire surgery to talk me through the process? What a generous offer.”
“So that means you’re going to do the surgery?”
Molly stared at the road in front of her, thinking about the things she’d need to do to prepare herself for that kind of procedure. “I think so.” She said the words slowly, as if stepping on an unsteady rock. She felt moderately confident it would hold her, but she still needed to proceed with caution.
“If we do it now, there’s a good chance she could be back in the ocean by Christmas,” Grant added.
“What a great Christmas gift for her.” Molly’s mind drifted to imagining the release of the turtle. “I wonder where I’ll be in December?” The idea that she wouldn’t be here came as a bit of a shock, but it shouldn’t have. A short stay was the whole reason she’d taken this job, wasn’t it?
Grant shifted in his seat. A look of concern flashed across his face, which caught her off guard, and he quickly changed the subject. “How about we focus on something more pressing for tonight, like dinner.”
Molly glanced at the clock. She’d been so caught up in the fun of the day, she hadn’t even noticed how late it had gotten. And now that he’d mentioned it, her stomach rumbled in agreement. “Dinner sounds good. Do you have a place in mind?” One thing she’d noticed about these small beach towns that lined Florida’s panhandle was there were a lot of fantastic locally owned restaurants. But since they were usually tucked into strip centers or had names she didn’t recognize, trying to spot one from the highway while driving proved to be a challenge.
“Maybe,” Grant answered. “How do you feel about hamburgers hot off the grill?”
“I like hamburgers.”
“Claire’s having a backyard barbeque tonight. Just a small family thing, but she’s insisting we stop by. Do you mind?”
Socializing at a backyard barbeque wouldn’t have been her first choice after a day of meeting a ton of new people. But she was still energized by the success of the day and she really liked Claire. Plus, she didn’t hate the idea of a homecooked hamburger. “Sure.”
“Thanks. We don’t have to stay long, I promise.” He typed a message into his phone. “I’ll tell her we’re on our way.”
She followed his directions to the neighborhood and parked on the street. Molly’s first clue that she and Grant had different definitions of “a small family thing” should’ve been the number of cars lining the street. But for some reason, she let that detail slide when they parked three houses away from where they were going. She didn’t catch on until they walked through the gate into a backyard full of people.
“Exactly how many people are at this small family function?” Molly asked, trying to take it all in.
“Not everyone. I have a lot of cousins.” He pulled a concerned face. “But maybe more than I thought.”
Molly didn’t even have the chance to let her nerves swirl all the way through her before Claire bounced over to the fence to greet them. “Hey! I’m glad you could make it.” She gave Molly a hug. It was a quick one, the familiar kind that were shared between close friends, and it made Molly feel like family. Like she belonged in this backyard full of people.
“Thanks for having me,” Molly said, pushing the thought away. She liked feeling comfortable in her surroundings, but she didn’t belong. This place was only temporary, after all.
Claire waved over Mateo, the rehab director she’d met at Turtle Rehab, and the other guy who was manning the grill with him. “Molly, I don’t think you’ve met my fiancé yet. This is Lance.”
Lance was tall and thin and had the pale complexion of someone who spent more time inside than next to the tanks at Turtle Rehab. He shifted the long metal spatula to his other hand before wiping his hand on his grilling apron and offering it to Molly. “It’s great to meet you. Grant and Claire can’t say enough good things about you.”
She shook his hand. “Thanks. Let’s hope some of them are true.”
“Hope y’all are hungry. We’ve got some of everything on the grill right now. Burgers, brats, chicken. What’s your— Whoa!”
Flames shot up from the grill. Hissing sounds filled the air as grease from the cooking foods fueled the fire. The people standing close to it took a few steps back.
“We should probably get that under control first.” Lance jogged toward the grill.
