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Hadley hesitated, twisting her mouth to the side.
Before she could respond, Ellyn pushed open the door. “Come in, come in. And you’ll probably want to put these on, since we’ll be squirting paint onto little plates. I don’t want anyone painting their clothes.” Ellyn tossed them each a canvas apron before heading back into her shop, in full go-mode.
Molly eyed Hadley as she slipped her apron over her head, following Ellyn into the gallery. “Don’t think you were saved by the bell. This conversation isn’t over.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. Although, it might be a short conversation, since there’s nothing to talk about.”
“Promise me you’ll at least think about it.”
“I will.” She wrapped the long strings of the apron around her then tied them in a bow in the front. “But what about you? You sure you’re okay?” Genuine concern was written across her face.
“I’m okay.” Molly was aware her words lacked the authenticity needed to sell them.
The truth was, her soul ached. She was facing an impossible decision. She either needed to figure out if forever was somewhere she was willing to go, or she needed to get off before someone got hurt.
It reminded her of what the train conductor at the amusement park she’d gone to as a kid would say when they’d pulled into the station: “Stay on or get off, but you can’t do both and you can’t do neither, either.”
But what happened if she couldn’t stay on but had no desire to get off?
“You know, these kinds of things always have a way of working themselves out.” Hadley squeezed her hand. “You’ve got this.”
“Thanks.” Although at the moment, Molly wasn’t sure she agreed.
Chapter Eighteen
By the time Tuesday rolledaround, it had felt like an eternity had passed since Grant had last seen Molly, and he found himself counting down the minutes until she showed up at Turtle Rehab.
Their conversation on the beach hadn’t gone exactly how he’d envisioned it. There was so much he wanted to tell her, and he couldn’t seem to get any of it out. Although, maybe delaying the conversation wasn’t a total loss. He’d realized a couple of things in the past few days that might change what he had to say. Most notable would be that he wasn’t falling in love with Molly. He’d already fallen.
What did that look like? He wasn’t sure. In fact, he was far from having it all figured out, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t make it work. The important thing was being with her. Everything else was just details.
She was scheduled to show up any minute to do Hope’s final exam, and since Claire was still on her honeymoon, he was the one scheduled to help her. He was hoping she’d stick around afterward to have dinner with him. He’d bought a couple of steaks to throw on the grill, thinking they could celebrate, and this time he wasn’t going to fumble the words he wanted to say.
Excitement of what lay ahead welled in his chest and he found himself whistling as he walked out to the supply locker to prepare for what would hopefully be Hope’s last ride to the vet suite.
“Someone’s in a good mood today.” Mateo stood inside the cabinet, drawing up the injectable medicine for one of their patients.
Grant grabbed a big black bin they used to transport the turtles from the stack of sanitized supplies. “Releasing turtles always puts me in a good mood.”
“How about accepting new jobs? Does that put you in a good mood too?”
Grant felt the start of a guilty grin pull at his mouth and he plopped the bin on top of a rolling cart, locking it in place.
He’d waited until Monday to disturb Claire on her honeymoon, but after a quick phone call, she’d told him what he’d thought she’d say. She was thrilled for him and was already planning his goodbye party.
Perhaps he should’ve been offended that everyone in his life seemed quick to push him out of town, but instead it gave him confidence that what he was doing was the right choice. And his first call that morning had been to the university to officially accept the job.
“Apparently news travels fast.”
“In this industry? It’s like a bunch of gossipy old biddies. I bet you hadn’t even ended the call before the rumor mill started.”
Grant chuckled. “Very true.” So much for holding off on making the official announcement to his crew so he could tell Molly first.
“Don’t get me wrong. We’re going to miss you, but it’s high time you beat it out of here.”
“I’m touched by your sentiment.”
Mateo set the dose of medicine on the silver tray in front of him and held out his hand. “Don’t be a stranger.”
