Lilac Lane (Chesapeake Shores #14)(95)

She smiled at the serious young man whose friendship she’d come to value. He was thoughtful and capable of listening without censure. He might turn out to be exactly the sounding board she needed.

Starting slowly to try to put her rambling thoughts in order, she explained what was going on in her life.

“This would be a significant change,” he concluded.

She nodded. “That’s why I’m so confused. I’m worried about hurting the man who raised me and rushing a relationship with a father I’ve only known briefly.”

“But isn’t what’s best for your future also important?” Milos asked, pushing his glasses back into place to study her more intently.

“Of course.”

“And would you be getting the best education here? If so, isn’t that what matters? If it allows you time to get to know your biological father, that is a bonus, yes?”

“Yes,” she said, grateful for the fresh perspective.

“And didn’t you tell me that your stepfather came to see you recently just to have pizza and talk?”

She smiled, mostly because Milos, unlike many of the men she’d met over her college years, had actually paid attention to things she’d told him. “Yes.”

“Then he could do that more often, perhaps, or you could still get home for a weekend.”

“You make it sound so simple,” she said, laughing.

“I think perhaps it is, when you take all of the tangled emotions out of it.”

Impulsively, she threw her arms around him, startling him. “Thank you,” she said as he blushed.

“Then you will try to enroll here?” he concluded.

“Yes.”

He nodded, a satisfied smile curving his lips. “I’m glad, because it seems I am going to be staying on, too,” he told her, beaming at his news. “The arrangements were made just yesterday. Professor Wheeler asked if I was interested, and when I told him I was, he got on the phone and, just like that, pulled strings to make it happen.”

“Milos, that’s wonderful! Why didn’t you mention it sooner?”

He shrugged. “I’m used to the fact that sometimes dreams don’t work out.” He smiled shyly. “This one did.”

“I’m so happy for you and happy that we might get to spend more time together.” She hesitated. “That is, if you don’t think your girlfriend back home will object.”

He sighed. “I think that is over. She knew coming here for the summer was important to me, but I think she’s tired of being left on her own. Unlike me, she is very social, what you might call a party girl. She told me she is already seeing other people.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“It was not meant to be,” he said, sounding surprisingly philosophical about it. “And this opportunity will give me the future I want. I want to be part of a team that discovers a cure for cancer or Alzheimer’s. I want to do something that matters.”

“And I believe you will,” Deanna encouraged him. “I’ve heard Professor Wheeler himself say that you have great promise as a research scientist. It’s been evident all summer how much he values your work. He even gave you a small project of your own.”

“A very small one,” he said.

“Yes, but none of the rest of us was given any independent research to do. That’s a real accomplishment, Milos.”

“I hope I can live up to his expectations,” he said modestly. “I will certainly try my best.”

“Between us we will save a lot of lives one of these days,” Deanna said confidently. Suddenly she was excited by all of the possibilities ahead of her. “I’d better call my adviser at the University of Virginia and see what she can do about making this transfer official. And then I’ll call my stepfather.”

“Then I will leave you to it,” Milos said.

“Thanks for helping me to clarify things,” she called after him.

“You already knew what you wanted,” he said. “I did very little beyond listening.”

Deanna stared after him. He obviously had no idea just how important listening and a few thought-provoking questions could be.

She made the call to Dr. Robbins and set things in motion, then called Ash several times until she finally caught him as he was coming in the door from work.

“At this hour? It’s nearly nine. You’re working too hard,” she scolded him.

“Are you calling just to check up on me?” he teased, laughing. “Has our relationship flipped on its head?”

“I wasn’t, but perhaps I need to start.”

“Tell me why you did call,” he suggested. “But first let me set down the bag of takeout I brought home with me.”

Deanna didn’t like the impression she was getting of his lifestyle these days. “What kind of takeout?”

“Would you feel better if I told you it was a giant salad from Whole Foods?”

“Yes, but I’m betting it’s Chinese from Imperial Palace.”

He sighed. “You know me too well. Now talk to me, while I eat the Kung Pao chicken before it gets cold.”

“I’ve decided to make the transfer to Johns Hopkins,” she blurted, aware that the rustling of paper and plastic utensils in the background suddenly stopped.