Cranberry Point (Cedar Cove #4)(71)

"Probably," he said at last.

At least he was honest about it.

"If he asks you out again, would you go?"

Now it was her turn to think matters over. "He won't. He's involved with someone else." She was gathering up her purse as she spoke.

"You're sidestepping the question," he said. He held the restaurant door for her and they walked into the parking lot.

"I know."

"Either you don't want to answer it or you're afraid to."

"I'd rather not discuss Nate, okay? You know," she said confidentially, leaning toward him, "it would've been a perfectly wonderful night if he hadn't kissed me."

"Excuse me?"

"Never mind." She waved her hand dismissively. "It's too hard to explain."

"I guess I shouldn't try to kiss you, then."

"Don't be too hasty," Rachel said with a mischievous smile.

He smiled back.

But he didn't kiss her. Standing in the well-lit parking area outside the restaurant, it would have been awkward to do anything more than exchange pleasantries.

"Do you still want Jolene to come over on Sunday?" Rachel asked.

"Sure. Can I see you then, too?"

Rachel nodded. Bruce opened her car door and she slid into the driver's seat. "Thank you for dinner."

"I'll give you a call sometime tomorrow afternoon."

"Okay."

Rachel pulled onto the highway and drove toward her own neighborhood, feeling more than a little confused. As soon as she got home, she saw that she had a telephone message.

Setting down her purse, she began to slip off her shoes and pushed the Play button on her machine.

Nate Olsen's voice stopped her cold, one shoe off, one foot raised.

"Rachel, hi... I'm sorry I missed you." His words were followed by a short pause. "I'm still thinking about our dinner and was just wondering if you were, too. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

Thirty-Five

On the first Monday of August, Grace Sherman opened the library and posted the sign for the free movie that would be shown Saturday night. This was a new feature the library had begun in June. It'd been Grace's idea, and the popularity of the event had surprised and delighted her. She believed the library should be part of the community, that it should be responsive to people's needs and interests and attract patrons of all ages. She always chose a movie families could watch together. That often meant a classic; this week's was The African Queen.

Mondays were always busy and the morning passed quickly. Loretta Bailey returned to her desk and Grace realized her assistant was already back from lunch. It seemed she'd left only a few minutes ago. If Grace was going to have lunch, she had to take her turn now.

She reached into the bottom drawer for her purse and when she straightened she came face-to-face with LisaShore, Cliff Harding's daughter.

"Lisa," she said, recovering quickly. "What a pleasant surprise!"

"Hello, Grace."

She was a lovely young woman who reminded Grace of Cliff in a dozen different ways, although she didn't resemble him physically.

"I can't tell you how happy I am to find you. I took a chance coming into town like this, since I wasn't sure you'd be here. I felt we should talk." The look in her eyes implored Grace.

"What are you doing in Washington?" That was a silly question; she was visiting her father, of course. Grace had no idea how much Lisa knew about what had happened between her and Cliff.

"Rich and I are here to see Dad. I don't suppose you could squeeze in a quick lunch, could you?"

Grace struggled with her composure but managed to respond graciously. "Of course I can. Why don't we sit down for a few minutes first? How's April?"

"Growing by leaps and bounds," Lisa said, obviously proud of her daughter. "Dad and Rich took her into Seattle." She glanced away guiltily. "I told them I had a bad case of cramps, which is actually true, so they suggested I stay home. I wanted to come into town to see you—but that part I didn't share with my dad."

Grace understood how difficult it must've been for Lisa to mislead her father. What she had to say must be important.

Grace slung her purse over her shoulder, waved goodbye to Loretta and walked out of the library with Cliff's daughter.

They were barely out the door when Lisa spoke with a quiet intensity. "I just had to find out what went wrong between you and my dad."

Grace sighed, unsure whether or not she should be grateful that Cliff hadn't said anything to his daughter. Then again, maybe he had. It was clear that Lisa knew something, or that she sensed it, anyway.

They bought crab salad sandwiches—the Pot Belly's special of the day—and sat down on a park bench near the marina. Tourists and locals alike strolled past.

"Dad won't tell me a thing," Lisa said as soon as they'd unwrapped their sandwiches. "All I know is that you're not seeing each other anymore."

Grace focused her attention on the boats gently bobbing in the marina. She simply couldn't look Lisa in the eye and explain what she'd done.

"Everything's my fault," Grace said, her voice trembling.

Her confession was followed by a short silence. "That's not what my dad said."