but as Maryellen had said—only half joking—the medical bills for a nervous breakdown would be far higher.
Something inside Grace had snapped the night she cleared out Dan’s closet. She should probably have checked herself into a psychiatric ward. She’d reached her limit, and her daughters had immediately recognized it even if she hadn’t.
“What did Roy say?”
“I gave him what information I could, and he promised to get back to me.”
“Did you tell him about your suspicions?”
Grace sighed and picked up her fork, squinting at the water spots. “He didn’t agree or disagree with me. But I have faith that if there’s another woman, he’ll find out who it is.”
“And,” Olivia said, leaning forward, “what proof were you able to give him?”
“Not a damn thing.” Grace had searched through everything Dan owned and come away all the more confused. How careful he’d been, how clever. Not a shred of evidence remained—at least, nothing tangible she could hand over to Roy.
“But gut instinct tells you there’s someone else?”
She nodded slowly. “As I think back, I see more and more clues.”
“Such as?”
“You know Dan. He didn’t care much about appearances, but recently I started remembering little things about the first time he went missing.”
“Like what?”
“That morning was the same as always, but I realized later that he’d combed his hair and shaved. Dan usually shaved at night. He altered his routine that day.”
“He was meeting her?”
“That’s my guess.”
“What about this time?”
Grace had reviewed their last morning together a hundred times or more. “I can’t remember exactly, but I think so.” What she did recall was the faint scent of his aftershave as he collected his lunch bucket from the counter and headed out the door.
“I remember a year ago I asked him if he felt guilty about something because he was acting kind of… furtive.” That incident had played back in her mind, too. Dan had shot her a stricken look as though she’d caught him red-handed. Naturally he’d denied everything, and because she’d wanted to believe him, she had.
“Have you heard anything from Roy yet?”
Grace wadded up the paper napkin in her fist. “He phoned this afternoon.”
“And?” Olivia’s eyes widened with anticipation.
“Nothing. He said that if Dan does have another job, he’s not using his social security number.”
“What about the woman? Did Roy give you any ideas on who it might be?”
“No. He’s asked around, put out feelers in Seattle and beyond, but he hasn’t come up with a single lead. Whoever it is, I suspect they’ve been meeting for years. She probably got tired of Dan’s inability to make a decision and told him it was either her or me.” Although Grace spoke without emotion, plenty of it churned inside her. It had become more and more apparent that Dan had been under pressure. He wasn’t by nature a cruel man, although at times he was capable of saying and doing cruel things. Whoever this woman was, Dan must have loved her very much.
“It’s like he disappeared off the face of the earth.”
“I know.” Grace stared down at the table. “All I want is an answer,” she whispered. “I know it might be hard to believe, especially after everything he’s put us through, but I want Dan to be happy.” She’d never been able to fill the emptiness inside him. It’d been worse after Vietnam. Then Kelly had been born, and it was as though this second daughter had renewed his purpose. For a few years they’d been happy. Dan had encouraged Grace to get a college education, and was an invaluable asset with the girls. They’d been a team, a family. Now he was gone.
“What if you don’t get those answers?” Olivia asked gently.
Grace had considered that, too. It was a very real possibility. Dan didn’t seem willing to tell her why he’d left—not to her face, at any rate. Perhaps that was the reason he’d decided to make a brief appearance in Cedar Cove. He’d wanted to be seen. Perhaps he was telling her he’d gotten on with his life and now she should do the same.
“If I don’t get any answers, I’ll deal with it just as I have everything else.”
Olivia shook her head admiringly. “You’re a brave woman, Grace Sherman.”
Grace didn’t view herself that way but accepted the compliment. “Hey, when are we going to get some service around here?”
Olivia placed two fingers in her mouth and gave a low piercing whistle. She’d always been proud of her ability to do that—and it had certainly impressed her sons.
“Hold on!” the sixty-year old waitress shouted from the other side of the restaurant. “I’ve only got two hands.”
“Same ol’ Pancake Palace,” Grace laughed. Some things never changed, and for that she was grateful.
The last week of June, Olivia suddenly realized she hadn’t heard from Jack Griffin in more than a month. Not since she’d returned from California. It wasn’t until she started planning her mother’s birthday celebration that she noticed it’d been so long. Between her work in family court, the problems with Justine, James’s new family, her mother’s obsession with Tom Houston and Grace’s troubles, Olivia had been caught up in everyone else’s life. She’d nearly forgotten she had one of her own.
Home from court early on a Monday afternoon, Olivia was in a rare domestic mood and prepared a batch of her favorite breakfast muffins, a family staple.
Since Jack hadn’t seen fit to phone her, she decided to call him. It wasn’t her habit to contact men, but this time she had a perfectly good excuse—an invitation. She didn’t have a home number, so she called him at the office.
“Jack Griffin,” he snapped, answering as soon as the receptionist had rung through.
“Hello, Jack.”
“Oh—Olivia.”
He sounded as if she’d knocked him off-balance. “I guess you weren’t expecting me,” she said.
“You could say that.” His voice softened.
It was probably best to get to the point right away. “Have you got plans for the fourth of July?”
“Depends,” he said cautiously. “What do you have in mind?” He didn’t wait for her to answer before he offered his own suggestion. “There’s an article I’ve been meaning to write about a nudist colony out by Home. Are you interested in tagging along?”
Her laugh was answer enough.
“That’s
