“That doesn’t sound right.”
“My friends Mel and Fernando didn’t think so either.”
“Do you want me to phone one of the lawyers the Sloths use? Mike wouldn’t mind. He owes me a favor.”
Gemma shook her head. “Thank you, but no. I’d like to distance myself from DOI as much as possible. I’m angry and beyond frustrated, and it’ll just be easier for me to move on without opening Pandora’s box.”
Tim pinched his lips together and enveloped her in a hug. The scratchy fabric of his overcoat rubbed against her cheeks. “You’re too good of a person.”
As he released her and they continued their walk, the scent of evergreen trees and freshly-roasted nuts filled the air. The enticing smells from a cart selling mulled wine, hot chocolate, and popcorn caught her attention.
“Do you mind if we stop for a hot drink? I need something warm,” she said.
“Whatever my Gemma-rella wishes.”
They joined the queue.
“How did you get extra time off? I thought you had to be back on Monday?”
“I called in a favor from my school principal. He’s subbing for me through Wednesday. Let’s just say, I’ll be heading the event-planning committee for the foreseeable future.”
“The end of the school year will be here before you know it.” Gemma blinked a few times. “Then you’ll be packing everything up and moving to Scottsdale.”
“No, I won’t. I’ll be staying right where I belong?.?.?. in Sequoia Valley.”
Gemma gasped. “But the manager’s job—that’s your dream job, isn’t it?”
“At one point it was.” He shoved his hands into his pocket. “But that ship has sailed. I was about eighty percent sure I didn’t want it. I needed to visit Scottsdale to be totally certain.”
“What tipped you over the edge?”
They advanced a few places in the queue.
“The vibe. It was like I’d entered a time warp. The current group of guys on the team are all young and eager. They wanted to go out every night and stay up into the early hours of the morning. That isn’t my idea of fun. I wanted to go back to the hotel and enjoy a night in. I’m a grandpa—I like to be in bed by ten. It put into perspective that I’m in a totally different place in life. It would never have worked out. I’d be miserable.”
“Hearing you say that makes me relieved.” Gemma looked away from him. “I wasn’t really a fan of moving to Scottsdale, but I would’ve done it for you.”
“Gemma,” Tim admonished. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I didn’t want to plant any seeds in your mind.”
He face-palmed. “I’m regretting that I ever told you I never take the words of my friends or family into consideration when making an important decision.”
“Huh?” She cocked her head to the side.
“That may have been true when I was young and dumb, but it isn’t anymore. The truth is that Idovalue their opinions. I only told you that when we were at the park so you would be able to make a decision about DOI and your hip that you were satisfied with. I wanted you to be happy.”
“Wereallyneed to work on our communication. We’re terrible at telling one another what we really mean.”
“There’ll be plenty of time for that in the future.”
“Yes, there will.” Gemma grinned as they moved to the front of the line.
“Hi there, folks; what can I get you tonight?” the cart vendor asked.
Gemma ordered a hot chocolate and Tim a mulled wine.
“So?.?.?. you have another day off, and I also suddenly have a bunch of free time on my hands. Any ideas?” she asked.
