He stepped inside, his gaze drifting over the cozy space. “Your mother has...” He turned, searching for the right word. “She’s...”
“Transformed this place with her impeccable taste?” The photos, the carefully placed decorative touches—each detail felt deliberate, infused with care. This was the kind of thing that softened Scout’s heart toward her mother. She had always created a home for Scout, wherever she happened to live. “Yeah, she’s got a gift for sure. One I did not inherit.”
He let out a quiet chuckle.
“She confessed to me that she had a talk with you earlier today,” Scout said. “I apologize for anything offensive she might’ve said.”
“Nothing I haven’t already heard from my own father. Most don’t see people; they see stereotypes.”
“True. And then there’s my mother. She doesn’t see people astheyare. She sees people assheis.”
He gave a slight nod, then a softness settled into his expression. “Your mother loves you.”
Scout hesitated, watching the way his eyes warmed when he said it. Was that tenderness because he’d grown up without a mother? Hers drove her absolutely crazy, but at least she was still around. Maybe she should try to appreciate her more—stop blaming her for driving Dad away. She did, but it didn’t take much for Dad to stay away. Maybe she should try to forgive her for being such a smother-mother. Take the high road.
“She does mean well,” Scout admitted. “She’s just ... alot.”
“That, I gathered.”
“She also said she thinks you’d make a fine lawyer.”
His eyebrows lifted, ever so slightly—barely noticeable, but enough to make Scout think he was pleased by Mother’s compliment. Why, she was getting to know him, catching on to those subtle reactions. She swallowed a smile. “Would you believe my parents are having dinner together right now?” She lifted her hands in mock surrender. “Not sure they’ll make it without a major blowup, but who knows? Miracles can happen.”
“Miracles do happen,” Naki said quietly.
“Can I offer you a refreshment? There’re still a few triple ginger cookies from somebody’s grandmother ... and there’s sweet tea. There’s always sweet tea here.”
“No, thank you.”
They stood there awkwardly, until she realized he was dripping water on the floor. “You need a towel.” She dashed into her tiny bathroom and came back with her only towel. As he dried himself off, Scout went to the couch and sat down, patting the cushion beside her. “Come by the fire and dry off.”
He hesitated a moment, then joined her. “This isn’t the same couch.”
“No sir, it’s not. My mother’s doin’. She had this one delivered today. I don’t even know what happened to that lumpy couch. Not sure I want to know.”
His long legs stretched out, and the firelight caught the sharplines of his face. From his back pocket he pulled out a copy of theBar Harbor Gazette. “Special edition.” He handed it to her. The headline read “Ranger Johnson Strikes Gold—and Gives It Away: A Historic Gift to the Penobscot Nation.”
Scout was stunned. She noticed the byline belonged to Chase Fletcher. She hadn’t even realized he was at the press conference.Nice work, Chase. Very, very nice.She put the paper on the coffee table. “That finder’s fee is just a drop in the bucket.”
His lips twitched, almost a smile. “You didn’t read the full article. So another miracle occurred today. The deputy director of the National Park Service arrived at the press conference just as it got started.”
“He was there? There were so many people that ... well, I just saw a sea of blurry faces.” She tipped her head. “Were you there?”
“In the back.”
How could she have missed seeing him, as tall as he was? Then again, there was so much going on that she could barely keep two thoughts strung together.
Something Naki said tickled the back of her mind. Wasn’t Frankie’s father the deputy director of the NPS?
“Apparently, the deputy director overrode the superintendent and has relinquished the entire value of the gold shipment to the Penobscot Nation.”
Scout froze, his words sinking in. “Naki! That’s incredible news!” Before she could stop herself, she turned on the couch and lunged forward to throw her arms around his neck.
For a moment, he froze, utterly still, as if completely caught off guard. Then he relaxed, and his hands settled lightly on her back.
The realization of what she’d done hit her, and she pulled away quickly, her cheeks warm. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to—”
But he was smiling. Really smiling.
