Shallie wanted to ask why he’d been so insistent on talking to her if he wasn’t ready to share what he’d found. She had to grit her teeth not to shout at him. But she figured that was typical Russ. Everything on his terms. “Fine.”

“How are things with you?” he asked.

“Okay,” she replied, more curtly than she’d intended.

“Yeah? So are you seeing Cord Hollister? Uh, like boyfriend-girlfriend, I mean.” He paused, managing an embarrassed chuckle. “Lots of us voices from the past, huh?”

Her relationship with Cord was the last thing Shallie wanted to discuss with him. “Gotta go.”

“Let’s do lunch tomorrow,” he said.

“Sure. Why not?”

“At Bailey’s?”

Although she realized it was a good thing for Russ to leave the motel on a more regular basis, Shallie felt she was spending enough time at Brynne’s. And she’d be there for the Carly revelations tonight. Besides, if he had something to show her, it was more practical to simply meet at the motel. “Why don’t I pick something up and bring it over?” she suggested. “Maybe pizza from that outlet on Main? I hear the food is decent.”

“Around noon?” he said.

“Okay. See you then.”

THE DAY PASSED QUICKLY, despite the lack of a schedule or serious work, other than a couple of hours spent acclimating Patience, the little rescue horse, to her new home. She and Carly did have a brief discussion that mostly consisted of Shallie encouraging the girl, reminding her this was the right thing to do. They visited with the other horses, went for a stroll with the dogs—and then Carly showed her My 3 Dads.

Shallie was impressed—and told her so.

“This is incredible!” she said. “Everything about it! Your singing—no surprise there. Your comments and the way you tell your story, the videos, the way you’ve organized everything. And you look gorgeous. In spite of those clothes.”

Carly laughed at that last remark.

CORD AND SHALLIE drove to Brynne’s together, while—as usual—Carly went with Tina and Mitch. It was going to be another mild and almost balmy night with more than a hint of humidity. They hadn’t experienced heavy rain since the evening Carly had shown up.

However, he had something more critical to discuss with Shallie right now. This was his chance to ask her, in advance, what Carly’s meeting was about—although he could guess. Sort of. All she’d said when she invited him this morning was that it was “important” and “personal” and also “concerned him.”

But he figured if anyone knew what that meant, it was Shallie.

Carly had obviously, more than obviously, been hiding things. Her history, the little they knew, checked out according to Eli, who’d examined her birth certificate. Exactly as expected. Mother: Reba Diane Shannon. Father: Unknown. Issued in Orlando, Florida.