Never mind the red hair, why did she have to be five feet ten? Sunglasses or no, she didn’t have a prayer of blending in. She braced herself, plastered on a smile, and turned. With no warning, the short, squat woman moved in like a heat-seeking missile, enveloping her around the midsection. “Mrs. Diefenderfer. How are you?”

The woman plumped her voluminous hairdo. “Oh, getting by. I never imagined I’d see you this summer. Aren’t your folks away?”

“They’re in Tucson. Dad’s on sabbatical.”

“You don’t say. Your mother is working on another cookbook, I suppose?”

“Mexican.”

Mrs. Diefenderfer tugged her purse to her belly. “You Meadows, traipsing all over the country.”

Her mom was a minor celebrity in the cookbook world, and despite Mrs. Diefenderfer’s disapproval, she basked in the reflected glow. “You know us. A bunch of traipsers.”

“Well, we sure miss your mother on the hospital auxiliary board, and we’ve never had a sweeter candy striper than you, dear. Can I get you to come back for a few shifts?”

She flashed a grin, the feel of that crisp, red-and-white-striped pinafore still clear in her memory. “I’m afraid I’ve outgrown the uniform.”

Mrs. Diefenderfer surveyed her from head to toe. “I don’t believe it for a second. You’re as much of a string bean as you were in high school.”

Feeling like a prize-winning pig at the county fair, she dipped her chin. Mrs. Diefenderfer leaned in, and cloying perfume momentarily overwhelmed the odor of fried onions.

“How is our college professor? Your dad must be so proud. Will you be home for a while, or are you teaching summer school?”

So, the news hadn’t spread. She sighed. Better she put the actual story on the gossip line than have someone like Mrs. Diefenderfer concoct her own version of events once the rumors started. “To be honest, I left my teaching job last week. The university closed three branch campuses.” She gave a resigned shrug. “Mine was one of them.”

Mrs. Diefenderfer brought a dimpled hand to her bosom. “Oh, for Heaven’s sake. I heard they were having money troubles up at State, but I didn’t know it was that bad.”

“Yeah…” Getting blindsided by her school closing just weeks before summer break pretty much stank. Luckily, her father’s position at Green Ridge College was secure. She had somewhere to live, anyway.

Mrs. Diefenderfer narrowed her eyes. “Well, since you’re here, we could certainly use a gal with your qualifications on our Special Events Committee up at the hospital.”