As her lips drooped, he mentally kicked himself. Bad term to use. It would only remind her of the news she’d received yesterday.

Her next comment confirmed that his word choice had been poor.

“That makes me think about our Ivy Hill cases—and all the sad outcomes.” She ran her fingers across the tender spring grass beside her. “I’m glad Stephanie’s body was found, though. It provides closure, if not comfort, for her family. I hope her boyfriend turns up eventually too.”

“Whether the river gives him up or not, we know what happened—and we have more than adequate evidence to put Jones away for life.”

“Wilson too.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe he’s still convinced his drug dealings were justified. It’s obvious something warped inside him after he lost the two people he loved most.”

“People can also be masters at deluding themselves.”

“I know. Like Noah Evans insisting he was helping the girls he supplied with marijuana. As if.” She snorted. “At least he wasn’t selling it to them—and he was little league compared to Wilson. But the fact he was beginning to source his drugs on the dark web to avoid the risk of in-person deals could have led him deeper into that shady world if he hadn’t been caught. As it is, he earned himself a police record and derailed his career.”

Zeke plucked another grape from the bunch the gourmet food shop had included in the lunch he’d ordered. “Ivy Hill took a huge hit in the press from all the nefarious activities taking place on the premises.”

“True . . . but people have short memories—and nothing that happened was the school’s fault.”

“Plus, all the players are getting their due . . . including Will Fischer.”

“Yeah.” She took a grape too and popped it in her mouth. “I’m sorry he got caught up in this, but it goes to show how addictions can tempt otherwise good people to veer off the straight and narrow.” She shooed away a fly. “On the positive side, Eduardo and his wife had a happy ending.”

The perfect segue.

It was time to get this conversation back on a pleasant—and more personal—track.

“I agree.” He took her hand and examined her fingers. “Pretty nails.”

“Thanks. A rare indulgence. I got the manicure for the wedding and took Kayla along.” The breeze ruffled some stray wisps of hair that had escaped from her ponytail, and she brushed them back. “I’m glad she’s doing well. I was afraid being disillusioned by Wilson would have a long-term negative impact. But it didn’t affect her academics—and I have no doubt she’ll get the full ride to Cornell she’s aiming for. With her smarts and drive, she’ll make a terrific engineer.”