Lou knew the answer to that question. Renee had filled him in on Emily’s more recent flare-ups with her husband, and had even asked Lou’s help with reining in her temper.

“Steve’s all right, I guess,” Emily said. “When he’s not trying to be my father.”

“From what I’ve heard, I don’t believe he thinks of himself that way,” Lou replied. “I know he loves you, and wants only what’s best for you.”

“Well, what’s best for me is getting rid of the no-laptop-in-my-room rule.”

Lou frowned, but it was hard for him to maintain a stern expression. His daughter’s spirit reminded him of her mother.

“You know, sweetie, part of the art of living is knowing when you can break the rules, and when you can’t.”

Emily made a sourpuss face. “I prefer to follow your example,” she said. “You don’t take shit from anybody.”

“Hey, come on. You have too much class for that kind of language. And for your information, I’ve managed to get myself into quite a few pickles by not following the rules, so don’t make me your shining example there.”

“Yeah? Name one?”

“Uh … how about, God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can—”

“—and the wisdom to know the difference,” Emily said, finishing the Alcoholics Anonymous Serenity Prayer that Lou had long ago imprinted on her. “Okay, but that’s different. You had a problem and you dealt with it. I’m talking about rules like what you fight against at the Physician Wellness Office all the time.”

Lou’s chest did a double-clutch. How much had Renee told her? Did she know about his suspension—that Filstrup blamed him for what Meacham had done?

God grant me the serenity …

“What about the PWO?”

Emily shrugged. “Just that you say you’re always fighting with your boss because you know that you’re right and he’s wrong about something. You don’t play along just to play it safe. You fight for what you believe. And I believe if David can have a laptop in his room, I can have one, too.”

Lou quickly decompressed. She knew nothing. But, he decided, it was time she did. “That’s not always a winning strategy,” he said. “There are times you can be wrong, even though you’re right. Does that make any sense?”

“No.”

“What if I told you that because of my tendency to trust my judgment more than the rules, that I’m currently not employed with the PWO.”

Emily went pale. “You got fired?”

“Not fired exactly, but I’m not in good standing right now with our board of directors.”

“What’d you do wrong?”