good a time to stop now.”
“There’s also Tyler Locke and Dylan Reed.”
“I think you’re reaching with them.”
“Am I? Dylan is pretty messed up. Don’t get me wrong, I feel for the guy, but I’m not going to strike him off my list just yet. He has blackouts. And then there’s Tyler. I think I want to rattle his cage just as a matter of principle. Either of them could have followed John to The Whitefish.”
“Yeah, I get your point. I just think it’s a waste of time. Besides, you seem to forget that Tyler’s nephew Connor was staying at his place.”
“Connor is only six, not exactly a reliable witness. Given the pressure we’re under to get this right, I say we have to follow every lead.”
“That leaves Lana Clark’s ex, a firefighter named Nick, and a dot-com millionaire named Bob Crawley.”
“I’m liking Charlie Lott for this. It is troubling that he’s dropped out of sight. What has he been doing all this time? Living out of his car?”
“Obsession is a very powerful motivator. Lana is a beautiful woman.”
“She is.”
“But there is a slight problem. Why would Charlie Lott send a text message to John’s mother?”
“He and John were friends back in Georgia.”
“I doubt they were that close.”
Macy sipped her wine. The restaurant had emptied, leaving just the two of them. She looked out the window. Her motel was right across the street. She’d checked in but had yet to see her room. The fa ç ade was classic 1950s. It didn’t look promising. Her room was on the upper floor and the door practically opened onto Main Street.
She swallowed back some more wine. “I suspect you work every day.”
“You suspect right.”
She looked down at his hand and noticed he still wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. “So how’s the wife?”
“We’ve been divorced for three years.”
“Sorry.”
“Me too.”
“Does she live around here?”
“No, she’s over in Billings. Figured it would be better if she had a fresh start. We kept running into each other. It was too easy to slide back into something neither of us wanted anymore.” He looked up from his plate of food. “I hear you have a kid.”
“Yes. I managed to do something right.”
“How’s that working out? Your hours aren’t exactly child friendly.”
“We live with my mom. She can’t believe her luck.”
“You never got married?”
“It doesn’t seem to be in the cards.”
He pushed his plate away and picked up his beer. “Look, I’m sorry for the comment I made about married men earlier today. It was out of line. Like I said, I barely know you.”
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing I don’t tell myself on a regular basis.”
“You seem like a nice lady. You deserve better.”
She finished off what was left in her glass and reached for the bottle again. “We all do.”
The waitress put another beer in front of him and he tilted his glass toward Macy. “Here’s to that.”
“And anyway, it’s not like I planned it. You slide into these situations. You have all these ideas of what your life will look like, but then you make do.”
“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“I want to explain myself. I don’t want you to judge me.”
“I’m in no position to do anything of the sort.”
“It’s complicated. He’s the father of my child.”
He peeled the label from his beer bottle and smiled. “Now you’re going to have to explain.”
Macy took a deep breath and tried to focus. If she was going to overshare she wanted to make sure she was making sense.
“The first time he and his wife separated they lived apart for nearly two years. I started seeing him a few months after they split up. Unfortunately, they ended up getting back together again.”
“And you ended up pregnant.”
“I don’t regret it. Luke is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Anyway, the man in question recently announced that he was leaving his wife and wished to resume our
“There’s also Tyler Locke and Dylan Reed.”
“I think you’re reaching with them.”
“Am I? Dylan is pretty messed up. Don’t get me wrong, I feel for the guy, but I’m not going to strike him off my list just yet. He has blackouts. And then there’s Tyler. I think I want to rattle his cage just as a matter of principle. Either of them could have followed John to The Whitefish.”
“Yeah, I get your point. I just think it’s a waste of time. Besides, you seem to forget that Tyler’s nephew Connor was staying at his place.”
“Connor is only six, not exactly a reliable witness. Given the pressure we’re under to get this right, I say we have to follow every lead.”
“That leaves Lana Clark’s ex, a firefighter named Nick, and a dot-com millionaire named Bob Crawley.”
“I’m liking Charlie Lott for this. It is troubling that he’s dropped out of sight. What has he been doing all this time? Living out of his car?”
“Obsession is a very powerful motivator. Lana is a beautiful woman.”
“She is.”
“But there is a slight problem. Why would Charlie Lott send a text message to John’s mother?”
“He and John were friends back in Georgia.”
“I doubt they were that close.”
Macy sipped her wine. The restaurant had emptied, leaving just the two of them. She looked out the window. Her motel was right across the street. She’d checked in but had yet to see her room. The fa ç ade was classic 1950s. It didn’t look promising. Her room was on the upper floor and the door practically opened onto Main Street.
She swallowed back some more wine. “I suspect you work every day.”
“You suspect right.”
She looked down at his hand and noticed he still wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. “So how’s the wife?”
“We’ve been divorced for three years.”
“Sorry.”
“Me too.”
“Does she live around here?”
“No, she’s over in Billings. Figured it would be better if she had a fresh start. We kept running into each other. It was too easy to slide back into something neither of us wanted anymore.” He looked up from his plate of food. “I hear you have a kid.”
“Yes. I managed to do something right.”
“How’s that working out? Your hours aren’t exactly child friendly.”
“We live with my mom. She can’t believe her luck.”
“You never got married?”
“It doesn’t seem to be in the cards.”
He pushed his plate away and picked up his beer. “Look, I’m sorry for the comment I made about married men earlier today. It was out of line. Like I said, I barely know you.”
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing I don’t tell myself on a regular basis.”
“You seem like a nice lady. You deserve better.”
She finished off what was left in her glass and reached for the bottle again. “We all do.”
The waitress put another beer in front of him and he tilted his glass toward Macy. “Here’s to that.”
“And anyway, it’s not like I planned it. You slide into these situations. You have all these ideas of what your life will look like, but then you make do.”
“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“I want to explain myself. I don’t want you to judge me.”
“I’m in no position to do anything of the sort.”
“It’s complicated. He’s the father of my child.”
He peeled the label from his beer bottle and smiled. “Now you’re going to have to explain.”
Macy took a deep breath and tried to focus. If she was going to overshare she wanted to make sure she was making sense.
“The first time he and his wife separated they lived apart for nearly two years. I started seeing him a few months after they split up. Unfortunately, they ended up getting back together again.”
“And you ended up pregnant.”
“I don’t regret it. Luke is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Anyway, the man in question recently announced that he was leaving his wife and wished to resume our
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