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“At least since Nora got back from college.”
“You think she’s right? That he followed her here?”
“I think it’s the most logical explanation.”
My eyes narrow. “What if losing Nora is motivation, too? Not just the whole daddy developer thing. What if he’s mad at her for walking away?”
Shane snorts. “Tracks for that type of a man, don’t it?”
“Sure does.”
His eyes glimmer. “If that’s the case, he’s probably gonna be mighty upset that she’s been spending some time in the arms of three guys like us.”
“Probably will,” I say, catching his drift.
“Bet we could lure him out if he suspected that Nora has moved on,” Shane says, turning his head slightly to look back at the farmhouse.
It’s a risky plan. One that we will definitely need Nora to buy into, because she won’t want to put her dad in danger. And she would be pretty darn mad if we pulled it off behind her back. Plus, if we’re using her as bait, she probably deserves to know.
I give Shane a look. “Shall we pitch this to the crew?”
He rises, his face set in a hard line.
“Let’s fuckin’ do it.”
CHAPTER 17
Nora
“Okay. So. Just so I’m clear,” I say, looking at my dad. “There is no lingering cancer.”
“No.”
“But they still want you to do chemo?”
He sighs. “Yeah. Sounds like even though there’s nothing in me, they still want to do chemo.”
“Why?”
He picks at the edge of the tablecloth, which has been in place since I was five years old, so it’s faded and torn in so many places, the rips are just part of the effect now. “Because I’m old, Nora.”
“Dad. You’re hardly old.”
“I’m old. I’ve lived a life that’s been hard on me, and they don’t like how my… fatigue is impacting me.”
“But there’s no cancer.”
He shakes his head. “None that came up on any scans.”
“Okay, well, that’s a little different from ‘no cancer,’ don’t you think?” I huff angrily.
My dad reaches forward, grabbing my hand. “Nora, I need you to calm down.”
“I’m calm!” I shout. He gives me a look, and I take a deep breath. “I am perfectly calm, Dad,” I say.
“Nothing in life is a guarantee. You can only take care of some of the risks. But I can’t tell you there’s no cancer. Same as I can’t tell you that tomorrow there won’t be a wildfire, or that the earth won’t crack up and swallow us whole. It’s unlikely,” he says, noticing my face start to pinch with anxiety, “but we can’t guarantee these things.”
“But cancer?—”
