Page 86 of The Professor's Wife

“Why did you end up going another direction?” he asked.

“I’m still going to the island,” Tristan answered. “It’s only a delay.”

“Who decided that?”

“Why are you being pushy about this?”

Tania must have sensed the shift in mood because she cheerfully chimed in. “Forrest knows how important it is for you to scatter your father’s ashes, Tristan. Is the urn in the van?”

“It was sent to my aunt before I even hit the road.”

“You’re going to pick his ashes up at your aunt’s, then.”

Forrest sighed. “Tania, what do you think?”

“I’m just making conversation, hon.”

“Then ask the right questions.”

“Like what?”

“Like, what are you thinking, bringing that girl along, Tristan? This was meant to be a solo trip for you.”

Tristan didn’t answer right away.

The silence stretched.

“She’s clearly hurting,” Forrest continued. “And hiding something. You know that, right?”

“She’s been through a lot,” Tristan said. “I know what I’m doing.”

“You sure? Because she’s not who she says she is. You can feel it. I’ve been on the road long enough to spot when someone’s running.”

Tania’s voice chimed in, soft and amused. “What could she be running from, honey?”

“Anything.”

“Aren’t you running, though? Being out here, closing yourself off from the fast life?”

“I’m not running, Tania. I shut the world out so I can live in the wild. That girl’s running from something.”

“Like what?” she pressed, her humor growing.

“I don’t know, but it’s not something good.”

“Either way, she doesn’t owe us an explanation.”

“When she’s bunking with my buddy, I think he’s the one who’s owed an explanation.”

Tania chuckled as she attempted to keep the mood light. “She seems nice to me. Friendly. Thoughtful. Ignore Forrest, Tristan. He’s been reading too many mystery novels—”

“She’s nice because she has to be,” Forrest snapped, irritated. “Tristan, you’ve got land back home. A sizable bank account. You just got out of a long relationship. You think she’s not clocking that?”

My stomach twisted. I wanted to shut the window, crawl deeper beneath the blankets, and disappear into the mattress.

But I couldn’t stop listening.

“Haven’t been in a relationship in a long time,” Tristan returned calmly.