“Would you like a glass of wine?” he asked.
She smiled. Having a drink might help her get through the evening. “Sure.”
She selected a white zinfandel, he a glass of rosé. “It’s nice of you to help out at the cookie store while you’re here,” he said as the waitress went to get their drinks. “My mother says the owner is having health problems.”
“She is. But how does your mother know? Is she a friend of Susan’s?”
“Not really, but they know each other. My mom’s still really involved in the Chamber of Commerce,” he added by way of explanation.
Emery hadn’t known his mother had ever been involved with the Chamber. She hadn’t paid much attention to that sort of thing when she was in high school, hadn’t known Cain that well. They’d shared a few classes but that was it. She remembered him as a shy, awkward boy, but he seemed to be more outgoing as an adult.
“What are you doing for work these days?” she asked, trying to guide the conversation to topics she deemed safe. She knew from the conversation they’d had at the cookie store that he lived in the Bay Area, but that was all.
“I dive into water tanks,” he replied.
The ice clinked in her water glass as she set it down. “What for?”
He chuckled. Apparently, he was used to getting such a reaction. “To vacuum up the sediment on the bottom.”
“You’re talking about the public water supply...”
“I am.”
“You make a great case for using a filter at the tap.”
“Don’t worry, someone sprays me down with an antimicrobial before I go in.”
That hardly made her comfortable with the idea. There was just something off-putting about a guy in a wetsuit vacuuming up sand and other debris from the water people were meant to drink. “You must not be claustrophobic,” she commented.
“I’m not. And it’s quite safe. The same person who sprays me down before I go in keeps an eye on my air supply when I’m in the water, so I have help if I need it.”
“It’d be terrible if that person had a heart attack or fell asleep on the job,” she mused.
He slid the candle in the center of the table over to one side so that it wouldn’t be directly between them. “It would. But it would be highly unlikely that the equipment would fail at the same time. So I guess I’m playing the odds.”
“How’d you get into that?” she asked, feeling as though she might be able to salvage the next few hours, after all. She was genuinely curious about his line of work.
“My ex-girlfriend’s father works for the City of Berkeley. He wanted us closer so that he could see his only grandchild—she has a little boy from a previous relationship—and he knew someone who knew someone who was looking for a diver. Since the job paid more than I was making, we moved, and I stayed on even after we broke up.”
The waitress returned with their wine and asked for their order, so they took a moment to study the menu. Emery requested the tilapia with couscous, and he ordered a cowboy steak smothered in onions and mushrooms with scalloped potatoes.
“What about you?” he asked after the waitress left.
A knot formed in the pit of Emery’s stomach. “What about me?”
“What are you going to do for a living? Will you try to get on at another TV station? I hope so. I’ve seen you deliver the news. You’re fantastic.”
She caught her breath. He knew. He must’ve known all along, or he went home and told his family that he was meeting an old friend and they informed him as soon as they heard her name.
Fortunately, he didn’t seem too shocked, and, as embarrassing as the whole thing was, she was slightly relieved that she wouldn’t have to dodge the issue for the rest of dinner. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I’m suing the station for wrongful firing, and I’m suing Ethan Grimes for posting that video, which I had no idea he’d even made. Until I can get through that, I’ll probably try to scrape by working some low-profile job like I’m doing at the cookie store. I don’t feel as though I can move forward until this thing is resolved.”
“What a jerk,” he said.
“I never dreamed that someone I was dating would do something so despicable.”
“He comes across as a nice guy on TV, but I know you can’t always tell from someone’s public persona.”
“Trust me, he’s his own biggest fan.” She took a sip of wine and braved a question she knew she probably shouldn’t ask but had to know. “How’d you hear about it?”
“Word swept through town,” he said vaguely.
“Let me guess—your mom told you.” He’d just indicated that his mother worked for the Chamber of Commerce, so she’d be privy to town gossip, and his mother was the one who’d told him about Susan.
“Yes and no. I’ve sort of kept tabs on you since high school. My mother knew I’d be interested so, yes, she told me.”
“You’ve kept tabs on me? From the Bay Area?”
“Well, not like a stalker, but if your name ever comes up I pay attention to it. You were so popular in high school—I’m sure I’m not the only one.”
She imagined all the people who had to be talking about that video and the wine began to sour in her stomach. “Have you seen it?”
When he flushed, she had her answer.
“Just a glimpse of it,” he said, trying to minimize his exposure, but she doubted that he was being strictly honest. Her gut
