Chapter 36
The drive to the restaurant took fifteen minutes and was filled with small talk about the town and the weather.
Wyatt had looked up the restaurant he was headed to before they’d left the hospital—a small place called Olivia’s Table.
He found parking in front of the restaurant and cut the engine.
Thunder looked at him from the back seat, almost as if he knew food was close.
“Don’t worry, boy,” Wyatt said. “You’re coming in with me. I already checked to make sure it was okay.”
Thunder panted in response.
“He looks happy about that,” Kori murmured.
“Oh, he is. He loves trying new restaurants. And he deserves a special treat after all his hard work today.”
“I agree. He’s an extraordinary dog.”
Something about her words brought him an unexpected pleasure. He wasn’t sure why he wanted Kori to like Thunder, but he did. The dog truly was one of his best friends and closest confidants.
He clipped on the search and rescue vest, and the three of them headed inside.
The restaurant was warm and low-lit with wooden tables, and it smelled like something savory. He and Kori were seated at a corner table, with good sight lines to the door.
Thunder settled at their feet.
As Kori looked at the menu, surprise flashed across her face. “They have vegan options.”
A smile tugged at the corner of Wyatt’s lips. “I know.”
Gratitude filled her gaze. “You actually looked into places where I could eat . . . ?”
He shrugged. “That’s just being polite and a good listener.”
“Well, I’m impressed. Thank you. Most people aren’t that considerate.”
Satisfaction filled his chest.
Several minutes later, the server came, and Kori ordered the corn chowder with cashew cream. Wyatt ordered the pot roast. He also ordered some chicken and rice as well as a bowl of water for Thunder.
As they waited for their food, the restaurant moved around them—quiet conversations, the clink of silverware, a couple near the window sharing a dessert.
Everything seemed normal and ordinary.
But nothing was normal and ordinary, Wyatt realized.
He studied Kori across the table. The slight circles under her eyes. The paleness of her skin. The way her motions all seemed heavier than before.
It was clear everything was beginning to catch up with Kori. The weight of the situation was pressing on her. The unanswered questions haunting them were beginning to take their toll.
He gave her space to think.
When Kori was ready to talk, he’d be there to listen . . . in a professional capacity, of course.
Kori looked at Wyatt across the table. She’d been contemplating how much to say about her and Flint’s past ever since they’d run into each other.
Now seemed like just as good a time as any.
She cleared her throat before starting. “So . . . I feel like I owe you an explanation—about Flint and my history with him.”
“You don’t owe me anything. But you’re welcome to tell me whatever you’d like. No pressure on my end.”
“I appreciate that.” She nodded slowly, still gathering courage to share her hurt and humiliation.
“The truth is that Flint and I dated for a while after college. We met at Virginia Tech, and we were friends first. He’d always planned to come back to the mountains, and I had always planned to move to the city.
We were trying to make it work long distance. ”
Wyatt watched her with steady attention.
She drew in a shaky breath as she continued. “Then . . . then my parents died. They were in a car accident three years ago. Flint and I had been dating about a year when it happened. Mackenzie took it hard. Harder than I did—or differently, at least. I buckled down. She fell apart.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how hard that must have been.”
Kori picked up her water glass but didn’t take a sip.
“She almost became like a different person. I tried to help her, but I could only do so much. When she moved to Blue Ridge Hollow, I thought the change would be good for her. I thought the slower pace and the smaller community could be just what she needed.”
She paused and took a sip of her water before continuing.
“About a year after my parents died, I came back here to visit Mackenzie one weekend. I wanted to surprise her. But I was the one who got the surprise. I showed up at her apartment and found Mackenzie and Flint inside together. They were kissing.”
Wyatt’s eyes widened. “Ouch.”
“Yes, ouch. It totally blindsided me.” She rubbed her throat as emotion clogged her airways.
“I left. They both ran after me and tried to explain how they ‘never meant for it to happen.’ None of their excuses meant anything to me. I broke it off with Flint and pretty much told my sister I never wanted to speak to her again.”
“They both betrayed you. I can see why you said that.”
“I should have forgiven her . . .” Her voice cracked.
Wyatt reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “Forgiveness is hard, and it’s necessary. But you had no way of knowing all this would happen.”
“I didn’t. But now I only have regrets. If I don’t find Mackenzie . . . if something’s happened to her . . .” Tears threatened to push from her eyes.
“We’re going to find her,” Wyatt said. “We will.”
Kori hoped his words were true. Because how would she ever return to her regular life knowing how things had ended between them?
She knew the truth—she couldn’t.