All the Secrets We Keep (Quarry Book 2) Read online

  Theresa gave her another odd, offbeat smile and took the empty coffee mug. “I started learning to be prepared when I went freelance. Because I don’t work out of the office every day, I needed to find places where I could access the Internet, get charged up, stuff like that.”

  Alicia waited for Theresa to come back from filling her cup. “Must be nice. Having that freedom.”

  “It has its pros and cons.” Theresa sipped the coffee and set it carefully on the table. “Puts a lot of mileage on my car. Sometimes makes it hard to get stuff done if I’m out and about and haven’t found a good spot to roost. It’s a little bit like being a traveling salesperson, always on the road.”

  “Have you thought about getting something more permanent?”

  That seemed to be the wrong question, or at least a semi-impertinent one. At any rate, Theresa frowned and cut her gaze from Alicia. She tapped her fingers on her computer lid.

  “Sure,” she said finally. “Of course. Something with a steady paycheck would be great. Working on commission can be inconvenient. Never really sure if the money’s coming in, or when.”

  “It was like that, owning the shop. We had our regulars, and of course the trips we scheduled always brought in regular money, but so much of it was seasonal.” Alicia paused, thinking of how many times she’d budgeted their accounts to the literal penny, holding her breath until some money trickled in. “I’m not sure how I’ll feel if I go back to work for someone else, but I won’t miss that part. A steady paycheck would be a nice change.”

  Theresa gave her a wan smile. “Selling your share seems like it was a good choice for you.”

  “It was the right decision. I’m sorry Ilya didn’t go for it.” Alicia paused, watching the other woman. “He hasn’t changed his mind?”

  “He has a couple weeks left, but after that, it’ll be too late.” Theresa shrugged.

  Alicia shook her head. “He’s stubborn.”

  “Yeah.” Theresa sipped more coffee. “So you’re looking for a job? I thought you’d do more traveling.”

  “I want to. But I can’t live forever on the money from the sale. I’m lucky I don’t have a mortgage, at least. Being a lady of leisure doesn’t seem to be in my blood.” Alicia laughed. “So, yeah, I plan to do something. I’m not sure what yet. It’s been so long since I had to think about it. I’m not even sure what I’m qualified to do.”

  “You’ll find something.” Theresa glanced at her computer. “Speaking of looking for jobs, I’d better get to work. I have some leads I need to research and stuff.”

  Alicia waved a hand. “Of course. I’m taking up your time.”

  Without much fanfare, both of them bent to their laptops. Theresa typed more regularly than Alicia, who’d intended to look up job listings but had instead spent most of her time scrolling through travel blogs. So many places to see in the world. How could she ever see everything? How would she decide where to go next?

  “Zimmerman’s Diner is going into foreclosure,” Theresa said, out of the blue.

  Alicia looked up. “Hmm? The diner?”

  “Yes. We were there a couple nights ago.” Theresa coughed lightly. “Ilya and I.”

  “I haven’t been to the diner in ages. We used to hang out there all the time in high school. Sometimes we’d go right after school and stay there until Galina got off work. She’d pick us up on the way home. Or after the school dances. Wow, what a blast from the past.” Alicia thought back to that. “Jenni worked there after she got her driver’s license. We all kind of stopped hanging out there, after . . . well. So it’s going into foreclosure?”

  “Yes. It’s got some back taxes owed on it. Nothing outrageous, but sometimes people just don’t want to be bothered paying them. They want to dump it.” Theresa looked thoughtful.

  “That’s too bad.”

  Theresa looked up with a smile. “Not for me. It’s exactly the kind of property I should be able to get some interest in.”

  “You like what you do.” It wasn’t a question, but it seemed to take Theresa aback.

  She nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, I do. It’s not exactly what I thought I’d be doing, but it’s going all right. I think it might work out for me.”

  “That’s a good thing.”

  “Yeah. Yes,” Theresa said more firmly. “It really is.”

  “I hope he changes his mind,” Alicia said suddenly. “I’ve tried to tell myself I don’t care, that it’s his business and he’s no longer my problem.”

  “You were married for what, ten years? And part of each other’s lives for longer than that. It would be strange if you just stopped caring.”

  Alicia frowned. “I know, but still.”

  “Do you . . . are you still . . . you’re not in love with him anymore. Obviously.” Theresa paused. “I mean, you and Niko are together. Right?”

  Hearing someone else say it made it feel more real and also more like a dream. Alicia grinned. “Yeah. We are.”

  “That has to be a little complicated.”

  “No kidding. Plus, if it all works out, I’ll have the joy of getting Galina back as my mother-in-law.” Alicia snorted softly. “Lucky me.”

  “No kidding.” Theresa’s phone rang, and she pulled it out of her bag to silence it quickly. Whatever she saw on the screen must’ve disconcerted her, because her expression twisted. “Shit.”

  “You okay?”

  “I have to take this outside. Can you watch my stuff?” Theresa was already getting up, closing her laptop lid, and grabbing her bag.

  Alicia waved. “Yes, sure. Go. I’ll be hanging out here for a bit.”

  Twenty minutes later, she looked up from her online scrolling to realize Theresa had not yet returned. Alicia got up to peek out the coffee shop’s front window, searching. She thought she caught a glimpse of curly black hair standing by a car parked toward the front of the lot. When another ten minutes passed without Theresa’s return, Alicia sent the other woman a text. Theresa didn’t answer it. She waited another few minutes but, concerned, figured she ought to make sure everything was okay.

  She packed everything up, tucking her own computer into her bag and Theresa’s laptop into the protective sleeve she’d left on the table. Making sure she hadn’t left anything behind, Alicia grabbed both bags and went out. She found Theresa standing by her car, a battered gray Volvo that had seen better days.

  Theresa was crying.

  This was awkward. Alicia cleared her throat to catch the other woman’s attention, and when that didn’t work, she reached out to touch her arm lightly.

  Theresa turned, swiping at her eyes. “Hey. Sorry, that took longer than I thought.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “It’s nothing. I mean, it’s not nothing, but it’s fine.” Theresa rubbed again at her eyes, using the tips of her fingers to blot away her smearing mascara.

  Alicia frowned. “It doesn’t look fine.”

  “It’ll be okay. Really.” Theresa put on a watery smile that did nothing to convince Alicia.

  “I brought your stuff.” She held it out.

  “Thanks.” Theresa took the bag and set it on the trunk of the car. She sagged suddenly, shoulders hunching. “Thanks.”

  “Look, I’m sure it’s none of my business, but you definitely don’t look fine. You look terrible,” Alicia said.

  Theresa looked at her. No smile this time. She wasn’t crying anymore, although she looked like she could start again at any minute. “I’m going to lose the stuff in my storage unit, which is everything I own that doesn’t fit in my car, minus the stuff my ex was keeping for me in his garage and which he put out with the trash when he figured out I wasn’t going to get back together with him.”

  “Oh . . .” Alicia wasn’t sure what that meant.

  Saying that seemed to break a dam, because now the words came fast and hard. “I’m six months behind on the payment. I don’t have the money to pay the fees. I was counting on my commission check to be deposited this week, which w