Page 17 of Shared By the Mountain Men

My phone buzzed, so I held up a finger. “One sec.” It was a text.

Jack: You’re making a mistake.

Me: I’m usually the one saying that to you!

Jack: That girl is more stubborn than a blind mule. And she’s just passing through. You don’t want to get involved.

Me: You’re the one always picking up strays. I’m just making sure one of my patients is doing all right.

Jack: By taking your patient to lunch?

Me: I take my patients out to lunch all the time!

Jack: No you don’t.

Me: Rosa had lunch with me yesterday. Then there was Danny last Thursday, after we bumped into each other at the sporting goods store. I took his wife out to lunch the week before that. She should be starting contractions any day now, by the way. Then there was Bryce a week or so before that, although technically that was just morning coffee, not a full lunch.

Jack: Stop spamming me with evidence. You have ulterior motives for taking Melissa out. I just wanted to warn you that she’s as friendly as a wolverine.

Me: The X-Man superhero, or the animal?

Jack: Either. Both. Just stay away, man.

I put my phone away as Jenny delivered the sandwich. “Sorry about that. So what made you want to hike the Colorado Trail?”

Melissa’s eyes went as wide as marbles. “Forget about my hike! I want to hear how you got blown up.”

“I’ll tell you about it after I hear this hike story.”

“Why does there have to be a story?” she countered, taking a bite out of her half of the sandwich. “Maybe I just wanted to enjoy nature for a few weeks.”

“You went on the hike because, in your words, you wanted to feel like you could do anything. Tell me about that.”

Melissa tilted her head. “Are you just a medical doctor? You sound like a psychiatrist.”

“I’m just a guy who likes talking to people!” I said cheerfully. “Tell me your story, and I’ll tell you all about how I got blown up.” I leaned forward and bit into my piece of sandwich. “And it’s a good story, too.”

She paused her chewing, then nodded and swallowed. “I got cheated on.”

“Ouch.”

“That’s not all,” she clarified, nibbling on some fries. “After I caught him, he begged me not to dump him. So we went to couples counseling. Forweeks. I thought it was working. I started looking at him like the same man I had always loved, rather than a cheater. I believed it was a one-time mistake.”

“Until…” I said.

“Until he cheated on me asecondtime!” she exclaimed, smacking the table with her palm. “He didn’t bother with the pretenses after that. He just packed his suitcase and left. Didn’t say a word to me.”

Without thinking, I reached across the table and cupped her hand. “That’s awful. I’m sorry. How did you find out?”

“Which time?” she asked dryly, eyes flicking down to my hand.

I pulled back. “Whichever you’re comfortable sharing.”

“I don’t mind sharing. I’m not embarrassed. It’s not likeIdid anything wrong.” She gulped down some coffee. “The first time, he was showing me a video on his phone when an incriminating text message popped up. It was an affair with one of his coworkers. The second time, the woman—adifferentwoman—called me to confess.”

Melissa leaned back in the booth and stared out the window, gently shaking her head. Rather than speak into the silence, I let it stretch so she could continue.

“I saywoman, but she was more like a girl. Eighteen years old, a freshman in college. Worked as a waitress at Applebee’s. According to her, she thought he was single. When she discovered he wasn’t, she tracked me down immediately.”

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