Page 44 of 15 Summers Later

She was thinking she could use a drink as well when she heard a male voice calling her name.

“Ava! Great to see you again.”

The voice was dearly familiar and so was the man who said the words, Lucas Gentry. Some of her anxiety seeped away. There was simply no room for it amid the comfort of a longstanding friendship.

“Hi, Luke. Great to see you, too.”

He reached out to hug her and she returned the embrace, heartened at the genuine warmth in his greeting.

“Is Cullen joining you?” he asked when he set her away from him.

She was getting slightly better at ignoring that sharp ache in her chest at the mention of her husband’s name. Slightly. “Not right now, I’m afraid. He’s working at a job site up near Ghost Lake and it’s hard for him to get away.”

He sent her a swift look and she knew exactly what was going through his head, the same dark memories she had. Gunfire, screaming, the barking of dogs and thewhoop-whoopof helicopter blades.

“Is he?” he only said, his tone mild.

“A few campers stumbled onto a fossil bed and further exploration uncovered what might be a new species of dinosaur. He’s leading the excavation team.”

“Good for him! That’s so exciting. What kind of dinosaur?”

“They’re not sure. It’s different from the Oryctodromeus, which is the most commonly found dinosaur fossil around here. This one is larger and doesn’t appear to live in burrows, like the Oryctodromeus. Other than that, they’re not sure.”

“Fascinating. I’d love the chance to talk with him about it sometime.”

“I’ll let him know. Maybe you could meet up while he’s living in the area.”

“Do they let visitors up to the site? Sierra used to love dinosaurs. I mean, she’s thirteen, and right now she’s more interested in TikTok videos of cute boys dancing, but I have to think maybe there’s still some part of her that is fascinated by triceratops and utahraptors.”

“I’m not sure what the policy is for visitors. I can ask next time I talk to him.”

She looked around the yard. “Where is the birthday girl? I haven’t seen her in forever. I imagine she’s probably taller than I am by now.”

He smiled, eyes bright with love for his daughter. “Not quite. She’s still growing into her long legs. She should be here shortly. She spent the afternoon at the animal rescue helping Madi with a few things today.”

Ava raised an eyebrow. “I’m shocked my fiercely independent sister lets anyone help her, even a thirteen-year-old girl.”

“Madi is definitely independent, but believe it or not, she does let people help her sometimes, when it comes to her animals. She’s got a whole team of volunteers on board, now that the animal rescue is fully operational.”

Ava hadn’t really thought of the work that must go into starting up a no-kill animal shelter in an area that had never had one. “I understand she’ll be leaving your vet practice soon.”

He made a face. “Unfortunately. She has wanted to do this for a long time.”

“Yes. Since she was a girl bringing home every stray cat and dog in the neighborhood.”

“She hasn’t changed a bit,” Luke said with an affectionate smile. “It’s so great that everything has come together. First, a local farmer donated his property to the animal rescue foundation in his will, then the foundation received a particularly large gift from an anonymous donor.”

Feeling her face heat, Ava carefully kept her gaze away from him, focusing instead on the beautiful, flowing water feature in the garden. Did he know? She didn’t want to risk looking at him to search his features, since she was lousy at subterfuge.

“That is fortuitous, isn’t it?” she said, her voice deliberately sanguine.

She quickly steered the conversation away from these dangerous waters, asking instead about his veterinary practice. In return, he asked her a few questions aboutGhost Lakeand some of the book’s significant milestones.

She knew he had read it. Luke had called her shortly after she sent him the advanced reading copy, prior to publication. He had told her he had been deeply moved by every word. A triumph, he had told her.

Ava hadn’t been as touched by any other commentary on the book as she was by his praise, especially as he had actually lived through some of the events she had written about.

They were talking about an interview request with one of the national morning news shows when his daughter burst into the yard, tall, slender, lovely.

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