Fiona walked back into the house a little while after Angel left. Ivy was in the living room, putting some papers in her briefcase.
She looked up and smiled. “Hey. I wasn’t sure if you were still here or if you’d gone back to school.”
Fiona didn’t smile. “I’m not sure I’m going back to school.”
Ivy nodded. “I understand. Look, if you wanted to get out of here for a little while, you could come with me. I have a bit of work to do at the diner, then we could go for coffee or grab Selena and head down to Cheyenne. Maybe we’ll throw caution to the wind and spend the day in Denver.”
Fiona nodded. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
“Good. How soon can you be ready?”
“Fifteen minutes?”
“Sounds perfect. Come down when you’re ready. Bring a book to read so you have something to do while I knock out a few things in the office.”
Fiona met Ivy in the foyer a few minutes later. “Should we tell someone we’re headed out?”
“Selena knows.”
They went through the garage and down to the small parking lot that was off to the side. Fiona slipped her arm through Ivy’s. “I feel like an escapee.”
Ivy laughed. “Feels good, doesn’t it?”
“To get out, yes.” The thought of leaving instantly brought Kelan to mind; leaving him did not feel good. “I don’t think I’d feel so cornered if”—she caught herself before complaining. There was nothing she could do about the man who’d fathered her—“things were different. I just don’t know where I fit. How I belong.”
They split apart as they went to their sides of her car. “Then I’m glad I got you out of the house for a bit.” They got in and buckled up. Ivy looked over at her. “Things will be easier for you once you get back to school.”
“I’m not sure I’m going back.” Fee shook her head.
“Are you afraid that there’ll be repeat of what just happened?”
“Maybe.” She looked at Ivy. “I’m King’s daughter. I’m a liability to anyone near me. People die when they get close.”
“Oh, Fee. I’m so sorry this is happening. Have you thought about switching to online classes?”
Fiona sighed and shifted her gaze to look out the window, watching the soft hills slip past as they headed toward town. “The thing is, I’m not even sure that I want the degree I’ve declared anymore. Why does the world need another business admin anyway?”
“Ah.” Ivy flashed a look at her. “The whole existential conundrum. I just went through some of that myself. It sucks.” She smiled as she gave Fiona a sympathetic look.
“What did you do about it?”
“Spent a lot of time thinking about what’s really important to me. To Casey. To Kit.” They pulled into town. “If you don’t want to go into a business field, what else interests you?”
“I don’t know. Seems there are other things that matter more than getting a business degree. Like helping the girls I met over the past few days—the ones stuck in the sex-trafficking ring or ones from the Friendship Community. Seems like there ought to be a way I could help people rather than harvesting money from them.”
“I’m in business here with the diner. I don’t think of what I’m doing as harvesting money from my customers. If I’m successful, I’ll earn an income, true, but I provide a valuable service to my community in the process. Employment—with benefits—for a dozen people in an environment that cares about work and home life balance. The diner’s a hub for our neighbors. And we provide reduced-cost meals for seniors. I think we’re a positive addition to the town, and I like being a part of that.”
“I didn’t mean—”
Ivy smiled. “I know. Sounds like you want to go in a different direction than you did when you started down your degree path. That’s okay, Fee. That’s part of what college is about.” She pulled up outside of her diner. “You know who would be a good person to talk to about this? Remi. She’s found a way to work with niche, at-risk populations. Maybe she can help you identify your next steps.”
They got out of the car. “I’ll talk to her,” Fiona said as Ivy came around to her side.
“You know, there are many ways of helping people, even with a business degree. Maybe a little time off to figure things out isn’t a bad thing.”
Fiona nodded. “I hate being lost.”
Ivy laughed. “Welcome to the human race.”
They parted ways inside. Fiona settled into a booth. One of the waitresses brought her a slice of apple pie with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream and a cup of coffee. She opened her e-reader and flipped through a list of books she’d wanted to read. She sampled several different ones, but couldn’t seem to get into any of them.
Kelan had asked some good questions last night at the firepit. If she did decide to go, how was she going to survive? How could she keep King from finding her? She’d need a job. A place to live.
The thought of leaving cut to the quick. Maybe there was a way of doing it in steps. Maybe Ivy had an opening for a waitress. And didn’t she have an empty apartment on the third floor of this building? It was sort of safe here, given all the surveillance that the team had put in to protect Ivy. And Ty’s dad worked here.
If she could work here, then at least she would be making her own way, not living off the charity of the team…and Kelan.
But would he let her go?
Fiona brought her dishes to the kitchen, then went to see Ivy, who was in her office doing some paperwork. She looked up from her desk and smiled. “Getting bored?”
“No.”
“I’m almost finished. Five minutes, max.”
“I was wondering…do you have any openings for a waitress? If I’m going to sit out a semester, I need to earn my keep.”