Page 14 of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

“When was the last time you were excited about something?” she asked.

I let her question sink in before I said, “I don’t know.”

“Then maybe this is a good thing,” she said carefully. “As long as you don’t go in with outsized expectations. Just make the trip and see what happens. Your mother left there a long time ago. You might not find out much. Are you prepared to accept that?”

She had a good point. “Yeah, I might not find out anything at all, but maybe seeing the place will be enough.”

“I think those are healthy expectations,” she said. “How does Colt feel about you going to see the property?”

“I haven’t told him I’ve actually decided to go, but he encouraged me to do it.”

“When do you think you’ll be able to make the trip?”

“Well… Belinda suggested going away for a girls’ trip, and she has this weekend free. I’m thinking about asking her to combine the two.”

“And how will Colt feel about that?”

Something about her tone gave me pause. “You don’t think I should go without him?”

“No,” she said, “I’m not saying that at all. I know you’re concerned that you’re becoming too dependent on him, and now you’re talking about leaving for a weekend trip without him.” Her expression softened with a warm smile. “I see that as progress, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” I said warily, because suddenly it felt like a betrayal.

“We both know Colt’s very worried about you,” she continued, “so it’s fair to ask how he feels about this.”

“I suspect he won’t like it.”

She looked surprised. “Because he won’t be around to protect you?”

“Yeah,” I said with a frown.

“Do you still feel like you need protecting?”

“Yes, but I know it’s illogical. I’m perfectly safe, even if that podcaster ambushed me last night. She wasn’t going to hurt me. Not physically, anyway.”

“Tell me more about what happened.”

I recounted the incident, including the part about me freezing up and Mo’s insinuation that she knew Tilly was keeping a secret about her more-than-just-friends relationship with my mother.

“Why do you think Tilly got so upset?”

“I suspect it’s because she doesn’t want her secret to come out,” I said.

“What if she doesn’t want yourmother’ssecret to come out?” Dr. Norton asked.

“What does it matter? Momma’s dead.”

“It obviously matters to Tilly,” she said. “What if your mother’s mystery in Alabama is connected to her sexuality?”

My mouth dropped open. I hadn’t considered that.

“How will Tilly feel about you snooping around your mother’s past?”

Dr. Norton’s question draped over me like a wet blanket, and disappointment hit me hard. Although I’d only learned about the land the night before, it had captured my attention. My imagination. It felt good to think of something besides Tripp Tucker. Besides my father. And my mother had lived on this land before she’d even met him.

“You don’t think I should go check it out?”

“No,” she said, “I’m not telling you that at all. This is your decision. I’m just preparing you for the possibility that you might face opposition from two people whose opinions mean the world to you. How will that affect your decision?”