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her about the find. “I’m glad to hear it. What changed your mind?”
“The reality of paying out-of-state tuition. Ali hasn’t budged off her position of giving the box to Lori, and she says I’m just being stubborn.”
“Ya think?”
“It makes me feel like a charity case, Sage.”
“That is so stupid. Look, Cam Murphy is that girl’s father and he has contributed nothing to her but his DNA. Whatever funds these coins bring to you won’t be charity, they’ll be a down payment on what that asshole owes you.”
“Sage, please, let’s not go there.”
“I’m sorry. It just really chaps my hide whenever I think about it.”
“Then let’s think of something else. I saw the Marcus Burnes eagle photograph you put in the front window at Vistas a couple of days ago. It’s gorgeous.”
“He does wonderful work. It’s visionary and unique. I’m surprised he’s not a bigger name already.”
“He’s going to provide stiff competition for you in this year’s arts festival. If you win a third-place ribbon, I think I’ll move over to Gunnison for a month.”
“Third place? Excuse me?”
Sarah shrugged. “Colt could send another piece.”
Sage recognized that her friend was attempting to get a rise out of her, so she tried not to accommodate. Nevertheless, her voice sounded a bit thin as she observed, “Aren’t you the funny one?”
“Hey, just sayin’ …” Sarah laughed, dug a roll of breath mints out of her purse, and offered them to Sage before popping one in her mouth. “So, what were you and Ali huddled up about in the kitchen last night? You looked serious.”
Sage hesitated, not wanting to dwell on a touchy subject when she was feeling so mellow. Although Ali had been thrilled with the news. Maybe Sage could finally forgive herself for being such a dweeb where the children’s camp was concerned.
“I’ve exchanged emails and cards with Ali since the contretemps in February, but yesterday was the first time I’d seen her in person. I needed to talk to her about the art lessons for her charity program.”
Sarah’s eyes widened with surprise. “Is Ali still upset with you about that?”
“No. Not at all. In fact, when I tried to bring up the subject, I could hardly get her to listen. Once I got her attention, she was thrilled.”
“You’ve decided to teach?”
Sage’s stomach pitched at the thought. “No. I found someone better qualified to fill in for me. Last week, I spoke with Connor Keene. He said he’d be happy to lead the art lessons for her pilot program. I think the kids will love him. He’s a storyboard artist for Runa-muka Ding.”
“The Saturday morning cartoon?”
“And soon to be a feature film. Yes.”
“Oh, wow. You’re right, the kids will love that. How did you pull it off?”
“He’s a friend of a friend. Connor has the time and a special interest in childhood cancers. He lost a young nephew to bone cancer. He also couldn’t resist the lure of Rocky Mountain trout fishing in June. I’ve arranged his travel and accommodations—he’ll be staying at the Landrys’ place—so you don’t need to worry about any of that. He wants Ali to contact him at her convenience to discuss the nuts and bolts of what she’d like him to teach.”
“That’s really cool, Sage.” Sarah thought about it a moment, then added, “I’m impressed. You figured out a way to make it work for everyone. So, are you ever going to tell us what the deal is with all that?”
Sage filled her lungs, then blew out a heavy sigh and braced for an argument. “No, not anytime soon.”
“Okay.”
When she realized Sarah really was going to drop the subject, Sage relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the drive. As they passed the Eternity Springs city limits sign, Sarah said, “It’s back to the real world now, I guess. The summer season, sullen daughter, and …” Her voice broke a little. “Graduation.”
“It’ll be okay, Sarah. Your friends will be there to help you through it, both you and Lori.”
“I know, and I’m grateful for it. There is part of me that wants to get it over with. Another part wants to stop time from moving at all. But, enough of that. I wonder if anything interesting happened in Eternity while we were gone? Maybe an elk wandered into the barbershop again or Bob Carson accidentally locked himself in the bank vault.”
Sage turned onto Cottonwood Street and said, “We’re home, so that means we’ll find out in, what, five minutes?”
“Ten at the most.”
At the corner of Second Street and Cottonwood,