Page 82 of The Convict Gets His Girl

"Is that what y'all talked about last night? What did she say?"

They paid for their gas and breakfast and walked out to the brisk, windy morning. "It's more what she didn't say. Take the sustainable farming for instance. Last fall, Destini asked Gemma about her father. Thinking it was Hunter, Gemma told her about how he loved the stars, constellations, and the myths behind them. As a result, she basically transformed her entire academic interest to align with something he cares about."

"Thus the NASA focus," Chase said matter-of-factly. She nodded and put up the gas as she continued.

"Exactly. But now that she knowsyou'reher dad…" She went around the truck, leaving her words unsaid until they were both in the truck, buckled, with the engine running.

The implication hung between them. Would this NASA fascination even continue now? Would Destini shift her passions again, now that the initial motivation—connecting with Hunter—was essentially nullified?

"You think she's going to change her academic interest to something else now?"

Jewel hummed a yes as she pulled back onto the road, glancing at Chase. She recognized the careful curiosity in his expression, the subtle way he was trying to understand their daughter.

The look on his face broke her heart, as if he felt unworthy of why Destini would do something just to get closer to him.

He shook his head and sighed. "Maybe she'll go back to her first love of plants. What made her fall in love with sustainable farming in the first place?"

"It started with ranch visits," Jewel began, her voice soft but steady. "I'd take her along when I was working, and some were experimenting with sustainable methods."

Chase leaned against the leather seat, coffee warming his hands. "So she saw it firsthand, could ask questions of those who were doing the job. That's good, helpful for finding something a kid wants to be when they grow up."

"If I remember correctly, you always wanted to go into finance becausemoney is power and stability. Money makes the world go round."

He laughed at her teasing reminder of prior conversations from that last year of their teenage past. "And it's still true, isn't it?"

"How did you even get a degree while in prison, anyway? And in accounting?"

He shrugged and finished his first cup of coffee. "The first prison I was in was rough. Then once I turned eighteen, I was thrown in with gen pop and had no idea how to survive. After a few beatings and broken bones, I found a group to join, fellow nerds who had made mistakes and didn't really belong to any gang or other group. We looked out for each other."

Jewel breathed a sigh of relief, a piece of her chest loosening. She didn't realize how worried she'd been about his prison experience until now but hearing that he'd not been alone made her feel so relieved, she grew dizzy.

She blinked and took a bite of her apple as he continued his story.

"We had a makeshift role-playing game going. While rival groups were getting into fights, our group was minding ourselves and pretending to save the world with magic. In our world, we were the good guys, and the good guysalwayswon…"

The silence between them stretched, and she glanced over at him, her chest tight. "Youarea good guy, Chase. I hope you know that."

He sighed and rubbed his hands down his jean clad thighs. "I know. It was just hard to remember in prison when everyone there's made mistakes and gotten caught."

The silence lengthened, and she wondered if the memories were pulling at him. "Your gaming group—they had your back in there?"

He perked up, a smile hovering on his lips as he nodded. "Yeah, so many times I've lost count. I still write them letters a few times a month. The ones I know where they are, anyway. I've lost track of Raul and Sammy."

"Where do you think they are?" she asked, hoping he didn't say dead. She would hate that for him.

He shrugged though. "Got out, I think. But you asked about the degree. One officer was a regular who got invested in our role-playing games. He was the nephew of the warden, who was having trouble with the books. Warden knew someone on staff was embezzling but couldn't prove it. The officer told his uncle how I kept track of our role-playing game information. I guess he overheard a few phone calls I made with Landry too, where we talked money and investments. I've always had a way with patterns and numbers."

She rolled down her window and threw the apple core out, rolling it back up.

"I found the culprit—three officers, actually, and the secretary. Once the warden cleaned house, I was thanked with a transfer to a low-security facility where I was then enrolled in a degree program."

He shrugged and reached for the second cup of coffee, growing quieter.

"I'm proud of you for helping them, for getting your degree. You made things happen despite the obstacles in your path."

He chuckled and sipped his coffee. "Didn't really have a choice in helping them. Wish I hadn't lost touch with my DnD inmate friends, but life goes on. I'm grateful to the low security place not just for the degree but for all the therapy and shit they gave us too."

"Like what?"

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