Page 93 of The Lost Book of First Loves

“Only overnight. It’s a quick trip because of his great-aunt.”

“Did you say you’re hiking?” June asked.

“We’re taking horses.”

“Which ones?” Beck asked.

“I’ll be on Nan and he’s going to take one of his brother-in-law’s. We’ll take Hutch along, since he’s a great packhorse.”

“Xander could always ride one of The Painted Sky horses if he wanted.”

“I told him that, but he insists he’s more comfortable with Robby.”

“Understandable. It’s better to go with the horse you know.”

“We’ve been wanting to go up there forever, but never found the chance.”

“Where is Hidden Lake?” June asked. She wasn’t eating much of her chicken, Ali noticed, only a few small bites, but seemed to be enjoying the salad Beckett had contributed.

“It’s about ten miles into the wilderness and you can only get there by hiking or on horseback. Not many people go, since it’s hard to access.”

“The fishing is really spectacular, with a unique population of native fish,” Beckett said. “I’m sure you’ll have a great time.”

“I hope so.”

They talked about other things while they finished the meal. She let the conversation flow around her, aware she was stalling.

“That was really delicious,” Beck said. “Thank you.”

They all carried the dishes into the small kitchen, where Ali took charge of loading them into the compact dishwasher.

When everything was cleaned up, June sat at the dining table, with several of Carson’s journals stacked up in front of her.

“Where do you want to start in our grand quest?” Beck asked.

“I have no idea,” Juniper admitted. “I was hoping you might have some ideas.”

He gave Ali a meaningful look. When she remained silent,he sighed. “We’re specifically looking at something he might have written thirty-five years ago. We know when he published his first book and his second. If he wrote and discarded another manuscript in between those two, it would have dated from that window, according to your theory.”

“Right.”

“He didn’t buy this property right away. He was married to my mom and she was expecting me when they bought it.”

“He must have brought things with him, though, right?” June asked. “I mean, he kept all the journals.”

“He never wanted to throw anything away, especially when it came to his work. During my lifetime, anyway. I can’t say what he did before that.”

She considered what she knew of her father’s things. “There are boxes of his papers all over this place. They’re a mess.”

“We just have to gather them all up. The curators at Special Collections will organize everything,” Beck said, giving her another significant look. He was obviously hoping she would get on with it.

“An unknown manuscript or any papers relating to it shouldn’t be that hard to find, if it exists. I’ll go see what I can find in the spare room.”

With another speaking look at Ali, he left the two of them alone.

“I hope you don’t think I’m being too intrusive. I might be completely off base. I mean, he’s your father. You know him better than anyone else.”

Did she? She might have thought that before the DNA test came back, but her father apparently had a past she knew nothing about.

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