It wasn’t what she expected.
“For what?”
He looked over at her briefly before turning his attention to the road again. “For a lot of things.” He cleared his throat. “We’ve never really talked about it, you and me. About your sister.”
The little hole of emptiness opened up in her again, the way it always did when she thought of Rebecca. “It was easier not to.”
“It was wrong. Your mother—she’s never gotten over it. She worries and frets that something terrible is going to happen, you know?”
“And you?”
He was silent for a moment. “We were unfair to you, Ally. We put all our hopes for Becca on you, and that wasn’t fair. You were all we had left. We wanted everything for you and we pushed, rather than accepting you for who you are.”
Ally was stunned. She’d always felt like she was in Becca’s shadow, even after Becca was gone. Becca had been the straight-A student. She’d been the overachiever. It had been difficult enough when she was living, harder when she was gone. She missed her sister and at the same time her parents had made everything feel closed in. She’d understood it, and she wasn’t angry about it. It was part of the reason she’d never rebelled, never argued back.
Life had never been the same after Becca was gone. It was just a relief now to get it out in the open.
“Dad,” she said softly, feeling closer to him than she ever had before.
“Chris was right yesterday. What it took for you to open the shelter in the first place, that was real entrepreneurship without the financial reward. You’re capable of far more than we gave you credit for. Far more than you realize yourself. You’ve got a good heart, Ally. Your mother and I should have been prouder, more supportive.”
“You were right too,” she admitted. “I need to stop hiding behind things. The shelter was the one thing I believed in, but it also meant I didn’t truly have to get out there on my own. You guys were my safety net. It’s time for me to grow up.”
“If you want to start the shelter again, I’ll help you.” He pulled in to a strip mall and parked the car in front of Cora’s restaurant.
She turned in the seat and stared at him. “You mean that?”
He nodded.
The vote of confidence meant so much to her. “I’ll think about it. I’m looking at a lot of possibilities, Dad.”
“And there’s Chris to consider.”
She looked away. “That’s up in the air too…”
Her dad killed the engine and silence enveloped the car. After a moment, he cleared his throat. “After yesterday—”
“Nothing’s decided,” she said.
There was another awkward silence.
“Ally, when you and Chris broke off the engagement…you know your mother and I were disappointed. Chris is a good man. I know you had your reasons for breaking it off. And you were both so young. But now…what’s holding you back?”
Her fingers trembled and she clasped them together in her lap. “Dad, I just came from the hospital. He loves what he does, so how could I ask him to quit? I’m scared. When he was gone last night, I couldn’t sleep. And when Constable Givens came to the door…” She shuddered. “I’m not sure I’m up to that. Not after Becca. Because I love him. And I don’t ever want to get that knock on the door. I don’t know how I’d survive it.”
“Oh, sweetie.”
“So that’s it. I’m a big coward and I know it. Truthfully, I’ve been looking at my options, and more and more it seems like going away might be the best plan. I’ve been looking into the vet-tech course at the college.”
He reached over and patted her hand. “That sounds more like running away than a solution, Ally.”
“Maybe. Maybe it’s just too hard being in the same town. It can feel awfully small around here.”
Ernie sighed. “Well, whatever you decide, we’ll support you. And first thing is going to be buying you breakfast. Seems to me you always liked the ham and egg panini here.”
The thought of it made her stomach growl. The two slices of frozen pizza were long gone and she was suddenly starving. “It’s a deal,” she answered, reaching for the door handle.
Ally knew she couldn’t put the talk off. Chris had said he loved her. She’d honestly thought she could handle it all this time, but she’d been wrong. Her dad might call it running away, but she knew leaving was best. Otherwise they’d just be torturing each other, wouldn’t they?