Anna stood and left the room without saying a word.

"I told her we'd need some privacy. Now I need you to answer honestly so I can help you and Anna."

"I don't want my daughter to miss out on life because she's a mother. I don't regret my choices, but I want more for her. I don't want to be spending her college fund on diapers. It's bad enough I'm paying for airfare."

"Was she exaggerating about the situation at home?"

"No, I can't do anything in town except go to work. They have torn our town apart. The folks supporting Anna tell me quietly. They're too afraid to speak out."

"So you'd prefer adoption."

"Yes, but I would never force it. The thing is, I always thought I'd have more children. I just never met the right woman. If I managed to, how could I have a baby if I tell Anna I don't want hers?"

"There is a huge difference between having a child with a woman you love and raising your grandchild at what thirty...?"

"Thirty-five."

"My goal is for Anna to make the right decision on her own. We only have a few moments. Do you have any questions for me?"

Mike didn't have to think. "Is she happy here? I worry about her."

"She misses you, but she is content."

"What about the other boy... Cole?"

"She has never mentioned a concern. My turn. Will there be a trial?"

"I don't know. They're waiting on DNA results."

"Let me know because I'll need to prepare her."

Mike nodded and groaned. "When will this ever end?"

"Just keep loving her."

She stood and ushered him to the door their time was up.

They stepped into the parking lot. "Do you want to go out to dinner?" Anna shrugged. "We could get takeout and eat it in Maribelle's kitchen."

"Can we?" Anna asked excitedly.

He nodded. "And you can even do your homework. I'll let Alison know we aren't coming. Bryan's working."

"I know his schedule, Dad." Anna sounded like a moody teenager. He had missed that.

"Do you want to talk about anything from our meeting?"

Anna was tired and had thought about it too much. "I don't know... not really."

If she avoided her problem, it might go away. That was just being stupid. One thing she had learned about was seeing her baby if she gave it to someone else.

She was glad to have some time with her father away from the house, because things had been weird with Cole. He was nice to her at school but ignored her at home most of the time. Except sometimes he would talk to her but always when no one else was around.

She had seen him with Cassie a few times, but she had also seen Cassie with her tongue down some senior's throat. She wondered if Cole knew.

"Anna."

She looked up to see her father handing her a plate of Chinese food. The food came from a place that didn't use MSG. Anna was hungry, and they ate in silence.

"Are you okay, baby girl?"

"Yeah. Daddy, I'm glad you're here."

She reluctantly took out her math homework. "I hope you don't need help because I don't understand what you're doing."

She wondered what her father would have studied if she hadn't prevented him from attending college. Before she could ask, Mari appeared.

"Anna!" She seemed surprised to see her.

"We have extra Chinese if you're hungry." Mike smiled at her.

Mari didn't answer and Anna encouraged. "Eat it. I'm almost done."

"Okay." She wandered over and looked over Anna shoulder. "Number ten factors. Try negative three times twelve."

"How did you see that so quickly?"

"And how do you remember high school math?" Mike looked baffled.

"I took lots of calculus in college."

"What do you do?" Anna had never asked about her job.

"I'm a technical writer."

Anna asked, "Did you study that in college?"

"Not so much but I went to school for engineering."

Mike looked surprised but Maribelle didn't want to volunteer that it was electrical engineering.

Anna started to tell her about how she liked computers and Mari watched as Mike's face switched from looking upset, proud, and amused throughout Anna's conversation with her.

Too soon Mike announced he would walk Anna home.

"Do you want to walk with us?" Anna asked.

"No, thanks, honey. It's cold and dark."

Maribelle had no intention of explaining that she never left the house. She waved to Anna and rinsed her plate and reluctantly returned upstairs. Why did she want to stay downstairs? She knew the answer. It was simple, she wanted to be with him.

It reminded her of when she met Charlie. Davis had insisted that she act as his date to an investor's dinner party. He had just met Abigail, but she wasn't giving him the time of day. Davis wanted Abigail to notice him and hoped that if he appeared with another woman on his arm, she might. Davis' words were 'another beautiful woman' but having Ruby as a mother Mari had never felt beautiful. She was more aware of every individual flaw than what others saw. Dr. Freeman would say that it was still that way even though Mari knew she would never be 'another beautiful woman' again.

The dinner was at Charlie's parents' house. He looked handsome and bored. Mari knew who he was, but it surprised her when he knew her. She remembered the first words he spoke to her. "Do you often date your brother?"

She smiled. "We're not dating but if it makes someone jealous to think so all the better."

He was smooth and said, "I think I'm jealous. You should have dinner with me tomorrow night to make up for it."

One dinner turned into many and after six months, she had given up her apartment and was living in his newly renovated home. Ruby suddenly had time for her daughter, because she more than approved of Charlie. The last night when Mari slept in his house, the only thing she was missing in her life was a diamond ring on her finger. She had loved him and was certain of her happy future.

Shaking her head to push the memories away, she tried to do some work but Ruby filled her thoughts. Mari had thought she would finally have a relationship with her mother, especially once she became Charlie's wife. Really how could Ruby find fault with her then? Her mother wanted nothing to do with the woman under the hood. Ruby breathed a sigh of relief when Mari announced she was planning to live alone in Maine. Mari knew if she asked, her mother would say that it was Mari's fault that she lost Charlie.

Her thoughts stirred up too much emotion to work, and she knew sleep would not come easy but the nightmares would. She descended the stairs, hoping to calm herself. It surprised her to see Mike sitting up reading. She had never known any men who read, so he fascinated her even more. The mystery around him and Anna was one thing that could keep her mind off of her own past. She couldn't figure out why Anna lived here. Obviously, father and daughter loved each other. Spending time with them, she was reminded once again of her own father. She could see that Anna loved Mike like she loved her father. She missed her father.

"How's the book?"

He looked up. His eyes always seemed to find hers. She never felt like he was looking at her hood because he was looking into her eyes. It made her feel like the old Mari, like the woman who thought she would marry her handsome boyfriend.

"It's alright. I had that nap and now I'm not tired. I was thinking about my day."

"Did you and Anna have fun after school?" She didn't know where they had gone.

"Fun." He paused as if thinking about the definition of the word. "Not fun, but we did something that we needed to do."

"You're a mystery Michael Bassett." She didn't know why she spoke her thoughts out loud and it sounded as if she were flirting.

He laughed. "Mari, you're the mystery. A math whiz!"

"Not really but I'll let you think it."

"An engineer, huh. What kind?"

Mari could tell the truth and he would know that she knew more than he did about circuits and could have wired the plug. "You know a girl needs her secrets."

He smiled and nodded. Like his daughter, he seemed committed to keeping his own secrets.

Curious she posed another question. "Why did you come this week instead of vacation week when Anna didn't have school?"

He paused. He seemed to be intentional in his responses. "I couldn't get away."

Mike couldn't tell her that this was the week that Anna had an ultrasound. He was anything but excited about the prospect of seeing the baby. He was too young to be a grandparent. Somehow he knew that after the scan that baby would be real to him no matter what Anna decided. He feared that she would fall in love with it which was something that she hadn't seemed to have done. Sometimes he thought about Shelby's original suggestion. That wouldn't have solved their problems, because Anna still wouldn't have been able to live in Turner. Dealing with a teen pregnancy was hard enough, but being ostracized made it so much more difficult.

He watched as Mari went to the slider and opened the door. The cold air rushed in. He wondered when it would warm up in Maine, especially on The Point where it was always windy. She seemed to meditate much like she had the night he first saw her looking up at the stars.

He didn't want to interrupt and had to force himself not to go stand behind her. He was attracted to her. His gut told him she would not welcome him if he invaded her space. Instead, he quietly watched her and when she turned around, she nodded to him and walked toward the stairs.

The sun streamed in and woke Mike. The day before had been overcast, so he welcomed the rays. He had gone to bed right after Mari and had tossed and turned most of the night. His best sleep came in the early hours of the morning. He was looking forward to his walk for coffee. Because Mari always seemed pleased that he brought her a cup, he would continue. He liked to see her smile. It caused a physical reaction that he hadn't had in a very long time.

Anna was being dismissed early for her appointment so Mike needed to take care of the oil change that morning. He was waiting at the express lube when his phone rang.

"Hey Jake."

"Mike, the DNA came back."