Then she looks at Luna and Jim again in amazement. The dig doesn't move more than a few steps from his side. She must have noticed Molly long ago.
Only on the last meter does the Labrador rushes to her and sits down obediently. Only the wagging of the tail reveals that it is not entirely petrified.
"You won't get a treat now. You can't just run away." Molly rebukes the dog but strokes the head with relief.
"Hey," comes from Street cautiously, scratching his head a little uncertainly.
"Hey, what a surprise. What are you doing here?" asks Molly, and the surprise is only half played.
"Ah, I was relaxing on the beach after moving," he pauses for a moment and looks somehow unsure again. Molly can't help but raise an eyebrow. While he was still here to protect her he had been adamant to never want to live in LA again ever.
"Yeah, I know. Sounds wrong now, but I've seen that it makes more sense professionally to work out of LA," explains Jim as calmly as possible.
"Okay, but how did Luna find you? I mean, what are you doing on this stretch of beach that is within walking distance of my apartment."
"I found an apartment not far from here. I swear it's a coincidence, the company was looking. This young lady here," he comes a step closer and pats Luna on the shoulder, "bothered me while I was sleeping. But with good reason. A jogger had collapsed behind the dunes and Luna must have found her. "
Molly is shocked.
"Is everything all right with her?" she asks worried.
"Yes, the paramedics have taken her with them and I continued to walk my dog," he looks at Molly apologetically. "I didn't want to explain why I'm out with a lawyer's dog and I have no way of calling you without my business phone."
He adds the last part after Molly frowns questioningly again.
"Okay, back to your move then. Into the neighborhood. How long have you been here?" Molly asks further, also to find out what had just happened.
Jim scratches his head again uncomfortably caught "A week, pretty much now."
Molly can't help but take a short, sharp breath. Oh, God.
"Oh, and you couldn't reach out?" the tone was a little reproachful. He should know that she knew about the attempted conversation between him and Chris.
Jim grimaces a little ashamed. "Molly, you can't understand that. But if Chris doesn't want something, it doesn't matter if I'm here or on the other side of the world."
"I think you misunderstood her message." Molly just replies and then calls Luna over.
She just walks away and leaves him there.
After a few yards, Molly feels a hand on her shoulder. "What do you mean?" Street is a bit confused and looks at her questioningly.
Molly closes her eyes for a moment and tries to make a decision. Chris had asked her not to say anything.
Fortunately, Street continues, in an almost relieved tone. "She really wants to talk about ...? Then I can drop by later?"
And there it was the perfect cue, but Molly is still struggling. She couldn't betray Chris like that, could she?
"No, if you come by today you won't find her," she says with a smile.
"Oh, weekend shift?" Street asks and Molly shakes her head again. "No, I drove her to the airport last night. She wanted to visit old friends over the weekend."
Molly sees his expression slip a little. "But maybe you just write to her and you agree on a time when you both have enough time. You have a little something to explain," says Molly as gently as possible but she still sees Jim winced.
"Jim, no Chris didn't tell me any details, just hinted that you how should I say finally," Molly tries to smile and sound optimistic, but in the back of her mind there is always the slight suspicion that she must be angry after all, "Both are ready to face your feelings and forgive me if I say that, then two misunderstandings got in your way."
Street deliberately looks at his feet for guilt. "Molly, I ... it was never ..." he starts to stutter a little indiscriminately.
" Stop, you don't have to explain anything to me right now. But you should have a good explanation for Chris why they are here and not as you wrote on the other side of the country ... " Molly tries with humor but knowing that Chris showed Molly the message makes Jim flinch again.
"Would you believe me that I just didn't expect Chris would want to talk to me and therefore didn't dare to mention that I'm here again?"
Luna chooses the exact time to search Molly's bag for her ball and then to put it in the sand in front of Jim.
Molly laughs when Jim takes the ball even after she admonished Luna, and says, "Okay, but this time I won't go swimming with you."
"You do remember that Labradors love water and that you have to go swimming?" Molly calls after him as Jim and Luna disappear towards the water.
She pulls out her phone again and writes to Chris to ask about her travel plans.
"I'm going to explore the city a bit with Buck here. We have the same flight back. And we have to talk about Luna's new buddy again ..."
Molly can't help but laugh a little.
Why Luna gained trust in Jim and Chris so quickly is still a mystery to her, but maybe the dog can then also help to lead the two back to their friendship.
Later that evening, Jim sitting in his apartment and Molly's last sentence as they parted ways won't leave him alone:
"Jim, if you also have a shred of decency in you, then you reach out to Chris and try to explain to her why you're here again and why you haven't said anything to her again. And the excuse that you didn't dare doesn't count. "
But what else could he say? He takes a deep breath and asks himself why he's so nervous. He just needs to write one simple text. Because Molly has refused to say where Chris is exactly, he had no idea what time it is there and so calling on the phone was rather inconvenient.
He wasn't even sure whether Molly would reveal that he is back in LA.
In the end, after several deleted versions, he types: " Chris, I'm moving back to LA for a variety of professional reasons. So we can meet as you please and try to talk again. "
Now all he had to do was wait if and when Chris would answer.
Chris reads the message that same evening but cannot bring himself to answer. She is just disappointed at the moment. Buck had mentioned that Street had already moved the previous week, so he already knew he was living in LA when he wrote to her.
Had Molly persuaded him or forced him to call?
That was another point that caused Chris headaches and/or stomachaches again and again. Should Molly really get along well with Street again, she would have to tell the whole truth at some point. And a bit, so Chris finds out with astonishment, she is even afraid to lose her friendship.
She takes her phone briefly and writes a message to Molly:
"When I'm back in LA I should tell you something else ... "
Molly reads the slightly cryptic message from Chris after getting up and can't quite suppress the queasy feeling in her stomach. What else did Chris want to tell her?
As always, she decides to start the day with a jog, this time also to clear her head, as she had to pick up Chris at the airport again this evening.
The greeting at the airport is warm, even if Chris is a little queasy before dinner and what she wants to say afterward. She is all set, tried a thousand variations but there is no way to sugarcoat this. Not if her friendship with Molly is supposed to have a chance. She will have to take the risk and be truthful about what happened last year.
Molly senses that Chris is restless and still insists that they eat first before they get to the "heavy" issues. During dinner, Chris tells a little about how it was to talk to Buck again and how good the break was. She also shows Molly the text message she got and Chris admits that she doesn't yet know how she will react.
A little later both of them are sitting in Chris' apartment on the sofas, each with a glass of red wine. Molly is waiting for Chris to start talking. Unfortunately, she cannot do the beginning for her. Chris runs her fingers over the edge of the glass and takes another sip before turning her gaze to Molly.
"Okay, I wrote that we still have to discuss something. I have to tell you something more."
Chris pauses and curses, why was that so difficult now.
"Last year when you asked if I knew what was going on ... " she starts again just to stop again.
Chris swallows hard and looks at her hands. "I 've lied to you."
Molly leans forward a little, puts down her glass, and grabs Chris's hand. "I'm sorry I brought you into this situation. I knew you probably knew exactly what was going on. But I also knew that you're his best friend, or were, and therefore would not break his confidence. You have nothing to apologize for. "
Chris pulls her hand away and looks up with tears in his eyes. "Yes. I have to apologize." her voice is trembling.
"When you came to me," again Chris swallows and tries to hold back the tears. "I was sure you were asking me why he ended things." Chris hangs her head and waits to see what happens. But Molly stays silent.
She hadn't expected that.
Molly sits back and stands up. Luna comments on the sudden change with a short bark. The sensitive dog had been whimpering softly the whole evening and nudging Chris for the last few minutes.
Now she was utterly confused.
Chris watches Molly with a heavy heart. And when Molly looks to the door, she can no longer hold back her tears.
"Chris, I ... I need a little time for myself. Please understand that I'm leaving now. But we can continue talking tomorrow, with a clear head." Molly's voice trembles too, but Chris nods and strokes Luna again on the head before the Labrador leaves the apartment behind Molly.
As if in a trance, she clears away the remains of the evening together and only hopes that Molly will really come back tomorrow morning.
Her phone flashes briefly with a reminder that she's invited to dinner with Deac and Annie tomorrow and then Chris goes to bed with a heavy heart.