"Yeah," Dean answered. "Cynthia's always accusing me of being too pushy."
"He has trouble minding his own business," Cynthia added with a smile.
"Josh Mulligan was my natural father," Jennifer said. "Paul- my husband-knew this from the very start."
Dean took a deep breath at the news. "Then meeting Paul Dawkins wasn't unplanned? He sought you out?"
Jennifer paused, choosing her words carefully. "Yes and no. He knew who I was when we first talked at the basketball game, but it was years later he told me about it." She took a deep breath. "Josh Mulligan was Paul's mine manager at the Lucky Pup. He was cheating Paul and Paul found out. Paul was about to fire him, and perhaps more." Dean could imagine the more as Jennifer continued. "Josh and my mother were involved-she was Edith Plotke. Of course her father went ballistic when he found out she was pregnant and tried to find Josh, but he didn't have any luck. Grandfather Ed Plotke learned Josh worked for Paul Dawkins and he wrote to Paul in California. Paul felt responsible for Josh's quick exit and when Ed talked about leaving Ouray with his family, Paul arranged for the Plotkes to come to California. He found Ed a job, I think. My grandparents didn't stay long-a year or two-and then they moved to Denver. By then, my mother was a single mom but she'd met my stepfather-my only real father-and she opted to remain in California. They were married and we were all starting a good life together. Paul was aware of who we were but had no contact over the years-he had no reason to. He had done his small part in helping Ed Plotke get to California-that's all. I don't think my mother knew about Paul. Grandfather Ed was the one who made contact with Paul. I suppose Paul recognized my name, either before or soon after we first met, back when I was a teenager."
"Why didn't he say something?"
"We'd sort of made a pact that our lives began when we met each other so the past wasn't discussed much, if at all. Frankly, we didn't need to talk about history. Current events-our present life-was all we wanted."
Dean wondered if there was another, more sinister reason for Paul Dawkins' silence on the subject-that he was the murderer of his wife's natural father. His face must have given away his thoughts. Jennifer read his mind.
"I know what you're thinking, but hear me out. I wish you'd known Paul. Then you'd understand. He knew I was adopted by my stepfather, but he wasn't sure what I'd been told, so he just kept quiet. By the time we became an item, my mother was dead and there was no reason in his mind to resurrect old ghosts." She thought a moment. "He explained it all after we were married. We were in Hawaii and pretty mellowed out on one of those perfect beach nights, watching the moon dance on the incoming surf."