Karina Bliss - What the Librarian Did

“A couple of days into term, but I couldn’t say anything to him. As far as I knew, his parents had never told him he was adopted.”

“He found out on his own. They still don’t realize.”

That explained why they’d never contacted her. If it wasn’t for Devin Rachel might never have found out Mark knew he was adopted, let alone looking for her. Thank God for him. She felt a rush of gratitude, affection.

“So the first date…it wasn’t payback for teasing you. You were trying to assess whether I was a bad influence?”

Rachel swallowed. She guessed where this was leading. “Yes.”

Devin said slowly, “And you agreed to a second date-?”

“It wasn’t a date. Remember? I was very clear about that.” The facts and nothing but the facts. “I hadn’t made up my mind about you, and platonic kept things simple.”

His forehead creased in a frown. “So you slept with me because…?”

It was her turn to look out into the rain, lessening now to desultory drizzle. “I’d…revised my poor opinion of you, obviously.”

“Obviously?” Devin turned her to face him. “You knew I spend a lot of time with him. Dating me meant you would, too.”

That stung, but Rachel wasn’t here to fight with Devin again. Far from it. “You really don’t trust people’s motives in being with you, do you?”

His gaze didn’t waver from her face.

“Okay,” she conceded. “The unvarnished truth. I won’t say your ‘usefulness’ didn’t bother me, which is why I held off getting romantically involved.”

“Maybe you could have tried harder.”

Her heart started to pound. “When I accused you of trying to seduce me the other night, you said you’d changed your mind-until I changed it back.” She coaxed him with a rueful smile. “Can’t I succumb to the same temptation?”

Devin wanted to smile in return, he really did. But he’d been screwed over so many times.

Rachel’s tentative smile faded. She dropped her eyes, but not before he’d seen the hurt in them. Instinctively, he reached out a hand.

Head still down, she said, “I’m not asking you to lie to Mark, but…”

Devin returned his hands to the pockets of his denim jacket. “Stay out of it?”

Sun broke through the clouds, glinted off the wet trees.

“It’s a lot to ask,” she admitted.

“No,” he said. “Staying out of it is exactly what I want to do.”

There was a moment’s silence. That was the thing about intelligent women. They didn’t need things spelled out when a guy moved on. But he didn’t want to hurt her. “The thing is, Rachel, I’ve had a complicated couple of years.” Understatement.

“And you want a simple life.”

He wouldn’t sugarcoat this. “Yes.”

“I completely understand,” she said briskly. “This is my mess and I’m sorry for dragging you into it.” She gestured to the open doors and they stepped from the gloom into the brighter world outside. Smiling, she held out her hand. “No hard feelings?” The woman had guts.

Devin returned the handshake. “No hard feelings.”

FOR THE NEXT THREE DAYS Devin watched Rachel campaign for Mark’s friendship with a desperate cheerfulness that made him grit his teeth and turn away. He wasn’t getting involved.

But dear God, didn’t the woman know how to play it cool? Stupid question.

Around Mark she acted like one of those annoyingly cute little terriers, all wagging tail and eager friendliness as it frisked around your ankles, getting underfoot and gazing up at you with bright eyes begging, Pat me. Pat me. Pat me!

Okay, that was an exaggeration-the librarian was a little taller than that and her tail was always worth watching. But it felt that bad to Devin. Maybe because he knew how much was at stake. Normally Rachel understood teenagers, but in her need for Mark’s approval, she was doing it all wrong. And this was too important for a misstep.

On Wednesday Devin gave up and frog-marched a protesting Rachel into her office.

“What are you doing? I have inventory to clear.”

Devin kicked the door shut behind him. “I’m staging an intervention before you completely screw this up with Mark.”

Immediately she was defensive. “I’m not.”

“Whenever he comes into the library you drop everything to fawn all over him, and giggle at his lame jokes. Hell, he just told me you even let him borrow reference books that are supposed to stay in the library.”

“I’m authorized to exercise my discretion.” She took refuge behind her desk, behind an attitude of polite condescension. “Was that all?”

“No.” Eyeing her with exasperation, Devin sat down and rested his boots on her desk. “So you really don’t think your approach with Mark is over the top?”

Frowning, Rachel shoved his boots off. “I fuss over lots of students.”

“You don’t offer to lend them your car.”

“It was raining yesterday and he didn’t have a coat, plus his bag was particularly heavy…”

“Uh-huh.” Devin put his boots on her desk again. “He’s worried you’re looking for a boy toy.”

She’d been about to shove his feet off again, instead her fingers tightened around his boots in a viselike grip. “That’s ridiculous,” she said faintly.

“That’s what I said.” Devin could feel her nails digging through the soft leather. Scratching his eight hundred dollar boots. Gently, he wiggled them free and returned them to the floor. “Fortunately, Trixie had already pooh-poohed the idea.”

“Thank God.”

“Trixie-” Devin paused, waiting until Rachel looked at him “-told Mark that you’ve only gone a little crazy since I dumped you. Apparently you miss me.”

Her gaze slid away from his, then returned blazing. “Wait a minute. Who said you dumped me?”

He had the answer to his unspoken question. “Hey, don’t blame me. All I said was that we had philosophical differences. It’s not my fault if Trixie and Mark read that as “Rachel wouldn’t put out so Devin dumped her.’”

“I wouldn’t put…Mark thought…oh, this is horrible.” Her defiance spluttered and went out. “Okay, I’ll try and pull back my approach.” She started playing with a paper clip on her desk.

“Tell him the truth, Heartbreaker.”

“His parents are coming up next Friday… He’s bound to show them around campus.” Painstakingly, she pulled at the thin metal, stretching it out. “I was going to take a short leave, but we have our annual budget meeting and when it comes to lobbying for your section’s textbooks, it’s dog eat dog.”

“It’s pronounced dawg.”

She smiled but her fingers twisted the paper clip into a tortured Z. “I know I have to tell Mark before then. It’s just, well, we haven’t got the friendship I’d hoped for.”

Devin leaned forward and rescued the paper clip. “How about I invite you both to Waiheke for the weekend? Mark would jump at the offer and it would give you the chance to spend time together in a more natural way.”

“Why would you do that?”

He’d missed her, and it seemed she’d missed him, but one of them knew how to play it cool. So he told her half the truth. “We’re still friends, aren’t we?”

She gave him a crooked smile. “Friends.”

IT SEEMED APT, thought Rachel, as the ferry docked at Matiatia Wharf on Waiheke early Saturday morning, that Devin lived on an island. She wondered if he realized the significance. With Mark beside her, she disembarked, searching for Devin’s tall figure in the crowd.

“There’s Katherine.” Mark waved to the slight figure at the end of the pier. “Devin’s mother.” In white capris and a turquoise T-shirt with matching jewelry, Katherine waved back.