AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I know, I know,” she said, misreading his silence. “You’re so busy with work. But Ryan, a nice young man like you should—”
“Actually, there is someone.”
“Oh, you’ve met a girl!”
“I’ve known her for a long time.”
“Friendship first,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “That’s what I always say. That’s how Timothy and I began. As friends.”
“Leilah’s the younger sister of my childhood best friend. We’ve been friends for twenty-five years.”
“Cupid finally drew an arrow, did he?”
“I think Cupid drew that arrow a long time ago. It took me a while to act on it.”
“And what does Leilah do?”
“She’s a professional race car driver.” He waited for her reaction.
She didn’t disappoint. She gasped, “My goodness, how dangerous!”
Ryan had thought so too, twenty-four hours ago. But now he knew what true danger was.
“She’s very good at what she does.”
“You sound smitten.” She took a bite of her butter cookie and gave him a knowing look.
He drained his cup of tea and she took the hint. “Well, I should let you get back to your work.”
He helped her load the tray and offered to carry it to the kitchen for her, but she waved him away. “Nonsense. It’ll give me something to do.”
Before she bustled out of the room, he said, “I enjoyed our chat, Maggie.”
She beamed at his use of her first name.
As she closed the door behind her, he heard her greeting someone in the hallway. He blinked in surprise. In all the years that he’d been coming to the archives, he could count on the fingers of one hand how many times there’d been another visitor. Maggie would be thrilled if someone had finally developed an interest in the copious diaries, bills of lading, and weather reports that filled the drawers of the reading room.
He flipped his pages back over to return to his fruitless and frustrating review. The door opened, and a shadow fell between him and the light from the windows.
“Finding anything interesting?” a familiar voice asked.
He blinked and jerked his head up. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, I’m not here to research the life and times of Seamus McGillicuddy,” Leilah snarked. “I’m looking for you. I guess I found you.”
“No. You shouldn’t be here.”
“Yet here I am.”
“It’s not safe for you to be here, Leilah. Someone blew up my car.”
“I know. I had to hear it from my friends.”
Her voice shook with anger, but he could tell that her outrage was a mask designed to conceal other, more unsettling emotions like worry and fear.
“I can see that you’re upset, and I’m sorry about that. But I had to get out of town, and everyone agreed that letting you know what was going on would put you in danger. Scratch that. It would put you inmoredanger.”
“I’m not a child. I can take care of myself.”
