The Librarian Principle (15 page)

“
Okay, I’ll stop. But you need to come see me and get away from the drama. Can you come this weekend? Maybe we can make a plan for you to get a job in New York again so you don’t have to see that dick-smack every day.”

Talk of moving back to the city tightened Liese’s chest. “I can’t leave my position in the middle of the semester.”

“
You can if you have a new one. We’ll deal with that this weekend, after I get you drunk enough to spill all the sordid details.”

“
Good luck with that,” Liese said, glad to be off the topic of leaving. She’d already run away from one problem, and that hadn’t worked out very well. Sean was still harassing her, even across state lines.

They finalized plans for the weekend, and Liese promised to call if any further issues arose during the week.

Later that evening, she went to check her email, but realized she’d left her laptop in Ryder’s bedroom. She also still had his house key. If things got much worse, moving back to NYC might be her only option. She contemplated driving to his house to reclaim her laptop and return the key, but she worried she might break down in front of him. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her weakness.

Ryder was out of the office on Wednesday, preventing any chance of running into him. Heedless of the consequences, she dropped the key, inside its envelope, in his school mailbox and left a note requesting her laptop’s expedient return. In defiance, she didn’t sign it.

By Thursday morning, she still hadn’t received a response, which infuriated her. The least he could do was acknowledge her, even if he did regret having given in to temptation.

Marissa called the same day to deliver more bad news. A new project had come her way with a short deadline, and she had to cancel their weekend plans. She apologized profusely, and they rescheduled for the following weekend, but it meant time alone for Liese to wallow. She woke up in a pissy mood on Friday, only to be sucker-punched with more disappointment when she discovered her laptop on her front porch—no note attached. She opened it, stupidly hoping to find something hidden inside, only to be disappointed further.

“
Asshole,” she said under her breath as she stomped to her car. The wheels sprayed stones as she floored it down her driveway. She blared industrial rock and fumed all the way to work. The itch to break something, preferably over Ryder’s head, burgeoned along with her anger. His actions reeked of cowardice. Her impression of him had done a one-eighty in less than a week. To say she hadn’t wanted more than a fling would be a lie, no matter how unlikely or unwise she’d known it to be from the beginning, and the way he’d discarded her like a one-night stand hurt more than she cared to admit. He had to expect a confrontation eventually. And he was sure as hell going to get one.

Unable to contain her frustration, she slammed her car into park and stalked to the front office. Ryder couldn’t avoid a real conversation forever, and he needed to be taken down a notch. His door was closed, so Liese approached Betty. She plastered a smile on her face and hoped it looked natural.

“
Hi, Betty.” Aggravation made her restless, and she rapped her fingernails on the desk top.

“
I just called your office.” Betty smiled in return, apparently pleased to see her. “I expect you’re looking for Ryder.”

Liese tried to mask her surprise. Anger turned to suspicion. Had he planned this? She wouldn’t put it past him to orchestrate a drop off in order to avoid a conversation that might get heated. In his office, she’d have to keep her temper under control. “He’s here then?” she asked through gritted teeth.

“
I’m afraid not.” Betty lowered her voice. “He’s been out all week at the board office in Montgomery County. He didn’t expect to be gone so much. He called this morning and requested a meeting with you at the end of the day. Can I tell him you’ll be available?”

“
You sure can.” A meeting at the end of the day worked well. If timed right, the office staff would be gone, and she could give him a proper piece of her mind—provided she could stay angry that long and not slide back into her pond of self-pity. As she left the office, she wondered why he hadn’t held onto her laptop until they spoke. Maybe he thought she might bash him in the face with it.

By the time afternoon rolled around, Liese was antsy. And she’d amassed quite a list of colorful names to throw at Ryder for their meeting. During her planning period, she took a break to grab a cup of tea from the staff lounge. Not surprisingly, her stomach had been in knots all day. She ran into Blake, who was filling his jumbo coffee mug.

“
We’re going for drinks after work. You’ll be there, right?” he asked.

Liese sighed, annoyed that Ryder’s impromptu meeting would infringe on her social time. “I’ll be there. I might be a little late, though. I have a meeting.”

Blake pulled a face, but the bell rang before he had a chance to ask questions, and he rushed off to teach his class.

Lost in thought, Liese left the staff lounge and crashed into another body, sloshing hot tea all over her arm and the floor. “Ow! Oh, God, I’m so sorry!” She inhaled a very familiar scent and looked up to find Ryder.

“
We need to talk before you leave today,” he said through clenched teeth. He looked beyond her.

Liese looked over her shoulder, half expecting to find someone there, but the corridor was empty. She turned back to him, their eyes locking. All the fury drained out of her as images of what she’d let him do and how he’d left things washed over her, rendering her tongue-tied and insecure.

“
Yes, sir,” she said timidly. She hated how weak he made her feel in that moment.

“
I look forward to it, Ms. Harper.” He stepped around her, his fingers brushing her hip as he passed.

Diffidence gave way to black anger in the wake of his touch. She had no idea what kind of game he was playing, but she wasn’t about to let it continue.

Blake popped his head in the door after last bell. “Don’t let your meeting keep you too long,” he said, pointedly not asking anything further about it.

“
Oh, believe me, I won’t.” She grabbed her purse and locked up. She’d get this over with as quickly as possible, then drown her emotions in martinis. Blake walked her to the office, stopping to talk to Betty as Liese knocked on Ryder’s closed door. Her nerves had fired up again, but at least this time they were tempered by a healthy dose of pissed.

Ryder opened the door and moved aside to allow her entrance. “Come in, Ms. Harper.”

“
I’ll save you a seat,” Blake called, louder than necessary. He winked at her before turning to Ryder, his grin widening. “Have a good weekend, Whitehall.”

Ryder didn’t respond, just closed the door once Liese was inside.

And then he locked it.

Ryder crowded her, his expression grim as he occupied too much of her personal space. Liese refused to back down, though. She wanted to win this staring contest. He looked irritatingly sexy in his navy suit and electric blue tie. The fact that she noticed those details incensed her further.

“
Why the hell does he always have to be near you? He’s like a fucking mosquito.”

“
Pardon me?” Liese crossed her arms over her chest. She didn’t like his tone one bit.

“
Stone. I can’t stand that pompous asshole.” Ryder glared at the closed door as if he could still feel Blake’s presence on the other side.

“
He’s my friend, and he treats me with decency and respect, unlike some people I know,” she retorted. “You wanted to see me?”

He inspected his tie, adjusted it, and then looked at her. “You’ve been avoiding me,” he said, his tone accusatory.

“
How can I avoid you when you’re not even in the building?” She didn’t need to own up to the fact that all week she’d arrived at the bell and left as soon as the day was over. He hadn’t been there to notice anyway.

“
How do you know I haven’t been in the building?”

“
Betty told me. You’ve hardly been in at all this week. It’s pretty difficult to avoid someone who isn’t here.”

“
So you wanted to know where I was,” he murmured. Liese couldn’t be sure the comment was meant for her until he asked with honest curiosity: “Did you miss me?”

“
What?” She gaped at him.

“
Never mind.” Ryder waved a dismissive hand, his face turning red.

Liese couldn’t get a handle on his motive for asking. If he’d thought they could pick things up right where they’d left off Tuesday morning, he was mistaken.

“
I wanted to see you tonight,” he said, looking at the floor.

“
Are you
kidding me
?” Liese hissed. She wished she could yell. She wished she could slap his pretty face, but with her luck one of the secretaries would hear. As much as she wanted to embarrass him, exposing their affair would be equally detrimental to her.

“
Why would I be kidding about wanting to see you?” Ryder lifted his head. “I thought maybe we could have dinner together. I could cook again.”

Liese raised her hand in the air, right in front of his face. “Absolutely not. You don’t want to
see
me, you want to
fuck
me, and that,
Mr. Whitehall
, isn’t going to happen ever again.” Even as she said it, she couldn’t be certain of the truth in that statement. Angry though she was, the chemistry between them was hard to ignore. Her body remembered the feel of his hands and his mouth even as her mind tried to shut down the images.

“
I’m sorry? I . . .” Ryder sputtered. “I can’t lie. I’ve certainly thought about what it would be like to be inside you again—incessantly, in fact. But that’s not the only reason I want to see you.” He paused, running his hand through his hair. “Maybe you’d rather me take you out somewhere for dinner instead? That way you’re assured I’ll be on my best behavior.”