Dani frowned. Right, because she was a much more high-profile employee than Dani. Normally, Dani didn’t worry about jockeying for position with the League. But something about Maureen’s demeanor, like Dani’d had the job swiped out from under her, was sticking in Dani’s craw. And the fact that Maureen was writing her own book on rifts? Well, that was just the cherry on the crap sundae of her morning.

“Well, you look like you’re just getting started. I barely detected secondary pulses or reverberatory waves. Have you done any repairs at all?”

Dani had been working in this field for five years, and she’d never heard any of the words that were coming out of Maureen Sherman’s mouth. Was Dani really so badly educated or was Sherman being a pretentious twit?

“No, I didn’t want to rush and make any mistakes. A job done without preparation is dangerous and half-done,” Dani said.

“And a job done with too much preparation is rarely done at all,” Maureen told her.

Seriously, this woman was courting a double boob punch.

“I don’t mean to get in your way, certainly. I’ve been out here most of the morning, so I’ll just pop back to town and leave you to it.”

“All right then,” said Dani.

“It was nice to meet you, dear.”

Dani hummed, but didn’t returned the sentiment. Even with the politeness her Gramma had tried to drill into her bones, Dani didn’t regret for one second that it was anything but nice to meet Maureen Sherman.

Dani turned her back on the woman, listening for signs she was sneaking up behind Dani again. But Sherman shuffled through the high grass, away from her. And no matter how hard Dani tried to concentrate over the next hour, she couldn’t focus on the work in front of her. Dani wasn’t prone to letting distraction derail her work, but with her grandfather’s farm hanging in the balance, she couldn’t help but feel anxiety creep up her throat like icy fingers. Maureen Sherman’s presence nagged at her until she had to pack up her things, stomp back through the over-blown flowers and drive back to town in her newly rented car.

She knew that hiring Miss Sherman wasn’t meant to be personal. It was the League’s dime to spend however they wanted, as long as Maureen’s work didn’t interfere with hers. She thought that Jillian accepted her thoughtful approach to the rift problem. She thought Jillian appreciated her work. There was no reason for the League to send in backup. It felt like having a teacher she no longer needed double-checking her classwork.