Of course, Harper knew that it shouldn’t matter what Marcy said to Daniel. In fact, it would be better if Marcy told him something that would turn him off of her forever. She didn’t have time to get involved with him. Since he hadn’t called and told her he’d found anything about Gemma in a voice mail, Harper thought it was a safe bet that this was a social call, and it probably would be better if Marcy got rid of him for her.

But then … Harper didn’t want that, either. She knew she didn’t have time to like him, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t like him. She just wished she didn’t.

Harper did a slipshod job of the last quarter of the book, and she made a promise to herself that she would make it up to the kids at the next story time. But none of the kids complained. They seemed happy just to have an excuse to roar.

Some of the children and their parents tried to talk to her after she’d finished the story, and Harper did her best not to rush them. She smiled and reminded them about the next story time in July. When a mother told her how much she loved Maurice Sendak, Harper even recommended other books she should check out.

But the very second she could, Harper extracted herself from the children’s corner and went over to the front desk, where Daniel was still talking with Marcy.

“No, I don’t doubt that,” Daniel was saying, laughing at something Marcy had said.

Marcy, for her part, wore her usual blank expression, giving Harper no indication of what they could’ve possibly been talking about.

“Hi,” Harper said, and her voice sounded oddly high-pitched to her own ears, so she rushed to correct it. “Hi. Um, were you looking for a book?”

Daniel had been leaning forward, his arms resting on the desk, but he turned so he could face Harper, leaving one elbow on the counter. His smile widened when he saw her, and she noticed the fading cuts on his cheek.

When Penn had been that awful bird-monster on Bernie’s Island, Daniel had rushed in with a pitchfork to defend both Harper and her younger sister. But Penn had lashed out, scratching him across the cheek with her claws.

That memory both tightened her heart and warmed it. The horror of the monsters still frightened her, but knowing that Daniel had put himself in harm’s way to protect her … it was hard not to feel something for him.

“What book were you reading them?” Daniel asked, pointing to where she’d been for story time. “Because that looked like a lot of fun.”