Last Chance Harbor Read Online Free Page B

innocence. His eyes darted to the little brunette’s left hand. Her ring finger was bare. Of course, that didn’t mean anything he reminded himself—and thought of Bethany. That put the kibosh on his attraction. When he noticed Logan was talking to him, he pulled out of his daze, feeling like an idiot. When would he ever learn?
    “But hey, why don’t you give Julianne the tour of the areas we’ve gutted so far, show her the blueprints. Maybe get her take on the layout we’re planning.”
    “Me? Why me?”
    “Because you have better manners than Drake or Paul in mixed company. And Zach and Troy are in the back unloading a shipment of dry wall and flooring,” Logan returned easily.
    “Ah, okay.” Ryder steered her away from the auditorium slash cafeteria to the front of the building where the administrative offices would get a revamp. He figured the woman should at least get a good look at where she planned to spend most of her day.
    His principal certainly hadn’t resembled Julianne Dickinson. Not even close. As Ryder recalled Mr. Pointer had possessed a big nose to go with his pot belly and a mean streak toward boys who broke the rules. Even in fourth grade, Ryder had a tendency to break the rules. Which meant he had done all he could to avoid landing on Mr. Pointer’s radar.
    He looked over at the pretty brunette walking beside him. “I was just thinking about my own days spent in the principal’s office. You look nothing like beak-nosed Mr. Pointer.”
    She stifled a chuckle. “Ah, and what did Mr. Pointer look like?”
    “Mean, with beady eyes. I’m sure he was into something seedy and sinister. Of course, that’s the take of a ten-year-old who was usually in trouble for something or other. I’ve matured since then.”
    This time she burst into a laugh. “Oh, I can see you’ve moved on.”
    “You’re much too young to be a principal,” Ryder observed. “You must be coming from another school.” Okay, that might’ve been one of the dumbest things he’d said to a female since sixth grade. Why all of a sudden did he feel like the biggest half-wit within seventy-five miles?
    “I’m from Santa Cruz. And right now I teach first grade.” Inexplicably nervous, she went on, “I think they gave me the job because my experience is with young children. And let’s face it. Pelican Pointe is brimming with a good many kids enrolled in kindergarten and first grade for the fall classes. But that’s a good thing because they’ll get to progress together year after year for the duration they’re here. It’s the upper grades, fifth and sixth, that we’re having trouble filling out and which may prevent us from becoming the public facility we want. And you probably don’t want to know any of this,” Julianne huffed out.
    “On the contrary, anything that pertains to the school is our priority-one for the next six months.”
    “Then I’ll need a place to do interviews. I’d like to take the potential candidates on a walk-through of the place, have them get a feel for how wonderful it’s going to be.”
    He took out the schematics, went over the design. “How about setting you up right about here, near the side door for now, so you can have easy access during business hours?”
    “That’ll work.”
    “Will you be disappointed if it turns out the school becomes a private institution?”
    “Not at all.”
    About that time, someone shouted, “Hey, Ryder, over here. Look what I found.”
    Ryder wheeled around and stared at Troy who held out a rectangular, wooden box about fifteen-inches long and eight-inches wide.
    “What is it? Where’d you get that?”
    “I found it under a pile of bricks near an interior wall we knocked down. See how beat up the top is. According to the old drawings it was in the area that used to be a classroom, third-grade, I think.”
    “Julianne, this is Troy.”
    “Hi,” she said with a tilt of her head, studying the man toting the mini trunk. But it was the ornate