Read Online Passionate Pleasures by Bertrice Small - Free Book Online

the front door of the brick Victorian library said most distinctly SHIRTS AND SHOES. NO DOGS ALLOWED . Of course no dogs, Tim thought. Miss St. John obviously didn’t like dogs, even if she had a soft spot for what she thought was an abused animal. Deciding to check out the library anyway, Tim tied Rowdy’s leash to the old-fashioned black iron hitching post. “Sit. Stay, Rowdy,” he commanded the dog. Then he patted him on the head. “I’ll be back, boy. You just wait for me.”
    Rowdy thumped his tail and whined softly as Tim moved away from him.
    “It’s all right, boy. Stay ,” Tim repeated. He entered the library, surprised to find given its exterior how light and bright it was. He walked up to the slightly curved walnut front desk. “Good morning. Is Miss St. John available?” he asked the pretty woman standing behind the counter.
    “I’ll see if she is, Mr. Blair,” the woman said. “I’m Mavis Peabody.” She held out a hand, which he shook. “Nice to meet you.”
    “Same here,” Tim responded. He had stopped wondering how everyone knew who he was, and knew Rowdy’s name.
    Mavis Peabody turned and hurried back to Kathryn’s office. “Kathy!” she said excitedly. “ He’s here! Mr. Blair, the new Middle School principal. He’s asking for you. Do you want me to bring him back here to your office?”
    Kathryn St. John was surprised. What could that irritating man possibly want of her? She stood up, involuntarily smoothing her skirt and reaching up to be certain her hair was neat. “No, I’ll come out.” She moved quickly past Mavis, seeing him almost immediately. She had been so mad about the poor dog the other day, she hadn’t really bothered to look closely at him. She took a moment now to do so. Tall. Maybe six three or six four. Unusual. She had never met a man as tall as that. Clean shaven. Nicely barbered chestnut brown hair with just a touch of gray at the sides. Khakis, a dark green tee that revealed a toned body. Good grief! Why was she possibly considering that aspect of the man? “Good morning, Mr. Blair,” she greeted him.
    “Good morning, Miss St. John,” Tim replied. “I thought I’d come by and apologize for any harsh words I might have uttered the other day over our little misunderstanding.”
    She was surprised, but good manners dictated she accept the apology. “That’s very kind of you,” Kathryn answered him. “I’m afraid my concern for your dog caused me to act in haste without fully evaluating the situation, Mr. Blair. I hope you’ll accept my apology too.” There! She had reciprocated. It would be over and done. She waited for him to say good-bye.
    Instead he smiled. “I can’t fault a woman with a kind heart toward the beasties,” he said. “And Rowdy can sound so pitiful when he howls.”
    “It sounded like he was dying,” Kathryn admitted.
    “I understand from my neighbor, Mrs. Sullivan, that you have a wonderful summer reading program for the Elementary and Middle Schools. Can you tell me about it? Do you give the kids an initial list of books to read? Or let them pick from a larger list? And what incentives do you offer, and how do you know they actually read the book that they checked out?”
    Kathryn was impressed that after being in town for two days he knew about the summer reading program. And at that point she noticed that he had blue eyes. Startlingly bright blue eyes. She swallowed hard. What was the matter with her? “I start the children off with a list of six books,” Kathryn told him. “They have to come and give me a verbal report. I hold a reporting session every Friday morning between eleven A.M. and twelve. I take each child individually into my office to report to me. That way they can’t cheat. When those six books are read and reported properly, the students are given a total of sixty points. Their names and points are posted where everyone can see them on the bulletin board behind the checkout counter. After that they