Starting Now (Blossom Street #9)(43)

“So,” Robin asked, her voice bright and excited, “how’d the interview go?”

“Not so good.”

Robin sucked in a deep breath, or that was what it sounded like to Libby.

“Why not?” her friend demanded. “You’re a perfect fit. I talked you up and so did Roy—”

“I was a little late.”

“You?” Robin cried. “You’re never late. What happened?”

“I was at the hospital.”

“The emergency room? Are you okay?” Her voice softened considerably.

For just an instant Libby was tempted to make up a wild story that would excuse her and at the same time garner Robin’s sympathy. If she were a better liar she might have attempted it. Anything not to have to listen to Robin’s irritation … not that she blamed her.

“I was with the babies and they had three sets of twins born this morning. Time got away from me and—”

“Hold on,” Robin said, cutting in. “Are you telling me that you were late for the interview because”—she paused as if she found it so unbelievable that she couldn’t even say the words—“because you were rocking babies?”

No way to deny it. “Yes.”

A shocked silence followed and then just as Libby was about to speak, Robin said, “I don’t know you anymore, Libby. I don’t know what happened to the woman I once knew, but that person isn’t you. Listen, I have to go, and frankly it’s a good thing.” Having said that, the line was disconnected.

Libby stared down at her cell phone and wanted to crawl into the nearest gutter and disappear. Not only had she let her friend down, she was deeply disappointed in herself.

Libby decided to walk home. It was well over a mile, but the physical exertion was bound to help. If ever she needed endorphins it was now. Unfortunately, the only thing the walk did was give her a blister on the heel of her left foot.

Limping into her condo she headed for the kitchen and poured herself a glass of iced tea. She called Phillip, and when he didn’t answer, she left a message on his voice mail.

“I … I didn’t get the job. I lost track of the time and arrived late for the interview. Robin is furious with me but no more so than I am with myself.”

The day she’d run into Joe had been traumatic, but losing the opportunity of this job was almost as harrowing. Her once orderly life felt unfamiliar and completely out of control.

She wanted to cry and shout at the walls. Stamping her feet was out of the question with that blister. Her throat felt parched and her head throbbed. Her friends were few and she feared she was about to lose one she really needed.

Her knitting sat on the coffee table but Libby was too agitated even for that.

What she needed, what she wanted, Libby realized, was … her mother.

Chapter 16

Robin paced the confines of her compact office with such determination that she nearly walked straight into the wall. In all her years as a prosecutor she’d never asked for favors from anyone, but she had gone out on a limb in order to help Libby. And now her friend had squandered the opportunity.

Libby had lost track of the time because she was rocking babies? Unbelievable. She’d noticed the subtle changes in her friend over the last several months. It was as though Libby’s priorities had gone askew, as if she had lost sight of what was important. Although they hadn’t spoken of it, Robin feared Libby’s finances weren’t in the best shape. Now this. Nothing added up.

Then there was Libby’s budding relationship with Dr. Stone. Perhaps the root cause for these subtle changes had nothing to do with the hospital, after all. Perhaps this was what romance did to a person. Romance … oh, the two of them were such dorks when it came to men. Libby’s prospects were certainly looking up, while her own were stalled. With her arms folded around her middle, Robin looked for a way to vent her frustration.

Roy had been wonderfully helpful in connecting Libby with his contact, but she hadn’t heard from him since and wasn’t sure what her next move should be, especially given what had just happened.

Because she was due in court in a few minutes, Robin did her best to concentrate on the case before her. It should be a slam dunk but she needed to stay focused and let go of her irritation with herself and with Libby. Otherwise, she might easily make a mistake, and in her job, a mistake could mean a defendant got off scot-free.

On her way to the courtroom, she passed Judge Bollinger. His face lit up in a smile when they walked by each other in the hallway. He appeared to be leaving for the day. She longed for an excuse to speak to him, but she couldn’t think of a solitary thing to say. Thankfully, he didn’t stop to ask how the job interview had gone for Libby. Robin wouldn’t have known what to tell him. The fact was, she didn’t know how to let Roy know she was interested in him, and she feared any attempt would only embarrass them both.

It didn’t help that every time he was close she grew so tongue-tied she could barely speak. Put her in a courtroom and she was never at a loss for words, but with Roy, she felt like a schoolgirl all over again.

Like Libby, Robin had dedicated her entire life to the law, so much so that she had little experience with men. Over the years there had been an affair or two, one in college and another following her divorce. But both had ended badly and left her determined not to repeat her mistakes. With Roy it was different. She’d admired him from afar for a long time, fearful of making a move.