Robin's Reward (Bonita Creek Trilogy Book 1) by June McCrary Jacobs Page B
Authors: June McCrary Jacobs
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reminded her she probably just wasn’t attractive or sophisticated enough for his big city tastes. If he was dating Susan Stinson, he was looking for a certain level of physical attractiveness Robin admittedly would never attain. Realizing she wasn’t going to be able to get her mind back on the fundraiser for the time being, she closed up her folder and laptop and decided to spend time reading and praying before retiring for the night.
~*~
Since even simple fare such as scrambled eggs and bacon tested Jeff’s meager cooking skills, he resorted to heating up a frozen microwave dinner from the health food store. Although usually one of his favorites, tonight’s organic tangy Thai chicken with rice entrée was unsavory at vest. His bitterness toward his recent choices was palatable in each bite.
He’d been enjoying a variety of songs on the local ‘oldies’ radio station. Hearing a singer mention girls with broken hearts in the song currently playing, his head snapped up with realization. Without a touch of arrogance, he realized he was guilty of wounding Robin’s pride a few mornings ago. “She’s probably still ticked off at me.” He wondered if she was sitting home thinking about his bad behavior. “You give yourself too much credit, Clarke. Robin Bennett hasn’t spent another second of her time thinking about you.”
Had his rejection of her offer of friendship and kindness caused her pain? Disappointment in his actions washed over him yet again and destroyed what remained of his appetite. He dropped his fork onto his plate in disgust and sighed heavily.
Robin Bennett probably had lots of guys asking her out. He seriously doubted she’d have any room in her life for a loser like him. He searched his mind to accurately recall their first conversation on the front porch. He pictured the brunette’s expression when she confided in him she no longer accepted dates after a long string of unfulfilling relationships. He felt a stinging pang of guilt when he recalled how she had poignantly described her past relationships with men as ‘sorrowful and dead end.’
Surprisingly, she had confided to him about her ‘overabundance of tragic fate’ in her romantic relationships. Then he had unwittingly encouraged and supported her self-fulfilling prophecy by his rude manners and unkind efforts to turn her away.
He realized it would be impossible to get the pretty brunette out of his mind because he didn’t want to lose his connection to her. She seemed to have the traits he’d always admired in women. From what little he knew, she was kind, compassionate, loving, intelligent, talented, and pleasant.
He knew he wouldn’t want to live with himself if he didn’t attempt to correct his mistakes where Robin Bennett was concerned, and try to repair any damage he might’ve done.
The evening evolved into a time of reflection and goal-setting for Jeff. He returned to his den, turned off the stereo and dragged out the files Mr. Bauer had provided. With the tight deadline imposed by the City Manager, there was no use postponing his tasks. He began analyzing the financial records regarding the Bonita Creek Library and lost himself in numbers for more than three hours.
He was shocked to learn how little Robin was paid for working as a professional with a specialized and required Master’s Degree. Her salary was just a small portion of the annual operating budget for the library. Unless her insurance coverage was documented on another financial document, she had no health, dental, vision or life insurance coverage through the city.
Did she have to pay for her healthcare out of her pocket? This was a travesty in his opinion as he quickly jotted down a note to look into this matter further. There were no other payroll expenses listed on the statements. Was she running the entire operation by herself? He added this item to his list of things to investigate.
As he continued to study the financial statements, he
~*~
Since even simple fare such as scrambled eggs and bacon tested Jeff’s meager cooking skills, he resorted to heating up a frozen microwave dinner from the health food store. Although usually one of his favorites, tonight’s organic tangy Thai chicken with rice entrée was unsavory at vest. His bitterness toward his recent choices was palatable in each bite.
He’d been enjoying a variety of songs on the local ‘oldies’ radio station. Hearing a singer mention girls with broken hearts in the song currently playing, his head snapped up with realization. Without a touch of arrogance, he realized he was guilty of wounding Robin’s pride a few mornings ago. “She’s probably still ticked off at me.” He wondered if she was sitting home thinking about his bad behavior. “You give yourself too much credit, Clarke. Robin Bennett hasn’t spent another second of her time thinking about you.”
Had his rejection of her offer of friendship and kindness caused her pain? Disappointment in his actions washed over him yet again and destroyed what remained of his appetite. He dropped his fork onto his plate in disgust and sighed heavily.
Robin Bennett probably had lots of guys asking her out. He seriously doubted she’d have any room in her life for a loser like him. He searched his mind to accurately recall their first conversation on the front porch. He pictured the brunette’s expression when she confided in him she no longer accepted dates after a long string of unfulfilling relationships. He felt a stinging pang of guilt when he recalled how she had poignantly described her past relationships with men as ‘sorrowful and dead end.’
Surprisingly, she had confided to him about her ‘overabundance of tragic fate’ in her romantic relationships. Then he had unwittingly encouraged and supported her self-fulfilling prophecy by his rude manners and unkind efforts to turn her away.
He realized it would be impossible to get the pretty brunette out of his mind because he didn’t want to lose his connection to her. She seemed to have the traits he’d always admired in women. From what little he knew, she was kind, compassionate, loving, intelligent, talented, and pleasant.
He knew he wouldn’t want to live with himself if he didn’t attempt to correct his mistakes where Robin Bennett was concerned, and try to repair any damage he might’ve done.
The evening evolved into a time of reflection and goal-setting for Jeff. He returned to his den, turned off the stereo and dragged out the files Mr. Bauer had provided. With the tight deadline imposed by the City Manager, there was no use postponing his tasks. He began analyzing the financial records regarding the Bonita Creek Library and lost himself in numbers for more than three hours.
He was shocked to learn how little Robin was paid for working as a professional with a specialized and required Master’s Degree. Her salary was just a small portion of the annual operating budget for the library. Unless her insurance coverage was documented on another financial document, she had no health, dental, vision or life insurance coverage through the city.
Did she have to pay for her healthcare out of her pocket? This was a travesty in his opinion as he quickly jotted down a note to look into this matter further. There were no other payroll expenses listed on the statements. Was she running the entire operation by herself? He added this item to his list of things to investigate.
As he continued to study the financial statements, he
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