It's Never too Late - By Tara Taylor Quinn Page 0,20

her to avoid. As a child she’d had every reason to feel sorry for herself.

But if she’d done so, she would never have found the focus to finish law school. Never have been able to contribute to society as she did, making her life worth living.

As it was, Addy left for classes Monday morning, determined to take life head-on and win. She had a job to do. A job she wanted to do. If someone was out to frame Will Parsons, Addy was going to do everything she could to help Greg Richards find the evidence he needed to arrest the creep.

She wasn’t in Shelter Valley on vacation. She wouldn’t visit any of the places she’d been with her parents, wouldn’t drive by the school she’d attended with her brother, or see the park where they used to play. She’d attend her classes. Stick her nose in every nook and cranny on campus—she’d never spent time there as a child. Most of the research could be done from her duplex. And when she needed groceries or anything else, she’d shop in Phoenix—or at the new big-box store outside of town.

She wouldn’t develop relationships with anyone. Not even the casual kind. She wasn’t here to stay. And had no intention of ever coming back.

Couldn’t have anything calling her back.

Her mind firmly set, Addy sat through an introductory botany class and a first-year biology class, watching students, analyzing teacher response, and then headed to the campus bookstore with a wad of cash to purchase textbooks she’d sell back just as soon as she could.

The place was a zoo—long lineups of students with not as many books in hand as she’d expected. Montford provided students the opportunity to purchase most of their classroom materials in ebook form and, by the look of things, a good many of them were doing so. Not sure about the buy-back policy on ebooks, she was opting for print copies.

In spite of the amount of traffic, there were no exceptionally long waits. Standing in the cash line with her satchel over her shoulder and her arms filled with heavy tomes, Addy marveled at the efficiency of the store. The three lines immediately to her left were reserved for credit card users. And to the far right was a line designated for scholarship recipients.

Probably students on a full ride whose books were included as part of their monetary award. Scholarship recipients were on her list of people to investigate. Lawsuits had been filed—and won—based on education being denied to some while it was offered freely to others of equal merit. And a degree from Montford came with external economic value.

As Addy was mulling over that thought, her heart suddenly tripped. Mark Heber, looking sexy in jeans and a white polo shirt, had just joined the back of the scholarship line.

God, he looked good.

He couldn’t see her. She couldn’t let him. Not yet. Not so soon after last night. At least not until she had her emotions firmly in check. Turning her back, Addy stepped up to the counter, her sob story in place for the cashier as she attempted to get a pass on paying for her books. When she was told in no uncertain terms that she had to pay, she asked to see a manager, asked to speak with the manager’s boss, asked if students in the scholarship line got their books for free and what she’d have to do to reap the same benefit.

She’d be doing spot checks like these all over campus to ensure that employees at every level knew university policy and applied it across the board. A lapse, regardless of how minor it was, could point to a bigger personnel problem—or aggrieved student. If employees didn’t follow policies—like those related to hiring, conflict of interest and so on—rigorously, they could put the university at risk of a lawsuit.

So Addy did her best to get someone to make a mistake....

She did it all without raising her voice, or causing a stink. And when she left she was happy to know that Montford’s bookstore employees, at least those who were working that day, could not be persuaded to budge from university policies.

Stepping outside, she wished she could call Will—and almost walked straight into Mark.

“What was going on in there?” he asked, falling into step beside her as though they met on campus every day and hadn’t just met for the first time the week before.

As though he hadn’t been sharing her living room couch, smiling