“I got some studying to do.” “C’mon, it’s Saturday,” he said, smiling now. “Time to chill!” “Later,” I said. “See you.” I o...pened my room door, went in and closed it behind me, but not before seeing the slightly hurt look on his face. What that might signify I didn’t want to know and didn’t want to try figuring out. All I knew was that I need a little space, a little time not to think -- about him, anyway. Ten minutes later I slipped out of my room and went to the library. I kept my nose in. “ Marcella lowered her lashes demurely. “We can’t do that right away,because the local folks might talk ... but if the Lord sees His way clear to let us, I’msure that Thad and me will get married.”“In a pig’s fat ass!” Edna cried. “Get outta that truck!”“Why, Edna, I don’t know why you’re so uppity!” Marcella replied.The redhead jerked the truck’s door open, grasped the other woman by an arm, andyanked. Marcella tumbled from the truck, falling onto her side in the dirt of thedriveway.“Hey,. But it wasn’t my Nathan! Anyway, life went on… Without Professor Deaks. By this time, Nathan’s responsibilities at Cheddar Gorge had been passed on to someone else, and the Drydenthorpe dig site was ticking over nicely. Also, I had a quiet window before my degree studies began… Yes. I had decided to go for it. Anyway, Nathan had received an email from his mother wanting him to come for a visit and also to attend some sort of party she was hosting. He said, ‘Midnight, do you fancy spending a. It compresses things, so problems that would otherwise initially go unrecognized are more rapidly brought to the fore. Chelsea and I had been going out for about five months and spent two of those on a working vacation in Key West. In travel time or dog years, I figure we were approaching the seven year itch. That was the basic situation when one morning Sheri came to the living room and used the phone in there to call in sick. Instead of walking back down the hall to her room, she just stepped.