Free Tempted Again by Cathie Linz Page A

new around here, you don’t know that Jose has spent time in juvenile hall for spray-painting graffiti like he wears on his T-shirts.”
    “He’s got talent.”
    Chester had looked at her as if she were a few pancakes short of a stack. “Talent? His only talent is for getting into trouble. We don’t want his type here.”
    “ ‘His type’? You mean because he’s Hispanic?”
    “I am not a racist. And I’m offended by your inference that I am.”
    Nice going, she’d told herself. Only on the job two days and already you’re in a fight with the president of the library board. Not smart. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
    He’d looked down his nose at her. “You’d do well to watch your step.”
    She’d nodded her agreement at his words. “I’m still learning the ropes here.”
    He’d relaxed his posture. “In time you’ll understand what is expected of you.” He’d nodded at her before walking away.
    Marissa hadn’t given up on the idea, however, and Jose did show up. The rest of the group had been recommended to attend by Karen Griffith, the high school counselor who’d called Marissa smart and perky. “These kids are at risk and I think you can help them,” Karen had said in a phone conversation.
    Marissa’s interaction with the group of six was the catalyst for her writing the grant proposal for the program. They’d bonded in the ensuing month. She didn’t plan on allowing Connor to speak to them before preparing them for his arrival and attitude. Which is whyshe didn’t tell Connor about the meeting later that afternoon.
    Red Fred was the first to arrive as always. His red hair and freckles along with his gangly awkwardness made him the butt of bullying. He considered himself a social outcast and a loner.
    Jose was next to arrive. “Hey, dude, I got your T-shirt,” he told Red Fred. He handed over a black T-shirt with the same graphic novel character on his own.
    Molly and Tasmyn came in together. Both girls were thirteen and had self-esteem issues—Molly because of her weight and Tasmyn because of the birthmark on her face. Both had single moms struggling to make ends meet.
    Nadine and Spider were the latecomers as always. The two self-proclaimed computer geeks excelled at technology but lacked interactive social skills.
    They all considered themselves outcasts and loners. Marissa considered each of them to be special in unique ways.
    It was rewarding to see the way the kids were slowly forming ties with each other. It wasn’t always a smooth ride and there were times when she wished she could stop at a bar on the way home. But the bottom line was that she welcomed the chance to focus on someone else’s issues for a change. She’d already grown tired of her own angst and drama. She’d come to care for them all over the past few weeks and she was protective of them.
    Which was why when Connor showed up thirty minutes later, she tried to waylay him. She might as well have tried stopping a train.
    The kids all stared at him with distrust. They knew who he was.
    “What’s he doing here?” Jose asked on their behalf.
    Marissa could read Connor’s mind and suspected he was about to say he was there to kick some ass. But he surprised her by nodding at Jose and saying, “Nice shirt.”
    Jose was not that easily impressed. He made no verbal reply but his body language said it all as he stood there with his arms crossed and his chin lifted up as if preparing for battle.
    Marissa had to think fast. “Sheriff Doyle is here to talk about criminal minds in reality as opposed to fiction.”
    Nice save, she told herself.
    What a liar, his look told her.
    But he didn’t contradict her.
    “I didn’t know we were having a speaker,” Spider said.
    “I wasn’t sure his schedule would allow him to participate,” Marissa said.
    “Criminal minds start out young,” Connor said. “What makes some people take the wrong path? A lot of different things.”
    “They have deceptive