Page 1 of Kaine

Chapter One

HER

“Will you marry me?”

I stop still in my tracks. Stunned. Not as stunned as the five people behind me, crashing into each other like life-size dominoes. Cursing dominos. Really-annoyed-Manhattanite dominoes.

But I’m too busy dealing with the question at hand to notice them.

“He said what?” I turn to Harriet, my best friend and colleague, prompting her to finish her story.

“He said, ‘Will you marry me?’” she repeats.

“And you said?” I push us back into the throng of people, ignoring their evil eyes, and back on our way to work.

“I said, ‘That’s the worst pick up line ever!’” she replies, throwing her hands up in the air for emphasis, the coffee in her cup spilling out through the drink hole.

“And the reason you’re wearing yesterday’s clothes is...?” I grin at her as I stop in front of the New York Genealogy Library and push on the heavy door, holding it open for her, as she passes me, her face scrunched into a scowl.

The musty brown smell of old books that greets me tells me that there is a God. I stand for a minute, as I do every weekday morning and take a deep, deep breath, inhaling dusty molecules of stories of millions of humans that came before me, journeys of rags to riches and riches to fame.

“Hmmmm,” I sigh, filled with content.

“Ugh. Are you thinking about Leonardo DiCaprio again?” Harriet yells at me from down the hallway. “I already told you, you’re too old for him.”

“I’m 28!” I protest, skipping to catch up with her.

“Yeah, exactly. Fine, you’re not too old, but you’re definitely too...”

“Too what?” I look at her, eyes narrowing, warning her to choose her words wisely.

“Er, too...not a Victoria Secret model. But then, who is?”

“Nice save,” I snort and follow her through the labyrinth of the library floor and into our shared office.

“Ugh, is the air conditioning not working again?” I plonk my bag and coffee onto my desk, hoping nothing will fall off the piles of notes and files I collect over a day’s worth of work.

“It’s working, maybe it’s just your internal temperature conditioner that isn’t working!” Harriet rolls her eyes. “When are you ever not hot?”

“Never!” I exclaim dramatically. “I was born this sizzling hot, dahhhhling.” I pose and strut down the narrow gap between our desks like it’s my own personal catwalk, then join with Harriet in laughter when I get stuck.

“Jade!” My boss yells through the wall between our offices.

“Ah, shit. What now?” I roll my eyes at Harriet as she shrugs and grins, turning back to her computer.

“What’s up, bossman?” I ask, knocking on the frame of my superior’s door.

He looks up long enough to glare at me before turning his gaze back to the letter in his hands. “Firstly, don’t call me that. Secondly, I need someone to make a delivery tonight with those manuscripts we were fedex’d yesterday.”

“And... you’re...telling me...because...?” I ask warily. I’m always exhausted by the end of a work day as it is, let alone having to run an extra errand.

“It’s two blocks from here! You’ll pass it on your way home anyway. Um...except that...”

“Oh, come on, bossman, out with it.”

“You need to hand deliver them and have them signed for, but no one will be home until after 8 p.m.”

“Nope,” I instantly reply and turn to go back to my desk.