“This is ridiculous,” I bit out, then I sucked in my breath as I steadied myself on the footstool Jared had so graciously provided. One of the legs was shorter than the other, which meant I was using all of my weight to keep myself steady as I ran a feather duster over the bookshelves. They still towered above my head. There was no way I was going to reach the highest shelves, even with a stool.

And there was no way I was standing on my tip-toes, either. I wasn’t ...