（外文电子版资料）Roberts, Nora - The Heart Of Devin MacKade.doc

The Heart of Devin MacKade by: Nora roberts Prologue Devin MacKade considered the age of twenty to be an awkward time in the life of a man. It was old enough for him to be considered responsible for actions and deeds, old enough for him to make a living or love a woman. Yet in the eyes of the law it was not quite old enough for him to be considered’ fully adult. He was glad it would only take twelve months to get through it. Being the third of four brothers, he’d already watched Jared and Rafe move beyond him into adulthood, and Shane was not far behind him. It wasn’t that he was in a hurry, really. “He was enjoying his time and his life, but Devin had begun, in his methodical way, to make plans for what would be. The little town of Antietam, Maryland, would have been surprised to know that he had decided to uphold the law, rather than break it. Or bend it. His mother had pushed him into college, true, but once he arrived, Devin had decided to enjoy it. The courses in administration of justice, criminology, sociology, fascinated him. How rules were made, why, how they were upheld. It had seemed almost from the beginning that those books, those words, those ideals, had just been waiting for him to discover them. So, in his thoughtful way, he had decided to become a cop. It wasn’t something he wanted to share with his family just yet. His brothers would rag him, undoubtedly. Even Jared, who was already on his way to becoming a lawyer, would show no mercy. It wasn’t something he minded. Devin knew he could hold his own with all three of his brothers, be it with words or fists. But for him, it was a personal agenda, and he wasn’t talking. He was aware that not everything you wanted, deep inside, worked out. There was proof of that right here in Ed’s cafe where he and his brothers were grabbing a quick meal before heading to Duff’s Tavern to shoot pool. Yes, the proof was right here, serving him the blue plate special, flushing shyly at Rafe’s easy teasing