Owen hadthe shortest transit time to the interagency working group, because it was meeting in the new Pine Harbour library space upstairs from his office. The third floor of the Emergency Services building had been “under-utilized”, and when the library was threatened with closure due to high operating costs in its former location on Main Street, the community rallied together. Owen organized the volunteer fire brigade to help move all the books to the new space.
But he hadn’t actually been upstairs since it opened, so he headed up there with lots of time before the meeting so he could have a look around—and he had another reason, too.
Behind the desk was a very pregnant Chloe Dawson. She was typing on the computer, but looked up as soon as Owen approached.
“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”
She shook her head. “I was just compiling a list of book recommendations for one of our patrons. What’s up?”
He shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. “That’s sort of why I’m here. As a patron.”
She beamed at him. “What can I help you find?”
“It’s been a while since there’s been a baby in my house. And being the grandparent is different than being the parent, and I… I don’t know what I’m looking for, exactly. But something that might refresh what I can do to be a good family member.”
Chloe patted her belly. “I don’t even need to look those up, and it’s not from me doing my own reading. I’m in complete denial about what comes next here. But Tom has a stack of books on his bedside table, and as a librarian, I can’t help but notice which ones he picks up over and over again.” She grabbed a notepad and scribbled down three titles, then went to her computer. “We have one of them here in this branch, and the other two are able to be requested, if you’d like.”
“I’ll start with the one that’s here.” He picked up the piece of paper. “And I guess that means I’ll need a library card, too. It’s been a while since I’ve had one of those.”
“I’ll see if you’re still in our system.” She typed his name into the computer, then laughed. “The last book you took out was something calledDaniel Boom, ten years ago?”
“The start of Becca’s graphic novel phase,” he said, memories washing over him. She’d been so little, but so grown-up at the same time. “Shortly after that she went to live with her mom more of the time for a year while I did a course out of town, and then she had her own library card.”
Chloe gave him a thoughtful look. “Why don’t you sign out something you might like to read or watch for yourself, as well as this book on being a good grandfather?”
Owen wouldn’t know where to start. “Yeah, maybe.”
She waved him toward the stacks. “Go find some books. I’ll get your new library card ready.”
That was how he found Kerry, nose-deep in a book, sitting cross-legged against the window at the end of an aisle in the mystery and thrillers section. Because he wasn’t a small man and he hadn’t been trying to sneak up on her, his footsteps probably sounded like a stumbling elephant came to screeching halt in front of her.
To her credit, she didn’t look startled in the least as she stopped reading, glanced straight ahead at his boots, then slowly slid her gaze up his body until she made eye contact with him. Then she smiled. “Hello.”
It wasn’t much to go on, and there was definitely a part of him that wanted to turn tail and run, but he’d been doing that for months and it didn’t get them anywhere. He didn’t know how to navigate this, but they were about to sit down across the table from each other and talk about serious issues in their community, so that should probably be his entire focus with her. Not how cute she looked curled up with a book, her legs bare beneath a sundress. “Hi,” he said. “I was going to grab a book to sign out before…”
“Me too.”
“Is that one good?”
She glanced at the cover. “Yeah.”
“Great.”
“This is a pretty big library, actually.” She climbed to her feet. “I’m impressed. When I first moved here, it was on Main Street.”
“I helped move the books over,” he offered. It sounded way less impressive out loud than in his head.
She nodded. “Great.”
His neck flushed. This could only get more awkward, and he was floundering, so he grabbed a book at random off the shelf and held it in the air. “Found what I was looking for. See you in there.”
Gripping the book tightly, he stalked back to the front desk and slid it across to Chloe. “I’ll sign this out, too.”
Her eyes danced as she took in the cover.The Lady Loves a Necromancer, read the title. Apparently the book he’d grabbed at random was a Gothic paranormal romance. Well, it probably wouldn’t be boring, which was more than could be said for his conversation skills.
* * *
When Owen walkedthrough the door at Mac’s the next day at the end of the lunch rush, and he saw Kerry sitting alone in a booth, he promised himself he wouldn’t grab a seat where he could watch her like a creeper.
