“I really do like this haircut on you. I liked it when it was long, too, but this just seems more you, and I like it when you are you.”
“I like it when you’reyou, you know?” Dana said.
“Even though I’m high-maintenance?”
“I don’t know. I guess it kind of works for me. Hey, I have a weird idea.”
“Um… Weird idea?”
“You know how Maisie owns a bookstore?”
“I remember that, yeah,” Samara replied.
“Well, I have the key and the alarm code. Want to go?”
“To a bookstore at three in the morning?”
“It will be three-thirty by the time we get there. It could be fun. We can walk around from there, too. There’s usually a taco truck down the street that’s open late.”
“Tacos again?” Samara asked.
“I can’t help what they serve, or that it’s the only place that’s open right now over there, but we can skip it. I doubt they have vegan stuff. Maybe just a tortilla and some beans.”
“I’ve eaten that before,” she said. “It’s not bad. Lacking flavor, but most salsas are vegan, so I can always add that. Do they have avocado?”
“I have no idea.” Dana laughed.
“What will we do in a bookstore in the middle of the night?”
“Look at books. Talk about books we like, ones we hate, just hang out in a place where no one will recognize you.”
“Won’t Maisie be mad?” she asked.
“I doubt it. Lainey used to work there, and I’ve covered for her a few times. That’s why I have the key and code. We’re not going to tear the place up. We can’t, anyway. It’s a historic landmark.”
“It is?” Samara asked.
???
“It was built before the Louisiana Purchase,” Dana saidas she ushered Samara through the back door and turned off the alarm. “It’s been in Maisie’s family ever since, and it’s the oldest continuously operated independent bookstore in the country.”
“Have you practiced that speech before?” she teased, taking Dana’s hand.
“Yes. I said it to customers when I covered for Lainey.”
“So, where are all the good books?”
“Everywhere. What are you into?”
“Well, you,” Samara replied and pulled Dana into her by the hips.
“There aren’t any books about me in here,” Dana joked.
Samara wrapped her arms around Dana’s neck then and asked, “Any security cameras?”
“Yes. So, keep your hands to yourself,” Dana told her before kissing her.
“Bummer. I was kind of hoping you and I could make out in the aisles.”
