“Evening,” she called, smiling at me as if nothing in the world could stop her from being here.
I managed to shake myself out of my stupor. “Maggie, good to see you. Glad you could make it.”
“Of course I made it,” she said with mock offense. “You think I’d let Janice beat me on my stamps? East even read his chapters. I watched him.”
Her words sent a ripple of laughter through the group, and I hurried forward to help her to a seat. East was already there, steadying the chair before she lowered herself into it. Our hands brushed in the shuffle, his callused fingers grazing mine for the barest second, and I could hear the inhale of breath that went through both of us.
I stepped back too fast, forcing a bright smile. “You picked a good night. We’re going to have a good discussion, we’ve got popcorn tonight, and all sorts of fun goodies if you want them.”
Maggie beamed at me, but East’s gaze lingered, steady and unreadable, before he folded himself into the chair beside her. He looked completely out of place—broad shoulders, storm-cloud expression, like he’d been dragged into the wrong movie screening.
I cleared my throat and lifted the stack of questions. “Alright, everyone.” I let my voice boom dramatically, which got another laugh. “Tonight, we’re moving into the next section, but before we dive into chaos and carnivorous reptiles, I have a few icebreakers to get us started.”
“Here she goes,” someone muttered with mock dread.
“First question.” I grinned, scanning my notes. “If Hammond had offered to fly you to the island, but you could only bring one survival item with you, what would it be?”
“Bug spray!” Mr. Jenkins bellowed from the back, which made everyone chuckle.
“A helicopter,” someone shouted. “Forget bug spray.”
“Good answer.” I moved through the crowd, encouraging answers with laughter as the energy built. People teased and offered increasingly ridiculous suggestions.
East wasn’t laughing. He wasn’t rolling his eyes either. He was watching me. Focused. Pupils blown. Like the noise around him barely registered, like I was the only part of this room that mattered.
My pulse jumped, traitorous and hot.
I ducked my head, flipping to the next question. “Alright. Question two. If you had to pick one dinosaur as a pet, which would you choose and why?”
The room erupted again, but Maggie was the one who raised her hand. “Velociraptor,” she said, her grin sly.
Half the crowd groaned. “Maggie!”
“What?” she said, shrugging. “At least I’d go out with style. And fast.”
I saw East’s jaw twitch, the barest bit of a smile tugging at the corner of his lips before he smoothed it away.
And just like that, I wanted him. More than anything. Even with his scowls. Especially with his scowls.
The conversation snowballed from there. Once the icebreakers hit, everyone was in full swing, and the bookstore buzzed with overlapping voices. People debated which dinosaurs would make the best roommates. Someone swore they’d choose a Brachiosaurus because “it would eat all the apples off the trees, so I don’t have to climb.” Another claimed a Triceratops would be the ultimate guard dog and provide fertilizer.
I stood at the front, letting the chaos swirl. It was controlled chaos, my kind of chaos. The kind that made the bookstore feel alive, like it belonged to the whole town instead of just me.
Mia worked the counter while I steered the group toward actual discussion. “So, the next section of the book. Let’s talk science. Would you have believed Hammond if you were at that table? Would you think cloning dinosaurs was possible?”
Mr. Jenkins shook his head hard enough to rattle his glasses. “Nope. If someone told me they had dinosaurs on an island, I’d tell them they were smoking a little too much weed.”
“Maybe they were stealing your secret stash,” his friend called from across the table. Then, “Easton, don’t tell your brother.”
More laughter, more good-natured ribbing. I couldn’t stop smiling. I handed out discussion cards and let them have at it. Helping out at the front, clearing cups, and occasionally popping in and out of conversations to keep things moving kept me busy for the next hour. I was happy to see that Maggie was glowing, her cheeks pink with excitement. East seemed to be having fun too, just in a more subtle way. He watched Maggie most of the time, but he contributed to the conversations around him with witty, insightful commentary that made me sure he had really read the book.
Maggie leaned over just as time had started to wind down.“This was wonderful, Lila. Just wonderful.”
“Thanks,” I said softly, my throat tight with gratitude. “I’m so glad you came.”
She reached over and squeezed my hand. Her eyes sparkled, alive and fierce. “It feels good to be out. I always feel like I’m part of something when I come here. I love our Wildwood Meadows Book Club.”
That undid me. My smile wobbled, and I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from crying right there in front of everyone.
