Seb glanced behind him in time to see Carol Anne give a tight-lipped smile.
“Of course they would,” she said.
“Then it’s settled. This will be delightful. Sebastian,” Mrs. Green held out a hand toward him, “thank you so much for organizing all of this. I’m sure with your involvement, it will be a memorable evening.”
Sebastian shook her hand as Carol Anne sighed. “Oh yes. He’s been instrumental since the beginning.”
When Mrs. Green had left, the four of them all let out a long exhale.
“What just happened?” Martin asked.
“A silent auction?” Carol Anne said.
“That’s actually a really good idea.” Penny giggled.
Seb beamed at them all. “You’re welcome.”
“Did you really plan this whole thing without asking her?” Martin was still pressed against Seb’s side and showed no inclination to step away. The pressure of his hand on Seb’s back was pleasantly distracting.
Carol Anne snorted. “Of course not. It’s not my fault she doesn’t pay attention at committee meetings. Honestly, I don’t know why we still let her come to those things, but we’re always short of board members so…” She shrugged. “We passed a list of events around back at the beginning of the summer. She was there. I remember because I expected her to make some kind of demand like today, but she didn’t say a thing. She’s just being spiteful.”
“Spiteful?” Martin asked.
“Didn’t Penny tell you?”
“Tell them what?” Penny sounded just as confused as Seb felt.
“Don’t you know where she gets her money from? It’s not from selling used books, that’s for sure.”
“She’s hoarding her treasure deep inside her cave?” Penny asked. Beside Seb, Martin laughed softly, the sound vibrating through Seb’s arm. His toes curled inside his shoes. He needed Carol Anne and Penny to leave so he could pull Martin deep into the shelves and kiss him silly, his earlier plans to take things slow be damned.
“Mrs. Green is the single biggest property owner in Seacroft,” Carol Anne said. “She owns every building on this street except the diner. I heard she wanted to buy that too, at the same time you and Tim did. She was going to open up a cute little coffee shop next to her bookstore. It would have made it a real destination.”
“That was her?” Penny said. “She drove the sale price on the building through the roof! I thought Tim was going to have a heart attack before we signed the purchase agreement.”
“I don’t think she ever forgave you two for buying it out from under her.” Carol Anne sniffed as she glanced out the window.
“A dragon never forgets,” Penny murmured ominously.
“That’s an elephant, honey.”
When Penny and Carol Anne left, Martin collapsed on the couch, and Seb sank next to him. “Sorry about the ‘Dr. Lindsey on stage’ thing. I know you’re nervous about that part.”
“It’s okay. I couldn’t be any more nervous than I was right before you said that.” Martin ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up in fluffy clumps. “I thought for sure she was going to fire me.”
“Speaking up for yourself really isn’t part of your skill set, is it?” Seb clenched his fists to keep from smoothing the hair down. Martin winced and gave him a sad smile, which made Seb laugh. He slipped his arm over Martin’s shoulder again. “I argue with everyone. Stick with me, and I’ll show you how it’s done.”
“Thanks. It’s been a while since someone’s stood up for me like that.”
The admission made Seb’s heart twist. That right there was why he couldn’t drag Martin into the stacks for a quick grope. He needed more than that. Hedeservedmore than that.
“We can look out for each other.” Seb made his smile look as innocent and angelic as possible.
Martin laughed, and his head lolled on the back of the couch until it was turned to Seb. “You don’t need someone to stand up for you. I’ve seen you do it.”
“No. But my closest friends are a seventeen-year-old and my douchebag agent. You could be good for me.” He sighed. Their faces were incredibly close. Martin’s eyes were flecked with green. When he licked his lips, Seb’s good intentions fled once more. He wanted to kiss him. The distance wasn’t far, and he thought Martin wouldn’t even mind.
The door screeched open as a new customer walked in. Seb leapt up as if the couch was on fire. Martin blinked a few times, staring up at him with sleepy eyes.
“Back to work,” Seb said, forcing a smile. “If anyone else comes in and gives you a hard time, you know where to find me.”
