The road ahead cleared and Leah pulled away. The sedan followed. It trailed her all the way into Pine Springs, turning off as she took a right into the lot at the end of Main Street. She forced her shoulders to relax as she gathered up her things from the passenger seat and locked the doors.
Florence waved through the hair salon’s window when she passed by with her takeout cup, calling her inside. The door tinkled as Leah pushed it open.
“Hey, stranger.” It looked like Florence was between customers. “Someone’s caught the sun! What have you been up to?”
Leah lifted a hand to her cheek. “I spent the weekend in South Haven.”
“You weren’t alone, I take it?” Her friend waggled her eyebrows.
“Jackson took me to his family’s beach house.” She smiled and, yeah, blushed a little, too. “It was heavenly.” Toward the rear of the salon, another stylist chatted to a young woman with auburn hair. Ella Langley and Riley Green sang a low-volume duet.
“I’m so jealous. The guys I date think I should be grateful to be taken to a sports bar.” Florence sighed. “I want to hear more! Fill me in tonight at book club?”
“For sure. And we’re having a barbecue next weekend if you can make it. Though it’s Father’s Day so you might already have plans?”
“We’re taking my dad out for lunch but I might be able to join you afterwards. Depends on the time.” The bell above the door rang again and they both turned. “This is my next customer. I’ll see you later but we need a proper night out soon. Let’s live it up!”
They fixed on a date and Leah left the shop, walking another hundred and fifty yards, past Jerry’s Pizza (undoubtably the best pizza in town) and the hardware store, to the library. She climbed a single stone step and pushed open the large wooden door. The air inside was blissfully cool. It was so tempting to browse the shelves. When weren’t books a distraction? She ran her hands slowly along one of the rows of colorful covers.
Behind her, the main door swung wide again; Leah glanced over her shoulder to see a bulky figure looming at the threshold. Oh, fuck. Either The Tank had another message to deliver or his library books needed returning.
As her skin prickled and her mouth dried, Leah realized she’d never told Jackson about their first run-in. His exhaustion and then the excitement of the beach weekend had driven it from her mind.
The unease of her car journey bloomed into a queasy clutch of concern. Whatever the reason The Tank was here, she had no desirefor another conversation. Backing away along the row, she drew his eyes as she ducked around the end of the shelving. He glared—no sunglasses this time—and set off after her.
Pine Springs Library was midsized and regrettably quiet on this weekday afternoon. Her ears on stalks for the big man’s footsteps and the sound—any sound—of people, she wove in and out of bookshelves, clutching her iPad to her chest and fighting for calm.
He can’t do anything to you in here.
But Leah felt like prey. The fact that he was between her and the main door made her palms sweat and her blood pressure spike. Sneakers nearly silent, she kept on moving. There was no one in the reference section, no one using the digital library corner. She couldn’t see the information desk and the seating area lay in the middle of a hexagon of shelves—way too exposed.
Rounding the end of the Crime and Mystery section, Leah locked eyes with The Tank as he appeared at the other end of the shelves. A grim smile lifted his thin lips and he began to move purposefully down the aisle toward her. Her hands curled into fists.
“Can I help you?”
Finally. Finally! She could have hugged the young woman who placed herself between Leah and her hunter.
The librarian hooked a strand of mahogany hair behind one ear, turning her head from The Tank to Leah and back again. Her pale gray eyes seemed to catalog the situation in a single sweep. A slim bronze badge displayed the name “Elenie Martinez” typed neatly in black. Realization tapped Leah on the shoulder as she recognized Florence’s sister-in-law.
“If you’re looking for somewhere to work, feel free to set up at one of the tables. There’s plenty of room and I’m around if you have any questions. I’m always around,” Elenie told Leah. Then she walked in easy strides toward the mountain of glowering man.“We’re not a huge library but I’m sure I can find you anything you need. Just let me know your genre. If you’re into butterflies or hamsters, I’ve got you. Cookery, calligraphy, romance—it’s all here. Name your passion.”
“I’m not here for a book.” The Tank glared over Elenie’s shoulder at Leah.
The librarian looked neither concerned nor cowed. She drew herself up in height and still only came to his chin. “In which case, can I ask you to come back when you are? We are not a social club. People come here to work in peace.”
There was a momentary standoff—the man and Elenie Martinez at one end of the bookshelves, Leah still hovering at the other. The Tank shot her another scowl, then turned on his heel and lumbered to the door. It slammed behind him a few seconds later.
“Dumm wie zehn Meter Feldweg,” Elenie murmured into the sudden silence. She caught Leah’s eye and grinned. “Sorry. I have a head full of useless foreign phrases that amuse me.”
“I love the sound of that. What did you say?”
“It’s German and it literally translates to ‘Dumb as ten meters of dirt road.’” Elenie turned her head as the main door flew open again and a noisy group of schoolchildren spilled into the library.
Leah squashed down a surge of hero worship for the fearless woman with the gray eyes. “I kind of know you by proxy. I’m in a book club with Florence and your mother-in-law,” she blurted. “We’ve got a meeting tonight.”
Elenie’s eyebrows tented in interest. “I keep meaning to shoehorn my way into that but it tends to clash with the adult creative writing class I started. I suggested a lot of the books you’ve read to Ava.”
“We could probably change the night if I asked the others. It’s only once a month.”
