He grunts.
“What is it with my favorite old people giving me cryptic responses today?” I join him in the next chair over as he eases himself down.
“Fine,” he says. “I’ll put you out of your misery. It was gritty and moving and, most importantly, feminist as fuck.” He leans in, voice lowered. “Which means Archie’s going tohateit.”
Archie Burton is Mr. Fleischer’s opposite. He’s all smiles and chummy small talk, but beneath the surface, he’s a creep of a guy who manages to keep his comments just below the level of inappropriate that would give grounds to kick him out, and I think he does that very much on purpose. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t picked some titles largely in the hopes that they’d be “woke” enough to scare him off. So far, I haven’t had success.
I smile at Mr. Fleischer. “I’m not actually counting on Mr. Burton showing up for discussion tonight.” I lean in, too. “And by that, I mean, I really hope he doesn’t.”
“He will,” Mr. Fleischer says, groaning as he leans back in his seat. “Just for the pleasure of pissing on our fun.”
“You think it’ll be fun tonight?” I ask.
There’s an energetic twinkle in Mr. Fleischer’s eye that I haven’t seen in a while. It loosens my worry for him a little, as he pats my hand. “Oh, it’s gonna be lively, toots. I can feel it.”
My phone buzzes in my pocket. I pull it out and smile as I open up the message, a selfie of Lauren holdingThe Grace Year,her face turned toward it, a smooch pursing her lips. Below it says,Give Burton hell for me! Wish I was there!
“Who’s that texting you a message?” Mr. Fleischer leans in. “Your beau?”
“Myfriend,” I emphasize, “Alex? No.”
He rolls his eyes. “Right. Yourfriend, Alex. Who comes over all evening and cooks for you and walks your dog, and drives me to my doctor appointments becausesomeone’stoo busy being Ms. Important Bookstore Manager.”
“First of all, that’s what friends do,” I tell him. “They visit each other and cook for each other, and walk each other’s dogs and drive each other’s curmudgeonly neighbors places.”
“Uh-huh.” He rolls his eyes again.
“Second of all, I’vetriedto take you to your doctor appointments, but you keep blowing me off because you want to hang out with Alex while he drives you around, which, you know, ouch. But I get it, he’s a likable guy.”
“And your car is a death trap,” he adds.
“It is not!” I glare at him.
He ignores that. “Who’s that message from,” he says, leaning toward my phone, being his nosy self. “Oh, the shrew.”
“You hush.” I bite back a smile. “Like you and Lauren aren’t both cut from the same cloth.”
“God help me if we are!” He hacks a phlegmy cough.
“Alex has been talking smack about her, hasn’t he?”
He shakes his head. “Nope.”
I don’t buy it. “You can’t take him literally when he does that. It’s just a petty game between the two of them. He doesn’tactuallydislike her.”
Mr. Fleischer gives me a long stare. “Theadora. He’swildlyjealous of her. He’s jealous of anyone he thinks gets more of you than he does.”
My heart skips a beat, then jolts back into rhythm. “That’s not… I don’t—”
“Bah.” He waves his hand. “Forget it. Just answer the shrew.”
I falter for a moment, thrown by his words, before I steady myself. “Only if you take a selfie with me to send her.”
He folds his arms across his chest. “Absolutely not.”
I sigh, turning to my phone, responding to Lauren. I heart the photo she sent, then write,Wish you were here too! Hoping Burton doesn’t show, but if he does, I’m ready to rumble. Did you like the book??
My phone buzzes with her answer.I. LOVED. IT.
