“What do you like to read?”
“Fiction mostly. Thrillers, mysteries, romance. I’m not too picky.”
“Well, I’ve got a whole box full of romance novels here for the taking if you need reading material.”
“Thanks. I might take you up on that. Well, we should get going before the crowds arrive. It was nice to meet you, Sadie.”
“You too. Have a nice day.”
“Thanks, you do the same.”
Well, she sure was nice. And what an adorable baby with those chubby cheeks and that cap of black curls. And maybe Sadie could put all these books to good use. Of course, if she could trade them in for new ones, that would be even better. Was there a used—?
Something flashed in her mind. Not a plot idea (more’s the pity), but still a good idea. She could put up one of those Little Free Libraries right here on the property. People would take abook and leave a book. She’d make use of the novels she didn’t need anymore and have fresh reading material practically delivered to her doorstep. What a great idea. She loved it.
She sent Mrs.Miller a text asking if it would be okay to put up the structure—just for the summer. She could put it on the property but close to the path so beachgoers could pick up something to read on their way past. Genius!
An older couple passed on the path, wearing floppy sun hats and loaded down with beach chairs.
“Good morning!” Sadie called.
“Morning,” the woman said.
“Beautiful day,” her husband added.
“It sure is.”
They walked on.
Her phone buzzed and Sadie reached for the welcome distraction.
Love that idea, Mrs.Miller said.Go for it!
A rush of adrenaline had her searching forLittle Free Library. They sold kits online, but she didn’t want to wait that long. She’d passed a hardware store on the way home from the grocery. She could make something as simple as a box. She knew how to use basic tools—after all, she was the son her father never had. And she’d helped her grandpa around the ranch, mending fences, fixing porch rails.
She closed the website... and there was her blank document.
“Back to work.” When the sun popped out from behind a cloud, she brightened the screen so she could see it better in the sunlight—in case she ever had anything to write.
“This is nothing new for you, Sadie. You know how to do this.”
Come to think of it, when she plotted her westerns, her best ideas hadn’t come when she was sitting at her laptop. They’d come when she was busy doing something else. Like taking a walk or a shower or going for a drive or...
Building a Little Free Library.
Five
Tension between the hero and heroine will keep your reader flipping pages.
—Romance Writing 101
“Hey, Butthead.”
Sam smiled at his sister’s greeting—one of the many derogatory names she’d assigned to him during her childhood. Who was he kidding? At seventeen Hayley was still a child.
“Hey, Meatball. What’s up?”
“When are you coming back to Bluffton? And don’t tell me you’re playing it by ear.”
