Thunder echoed in the distance of the faire, and Lilian fell deeper into the story.
Penelope curled against his broad body.For months she had hated this creature.He was not human.Not a man who could love.But in this moment, she forgot all that.She forgot he was the Raven King and only knew him by his name.
“Nox…”
“Reading on the job again?”
Lilian jumped, coming back to the small cottage, the shelves of books, the wet wooden floor, and the man standing in the doorway.She’d heard Hawk call her out on reading before, but unlike the previous discoveries, he didn’t sound irritated.An amused smile touched his handsome face.
“To be fair, there aren't any customers around at the moment,” Lilian said, snapping her book closed.“Unless you would like to volunteer?”
He shook his head.His dark hair was soaked, giving it a wonderfully silky quality as it curled against his forehead.The white polo he wore was practically see-through from the rain, but at least it still had its color.The same couldn't be said for his shoes, which were caked in mud.
He seemed hesitant to step inside and spread the mess, his lanky form hugging the door frame enough to be shielded from the downpour.The sight made Lilian’s heart soften for a moment.She couldn’t let the man stand out in the rain like a dejected puppy.
“Well, even if you won't buy a book, I can't, in good conscience, let you stand out in the rain.”She could see him shaking his head before she finished.“Come in.”
“'I can't stay.I have stuff to do—”
“Every store has muddy footprints on the floorboards.You won't be doing any harm.”She grabbed his hand and pulled him inside.
He gave in to the command easily, stepping close into her orbit.“Thanks.”His body visibly relaxed away from the rain.“It's crazy out there.The whole place is a mud pit.I'm glad I wore my old running shoes today.”
Lilian laughed, looking down at what had once been an old pair of gray running shoes.“Of course you did.”
“What?”
“Nothing, I can just totally see you checking the day's weather every morning to decide your outfit.”
“You mean you don't check the weather?”He looked incredulous, which told her she had hit the nail on the head with her assumption.“We live in the Midwest, how else am I supposed to know if it will be snowing in the morning and sixty degrees in the afternoon?”
“You wing it?”
“Like them?”he asked, pointing toward a group of people who were drenched from head to toe.Makeup smeared down their faces, and their legs were covered in mud.“I have no idea why anyone would come out here in the rain,” Hawk scoffed under his breath.
They watched the group walk by, too engrossed in singing some nonsensical pub song to mind the muddy mess around them.Lilian couldn’t help but smile at the sight of them.“But they look happy, don't they?”
“Maybe,” Hawk grumbled under his breath, conceding the point.Then he turned toward her, eyes narrowed on the open book that was still left on the counter.“What are you always reading when I see you?”
There was a curious glint in his eye.Lilian inched closer to the book in question, embarrassment suddenly seizing her throat.“An…old book.”
He reached out to get a closer look.She instantly snatched it out of reach.“Your hands are wet.”
“What’s the big deal?I thought these were used books.”
Lilian clutched her copy ofThe Raven Kingto her chest.“That doesn't matter.There is a difference between small dings on used books and big dings that make them unsaleable.”
“Like what?”Hawk asked, his lips tilting.
He was teasing her.But the question sparked a raging beast in Lilian.She would defend honorable book care until her dying breath!“Like annotations.Some people love them.Others despise them.But I can’t sell them.Or creased spines.Too much could mean the book is about to fall apart.”
“What about dog-eared pages?”
She made a face.“Monstrous.But still sellable.”
“Someone has been doing their research.”
“I have,” Lilian answered primly, “and wet pages are a big no-no for book buyers.There are some things we can live with and that is not one.”
