Page 11

As my own orgasm faded, I nodded. “Just . . . give me one second.”

“You get an orgasm in here, and then I do.” She hummed. “It’s only fair.”

I’d give her a hundred.

A thousand.

After I caught my breath.

There wasn’t much to do in a tiny town, and other than roaming the streets I’d seen far too many times, all that was left was the library.

It had once been the pride of Strawberry Springs, but nowadays, all that lined the shelves were old books I didn’t care to read. When I walked in, the air was stale and thick. The AC must have gone out.

“They wouldn’t,” one of the librarians, Henrietta, said. She was facing her wife, Marjorie, with tightly crossed arms.

“I’m telling you what I heard from Rainwood and I’m putting the pieces together. They dropped our funding to basically nothing.”

“They dropped it again? I had a list of new books I wanted to order.”

“It’s barely enough to cover the lost books.”

Henrietta groaned and ran her hands through her hair. “Dammit. The library can’t shut down. It just can’t.”

“Honey . . .” Marjorie was gravely serious, a rare sight. “We should prepare ourselves.”

“What about Mayor Toby?” Henrietta asked. “He just won the special election.”

“He said it’s out of his hands,” Marjorie said.

“It’s not. We elected him even though he barely meets the criteria of living here⁠—”

I turned away, heart sinking. The library was in trouble? Fuck. It was the last decent thing about this town.

I needed to get Jade out of here and fast. This place was going to ruin.

And I knew better than anyone else that no one would save it.

Sneaking past Marjorie and Henrietta, I went upstairs. I tried to put what I’d heard out of my mind, but I couldn’t help but sigh and take in the library. I’d have to memorize it as it was now.

There was a high likelihood I’d never get to see it again.

The old shelves were worn and well loved and the rooms felt endless. Everything here was outdated, but there was so much information that could easily be lost.

This was why small towns were a terrible idea. They were forgotten about and abandoned.

Strawberry Springs was facing the same fate.

I made it halfway through the aisles when a hand grabbed me and pulled me into the bookshelves. I nearly toppled over but braced myself before I could.

Looking up at me was Jade.

A smile crossed my face. “Did you plan this?”

“We need to talk.” Her breath came out fast and her eyes were wild.

Any humor I had faded immediately. “What happened?”

“I missed it.”