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“Frank, c’mon. We’ve known each other a few years now. When are you gonna call me Aubrey?” She batted her eyelashes and flashed me a coy smile. “And no. I mean, other than the usual Wisper weirdos who come in, but you know all of them. And not one of ’em would steal from me.”
Even if I hadn’t been on the job, I would’ve ignored her question. “They might’ve noticed somethin’. Make a list of anybody you can remember comin’ in here in the last week, please. And how ’bout you round up your credit card receipts. Then I’ll talk to the folks that were here, see if they remember anything.”
She shrugged again, her flirtatious smile dissolving when I didn’t take the bait. “Sure. I’ll do it after I clean up. I’ll give you a call when I’m done.”
I nodded and left Your Local Bookie, again taking stock of the state of the place as I went. I didn’t see anything else out of the ordinary, besides the back door and the shoeprints, which were definitely odd. Whoever the culprit was, they went straight for the books first—not the cash register.
Now, what kind of thief would do that?
* * *
When the dog and I were standing outside the library, I checked my jacket. Since he didn’t shed all that much, I wasn’t covered in hair, but I swiped my hand over it anyway, just in case, and I took off my hat. I wasn’t on duty, technically, so I didn’t have to wear it, but I supposed it was habit. My hair felt flat, so I ruffled it a little and headed up the steps, hat in hand and dog chasing my heels.
My partner, Abey, came out the door in front of me, chattering with a group of ladies all buttoned up in winter coats. They smiled at me as I stepped off the sidewalk into the snow to let them pass, and one of the women, Billie Cade, roared at me like a lion, then winked, and she and Abey laughed.
“Have fun, ol’ boy,” Abey called out, and I flipped her off behind my back as I walked through the door.
“Oh my gosh!” Samantha gushed when she saw us, sitting cross-legged in her usual spot on top of the check-in desk.
I’d never seen a librarian like her before. Hell, I’d never seen anyone like her, period. She was a vision, and a colorful one at that, with her long, flowy skirt dotted everywhere with flowers. She’d changed her hair from blue to pink. I’d never admit it to anyone, but I loved the pink on her. It did something to her eyes, changed them somehow. They were… brighter.
Normally, she wore her glasses, but today her face was bare, and it allowed me to see them better.
“Who’s this?” Hopping down, she kneeled in front of me, scruffing up the dog’s face, talking baby talk to him. “You’re such a cute puppy. Oh my gosh, I wuv you. Gimme kisses.”
The dog licked her face, and I frowned. Gross.
“What’s her name?” she asked as she hopped up to grab her cell phone from the desk. When she kneeled in front of the dog again, she snapped his picture.
“He’s a him,” I said, and I realized it might’ve been the first time I’d spoken a whole sentence to her in months, even though I’d been coming to the library once a week on my lunch break for the better part of a year and a half. I was sorry it was such a short sentence and not the most interesting.
Her hair was down today, the straight pastel locks flowing over her shoulders and down her back. The smile on her matching lips was the purest I’d ever seen, like she was happy. You never knew what a person had inside them, but Samantha appeared to be content with life.
Her eyes lifted to mine, and I froze. I’d never seen anyone so beautiful, and down on her knees like that? Shit. Fuck all, she was sexy. I forgot the dog was even there for a second.
“Deputy?” she asked when I didn’t answer ’cause my mind was still in the gutter. It’d take a backhoe to get it out. She looked at him, inspecting his camo collar. “I don’t see a nametag.”
I found my wits finally. “Haven’t given him a name yet.”
“He doesn’t have a name?” Peeking up at me, she blushed. “Maybe you should call him Grumbly.”
“Okay then,” I said. “This is Grumbly.” I’d do anything to get to see that pretty peach color blush across her cheeks again, and the dog did need a name.
“Oh, no. I was kidding because you—never mind.”
She stood, and Grumbly jumped, raking his claws down her skirt.
“Dammit.” I gave him a name, and now he was embarrassing me?
“Oh, it’s okay.” Samantha smiled at him, and the dog wrapped his big paws around her waist, looking up at her, tongue lolling. Resting her hands on his shoulders, she hugged him back, and it looked like they were dancing. It was safe to say I’d never had an urge to dance before, but I did now. “Aw, he’s hugging me. You are just the cutest.” She tickled her finger under his chin, and I suddenly found myself jealous of a mongrel.
“It’s okay for him to be here?”
She looked around the library’s main room. “Yeah. I mean, maybe there’s some kind of rule about it, but I don’t care. There’s nobody else here. Just don’t let him pee on the floor.”
“He won’t,” I said, hoping that wasn’t a miscalculation, bristling a bit at her pointing out that I was breaking a rule. I never did. Grumbly pushed off Samantha to begin his inspection of the library. He seemed to like the old, musty smell as he perused the first shelf, sniffing at each book he passed.
“Okay.” She took a deep breath, then pressed her lips together. “So, um, are you on your lunch break?”
