Moving sucks.
“You said you own a brewery?”I ask.I’m inspecting the huge closet on the third level, the random black cat I’ve somehow also inherited winding around my ankles and purring up a storm.
“Part-owner.”He clears his throat.“Half.”
“Is it hard?Owning a business?I basically fell into it and no matter how many times I try to read the Business For Dummies book I bought, my eyes just keep glazing over.Which is strange.For me, I mean.Usually I’m a good reader.Like, a great reader, even.Research is my jam.”I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose.“I’m overwhelmed.”
“Hey,” Aiden says softly, and I glance over my shoulder at where he’s leaning against the far wall, next to a pretty bay window that overlooks the picturesque town square.He’s tall, I realize with a start, almost the same height as the top of the window.“I can help you.We—me and Jack, that’s the other owner—had to learn just about everything as we went.You don’t have to make the same mistakes we did.”
“How tall are you?”I blurt.
His eyebrows raise.
“I just noticed you’re really tall.And yes, I would love help, if you’re not busy.I don’t want to presume?—”
“Don’t be ridiculous.I offered.You aren’t presuming.Honestly, it will be good for the whole downtown, which is good for my business too.Maybe we can plan a book and beer event.”He pauses, rolling his shoulders.“And I’m six foot four.”
I scrunch my lips together and nod thoughtfully.“That’s pretty tall.”
He huffs a laugh, but I just shrug it off.If he thinks I’m weird, he won’t be the first and he won’t be the last.At least he’s being nice and not being a perv.
Again, bar, meet hell.Handshakes all around.
“Book and beer event, huh?”My phone vibrates in my pocket, then again in quick succession, and I tug it out of my shorts.“See?That’s the kind of thing I never would have thought of.Beer and the library wouldn’t have mixed.I’m used to planning library programming, though, so it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch to think outside the box.”
Suddenly, looking at him looking at me from across the room, I feel like I can do it.
I can do this.
I can take this bookstore and this town and make a life here.I love books.Books are what I’m good with.People, not so much, but I can learn.I didn’t realize dealing with people would be such a huge part of being a librarian when I was a freshman picking out courses, but I’ve gotten better.Heck, with the stipend, I could probably eventually hire someone to run the register or whatever it’s called.Point-of-sale?Huh.
A bevy of ideas race through my head, as if they were waiting for this rare moment of self-esteem to make themselves known.
I just stare at Aiden, overwhelmed, thoughts churning.
My phone buzzes in my hand.
“You going to check that, squirrel?”he asks.
“Squirrel?”I sniff.
He laughs again.“Yeah.Squirrel.I rescued one growing up, and it would look just like that as it chewed, then it would run off and do something else.”
“You rescued a squirrel?”I make the magnanimous decision not to pursue the thought that I remind him of a squirrel in favor of a much more interesting story.
I’m a big person like that.
To my surprise, his expression turns slightly uncomfortable and he nods.“It had a broken arm.I don’t know how it happened, but I took care of it until it healed up, then released it.”
My phone vibrates again, and I tear my attention away from the tall squirrel-rescuing man in my bedroom to finally check my phone.
“The movers are here,” I tell him, relieved.“That’s one less thing to worry about.”
“Perfect.We can let them in and then I’ll take you out for the cleaning stuff you’ve been talking about, cat supplies, and we can grab some food while we stay out of their way.”
The phone vibrates again, and this time, it’s an incoming call.
“Shoot, I forgot I told my friend I’d call her when I got here.”I give Aiden a scrunched up, pained expression, feeling rude for wanting to answer the phone in front of him.
