“Perfect.”
Today might have threatened to have a rocky start, but it’s already looking brighter.
12
Levi had gotten down to the service station early to do a visual check and some diagnostic testing on the bookmobile. He probably should’ve waited around the house for the spritely librarian to wake up and come out of the bedroom so he could apologize for his outburst in person, but he figured she’d want to know how long she had to put up with his sorry carcass, and he couldn’t tell her that until he had some answers as to what was wrong with the bookmobile. Well, that and the DOT and Forest Service timelines, but he didn’t have any control over when the state would clear the roads.
It hadn’t taken long after he’d popped the hood to see where the problem lay. The alternator cables were covered in green corrosion, exposing wires. The corrosion triggered electrical resistance that led to overheating, which caused the smoke she’d seen coming from the engine area. He should have asked her if there had been any type of smell that she’d noticed yesterday when she’d broken down. There could still be other problems with the vehicle as well, but he’d definitely need to replace the wiring and the alternator itself.
While he was at it, he might as well give the thing a tune-up. Replace the air filter, fuel filter, oxygen sensor, and spark plugs.Flush the transmission, brake, and coolant fluids. Wouldn’t hurt to check the serpentine belt or the transfer case fluid either. He didn’t want to think about the feisty little strawberry-blond broken down on the side of the road again. What if next time someone with less honorable intentions was the one to find her alone and defenseless?
Yeah, he wasn’t going to let that happen if he could help it. And he could. By making sure this old van ran better than it had when it’d first come off the production line.
“Hullo, anyone there?” A familiar voice interrupted Levi’s inspection.
Jack MacDonald. General Store owner, busybody, and self-appointed town council chairman. Not that Turkey Grove had a town council to be chairman of, but Jack didn’t seem to care about that little detail.
The first time Constance had come to visit, she’d gotten a huge kick out of meeting Jack. She’d laughed and gone on and on about how he was just like Taylor Doose. At her brother’s confused expression, she’d just laughed some more. Then she’d made him sit through an entire season ofGilmore Girls, and Levi had never been able to look at Jack the same again.
Levi pulled his head out from under the hood and reached for the rag nearby, wiping what grease and gunk he could from his fingers. His cuticles sported a continuous black ring, but washing his hands with Fast Orange later would take most of the grime from his hands. For now, the rag would have to do.
“What can I help you with, Jack? Got a problem with your car?”
“Nothing like that.” He hooked his thumbs through the belt loops of his faded jeans. “I just saw you towing in that fancy bookmobile yesterday and wanted to stop by and make sure everything is all right.”
Translation: He was there for any gossip he could spread along to his customers.
“A vehicle gets towed to a service station means it’s broken down. Not much to see, if you ask me.”
Jack chuckled. “I’d normally agree with you, but a lot of folks were looking forward to that there library on wheels coming yesterday and were disappointed when it didn’t show up.” He reached up and scratched under the band of his ball cap. “Do you think the librarian would let us in and get a look around? Maybe get the Wi-Fi set up if she can? Check some books out? Get a library card?”
“You mean—” Levi looked around the open space of his garage, picturing people milling about. Dread filled his middle. “Here?”
Jack nodded. “Unless you’ve already gotten it running again and she can drive it on over to the General Store parking lot.”
“No.” He hadn’t even finished running all the diagnostics yet.
Jack nodded again. Or maybe he’d never stopped in the first place. He had a habit of mimicking a bobblehead. Probably thought it made him appear like he was constantly mulling over something important. “So, do you think she’d be willing to open the bookmobile up to the townsfolk for a bit?”
“I—” Levi started.
“She actually had the same idea and is here to do just that.”
Levi spun slowly on his steel-toed bootheel. Hayley stood in front of the open bay door, the sun shining around her like spilled light. His heartbeat caught in his throat and lodged there, making it difficult to breathe.
He’d been about to turn Jack down flat. The service station wasn’t a place for people to come and go willy-nilly. It was a business, and he had work to do that couldn’t be done if he had to worry about someone getting into something they had no business messing with and hurting themselves on his machinery. Everyone could check out the bookmobileafterhe was done working on it.
Except now, as he stared at Hayley, who was the epitome of everything that was good and wholesome in the world, he felt himself softening. If she asked, he had a sinking suspicion that he’d say yes. For the life of him, he didn’t know why, but he wanted to keep that sweet smile on her lips. Maybe he could even make up for his boorish behavior the night before.
Hayley stepped forward. “Well,maybehere to do just that. I need to talk to Levi first.” She gestured toward his office. “Can I speak with you for a moment?”
Levi swallowed and nodded. He walked over to the office door without a word and opened it for Hayley. When he closed the door behind him, Hayley pivoted and turned her face up. Pink tinged her cheeks, highlighting the constellation of freckles that more than just spattered across the bridge of her nose. He’d always found freckles immensely attractive and didn’t know why so many women tried so hard to cover them up. They added character and uniqueness to a person’s face. On Hayley, they were spellbinding.
Her lashes lowered, fanning her cheekbones before she raised her eyes again to meet his. “I’m sorry about springing this on you. I’d wanted to talk to you first about possibly opening the bookmobile for a few hours or even a whole day, if possible. But then I ran into Anna Leigh on my walk down the mountain, and she’s never even been inside a library before, and my excitement got the better of me, and I invited her and her mom over. Then my mouth ran away with me again when I heard that man asking if I was willing to open the doors for everyone and ... ” She shrugged sheepishly. “I’m sorry.”
Before he knew what he was doing, he reached out and squeezed her shoulder. She looked down, peering at his big paw on the delicate curve of her arm. Stupid of him. Of course she didn’t want him touching her. Why would she?
He dropped his hand and curled his fingers into his palm. Not to keep the sensation of the touch away, he realized withsurprise, but to savor the feel and warmth of her. Hold it close as long as possible.
