Crap.Had the last one out forgotten to lock the door? Despite the small-town setting, she and the others were careful to lock up. There were too many stories of harm coming to women who’d been left alone.
She crept to the door, opened it a crack, and peeked through the narrow space.
“Abby!”
The loud voice, much closer now, startled Abby, and she let out a squeal. So much for being stealth.
“Jesus, Abby. You scared the hell out of me.”
Abby sheepishly pushed open the door and came face-to-face with a red-cheeked Roberta Claxton, the library board president.
“Uh, sorry. I thought the door was locked,” Abby stammered.
“It was.” Roberta jangled her set of keys. “I noticed your car and worried maybe something was wrong.”
The curse of living in a small town—everyone knew your business. Abby doubted that in a larger town anyone would notice her car parked in the lot.
“Uh, nothing’s wrong. I was catching up on my work.”
She groaned inside. Why had she said that? Would Roberta think she wasn’t able to handle the job now that she’d garnered so much attention or maybe think she’d been shirking her duties? She kind of had since it seemed everyone who stopped in the library wanted to talk to her about her stupid videos.
“You’re such a dedicated employee.” Roberta put her hand on Abby’s arm and squeezed.
Typical Roberta, she touched whomever she was talking to. At first, it had creeped Abby out, but she’d grown used to it. Apparently, Roberta hadn’t gotten the memo that she should ask someone if they wanted to be touched, or perhaps at seventy-seven, she didn’t care.
“Thanks.” Abby felt heat climb up her neck. “Thanks for stopping and checking.”
“It worked out perfect, dear.” Roberta squeezed Abby’s arm. “I’ve been meaning to stop by to talk to you.”
“Uh, sure.” Abby gestured toward the front of the library. “Shall we go to my office?”
“No, no. One of these tables will be fine.” Without waiting for Abby to respond, Roberta walked to the nearest table and pulled out a chair. Abby hadn’t moved when Roberta looked back at her. “Is there something wrong?”
Abby took a deep breath. Perhaps it was better to get her butt chewed out here than taint her office. It wasn’t like anyone else was around to hear it. She trudged to the table and pulled out a chair. She waited for Roberta to sit before she took the chair across from her.
Roberta leaned on the table and put her hands together in front of her. “I just wanted to tell you how much I love your videos.”
“I’m sorry, I can exp—”Wait.Had Roberta just complimented her videos?
“Oh, Abby.” Roberta stretched out her hand but pulled it back when she realized she couldn’t reach Abby, who was leaning back in her chair. “What did you think I was going to say?”
Abby shrugged, not wanting to share what she’d been thinking.
“Oh, come on, sweetie, you can tell me. It’s just us here.”
Though Abby knew Roberta meant well, this conversation made her uncomfortable. Abby looked down at her fingers and picked at her cuticle. “I didn’t mean to cause such a distraction.”
“Distraction?” Roberta’s voice rose. “You think you caused a distraction? You’ve brought people in. Madeline mentioned library traffic is up over fifty percent in the past two weeks.”
Abby gaped at Roberta. Why hadn’t Madeline told Abby? Because Abby had been a basket case, Madeline was protecting her, not wanting to push her over the edge. “But what about the Heartland Family Alliance? They’re not letting up. I should be focused on that.”
Roberta snorted. “To hell with those self-righteous idiots. You know the board is committed to fighting censorship, and we fully support your efforts to protect intellectual freedom.”
“But my videos might give them ammunition to come after the library.”
“Hardly. Your videos are priceless. So authentically you. And they’ve brought positive attention to the library.”
“They’re silly.”
