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ChapterTwenty
Adam had visited a lot of Halloween-obsessed towns during the past few Octobers, including Salem and Sleepy Hollow. They’d been fun but massively overcrowded and touristy.
Though Bliss Cove went all out for the Spooktacular Festival, the participants were mostly residents and locals from surrounding towns, so it was lively and fun without being a crush of people and traffic.
The festival officially started at four in the afternoon, but unofficially, it was an all-day event. Ruby’s Kitchen served pumpkin pancakes for breakfast, costumed shopkeepers handed out “appetizer” trick-or-treating candy, and kids wandered around completing a town scavenger hunt.
Orange-and-red bunting, streamers, and balloons decorated the main square and gazebo, and the Bliss Cove Band seemed to be playing “Monster Mash” on repeat. Ray Berry staffed the bookmobile, which was parked at the square, offering Halloween-themed books for check out and sale as part of the library fundraising.
Mayor Bowers swept up and down Starfish Avenue in a Marie Antoinette costume so elaborate that her tall wig dislodged the overhead Java Works sign, and her billowing skirts trapped her in the doorway of a gift shop.
Adam and Paul, who happened to be filming nearby at the time, managed to help her escape by using the forces of both push and pull.
Since Bee had to spend most of the day at the library assisting the high-schoolers with the haunted house setup, Adam checked his phone far more often than usual and experienced a flicker of anticipation every time her name popped up.
Though they’d spent the past two nights together—leaving the library earlier than usual so they could go back to his trailer—he was looking forward to having her completely to himself for a couple of days.
At five, Bee finally texted him that she was leaving the students, two library assistants, three teachers, and Puffalump in charge of the haunted house.
He waited for her in front of Sugar Joy, his heartbeat increasing before he even saw her approach. She was dressed as a witch with purple-and-black-striped tights, a black dress edged with purple ruffles, and a pointed hat that was slightly askew.
“Sorry I’m late.” She hurried toward him, her eyes bright behind her glasses. “The vampire’s coffin wasn’t working properly, and the zombies needed help bloodying up their scars. But we got everything done, and all’s well with the haunted house now.”
All was well with Adam too, now that she was here. No longer caring about their “keep it secret” idea, he pulled her in for a quick, hard kiss. She wound her arm around him, pressing herself up against him so fully that he almost suggested skipping the festival and going back to his trailer.
“Have you eaten yet?” she asked. “There’s a Halloween buffet dinner at the town hall if you want to head over there.”
“Sure.” He kissed her again for good measure and put his other plan aside for now.
The festival was crowded and a lot of fun. On the way to the town hall, they stopped to play a few games of Pumpkin Skee-Ball and Boo Balloon Toss. Bee paused often to say hello to people and admire costumes.
Although Adam knew the library couldn’t survive without her, he hadn’t realized how much the town needed her too.
The town hall was decked out in streamers and balloons, and they joined the line to fill their plates with mummy dogs, Frankenstein pasta, and monster soup. They sat down at a table to eat, and Adam went to get them each a cup of witches’ brew punch.
As he returned, he saw Marilyn Lawson dressed in a tight-fitting mermaid gown and long blue-and-green wig, making her way around the tables and chairs toward Bee.
Instinctively, he walked faster and got to the table first.
“Happy Halloween.” Marilyn encompassed them both with a smile and placed a flyer in front of Bee. “In case you haven’t heard, the town council is holding an open meeting next week about the new Media and Tech Center.”
“Sounds like a waste of everyone’s time.” Bee scanned the flyer.
Marilyn’s smile remained fixed. “We’re soliciting input on the features and amenities of the new building. The point is to ensure the community’s ideas are heard so we can truly make it the kind of space everyone can use. I hope you’ll be able to attend. It’s open to everyone, and we’d appreciate your input.”
“Any plans for a haunted house?” Adam asked. “Or storytime? Crafts for kids? A teen study group?”
“We’ll have plenty of time to think about that sort of thing later,” Marilyn assured him. “At the moment, I’m securing funding for state-of-the-art computers and a presentation screen. We’ll discuss it in more detail at the meeting. Enjoy your evening.”
She walked away, her steps mincing due to the constriction of her gown. Bee glanced at the flyer and slipped it into her purse.
“She won’t win,” Adam said.
Bee sipped her punch and sighed. “The problem is that she has a lot of good ideas. And she’s not some evil mastermind trying to take over the town. She actually grew up in Bliss Cove and has a lot of friends and family here. She worked for a San Francisco real estate company for a few years before moving back to Bliss Cove to start her own company. She’s done a lot to help the town grow. She works with low-income families and started her own charity. People love her.”
“They love you too.” His insides twisted oddly as the wordlovecame out of his mouth. “And they love the Gardenia House.”
Bee smiled, but he knew there wasn’t much he could say to buoy her hopes. Although he would finagle and fight to get the library a “hexed” stamp on the show, he didn’t want to tell her that until it was a done deal.
