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Chapter 2
Elianna
Don’t hate me, but I’m a morning person. Iloveme some mornings. Which is why I’m first in line at the Community Used Book Sale at the Farmer’s Market on this fine, sunny Saturday in September.
I’m Longdale, Colorado’s newest resident, so the best way to acclimate myself to my new home is to go to the city park and rub shoulders with the locals. I don’t have to be at my new job at Tate International until Monday, and the last thing I want to be doing right now is unpacking.
A dark-haired woman in a yellow and pink polka dotted dress smiles and points to the neat stacks of books. “We’re revamping the county library system, so until we have a brick-and-mortar home for these babies, we’re selling some of them off.”
“You’re the librarian, I take it?” I ask.
“I am. And are you new here or did you just come for the edible cookie dough?” She points to the line that’s already formed outside a food truck.
“Edible cookie dough? Sounds delicious.”
“It sells out fast. You should try it sometime.” She moves her hair away from her face. “But today’s the last Farmer’s Market of the season, so if you want some you better get it now.”
“Oh, I’m trying it. Any excuse to avoid unpacking.”
“So youarenew here. I thought so.” She doubles her smile. “Welcome! Where are you living?”
“Just an apartment a few blocks from here. A fourplex.”
She laughs. “Everything in Longdale is just a few blocks from here. And you’re moving in at a good time. Tourist season is winding down.”
“I thought Colorado’s tourist season was the winter?”
“Well, there’s no ski resort in the county, but we have the lake, so summertime’s busy.”
A tall man in a white, button-down shirt and dark tie catches my eye as he approaches. I’ve never seen someone so attractive in all my days.
Thick, glossy, dark hair in a longish fade cut. A jawline to intimidate all other jawlines. A swagger with a hint of unease. He catches my gaze and I feel azing,but we both look away when our eyes meet.
“Hey,” the librarian says, and it’s clear they know each other. She doesn’t seem to care much about how handsome he is, which is fine by me. I move away to study the books piled up on the table.
They engage in small talk and then he nears me, leans over, and plucks up a thin book. I catch his musky scent, and the title, as he draws it over my head.
“Romeo and Juliet?”I spin around to face him and hold out a hand. “Can I see?” Maybe if I smile politely, he’ll let me buy it.
His brows knit together and that’s when I notice something else about him. He’s casting an overall sour vibe, like his feeble granny just drop-kicked him on his rear end.
He hands the book to me, but his eyes are locked on it, as if he thinks I’ll pilfer it.
The cover is cream, embossed with gold. It’s not a rare edition or anything, but there’s something that feels lucky about finding one of my favorite Shakespearean plays right as I’ve moved here.
I thumb through the pages, seeing the familiar words in stanzas, then glance up at both the librarian and the mystery man. “I got my degree in Theater History, so—” I shrug. In my mind, that settles it, right? Surely this guy can’t want this more than I do.
His mouth bunches up to one side, but he doesn’t say anything. Finally, I try to keep my sigh to a minimum. I tilt the book towards him. “You planning on getting this, or—?” Surely he sees my uncompromising need for this book.
He murmurs an “Uh huh,” and takes it from me.
My cheeks grow hot and I turn to study the other books.
Wow.That was awkward.
I casually adjust my hair that’s half up in a claw clip and jam my vintage 1990s baby doll tee down closer to my hips. Edible cookie dough might be sufficiently rich to drown my sorrows in, so I offer an unaffected grin, wave them both goodbye and walk across the sidewalk to join the line.
There are so many questions begging to be answered from that encounter. Like, is his name Tristan? He looks like a Tristan. Or, is he even from around here? He seems so out of place in his business wear. Why did he want a copy ofRomeo and Julietanyway?And is it obvious I had a perm go wrong and am now trying to hide it by using this giant clip?
