Chapter 11 #2
“So, did you find anything?” He asked as soon as we started walking. I saw his anxious expression, his desire for good news. I had none.
“No, it was a false lead.”
“Who did you suspect?”
“Collins.” Lizzy hadn’t found out any new information. All Collins wanted to do was try to convince her to go on a date with him.
“Pastor Collins?” he said, shocked.
I nodded. “His name was in Isabella’s journal as a potential customer. But it turned out that he was watching his nephew that night and he didn’t actually have any knowledge about what Isabella was doing. It was Brexton that contacted her.”
His brows drew together. “The assistant pastor? Why would he be contacting her?”
“Pastor Collins’s nephew is a dragon shifter. Apparently he burned the pastor and needed medical assistance.”
Frank ran a hand over his face. “I don’t know what to think. This is a mess.”
I touched his arm. “We’ll figure this out. We will.” There was a nervousness to his step, no doubt heightened by the fact that the full moon was only four nights away. I was nervous about that, too.
I surveyed my surroundings, trying to find something to distract both of us. “Where are we going?”
He blew out a breath, the night air clouding around his lips. “You’ll see.”
We passed Regency Meadows Park, where the annual bake-off would be held in less than a week.
The trees were their beautiful autumn colors, and someone had even set out a few canopies.
We continued on. I checked the time. It was 8:00 o’clock.
Most of the stores in town were already closed.
We turned down a street of darkened shops.
“We aren’t breaking into another store, are we?”
Frank laughed out loud and my heart leapt to hear his deep rumble. I loved his laugh. “No, everything we’re doing tonight is legal.”
“Pity.”
He eyed me. “I see you, Mary Bennet. You act like this prim, proper, play-by-the-book person, but under that outward exterior is a rebel.”
I gave a shy smile. “I’m afraid you bring out the worst in me. Or the best, depending on your point of view.”
His grin widened, and he stopped walking. “We’re here.”
We were standing outside Mansfield Book Haven. My heart did a little jump but then I took in the sign on the door.
“They’re closed.”
He lifted a key. “I have connections.” He reached over and unlocked the door and held it while I entered.
I sucked in a breath.
The bookstore was transformed. Twinkling fairy lights hung over the shelves and delicate paper bats fluttered from the rafters.
A warm, amber glow spilled from carved pumpkins, their flickering candles casting gentle shadows on the wooden floors.
The back corner featured plush, oversized blankets draped across the floor, surrounded by soft cushions.
A projector faced a white screen hanging between two bookshelves.
The aroma of hot cider filled the air, with mugs of the rich, frothy drink resting nearby on a rustic table alongside plates of freshly baked cookies.
“Frank, this is amazing.” I breathed in the comforting scent of books surrounding me, but despite the perfectness of the scene, I felt uncertain. “I figured you’d take me somewhere with people.”
He paused. “I thought you didn’t like crowds.”
“I don’t.”
“And yet you seem disappointed. We can do something else.”
“No, this is great. This is wonderful,” I rapidly added. It really was.
“Say what you want.”
I looked down, but there was no stopping my heating cheeks. “I guess I just wanted everyone to know that you and I are a thing.”
He raised an eyebrow. “It seemed to me you didn’t care what other people think.”
“And I told you that everyone cares to a degree. Besides, a girl needs her moment.” Something I’d never had.
His handsome lips curled upward and his eyes sparked. “Mary, Mary, quite contrary.” He shifted, moving past me and sat on the blankets. He reached out a hand to me. “Come here.”
I accepted it and he tugged me down next to him. Then he wrapped his arm around me, pulling out his phone. He turned on the camera and lifted it. “Smile,” he murmured.
A hesitant grin played on my lips as he took the picture. He didn’t remove his arm as he embraced me closer and pulled up his social media, uploading the photo and writing, First date with my amazing girlfriend.
“How’s this?” he asked. “Best of both worlds. Everyone knows, and we don’t have to face the crowds.”
“A perfect compromise.” I reached up and pressed the share button.
“Now, should we watch our movie?” He handed me a mug of cider with pumpkin spice.
“Yes, let's.”
He rose to get the projector going. Then he returned, and we snuggled close together in the warm blankets while we watched an old, heartwarming Halloween movie—one of those classic films with the right balance of spooky and sweet.
Duchess nestled between our legs. The flickering candlelight cast gentle shadows.
After the movie ended, we discussed our favorite spooky stories we’d read as children.
When I checked my phone, it was well past 1:00 a.m. Time had sped by without either of us knowing. “I ought to head home.” I rose and looked around. “Do you need help cleaning?”
“Nah, I’ll come back before they open and make sure it’s clean. Don’t worry about it.”
We moved out into the chilly night, and I tugged my coat tight.
Frank pulled me close and his lips descended to mine.
The kiss was soft at first, tender and slow, like the gentle brushing of two hearts finally meeting.
Time slowed, the warmth of the occasion wrapping me in a cocoon of comfort.
Fingers gently tangled in hair, and for a fleeting moment, everything remained still—no rush, no need to move forward, only the intimacy of two souls in perfect harmony.
The space between us felt electric, charged with something unspoken, as if the kiss was not simply a joining of lips, but a promise, an instant held forever in the surrounding stillness. Just me and Frank.
He took me by the hand and we walked on under the dim streetlights, the crispness of the fall air enveloping us in a quiet, comfortable peace.