Chapter 35
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Sam
The weather continues to be absolutely gorgeous, and my mood brightens by the day. I didn’t realize how dark the end of winter can be here until we started getting sunny days and even slightly warmer weather, but now I definitely see a correlation. I am blissful in this true spring air.
Granted, overall, life has gotten better by the day, too.
I spent the morning helping May and Georgia Sullivan organize books and stock the mobile library they lovingly call the Book Bus.
It’s a vehicle someone made so that when the doors on the sides and back open, they reveal rows of books slotted on lovely forest green shelves that occupy the entire interior.
The exterior is painted in vibrant shades of green ranging from lime to nearly black dark green, with a bright white logo that says Book Bus across the sides and back in a cheery font.
It's adorable, and the premise is even better. They drive the bus around to different neighborhoods outside of town in the more rural areas and give away books. It’s not even a true library because they don’t require registration or returns—they simply give away books to kids who want them.
They have adult fiction and nonfiction books available, too.
It has made me even more determined to figure out how to expand the library here. If these people had a budget and didn't have to rely on donations, they could do even more. I’ll have to ask Grant if he has any ideas.
Evie sits on a bench in the middle of the park in her business casual clothes she wears to work. They don’t look like her at all, but I guess it’s what the practice wants the receptionists to wear, so whatever works.
“Hey, how are you?” I reach for her and pull her into a hug as she stands.
She holds me tight, lingering for a moment, and when I pull away, I see lines of worry cutting across her brow.
“What’s going on?”
She slumps onto the bench. “My ex is trying to get custody.”
“What? Why?” From what she’s told me, he has no interest in being a parent.
I put an arm around her because one thing I know about Evie is that she likes physical contact. She’s a snuggly person, which caught me off guard at first, but I’ve found I don’t mind it.
“I don’t know. He won’t actually talk to me. I didn’t think he would be out of jail this soon, let alone be vying for custody, and I don’t understand how it’s happening.” She inhales slowly, eyes closed, like she’s summoning calm or courage or both.
“This can’t be right, can it? What judge would let him have custody after he went to jail for kidnapping you and Jack freaking McKean?”
“I want to believe it won’t go anywhere, but I…” Tears gather in her eyes, but she sucks in a deep breath and squares her shoulders. “I’m not going to mope around about this, but I just had to vent and tell someone who understands about it. I don’t really have anyone else I can tell.”
“Dec doesn’t know?”
A pained grimace crosses her face. “I can’t tell him, Sam. I’m just too embarrassed.”
Someone else might wonder why she’s embarrassed by her ex’s bad behavior, but this strikes a bullseye in my heart.
I know this feeling. I understand more than I’d like what it means to feel embarrassed and hurt by your own choices and then deal with the consequences of them in real time.
I can only imagine that intensifies when you have a baby who’s affected by the choices.
I take her hand and squeeze it. “Davis will help. You said he did when you first got here, right?”
She nods. “He will. I can’t pay him what he’s worth, but he will.”
“Would Jack help?”
“Without a doubt and to an annoying degree if I let him.”
I’m not sure what she isn’t saying there, but I can almost feel her reluctance to involve the movie star. Same goes for Declan.
“I’m glad you told me. Please tell me when and how I can help, and I’m there.” I don’t know what I can offer her, but I’ll do anything I can.
We finally tuck into the lunch she packed for us, angelic woman that she is, and I tell her about my own plans to visit Davis.
By the time we’re done eating and she has to get back, I’m anxious for her to get to the bottom of things with her criminal ex even more than I am for me to be done with mine.
“Are you going to talk to Grant?”
I told her about my realization that I want to try with him, and even that I think I do trust my judgement. After affirming this, she’s eager to know we’ve had it out and have decided to “get married, have babies, and live happily ever after,” which is wild.
But also… not terrible sounding.
“I am. He’s going to the meeting with Davis tomorrow, and we just ran into each other when I was on my way here and agreed we’ll talk after that.”
She scowls. “Why should you wait for after? Walk over there when he gets home and have your way with him!”
My laugh is not delicate—it’s sudden and surprised, and my cheeks bloom with heat. “Oh my gosh, woman, what the heck? I’m not about to come on to him when his girls are right there. And I need to make sure he’s still interested.”
She beams. “I don’t think that’ll be an issue, sweet friend.”
I glance at her. “No?”
She’s so confident when she shakes her head and gathers up her trash. “Nope. I’ve seen him look at you. He’s toast.”
Once I’ve walked her back to her work, I wander around the downtown streets. Mr. Khan greets me from where he’s talking with a delivery guy in front of his restaurant, then Mary Angela, who’s feeding a little bird and winks when she says, “Don’t tell.”
“Never,” I promise.
Then I spot Cletus, the hat-wearing goat, and his best friend slash owner, Carl. “Hey, Carl. Hey, Cletus!” I wave when Carl turns to see who’s talking to him as he moseys down the street with his big, white goat.
“Hello, young lady.” He gives me a gesture that is the perfect nonchalant way of acknowledging me.
I grin all the way to my car because these small moments are ones I never dreamed I’d be having just a few months into my time here.
The rest of my day off flies by in a scroll of grocery shopping, laundry, cleaning, and a bunch of online tasks peppered by texts from Evie once she’s off.
May messages, too, thanking me for the help with the Book Bus revamp before it gets going again for the season next month, and tells me she’s grateful for me.
Not my help. Me.
I fall asleep marveling at the beauty of this place and this life and all the wonderful people in it.
I’m determined to figure out how to shut down my worries over Andrew, and I have every faith that Davis, and Grant if he has any say in the matter, will help me do just that.
Being here makes almost anything seem possible.