Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Michelle pushed open the front doors of the library and took a deep breath.
She had a fondness for any type of old building, and the Coral Sands Library was a particularly spectacular one.
It was an old red brick building offering whimsical alcoves that created unexpected reading nooks, rows upon rows of antique and modern books, and stained-glass windows that cast beautiful colored light patterns across the old wooden floorboards.
Michelle loved the way it smelled clean and dry and of paper.
She also appreciated how hushed it was, offering a space of tranquility for anyone who needed a break from the hustle and bustle of life.
She looked around, wondering where the best place to look for historical articles would be.
She’d been to the library a few times before, but in the past she’d just made her way to the clearly labeled “Fiction” section, grabbed a few mysteries and romances, and made her way out again.
Now she was looking for old newspaper clippings and magazine articles, and she felt a little like a detective on the trail of a puzzling case.
Ever since she’d read the letters that her grandfather Thomas had written to Elaine, Michelle hadn’t been able to stop thinking about them.
They had thrilled her, causing her to think not only of the sweet romance that Elaine and Thomas had shared, but also of the Coral Sands that had existed during the couple’s younger days.
Michelle was determined to read every article and newspaper clip from that time that the library had to offer.
She wanted to immerse herself in the past as much as possible so that she could better understand what the world had been like back then—especially in her little world of Coral Sands.
She looked around the library for a moment, wondering where she should begin looking for the information she was seeking. Feeling at a loss, she decided to head toward the front desk. Surely the librarians would be the best people to give her an answer.
The front desk was vacant, however, and she didn’t see a bell that she could ring to ask for service.
She was just about to turn away when she saw a bookshelf behind the librarian’s chairs.
It was filled with folders and old magazines.
She could see little handwritten labels stating things like, “Coral Sands Gazette, May 1951—January 1952” and “Local Magazines 1963.”
Oh, that’s perfect, Michelle thought, feeling a surge of excitement. That’s exactly what I’m looking for.
She hurried behind the desk, looking for a chair or something that she could stand on in order to reach the magazines and newspapers. She soon located a stepping stool, and she eagerly placed it in front of the bookshelf and hopped onto it.
Feeling almost reverent, she began to comb through the magazines that would have been published during the early years of Elaine and Thomas’s romance.
She also felt interested in the older magazines, which would have been published when the two of them were children, but she wanted to look first at the years that were interesting her the most. She wanted to get a sense of the world that had been surrounding Thomas and Elaine while they were falling in love.
She had just located the correct timeline for the magazines when she heard someone clear their throat behind her.
“Excuse me,” a male voice said, sounding a touch stern.
Michelle whirled, suddenly feeling a bit awkward.
There was a man standing behind her with his hands on his hips.
He appeared to be about her own age, with short sandy blond hair and slate gray eyes.
He was tall, and he was peering at her through a pair of distinguished but also slightly nerdy-looking glasses.
He cocked his head to one side, looking slightly puzzled. “Unless you want to take my job, you can’t be rifling through anything behind the desk like that.”
Michelle laughed, stepping down from the step stool.
She felt relieved that the librarian wasn’t angry with her.
“Sorry,” she said, smiling at him. “I’m a little too enthusiastic, I guess.
I saw these newspapers and magazines right here and they’re exactly what I came into the library to look for.
I hardly thought about it, and then the next thing I knew I was up on that stool. ”
The librarian chuckled. “Your enthusiasm makes me want to get involved in your quest. What can I help you with?”
“I want to explore all the records you have of Coral Sands in the 1970s. My grandmother and my grandfather fell in love then, and ever since I read some of their love letters, I’ve been itching to get more of a feel for what life was like here then.
Of course, I already know a fair amount about the 1970’s—what the styles were like, history, things like that—but I want to know what it was like here in Coral Sands specifically. ”
“Huh,” the librarian said, looking intrigued.
“It’s been a while since someone wanted to research Coral Sands history specifically.
I commend you. I have a feeling that you’ll find our archives to be the most helpful.
” He took a step toward her, extending his hand for a handshake.
“I’m Marcus Riley, one of our librarians. ”
“I’m Michelle Lowe,” Michelle said, shaking his hand. “I appreciate your help.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you around town before,” Marcus said, looking at her curiously. “Are you just here for a visit?”
“No, I live here,” she said, happy to say the words out loud.
Moving to Coral Sands had been one of the best decisions of her life, and even though she’d initially wondered if she might become bored with living in a small town, she now had no hesitations about staying there.
Coral Sands had offered her all the peace and comfort as well as all the excitement and adventure she could ask for.
“My grandmother is Elaine Sutton. My mom and I moved into The Birchwood House with her and we’ve been working together to turn it into a historical site and hotel. ”
“Really?” He smiled broadly. “I know Elaine. And I’ve been following the news about your hotel ever since word got out about it.
I think that’s a spectacular idea. I saw that The Birchwood House entered that business sponsorship contest. I was already planning on voting for you guys, but now I really will. ”
He held eye contact with her for a moment, smiling and leaning in slightly toward her. Michelle smiled back at him, wondering why she was starting to feel butterflies in her stomach, and then she realized with a jolt that he was flirting with her.
Oh gosh! she thought, feeling her blood rush. Who’d have thought I’d run into a handsome librarian at the library? I’m sure he’s not serious and he’s just the flirtatious type, but it is flattering.
“Where are the archives?” she asked him, putting her hands in her pockets since she felt suddenly self-conscious. “I’ve never seen them before.”
“Well, they’re actually off-limits,” Marcus said.
“You can access any of the materials in the archives, but only librarians can go into the room itself. Let me collect some things you’ll want and I can bring them back to you.
You said you were interested in magazine articles and newspaper clippings from the 1970s? ”
Michelle nodded. “Yeah, as much of that as you can give me the better.” She laughed. “Maybe get a shopping cart? Thanks.”
Marcus laughed too, and she thought to herself that she was surprised a librarian would let themselves laugh that loudly in a library.
“Well, I don’t have a shopping cart, but I promise to come back with everything that I can carry.
You can take a seat at that table right over there, if you want. I won’t be long.”
“Sounds great. Thanks again.”
Michelle and Marcus exchanged another smile, and she sat down at the table that he’d pointed out to her.
As soon as she was seated, she began to feel jittery.
She bit her lip, tapping her toes against the floor.
She picked up her phone and clicked it a few times without really seeing what was on the screen.
Finally, she gave up and put it back in her pocket.
What’s up with me? she thought. There’s no way I feel this much like a chihuahua running around in circles just because some guy flirted with me a tiny bit.
I guess I’m also really excited about getting these articles.
And maybe I’m still embarrassed about getting caught going where I wasn’t supposed to go!
She chuckled and leaned back in her chair, making soft grunting sounds as she stretched. Marcus reentered the main part of the library right at that moment, and Michelle hurriedly straightened into a more respectable position.
“Here you are,” he said, setting down a massive stack of folders filled with old newspapers, magazines, and a couple of books onto the table.
“This should keep you busy for a while. There might even be a mention of Elaine in some of these articles. I don’t know about your grandfather, but her family has always been central to Coral Sands because she’d descended from some of the founders.
” He laughed lightly, almost apologetically.
“But then you probably knew that already.”
“I knew about us being related to the Coral Sands’ founders, but I didn’t think my grandmother might be mentioned in these articles. Thank you, that’s a whole other thing to look forward to.”
Marcus smiled at her, and she saw him shuffle his feet slightly, as if he was able to start walking away but then changed his mind. “Do you mind if I look with you for a while? I’m fascinated by history of any kind, and I have a soft spot for the 1970s.”
“Sure,” Michelle said, shuffling her own feet under the table as she suddenly felt jittery again. “The more the merrier. Let me know if you find anything interesting.”
“I’ll let you know if I find anything that has anything to do with romance,” he said, his eyes shining with a hint of flirtation. “Gazebos being built, town dances, full moons… you name it.”
She laughed, charmed by how witty he was being. “Sounds great.” She liked that he respected her reasons for wanting to look through the articles and was himself interested in doing the research with her.
She and Marcus began to dive into the articles.
Michelle found all of it fascinating, even the things that clearly had nothing to do with her grandmother or with romance.
She felt as though she could envision the world that Elaine and Thomas had lived in together, and she felt eager to find more information about what their lives would have been like then.
“Look at this!” Marcus said eagerly, passing a newspaper article to her across the table. “This article talks about everyone who volunteered to create a community garden outside the fire station, and your grandmother was one of them.”
Michelle gasped. “No way!” She peered down at the article with so much enthusiasm that Marcus started laughing. She started laughing too, although her gaze kept scanning the text with interest.
“I love this,” Michelle said, leaning forward and forgetting to be at all quiet in her excitement.
“This article quotes her here. She said, ‘I think this is a perfect way for our community to work together to bless each other and have a good time in the process.’ Yup, that definitely sounds like my grandma.”
“Amazing,” Marcus said warmly.
She looked up, about to reply, when something caught her eye. There was a man standing inside one of the book aisles, his eyes on the shelves. There was something a little stiff about his posture, however, and because he was so tall and thin it was very noticeable—
What the heck? she thought, surprised. That’s Theo! I never knew he was the type to browse the library shelves like this. He never really seemed like the bookworm type to me.
“Who’s that?” Marcus asked, noticing the way she was peering at Theo.
“Oh, um, that’s my friend Theo,” Michelle said, feeling herself flush slightly.
Theo seemed to hear what she’d said, and he turned in her direction.
He made eye contact for a second and she noticed that he had a funny look on his face.
Trying to make the situation feel less awkward, she lifted her hand and waved at Theo.
He gave her a rather enigmatic nod of acknowledgement and then awkwardly turned around and began to peruse another shelf of books.
Michelle pretended to return to her research, but in reality, her mind was on Theo.
I hardly ever go to the library, she thought, biting her lip as she stared at another magazine article without seeing it. What are the chances that Theo would show up right now?
She tried to tell herself that it was definitely just a coincidence that he was there.
After all, how would he have known she was inside unless he’d happened to see her walk in?
Then she realized a moment later that her yellow jeep was parked in the library parking lot, close to the road.
If he’d passed by, he would have seen it and known that she was inside.
She couldn’t help noticing that he was behaving with the same overly devil-may-care attitude that he’d had when he stopped into the auto shop when she was there.
He was acting unusually aimless, as if he had no official purpose for being there.
Normally, Theo approached all his tasks with determination and focused energy.
Behaving awkwardly and casually about his errands was out of character for Theo.
Michelle couldn’t help thinking of what her mother and grandmother had said to her, about Theo showing up in places where she was because he was interested in her.
The way he kept appearing in places she didn’t expect him to be was odd, she couldn’t deny it.
She felt her cheeks redden at the thought, and she brought her face closer to the magazine article even though that did nothing for her ability to read the words.
Theo and I just get on each other’s nerves, she thought. Why would he be seeking me out like that? I’m sure it’s all just coincidence, because otherwise that would be ridiculous.
She tried to force all thoughts of Theo from her brain, but instead of forgetting about him, she glanced up at the aisle where he’d been standing. He was gone, and she felt a flicker of disappointment that she immediately refused to acknowledge.
Determined not to think about Theo anymore, she looked back at the article in front of her. Before long, her interest in what she was reading took over most of her attention. Every once in a while, however, she glanced up at the aisle where Theo had been as if he might suddenly reappear there.