Chapter 19
Belle
Something changed in our relationship. I'd tried to push him away that day my mother visited, and he wouldn't let me. It was surprising. I'd expected him to shy away from any kind of emotional moment. But instead, he'd insisted on distracting me and making me feel better.
It had been soothing to cook a meal with him and then watch TV.
It was something so simple that I wouldn't have thought it would make a difference.
It was easy being there for someone you cared about.
It was eating dinner together, sitting next to them on the couch, and listening when they wanted to talk.
When I was having issues or feeling down, my parents tended to blame me for whatever was going on. Teenage boy stood you up? There must be something wrong with me. Unhappy in your career? Should have followed our advice.
Maverick came through for me, and I wouldn't forget it. First, he'd helped me when I was sick and now this. I hoped our relationship would continue to deepen and evolve.
Now that my mother had seen the bookstore, I didn't expect her to give up so easily. She'd press until she got what she wanted, which apparently was me going back to school for my doctorate. She'd been texting me options for different programs with reminders on when to apply for the fall.
I had no intention of applying for any PhD programs. The store was my dream, but I wasn't sure I'd ever convince her of that.
On Saturday, I spent the night at Maverick's, and then we went for a hike the next morning. Colorado's landscape was so beautiful; I never got enough of it. We hiked and took pictures of the view and each other. Then we stopped for a picnic lunch. Afterward, he insisted on taking me home for a nap.
When I woke up, he was staring at me.
"Are you watching me sleep?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.
"Mmm. You look so peaceful when you're relaxed."
I stretched. "I can't remember when I last felt so rested. My muscles are sore from hiking, but it feels good."
"I love being outdoors, whether it's for work, snowboarding, or hiking."
I smiled, basking in the warmth of his gaze. "That's good to know."
He showed me sneak peeks of who he was; I just had to slow down and pay attention. Some people were open about who they were, but Maverick was harder to get to know. It was that much sweeter when he shared something important.
"I have a surprise for you tonight."
I turned slightly to see him. "Our date isn't over?"
He dropped to the bed, his hand heavy on my stomach. "I promised we'd spend the day together."
"It's been great, but I could stay in bed and watch TV for the rest of it. We don't have to get dressed up and go out."
He made a noncommittal noise deep in his throat. "We haven't had much of an opportunity to do anything outside of this apartment, and I'm taking you out."
That perked me up. "Are you going to give me a hint so I know what to wear?"
He grinned. "How about one of your cardigan and skirt sets?"
"I usually dress differently if we're going somewhere nice."
His lips quirked. "You'll fit right in."
"Should we eat before we go, or are we eating out?" I asked him, fishing for more information on our date.
He mimed zipping his mouth closed and throwing out the key.
My lower lip protruded into a pout. "You aren't going to tell me?"
"Well, I can say that we aren't eating before we leave, unless it's a quick snack."
"That's something at least," I grumbled.
He placed a finger under my chin, tipping it up. "You don't like surprises?"
"I thought I did. But now that I'm on the receiving end of one, maybe not so much. I'm curious, and maybe I can't go with the flow."
He smiled. "Let's just say that I picked an activity this evening with you in mind. You said you like to go to new places, whether it's hiking or a museum. We already went on a hike so—"
"A museum then?"
He huffed out a frustrated breath. "I'm not talking anymore. I wanted it to be a surprise."
"I'm sorry. I'll stop asking you questions." It was important to him. I wondered if he'd planned a date like this for anyone else.
He shifted to sitting. "Let's get ready to go. I want to make sure we have enough time to see everything."
I wasn't sure how many museums were open late on a Sunday, but I resisted the urge to do a search online.
I got dressed in one of my work outfits, a skirt with tights and a silky shirt under a cardigan. "Will I need my reading glasses?"
"You should because you're so sexy in them."
I laughed at that because it was comical that he thought that. He'd said it enough times that I believed he was telling me the truth.
We stopped at his house so he could get changed. Then we drove toward Denver.
"Denver?" It made sense as it was the closest city.
He shrugged. "You can see that."
"I won't be getting any more information out of you?" I asked teasingly.
"Nope." He grinned at me, and I couldn't help the excitement from bubbling up inside me.
"This is fun."
He glanced over at me. "Not knowing where I'm taking you?"
"It makes everything more exciting." He might not take me out often, but I had
a feeling he spent a lot of time and effort planning this date. That meant a lot to me. "I was starting to worry that we weren't going out enough. We're always hanging out after work at my place or yours."
He reached over and took my hand. "We're busy at work, but we need to make time for each other."
"Sundays could be our days," I said tentatively, not sure if that's what he wanted. Didn't most guys want time with their families or friends and feel stifled if they spent it all with a significant other?
He nodded as he made a lane change. "I'm cool with that, but my parents are going to want me to come to a family dinner at some point. My mom will insist I bring you."
"Are you missing dinner with them tonight?" I asked, curious about his life.
He smiled at me. "Yeah, but Mom was fine with me missing when I told her my plans."
My nerves kicked up. "You told your mom about me?"
"I said I was taking someone special out, and she was curious. But I didn't tell her who."
"Are you keeping me a secret?" I wasn't sure how I felt about that.
He frowned. "I want you to myself for a little while longer. As soon as I tell her, she's going to show up at your store, asking all kinds of questions. She's worse than Aspen."
I laughed at that. "Your mom already comes into the shop all the time. She loves books."
He squeezed my hand. "She talk your ear off?"
"She does, but I don't mind. I love talking about all things books." His mother had been nice to me, but what would she think of us dating? Am I the kind of girl she imagined her son with?
"Tonight is just for us. I didn't want anyone giving me trouble."
My eyes widened. "You think they would have crashed your date?"
"My brothers would probably text constantly, asking a ton of questions. They're pests. And I haven't dated anyone seriously."
"Did you tell them about me?" I managed to squeak, not sure how I felt about his family knowing about us. Would they think we were too different?
"I've been talking to my brothers. They've been giving me advice because I'm an idiot when it comes to you apparently."
"You talked to them about us?" I asked carefully.
"They were the ones who said I was scared of things with you moving too fast. I was keeping myself busy with work and not following up after our first date. They encouraged me to follow my feelings."
I leaned my head back on the seat. "Is that what you're doing? Following your feelings?"
He glanced over at me. "You know I like you a lot."
That warmed my chest. "I like you too."
He grinned. "We sound like teenagers with our first love."
My chest was bursting with happiness and excitement. I felt giddy enough to be one. "I feel like one."
"We're making up for lost time. In another world, we might have dated as teens—"
"And then what? Broken up because we were too young to handle something that was this serious?"
He sobered. "Yeah, probably. I wasn't mature enough to have someone like you in my life back then. You would have demanded that I be a better person, and I wasn't ready for that. I was still causing trouble. I drove my parents crazy and they just wanted me to be happy."
"Not unreasonable expectations for your child."
"They put up with a lot. I give them all the credit for not giving up on me."
"Your parents are good people."
He smiled. "They're the best."
He drove into downtown Denver, easily navigating the busy streets. He pulled into a parking garage, and we got out. I still wasn't sure where we were going. I hadn't seen anything on our route.
He held out his hand for me, and I placed my hand in his. "You're going to love this, or at least I hope you will."
"I'm sure I'll love anything you planned for me." No man had done anything more than dinner or a movie for me. The fanciest date was the ballet at Christmas one year, but Maverick didn't strike me as a ballet or musical kind of guy.
He guided me down the sidewalk until we came to a large building, one I knew well but had never been inside. I brought us to a stop. "You brought me to the library?"
He grinned. "It's not just any library. It's the Denver Public Library. It was renovated in the nineties but still has the fifties wing. It's a blend of modern and historic architecture. It's supposed to be impressive."
My heart beat hard. "You've never been here before?"
"I researched the perfect place to take a book lover on a date, and this came up."
I looked up at the imposing building. "This is— I don't even know what to say."
"You might want to reserve your judgment." He guided me up the few stairs to the entrance.
I'd researched it at some point. I was curious about libraries in the area.
"Have you already been to this one?" Maverick asked, suddenly worried.
"I haven't."
His shoulders lowered. "Then I planned the perfect date."
"You sure did," I murmured as he opened the heavy door for me.
I stepped inside and was immediately greeted by a doorman. "Welcome to our evening event. You are welcome to tour the building, and dinner will be served at six."
When the doorman greeted the next guest, I asked Maverick, "We're having dinner in the library?"
He grinned wider. "I thought I'd bring you here during the day. But as soon as I heard about this, I couldn't say no."
I suspected it was expensive to attend an event like this. I'd read about them online but never thought I'd have anyone to go with. What guy wants to spend the evening at a library? I wasn't even sure that Maverick enjoyed reading. But he'd brought me here because it was something I'd like to do.
I couldn't resist wrapping my arms around him and squeezing him tight.
"Not that I don't love your hugs, but what's this for?"
I looked up at him, feeling close to tears. "I'm really happy. Thank you."
"I want to make you happy," he murmured against my hair, and I sighed. It was the perfect evening.
"Let's explore." I wasn't sure how much time we'd have to check things out before the event was over.
This part of the library was the newer addition with modern architecture. You could see all the way to the glass ceiling. I believe they called it the atrium.
"Did you know this is the largest library between Los Angeles and Chicago?" Maverick asked me.
"I didn't know that." I was impressed that he'd done his research. He'd wanted to choose an evening that I would enjoy. It made up for all the nights that we stayed in. I didn't have to go out all the time. But it meant a lot that he put so much thought into this date.
We wandered around the first floor, taking our time to check out the different sections and the bulletin boards full of activities.
Then we went upstairs to see the children's and western reading area.
There was even a large makerspace where someone could record a podcast or music or print something on a three-D printer.
Maverick checked his phone. "We should head downstairs. It's dinner time."
He led the way downstairs to the lobby where tables had been set up for dinner.
"Eating among books like this is a dream come true," I said after we’d ordered.
He considered me. "You can eat at your bookstore whenever you want."
"And I do, but this is different. There's so much history here. The original building was built in the early nineteen hundreds. Then there was a renovation in the fifties, and again in the nineties."
"I didn't realize that they have exhibits where they showcase artifacts and other historical events. We'll have to keep track and come back," he said.
"You'd want to do that?" I asked.
He looked around the room. "I'm having fun. I'm interested in the architecture, and I thought you could also get some ideas for programs. They have a ton of them here."
We talked more about what we saw and how amazing the blend of modern and historic sections of the building worked. The place was huge, and we wouldn't get to see everything tonight. But I knew we'd be back. "I think this is my new favorite place."
He raised a brow. "Did you know they host weddings here?"
"I didn't. But that sounds amazing." I hadn't given much thought to my wedding, but being surrounded by books was a dream.
"Did you notice the drawings of the building renovation? It reminded me of your rendering of the patio."
"That was neat."
When dinner was over, we continued walking around, holding hands, to see more of the building.
We stayed until the event was over. I never wanted to leave. I was tired but inspired at the same time. I'd seen so many things I could incorporate into my store: creative art classes for kids, computer instruction, and even the makerspace.
On the way out, I said, "Thanks for bringing me here. It was a dream come true. A dream I didn't even know I had."
Maverick pulled me into his side, walking with his arm around my shoulders. It felt like we were a couple.
The night was cool, and it was late, but I felt content, knowing that we were in a good place.