CHAPTER 2
ELWOOD
Sometimes the books I shelve tell a story, a coherent story that makes sense and I could almost tell you who was the last person to touch which books. Other times, not so much.
Today is a day of convoluted chaos when it comes to the books I put back.
As I look around the library, I can’t help but smile. Part of the joy I feel when I look around is because the Christmas decorations are up. They give every corner a soft warmth that is special when it comes to this time of the year. We keep things festive while not going too over the top.
The best decorations are the ones the kids have been making.
We’ve added a crafts to our story times on the weekend; meaning the library is riddled with paper snowflakes and chains.
They’re not all even, but they were all made with love and the excitement of the season, which I’m pretty sure is better anyway.
Having the kids around and decorating in the library always helps me find my own holiday spirit. The lights help too, but I’m not about to admit it to anyone. Not in this town when someone might want to give me shit for liking twinkling lights.
I already get enough crap because I became a librarian.
Like a man can’t like reading or want to be a librarian.
It’s ridiculous and reeks of off the charts toxic masculinity, but that’s just the way it is sometimes.
I think I’ve proven to everyone in Storyville that I’m still all man, even with my love for books and my desire to increase the literacy rate in the county.
They come out to my book drives and support the cause. That’s enough for me.
Now I have to navigate how some people in town are against the business my sister opened with her best friends a few years ago. Our town was a little behind the times with recreational cannabis use. Storyville wasn’t exactly a prime location for a dispensary.
That didn’t stop Greylin and her three best friends. They put together a business plan and then went after it. Most people in town don’t have an issue with the business, but there are a select few who think Greylin is creating a scourge on the town.
As if Greylin could ever pull such a thing off. The woman doesn’t have a mean or manipulative bone in her body. The last thing she would ever want is to bring the community of Storyville down. She wants to build it up and strengthen the connections between us.
Greylin is all about the dispensary business.
She’s committed to quality and education around cannabis use, especially medicinally even though she believes in recreational use as well.
I think it shocked everyone in Storyville who thought of Greylin and her friends as people who would never imbibe cannabis in any form.
It just goes to show you how you can’t make assumptions about people. Greylin breaks all sorts of stereotypes and I’m more than happy to cheer her on from the sidelines.
She does the same for me.
I’m pretty sure she almost came to blows when I first started at the library and a few people wanted to talk shit. Thankfully, it never came to that, and she stayed out of jail.
Now Mayor Simmons would be more than happy to see all four women who run Green Mountain High behind bars. The man has a strange obsession with GMH, and he seems hell bent on shutting down the business. But the girls aren’t breaking any laws. They’re very careful.
When one of the middle school kids walks over after school to use the library’s computers for their homework waves, I give him a smile and nod. After making my way over to him, I kneel down and nod toward the screen.
“Everything working for you today, James?”
“Yeah, but I have a question about the assignment I’m working on.
” My stomach drops and all I can do is hope that he doesn’t need help with math.
Anything else and I’m right there, but math is where I need to draw the line.
It’s for Jame’s benefit; trust me on that one.
“It’s not math,” he assures me while laughing at the face I’m making.
I wipe my hand across my forehead as if I’m sweating and let out a sound fill with gratefulness. “As long as it’s not math, I’m your guy.”
James chuckles and shakes his head. “I’m supposed to write a persuasive essay about something I believe in,” a worried look crosses his face with his words. “I just don’t know what to write about.”
“Is that because you don’t believe in anything?” Something flashes in his eyes; I’ve gotten under his skin with one question which was exactly what I wanted to do. “Or are you just afraid of what people will think about what you believe?”
James takes a deep breath, his voice small and on the edge of being broken. “I want to write about health care. Mom’s job isn’t the best in town. She works really hard, but can barely afford the medication my little sister needs and will always need.”
With a sigh, one filled with weary understanding, I shift back on my heels while nodding.
“You can take something really personal, like what you’ve shared with me, and make it the reason you research the issue.
Maybe you’ll find that what you’re experiencing has facts and data to prove your family isn’t alone in this problem.
More kids need to think about the problems they see in their families, because these kinds of issues don’t disappear as you grow up and start families of your own.
Finding the data, which you’ll need for your essay, helps make it feel not as personal too, ya know? ”
James looks away, but I can see his mind working behind his eyes. He must feel the weight of his sister’s needs on his shoulders for him to be paying this much attention to his family’s situation. Even if his mom has been shielding him, he’s still aware of the problems they’re facing.
“Maybe your persuasive essay can help more than just your grade in class,” I offered up, my words an olive branch to his courage.
I get it. It’s not easy being in middle school and at 30, I’ve almost forgotten just how bad it was.
“Maybe,” James agrees, his voice absent as if he’s already thinking about what he needs to do next.
“Do you know where to start researching?”
My question pulls his focus back to me and he smirks slightly as he nods. “Yeah, I’ve got it now. Thanks Mr. Elwood.”
I grin and stand up, ignoring the way my knees pop slightly. You can get older, but I’m not entirely convinced you can do so completely gracefully. I’m not a fan of the wear my body shows in moments when I least expect it.
James turns in his chair and starts his research.
Every kid that spends time here after school gets a crash course in how to find what you’re looking for in the library.
I don’t want anyone to feel helpless, not when there are systems in place made just so you can find what you’re looking for.
The kids have gotten really good at it and I’ve seen them help other people who need it.
As long as they’re not coming for my job, I’m good with it.
I’m halfway back to the main desk when the door swings open.
When I turn toward the sound, I freeze in place.
The woman who has just breezed in is someone I’ve never seen before.
Even though she’s not very tall; there’s something big about her which is helped along by her red hair that seems to float around her like a halo.
When she looks my way, everything in me wants to close the distance between us. My mind flashes to an image of me wrapping her up in my arms, pulling her against my chest, and kissing her until we’re both breathless. I’ve been attracted to women before, but this is something else.
This is something inexplicable and special.
I suck in a wheezing breath when she looks at me and then toward the large desk. She bites her lip and glances back and forth a few times, the war easy to read on her face. With a sigh, she takes a step closer to the desk, the action tugging at something buried in the center of my chest.
“Can I help you?” The question slips past my lips as she moves closer to the desk, my steps mirroring hers, without realizing I was doing it.
“Um,” she begins, her eyes widening when she realizes no one is at library’s desk at all. “Maybe?”
I can’t help but grin at how fucking adorable she is, her nose scrunching up with uncertainty and a hint of wariness that I’ll be more than happy to put to rest.
I clear my throat and walk around the desk, hating that I’m putting distance between us while wanting her to know she can trust me. “Let me start with introductions—I’m Elwood Cross. I’m the librarian. Welcome to Storyville.”
She blinks at me a few times, the disbelief written on her face not at all surprising even if it is disappointing. It’s not like I’ve never gotten the same reaction before. Or every time I’ve ever told someone about what I do.
As the surprise fades, she squares her shoulders and nods slowly. “Are you the welcome committee or something?”
“Or something,” I echo. She doesn’t look amused, not even a little bit.
“We don’t have an official welcome committee here, but I’m sure we could put one together.
I doubt Mayor Simmons would allow any funding for it, but maybe we could do some community donations and even get a little basket put together. ”
She doesn’t laugh, but one corner of her mouth twitches. Somehow, it feels like a win.
“Right,” she nods as if anything I just said made sense to her when I know it didn’t. Her eyes narrow as she asks, “How do you know I need to be welcomed?”
My gaze moves slowly as I look her over. She’s wearing a pair of leggings that mold to her legs with an oversized sweater that looks extra comfortable. In all honestly, she looks like she would fit in around town, but I would have remembered if I’d ever seen this woman before.
Fuck. She’s gorgeous.
“I’d know your name already if you didn’t need to be properly welcomed to town.”
Her lips purse which makes her look sexier instead of the stern demeanor she was probably going for. Who the hell is this woman and how can I make her mine?
She makes a humming sound and nods once. “I’m Hollyn.”
“Hollyn,” I whisper her name as she looks around the library and takes in all the decorations.
“It’s very,” she pauses, her green eyes coming back to meet mine, “festive in here.”
“Well, ‘tis the season,” there’s a teasing lilt in my voice which has one side of her mouth twitching again.
But I don’t get a smile out of her.
There’s that humming sound. Again. When she looks back at me, her green eyes ensnare me. I never want to look away.
“What brings you into the library? Are you here on vacation?” I’ve never wanted the answer to be yes to a question as much as I do right now.
“I was just driving through,” she admits begrudgingly.
“But now all your plans have changed and you’re here to stay?” The hopeful note in my voice is obvious.
It should make me self-conscious, but it doesn’t. Not even a little bit.
Hollyn tilts her head as she looks at me, her eyes assessing. “No,” her words are slow and measured, “that wasn’t the plan, but my car decided to start sputtering before dying right on the edge of town.”
My spine goes ramrod straight and I growl, “How far from here?”
Amusement lights up Hollyn’s eyes, but she doesn’t say anything about my reaction.
“It wasn’t far, don’t worry. I had to walk less than a mile to get to the library.
I was hoping you’d be able to recommend a good place to call to have it towed and figured it would be warmer waiting here than in my car. ”
My gut clenches when I think of her waiting in her car in the cold. I don’t like it one fucking bit. I fist my hands at my sides and try to tamp down the feeling of possession bubbling up inside of me. It’s not like anything I’ve ever felt before and I’m not entirely sure what to do with it.
“Easton Auto is the only place in town. The guys who run it are good and fair.” I wake up the computer and quickly type ‘Easton Auto’ into the search bar, the information she needs heading to the printer before she even realizes it.
My jaw clenches because the guys who run the shop are all single. Will they take one look at Hollyn and want her just as much as I do? The thought pisses me off, and I have to take a deep breath when I go to grab the printout without looking her way.
“Thanks,” she offers the words absently, her eyes already on the paper in her hand. “I’ll give them a call and see when they can get my car towed.”
“I can call them for you,” I offer. Her eyes widen slightly as she looks up at me. “Or,” I’m on a roll now as I open my mouth again, “I can give you a ride over there.”
“Don’t you have to work?” There’s a hint of laughter in her voice as she motions around the room.
She’s right, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. “Yeah,” I grunt while thinking about shutting the library down early for the first time since I started working here.
“How about you call them to get it towed and then I take you over there after I close up.” I glance at the clock on the wall and add on, “It won’t be long now.”
Her face scrunches up, and she shakes her head slowly. “That’s ridiculous. I’m sure I can walk or they can pick me up on the way.”
I don’t like it. Not even a little bit.
Before I can stop her, she’s heading back toward the door with the paper in her hand while pulling her phone out of her pocket. I open my mouth to say something, anything, but she’s gone before I can.
Fuck.
It’s messed up, but I send up a little Christmas wish that her car won’t be a quick fix, and she’ll be stuck here in Storyville.
I’m not even a little bit sorry about it and watch Hollyn until I can’t see her anymore.
Even after she’s gone, I find myself darting my gaze around and searching for her.
I just need a chance with the woman. Hopefully, with a little Christmas magic on my side, I’ll get one.