Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

AINSLEY

It’s clear I’ve had my head buried in the sand.

I should’ve known this was Cole’s neighborhood. I’ve known him for a few years now, but I guess I’ve never had any reason to question where he lives.

I watch as he heads back to his house, and is it just at this very moment I’ve only noticed his swagger? I lift my eyes from his ass. I should not be looking.

Then again, why shouldn’t I look? I wanted to break up with Drake. I initiated it. Moving in with him was a disaster, and even if I know it’s a good thing that I left, it’s still difficult when someone you thought you could trust breaks it.

I’ve never been the popular girl. I’m not tall, overtly pretty, nor do I have rich parents or the right last name. But I have wit and intelligence, and my skin can be clear and prettyish if my hair isn’t giving me grief. Not that any of that matters. There’s too much pressure on women, in my opinion, to look a certain way. And I’m okay with not looking perfect. I try to be a good person and I always give my all — like with Drake. And where did that get me?

I’m too hard on myse lf, and being the product of an affair — and a father who’s never really acknowledged me, except for that unsigned birthday card every year — I guess you could say I have issues. I don’t blame my mom; she had no idea my sperm donor was married. He told a lot of lies and my mom raised me on her own. The only intelligible thing I’ll say about him is he paid child support without a fuss. The only person he cares about is himself. I’ve met my half-sisters twice. One loathes me, the other was only nine at the time, and didn’t really know who I was. Sperm donor’s wife can’t bear to look at me, which I get, it couldn’t have been easy on her. But hey, it wasn’t my fault my parents tangoed and the man I don’t-call-Dad couldn’t keep it in his pants. Maybe that’s why I’ve always been a bit of a people pleaser. My therapist years ago told me not to fall into the trap of being good only for needy men. Apparently wanting your father’s attention and acknowledgement affects you later in life, too. Double bonus. Way to go Dad.

Still, I don’t think I have ‘daddy’ issues, and I definitely don’t want a bad boy. Maybe that’s exactly why I seem to attract the wrong kind of men. Not that there’s been that many. Drake was my first real boyfriend.

I get ready for bed early, shower and watch some YouTube home decorating channels on my phone because my life really is that depressing and I don’t have my TV hooked up yet.

I try not to think about Cole and how sweet he was. I’m not dumb enough to think he’s into me. I’ve heard the stories; all seven inches of them. If those rumors are true, then good god. Not that I want to be thinking about Cole’s member. As sweet as he is, he also has a reputation. Not that he isn’t a nice guy. In fact, you’d be hard t o find a woman who has a bad thing to say about Cole Garrison. If he wasn’t such a ladie’s man, he’d be quite the catch. He has a good job in construction, his own place, a nice personality, smart, cute ass… I cuss under my breath. It’s the break-up blues, that’s what it is. Cole’s been around for as long as I can remember, and while I’ve got eyes and can admire him from afar, he always seemed a little out of reach.

Aside from the obvious — nobody seems to be gung-ho for librarians like me in real life or take them seriously. Or maybe that’s just my ex? There’s the fanciful idea that Cole could be boyfriend material. That one makes me laugh. He can’t be serious for five minutes, much less be in a long-term relationship with a woman who knows what she wants.

Then again, I’m not judging. To each their own and all of that.

I’m only twenty-five, but I’ve always loved living in a small town. Starting out at a small community college for my associate’s degree, I then transferred to college to complete my four-year bachelor’s degree through scholarships and grants. I worked two jobs, paid for housing my first year, and became a resident assistant for the rest of it. I’m proud of what I achieved with little debt, and when I landed the job back in Silver Pines, I jumped at the opportunity to come home. I’d been working for a year or so in Denver, and really enjoyed it. My missing home was a big thing, and never really thought a position would ever come up. Margaret Townsend is the longest serving librarian in Silver Pines and kept things orderly ever since I was a girl, and nobody saw her retirement coming; mainly because she literally transformed this place over the thirty years she worked here. I admire her a lot and we still message each other. She pops in all the time and keeps me on the straight and narrow, plus she’s still heavily involved on the Silver Pines committee, so it’s not like we’re strangers. There’s more to running a library than most people think. If it were just Dewey decimal systems and putting books on a shelf, I wouldn’t have put myself through years of college, but honestly, it’s the best job in the world.

When I arrive at work the next morning, I see the usual suspects waiting at the door.

Hank Langdon and his two kids. I watch them between seven forty-five and eight fifteen most weekdays until the school bus arrives, so Hank can get to work on time. Debbie meets the kids at the other end. She’s a teacher’s assistant and has the patience of a saint. Hank works between here and Alpine Falls; the neighboring town, which is an hour’s drive away, so we all do what we can to help out. Being a single dad and doing the right thing for his kids, it’s the least I can do while I’m setting up for the day. They’re good kids, too, and never any bother.

“Morning!” I holler, waving my keys at them.

Hank turns and smiles. “Hello, Ainsley.”

Molly runs up to me and gives me a hug. She’s seven and adorable, and Oscar — who’s a little more reserved being he’s eight — waves his Batman figurine at me. “Hello.”

“Guess what we did on the weekend?” Molly squeaks.

I don’t even take a breath. “Skydiving?”

She laughs. “No!”

“Uh, you entered the Silver Pines Bake Off competition and won?”

She giggles. “No! ”

“Unless you went fly-fishing and caught a smelly old Wellington boot and a bunch of tin cans, I have no clue.”

She jumps up and down, clearly excited about the story. “Daddy took us camping!”

I cock a brow at Hank and he shrugs. “Is this true, Mr. Langdon? Did you subject your kids to the great outdoors again this weekend?” I put on my most stern voice and the kids fall about laughing.

“We pitched a tent and got eaten alive by mosquitoes,” Oscar finishes before Hank can say anything.

I’d never have thought Molly would be more outdoorsy than her big brother who prefers Nintendo and collecting Batman memorabilia.

I scruffle his hair as he ducks away from me. “That’s all part of the fun, Oscie. You don’t know country living until you’ve been bitten alive by giant bugs.”

Hank chuckles.

“We got to toast marshmallows by the campfire,” Molly goes on, taking my hand. “And then Daddy made hot chocolate.”

“Sounds like you had an awesome weekend.” I smile down at her.

They moved here a few years ago after Hank’s divorce. He got custody of the kids and they had a hard time without their mom. She took off with another guy and doesn’t even see them. Stories like that break my heart. Of course, when I heard that Hank was stuck in the morning with the kids, who can’t be dropped off that early at school without supervision, I offered to have them come to the library. Margaret, who's still on the board, agreed wholeheartedly. That’s what we do in Silver Pines, we help each other out.

I unlock the door, and , like clockwork, Molly takes my purse from my hand and carries it to my office. I remember as a child it was a privilege to carry the teacher’s purse or her lunch ahead of class. While I’m not a teacher, it still feels nice.

Hank doesn’t follow us in. “See you later!” he calls.

“Yeah, bye Dad!” Molly calls.

“See ya,” from Oscar.

“Thanks, Ainsley, see you tomorrow.”

I smile and wave behind me. “Bye, Hank. Have a good Monday.”

“Right back at ya.”

Oscar goes to his usual spot over by the couch to work on his homework before school, and Molly will usually go around with the feather duster, as she likes to feel helpful. I don’t condone child labor, but she usually stops halfway to look at the new picture books that I put out on Fridays.

“How are you doing with Charlotte’s web?” I call out to Molly, placing my lunch in the fridge in the staffroom.

The library is small but functional, and had a major renovation a few summers ago. I love it here. It’s like my sanctuary. The fresh, soft gray paint inside and ambient lighting make it look more like a cool coffee shop than an actual library. The only thing we don’t serve is food and drinks.

“Loved it. I’m moving onto Stick Dog.”

I smile. “I’ve also put Ivy and Bean away for you.”

I hear her squeal and when I glance at Oscar, he’s rolling his eyes as he sets his things on the table.

“How are you doing, Oscar? Anything I can help with?”

He shakes his head. “I’m good with Harry Potter and the Roald Dahl collection.”

“Very good. I heard the new Gangsta Granny book was coming out. I can reserve it for you so you’re the first to read it if you’d like?”

His head pops up and his eyes go wide. “You’d really do that?”

I purse my lips. “Why, am I really that scary?”

“No.” He laughs. “I just meant those books are always so fast off the shelf.”

I tap my nose. “It’s not what you know around here, Oscie.”

“Dad says that a lot, too.”

“He does? Well then, great minds think alike.”

I busy myself making a coffee and tidying up the desk before my second in charge, Alice, gets here in half an hour. There’s just the two of us, plus our assistant Marcus on Saturday’s, he also helps out sometimes after school. We’re not usually run off our feet, though Monday mornings can be hectic and it breaks up the monotony that often comes with a routine job.

I also have to leave early today because the moving van is coming. That also reminds me that Cole wanted me to text him when the van arrives.

Moving across town is permanent. I remind myself. As if packing up most of my stuff from Drake’s wasn’t hard enough. I’m moving onto bigger and better things. That’s what I keep telling myself, anyway. For one, Drake couldn’t commit properly. When we were together, he always seemed to have one foot out the door. I don’t even know why I moved in with him. In the end, it seemed like all he was after was an unpaid housemaid. And two, I found out he was cheating behind my back.

I sigh, switching on the computer out front. Molly high fives me on the way by with the duster. “Doing a goo d job, Moll.”

“Someday I’m going to come and work here too.” She beams.

I smile. “I should be so lucky.”

She giggles, taking off to dust the kid’s corner. Another fifteen minutes later and I’m helping the kids on the bus out front and waving them off.

As I head back inside, my phone dings in my back pocket. I pull it out and glance at the message, a slow smile spreading across my face.

Cole

So, did you hear about the truck?

Wow, I didn’t know Cole cared so much. Now that’s being neighborly.

Me

They haven’t texted me yet, but they said around 4pm if all goes to plan

Cole

I would’ve borrowed Travis’s trailer and done it for you if I’d known

That’s so sweet of him. But at the time I didn’t think to ask anyone, and I figured it was just easier getting someone to do it so I didn’t have to stress. I could’ve moved back in with Mom for a while, but I really need this time to myself to figure out what it is I want. I love my mom, but she can be impulsive and scatterbrained at times. But she’s very loving and has a big heart. She has been on her own for years, but has recently been talking about dating again, so I guess we will see. One thing I didn’t want her doing is worrying about me and Drake, now she’s finally dippi ng her toe back into the dating pool. I’m a big girl now and I can fight my own battles.

Me

It’s really not much

Cole

I hope you’re not gonna be this difficult when I need to borrow a cup of sugar

Me

Haven’t you heard, sugar’s really bad for you. Stevia maybe?

Cole

Uh oh, nobody told me the sugar police was moving in next door

Me

Cat’s out of the bag

Cole

Text me, I’ll be offended if you don’t

Me

Bossy

Cole

You’ve no idea ??

Me

Fine. Be all chivalrous. Who am I to stop you?

Cole

All part of being a good neighbor. See you at 4

I bite my lip. Do not read into it. I remind myself that Cole is the biggest flirt in Silver Pines. It’s what he’s good at. And hey, if he wants to assist me and I get to check out his buns again, who am I to argue? I smile to myself. I think today is going to be a very good Monday, after all.