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Nicolas lowered his head and shuffled his feet. “Are you serious?” he asked, looking up into her eyes.

“Yes,” Elena said softly. “How about a gay romance?”

A smile played across Nicolas’s face. “She’d have that?”

Elena nodded. “Yep. I saw a few. One had a very hot man on the cover and he wasn’t wearing a shirt.”

“Ms. E!”

“What? There’s nothing wrong with reading romance novels, Nicolas. I’ve told you that over and over.”

“I know, but I only talk about those books with you.”

“Your dad wouldn’t care if you read those books. He’s happy you’re reading.”

Nicolas nodded. “I thought he’d kick me out of the house when I told him I was gay, but instead he and my mom both hugged me.”

Elena smiled, remembering Nicolas sharing that story with her. He had been relieved and surprised.

“I’m proud of who I am, but I’m not sure many of my friends read gay romance.”

Elena chuckled. “You might be surprised. Anyway, I’ll bring you something tomorrow.”

“Thanks.” Nicolas gathered his tools and put them out of the way. He looked up at his work and smiled. “It’s coming along.”

“It looks great,” Elena said.

“I’m happy to help you put your books in it when I’m finished.”

“I don’t have very many books left. I donated most of them when I moved into this smaller house.”

Nicolas furrowed his brow. “Then why am I building this huge bookcase?”

Elena’s smile lit her face. “Because I’m going to fill it with books I’m going to read. I have a new genre that I’m rediscovering and there are so many books.”

“Do you miss it, Ms. E? Teaching kids to read?”

“Things just aren’t the same since my husband died,” Elena said quietly.

“That’s why you moved out of your big house and into this one, huh?”

“Yep. This one is more my size. But it’s missing something. Maybe the bookcase is what it needs.”

“You never know, Ms. E. Someone else may come along,” Nicolas said with a kind smile.

Elena chuckled. “Oh, the optimism of a twenty-five-year-old. I hope you always have it.”

“You’ll get your spark back. It won’t always be like this.”

Elena studied him for a moment. “Such wisdom from one so young.”

“I’m not that young and you know it.”

Elena chuckled. “You are compared to me.”

“Nah, you always told me books can take you anywhere in the world and you can become whoever you want to be in those pages. It doesn’t matter if you’re young or old. Maybe you’ll find the person you’re meant to be in these new books you bring in from the bookstore. You’re discovering your next chapter.”

“That’s a great way to look at it, Nicolas. Thank you.”