Page 113 of Accidental Blind Date

“Have you talked to him?” she asks.

I bite my cheek then force a smile because I am not going to be snappy today. Snappy leads to volatile, and volatile leads to tears, and tears mean he wins.

“I have not. And you know what?” I ask, standing up so we are face to face through the two-sided bookshelf. “I don’t plan to.”

With that, I fill in the gap with a front-facing copy of Stephen King’s Misery.

Summer is no doubt about to say something again, but I am saved by the bell. The doorbells smashing against the front door as it opens and small footsteps hurry in. A customer. Awesome.Now I have something to do, and Summer will have to find something else to do too.

“Hello! Welcome–” I smile as I round the corner to the front but instantly, my heart drops. It’s Delilah and Poppy. And while that would normally make me giddy, there are two things strangling my excitement. One, Dax is probably behind them. That rat. Using his girls to persuade me to talk to him. And two, they look upset. The latter is obviously much more important.

“Girls, is everything alright?” I ask as Poppy throws her arms around me and hangs on like the world is going to fly off its axis at any moment.

“We miss you,” she whines into my stomach and my heart literally just about saws in half.

“I miss you too. Sorry, I haven’t been feeling well,” I answer, not sure what else to say. I glance back at Delilah who is keeping her distance a little.

“So, are you better now? Can you come over again? When are you moving in with us?” Poppy blurts out a string of emotional questions. I open my mouth to answer, though I’m not sure what I am going to say when the door chimes again. My heart hits the floor. But it’s not Dax. It’s a woman and she’s frantic.

“Girls! Oh, my goodness, girls. You can’t run that far ahead, Aunt Jenna couldn’t keep up with you.”

“We came to see Miss Libby. She’s the book lady.”

Jenna stops when she sees me, her face sinking as she realizes who I am. “She is. Of course.”

For a moment we just stare at each other and then I look down at the girls. “What if you two spend the next fifteen minutes picking out one book each.” I tell them.

“For keeps?” Poppy asks.

“Yes. But you have to look for fifteen whole minutes. That way you know you got the best ones you can find.”

“Hooray! Come on Delilah!” Poppy trots off and after a reluctant moment, Delilah follows.

“I’m sorry they just came barging in,” Jenna says wistfully. “Emotions have been running a little high recently, as I assume you can imagine.”

“I understand,” I tell her. Then I look at her. I really look at her. Because as much as my brain made her out to be the bad guy, it’s hard for a woman not to see the side of another woman, even one who is upsetting. “Can we talk for a moment?” I ask.

Jenna looks at me, then glances over at the girls, and back at me again.

“They’re alright, I promise,” I tell her. She nods hesitantly and then follows me to the front of the store.

“Is this the window that was broken?” she asks.

“Yeah. It was a mess.”

“I saw it on the news. People are terrible,” she says.

“They can be,” I answer. And by this time, I’m over the small talk. I’m not a small talker. “Can I honest with you?” I ask.

Jenna looks away from the window. “Let me guess, you think I’m the devil?”

“No. I actually don’t,” I tell her and her brows twitch in a hint of surprise. “I know how much you love them. And I know how much you miss your sister.”

“Do you though?” she snaps. Then she bites her tongue, her harshness catching herself off guard.

“I do. My parents died.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”