Page 8 of Honey Bee Library (Sweet Tea and a Southern Gentleman #7)

SAbrINA

It had been a busy but fulfilling day. I spent most of the morning shadowing Isabelle.

She showed me how to check books out, how to check books in, and we were even given the opportunity to issue someone a new library card.

After lunch, things had slowed, and Isabelle seemed convinced that I could handle the front desk by myself while she went into her office to get some work done.

I felt anxious, manning the area that she’d just trained me on a few hours ago, but I was determined to be an asset, not a liability, to my new boss. If she had confidence that I could run the front desk, I was going to trust her.

Luckily, no one seemed to want to check out books, so the afternoon continued uneventfully. I was nose deep in the newest Ember Sage novel when I heard the front door open, and a tall, muscular man with shaggy brown hair, a loose-fitting tee, and fitted ripped jeans walked in.

He was the complete opposite of what I’d expected a library patron to look like. The horde of necklaces, rings, and bracelets he was wearing was excessive for this small town.

Never in my life had I seen a man quite like him in Harmony Island.

He looked around the library at first, like he didn’t know what he was looking for, but as soon as his gaze landed on me, a slow, cocky smile formed on his lips. Then he sauntered—yes, sauntered—over to me and rested his right forearm on the counter as he leaned in close.

“I’m looking for Cole Watkins,” he said before he gave me a wink.

I frowned. “Cole Watkins?” I repeated as I racked my brain for any book with a character by that name. “Do you remember where you saw it?” Isabelle had shown me how to search titles in the library’s database, but she never showed me how to search by main character names.

The man knitted his eyebrows together. “The other day,” he said.

That was positive. “The other day,” I repeated as I shook my mouse to wake up the computer. “Do you remember the title?”

“The title?”

I nodded as I double-clicked on the catalog icon, and the search screen popped up. “I can’t really find Cole unless I know the title.”

Silence fell between us, and when he didn’t answer right away, I peeked over at him. He was staring down at me with wide eyes—wide ocean-blue eyes.

“What on God’s green earth are you talking about?” He tapped the counter. “I’m looking for Cole Watkins, my friend. Not some character in a book.”

Embarrassment raced through me. “Oh!” I said as I lifted my hand from the mouse and stood.

I wasn’t sure if it was because I was still in librarian mode, prepared to lead him down an aisle, or if I was so full of nervous energy that I just needed to move.

“I’m so sorry. I thought you were looking for a book where the main character’s name was Cole Watkins.

” I shook my head and felt like an idiot.

How had I made such a mistake on day one?

“Naw, that would be cool though. Cole would get a kick out of it if you actually found a book with his name in it.”

Realizing that he was still waiting to see if I knew where to find his friend, I shook my head. “I don’t know a Cole Watkins here in Harmony.” I frowned. “Is he new?”

The man nodded. “You could say that. He rolled up here a few days ago. He’s at the diner? Sunny…something.”

“Sunny Side Up?”

“That’s it.” The man slapped his hand down on the counter. Then he lifted it so he could point his finger at me. “I knew it was a good idea to come in here.”

Now that I knew this man was looking for a real person, and not a book character, it felt strange that he was in a library. Most times when I was lost, I asked at a gas station for directions.

“Why are you looking for him?” I leaned in. “Does he owe you money?” I snorted at my own joke.

The man’s eyes glistened with excitement. “You could say that.” He leaned in as well, bringing his face dangerously close to mine.

Suddenly, I realized what I’d done. I was flirting with this man.

Sure, he was attractive in a purposefully grungy way.

And it felt good to flirt with someone with no strings attached.

It had been such a long time since I’d gone out on a date that I wasn’t sure if I even remembered how.

This conversation was bolstering my confidence in a way that I hadn’t realized I needed.

But reality was cruel. I was a single mom getting her life back together.

The last thing I needed was Abagail’s folded arms and pursed lips as she stared down at me when I informed her that I was entertaining a man.

She wouldn’t say anything outright judgy, she would just make it clear that she did not approve.

So I pulled back. I returned to my seat and glanced up at the stranger before I offered him my best librarian smile.

“Let me draw you a map,” I said as I grabbed a pen from the black pen holder that said, pen thieves will be prosecuted…

or at least heavily side-eyed . After I fished out a scratch piece of paper from the recycling bin, I did my best to draw a map of downtown Harmony.

Once I was done, I handed him the piece of paper. “Here, I hope this helps.”

He had been leaning on his elbow that was resting on the counter while he watched me draw. He took the paper and studied it for a moment before he glanced back at me. “This is great…” He quirked an eyebrow like he was waiting for me to fill in the blank.

“Oh, Sabrina.”

He smiled. “Sabrina,” he said low and slow.

It made my entire body flush. “Yes.” My cheeks warmed, and I inwardly groaned. The last thing I needed was for him to know exactly what his voice was doing to me. Especially since he clearly knew what he was doing.

“Liam,” he said as he reached over the counter and offered me his hand.

I studied it, not sure if I should take it or not. But I didn’t want to be rude, so I accepted it. “It’s nice to meet you, Liam.”

He held my hand for a few seconds longer than normal, and my gaze instantly dropped to study them.

There was a lot happening between us, and I wasn’t sure what any of it meant.

All I could think about was that there was a giant possibility I was misreading everything.

I sucked at love. My empty bed and empty ring finger were proof of that.

I slowly pulled my hand back in a way that I hoped told Liam I was flattered but not interested. I was saving him from pursuing a single mom with a complicated history with her ex. I was certain that as soon as he learned those facts, he’d lose interest.

“I hope you find your friend,” I said as I nodded toward the map I’d drawn.

He glanced down at it before he began to slowly fold the paper, and then he stuck it in his back pocket. “I hope so, too.” He met my gaze once more.

It startled me how bold he was. He never wavered. He didn’t drop his gaze when the connection between us grew too intense. He seemed so relaxed and confident. And his relaxed confidence startled me just as much as his flirting did.

“Will I see you around?”

Ha . That was a joke. I doubted a sexy single guy ran in any of my circles.

If I wasn’t at the library, I was either at the park with Samuel or hanging out at the apartment with Abigail.

My life was anything but glamorous, and this guy, even while wearing a basic t-shirt and jeans, looked grungy chic.

I would bet my first paycheck that those jeans cost more than my Ford Focus.

I knew money when I saw it, and this man had money.

“Probably not,” I said as I pushed my chair away from the desk and stood. “It was nice meeting you, Liam.” I reached down and picked up a few file folders, tucking them against my hip like I planned to take them somewhere. Truth was, I just needed an excuse to remove myself from this situation.

Liam didn’t move. Instead, he just stood there, watching me. His half smile sent butterflies racing through my stomach, and all I could do to retain my sanity was turn and walk away. I could feel his gaze on me as I rounded the counter and hurried to disappear down the nearest aisle.

“Nice to meet you, too, Sabrina,” he called after me.

I threw up my hand in a half-hearted wave and didn’t stop moving until I got to Isabelle’s office. She was sitting at her desk, clicking away with her mouse when I burst inside and shut the door behind me.

Her hand went to her heart as she jumped back. “Sabrina,” she breathed as color returned to her face. “You scared the living daylights out of me.”

I offered her a sheepish smile before I peeked through the side window next to her door, half expecting to see Liam following me. “Sorry,” I said, relief flooding me when I saw that we were alone. “Didn’t mean to do that.”

Isabelle had composed herself by the time I turned back to her. She had rolled her chair back under her desk and returned to moving her mouse around on its pad.

“Everything going okay out there?” she asked, her gaze never leaving the screen.

I didn’t know where to start. Part of me wanted to talk to her about Liam. But the other part of me wasn’t sure what she was going to say. The last thing I wanted my new boss to think was that I was a shameless flirt who would use every opportunity to pick up guys.

I wanted to prove to her that I could do this job and do it well.

“Just a patron asking for directions to the diner.” That seemed good enough. It was the truth; I’d just left out a few details.

She glanced over at me. “Yeah, you’ll get people like that. They see library and think yellow pages . Especially with the retired folks around here.” She returned her gaze to her computer screen once more.

I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let her think it had been someone’s grandfather who’d come in. I doubted I would ever see that man again, so it would be best for me to just forget about him.

“I drew a map and sent him on his way.”

“Great.” She glanced back over to me. “I’m going to finish up here, and then I’ll be out to do some more training.”

I held onto the folders that I’d brought with me and nodded. I hoped she didn’t see them and ask me why I’d brought them to her. Right now, they were grounding me in the present. “Perfect.” I jutted my thumb toward the circulation desk. “I’ll head back out, then.”

She nodded. “Sounds good.”

I opened her office door and hurried out, shutting it behind me. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that Liam was no longer standing at my desk. After settling in, I half-expected him to jump out from behind a bookshelf. But as the minutes passed with no sign of Liam, I let myself relax.

He had left the library, and since he was just passing through, I was never going to see him again.

He was in and out of my life in a matter of moments.

I tried not to think about him while I listened to Isabelle going over the cataloging system in the computer.

I also tried not to think about him while Isabelle showed me how to doctor up a children’s book that looked like it had been sat on and then chewed by someone’s puppy.

I also tried not to think about him while I gathered my things from my assigned locker in the break room. But each time, I failed horribly.

There was something about that man. Something about his confidence, his self-assurance, that drew me in. Maybe I was jealous that Liam seemed to know exactly what he wanted in his life. His confidence went deeper than just wanting to find his friend. He wasn’t floundering like I was. He just…knew.

I envied that.

I wanted to know the trajectory of my life. I wanted to know where I was going and what I was going to find when I got there. I wanted to feel confident in my decisions. I wanted my sister to trust me to make those decisions. I wanted to start living again. For me. For Samuel. For Abigail.

I wanted the past to stop haunting me like it did every single day when I opened my eyes and made an effort to get out of bed. I wanted to know without a doubt that I was going to have a satisfactory and productive day.

But I wasn’t there yet, and I feared that I was never going to get there. No matter how badly I wanted it, it just wasn’t in the cards for me.

And it was never going to be.