Page 26 of Must Love Libraries and Libations (Moonshine Hollow #2)

PRIMROSE

T o say I was surprised was an understatement, but my heart had melted into a puddle of golden bliss. He had done all this for me. For me . That man, who had lived in his study like a surly troll, had stepped out of every comfort zone to show me his heart and to share his world with us.

Everyone was remarking upon it.

Everyone except Kevin, who was standing in the corner with an uneaten cupcake in one hand, a glass of punch in the other.

Seeing him there, an idea struck me.

I scanned the party area, finally spotting Aggie.

I made my way to her.

“Aggie,” I said with a bright smile. “Did you hear Erasmus’s speech?”

“Yes.”

“What did you think?”

“It was informative.”

“So it was. Will you come with me? There is someone I’d like you to meet.”

“Okay.”

I led Aggie across the party space to Kevin, who inclined his head to me. “Kevin,” I said with a wide smile. “Are you having fun?”

“I have a cupcake.”

“So you do. Have you met Aggie? She works at the library.”

Kevin shifted nervously. “Hello.”

Aggie giggled awkwardly. “Um, hello.”

“Aggie found a starry-eyed moth. Do you still have it, Aggie?”

“Yes.”

At that, Kevin perked up. “A starry-eyed moth? Can I see it?”

“All right,” Aggie said, opening her hands a little so Kevin could see.

“Kevin is also a fan of insects,” I told Aggie.

“The box company has me come to cast spells to keep pests away,” Kevin told her. “Wood beetles, manamites, and?—”

“Bark eaters?” Aggie asked.

“Yes.”

At that, Aggie gave him a real, even if shy, smile. “We sometimes get paperworms in the library. The bookwyrms eat them.”

A wide smile crossed Kevin’s face. “That is an excellent starry-eyed moth specimen.” He took a bite of his cupcake. “Do you want punch? I saw some nocturne flies over by the punch stand.”

“Really?” Aggie asked.

“I’ll leave you to it. Lots of bugs to consider,” I said, but they were already lost in a discussion of nocturne flies, forgetting me completely, and I had other things to attend to.

I made my way around the party, chatting with people and encouraging them to make donations to the library. But it soon became evident there was no need. Everyone had been so impressed by Erasmus, the bookwyrms, and the tree that they were opening their purses with ease.

Elder Theodonna joined me. “I don’t know how you managed it, Primrose, but Master Erasmus’s presentation has been a success. We’ve already tripled my expected amount in donations. How did you ever talk him into it?”

“Magic, of course.”

Elder Theodonna laughed. “He’s a changed man, that one. I nearly fainted the night he came to my house to apologize for his brutish behavior.”

“He did?”

She nodded. “Showed up on my doorstep and told me he was sorry. Seems someone got under his skin.”

“ Someone had to.”

We both chuckled.

“Well, you have done a marvelous job. Now, I’m off to see Rosalyn and Bjorn to welcome them home. Thank you, Primrose,” she said then hurried off.

From within the library, I heard a new round of talks getting underway. Half the party cleared out.

I spotted Stevenson through the crowd. He gestured to Master Tinkerton. I crossed the party to join him.

“Ah, Miss Windsong, there you are,” the gnome said, a delighted smile on his face. “I have everything ready. On the top of the hour as planned?”

“Yes,” I said with a delighted smile.

“It will be a show!”

“Thank you, Master Tinkerton.”

“Of course, Miss Windsong.”

With that, I turned and made my way back toward the library. Lingering at the door, I watched as Erasmus spoke, Granik and Juniper playing the part of perfect models.

Feeling someone draw close behind me, I turned to find Zarina there.

“Well, the cupcakes were a hit with the bookwyrms,” Zarina told me. “First there was one, the red one?—”

“Stevenson.”

Zarina chuckled. “Then the others came. Is there a limit on how many cupcakes a bookwyrm should eat? I allowed them three each, but that little red rascal made off with more. I lost count of how many.”

I laughed. “Of course he did.”

Zarina’s attention turned to Erasmus, watching him as he spoke.

“Well, what do you think?” I asked her.

“Green smoke. So much green smoke.”

I smiled. “Yeah, I think so too.”

“You did good, my friend. With the party…and with the gargoyle,” she said. “Fixable after all,” she told me with a wink, then turned back toward the food tents.

As I watched Erasmus talk, I considered Zarina’s words. I hadn’t fixed Erasmus at all, I had just loved him, and in the end, that was all he needed.

* * *

An hour later, the crowd assembled outside the library for the grand finale of the event. On the other side of the reflection pool, one pink firework shot up into the night, indicating the show would soon begin.

“I’m still not sure about this,” Erasmus said nervously. “The bookwyrms can be temperamental about sound.”

“Don’t you trust me?” I asked him, taking his hand and meeting his gaze.

His expression softened. “I trust you.”

Then, the show began. Master Tinkerton showed us all then what a true master he was.

With a soft pop, the rockets drifted into the night’s sky only to explode with a soft melodic chime, which was followed by a dazzling display of fireworks in pink and gold.

And then another, and another, one after the other, the fireworks launched, but the boom of explosion was replaced by the soft chimes of harps and bells, and the effect was…

“It’s music,” Erasmus said, echoing the sentiment sweeping across the crowd. “Just…music.”

“Wait…” I added.

The breeze picked up, and then, we all smelled it: the scent of gentle wildflowers mixed with the undeniable scent of parchment, wood, binding—the scent of the library. The combination was an enchanting perfume that smelled like Moonshine Hollow Library itself.

“The perfume witch couldn’t quite get the scent of the Wyrmwood blossoms, but this is about as close as we could come,” I told Erasmus.

The crowd let out soft “oohs” and “aahs” as the complete experience washed over them, the dazzling fireworks, the gentle music, and the sweet smell of the library itself.

“Magical,” Erasmus whispered. “You are pure magic, Primrose Windsong. In my five hundred and eleven years, I’ve never met anyone as wonderful as you. And you were worth the wait.”

“Five hundred and eleven years ?”

Erasmus inclined his head to me.

“Then you…”

“Today is my birthday. The first shovel went into the ground to build the library on my birthday. The librarian chose the date as an honor.”

“Erasmus,” I said in surprise. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I was too busy annoying you.”

I laughed. “Happy birthday, Erasmus,” I said, taking his hand. “From here on out, may all your birthdays be joyful, filled with fireworks, cake, music, food, friends, libraries, and libations.”

“And you.”

“And me. From now until the end.”

He kissed me on the forehead. “Until the end.”