Authors note: This story was written for and inspired by my Aunt Norma. Thanks Norma….for everything.
J
Matt “Kid” Anderson couldn’t believe he was getting paid to do something that was like breathing to him. When he had sent off his first manuscript, he was amazed the publisher wanted to pay him for it. Every time he got a check, he felt like a fraud. The only had part for him was making personal appearances. He never quite knew what to tell people. He had gotten a lot better at it over the past couple of years though. The next appearance was the one he was really looking forward to though. It was a small town library. His first instinct had been to say no, but after he called and talked to the librarian, he knew he had to go. He hadn’t been able to get her voice out of his head since he heard it. Only two more days until he could see if Lou, that’s how he’d been thinking of her, lived up to the pictures in his head.
Louise had everything ready for Mr. Anderson to show up today. She’d come in extra early to make sure she hadn’t over looked anything the night before. The butterflies in her stomach were multiplying like rabbits and she still had an hour to wait. No matter how many times she tried to convince herself it was no big deal, another part of her reminded her how big of a deal it really was. She was thankful the phone rang to distract her from her thoughts.
“Hello, Sweetwater Public Library.”
“May I speak with Louise McCloud?”
“This is. How can I help you?”
“Ms. McCloud, my name is William F. Cody. I represent Matt Anderson. I just wanted to inform you we will be at your library within the next fifteen minutes. We’re just now leaving the Sweetwater Hotel.”
“Mr. Cody, I appreciate the notice, but you’ll be here in more like five minutes. I don’t know if you’ve noticed how small our town is. It doesn’t even take fifteen minutes to drive from one end to the other.”
Louise had always been amused at the reaction to tiny, little Sweetwater by “Big City” folk. Most either loved the peacefulness or hated that there was nothing to do. After growing up in the city, Louise had taken to her little town like a duck to water.
“Fine. Then we’ll see you in five minutes.”
Louise couldn’t help but stare at the phone after he hung up. “What a rude, pompus ass! Glad I don’t have to be around him for long.” She thought to herself as she finished up the last minute preparations.
“What a bitch! This is gonna be a long day. Why in the world did I let you convince me to book this?”
The moment they’d pulled into Sweetwater, Cody had started complaining. He hated small towns, not enough excitement for him. He’d tried for weeks to talk Kid out of this appearance, but Kid had always been so damn stubborn.
“You let me convince you because you make a ton of money off me. Let’s get out of here.”
Kid had been counting down the hours until he met Lou since their plane had landed in Denver the day before. He hoped seeing Lou would make him forget how much he hated listening to Cody complain. He was convinced Cody would complain if he hit the lottery.
The Sweetwater Public Library was housed in what was probably the most unique looking building in town. It was white stucco and looked so big on the outside. Kid was surprised to see how small it really was. Lou had mentioned there was an expansion project in the works and Kid couldn’t think of a more deserving place. He couldn’t ever remember seeing so many books in such a small area.
“Good morning! You must be Matt Anderson.” Louise’s first thought was she’d never seen a man that attractive in real life. He was movie star gorgeous and the picture hadn’t even come close to doing him justice.
“I am. Please, call me Kid.” As he reached over to shake her hand, he realized nothing could’ve prepared him for the beautiful woman standing before him. He short brown hair curled at her jaw line framing her face. He was normally drawn to taller women, but Lou’s petite size added to her beauty.
“Kid? It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m a huge fan of your books and honored that you agreed to come all the way out here.”
“Thank you. I’m happy you invited me. The smaller towns don’t usually get booked on any of the promotional tours. It’s a nice change of pace.” Kid had been waiting for her to ask about his nickname. He wasn’t sure whether he was disappointed that she hadn’t or just surprised.
Louise started to tell Kid the plans for the expansion and how she hoped his visit would help with donations. He was impressed by the amount of time and effort she’d devoted to the fundraising outside of working hours. It was almost like the library was her life. Her passion for the project was just one more reason he was glad he came.
“What’s first on the agenda?”
Louise smiled over her shoulder as she headed to open the doors for the day and replied, “Story Hour.”
Kid had never realized how tiring reading and entertaining preschoolers could be. After Story Hour, all he wanted to do was take a nap, but there was a day full of activities ahead of him. As he contemplated hiding in the puppet theater for a little shut eye, Lou lead down the first group of older children. He just hoped they were easier on him than the little ones.
Before Louise could believe it, it was lunch time. “Hey Kid, ready for some lunch? There’s a pizza place a couple blocks away.”
“More than ready, lead the way.”
Louise had enjoyed lunch more than she’d ever expected. She was already dreading the end of the day when kid would walk out of her life forever. It was over lunch that Kid had called her Lou and she’d loved it. No one had ever called her anything other than Louise since her parents had passed away when she was a teenager.
The afternoon was flying by. Lou hadn’t been able to spend much time at all around Kid. In fact, she hadn’t seen him for a couple hours. She decided before she went to find him, she’d get some of the returned books put away. She grabbed a pile and headed to the aisles. It was in the corner of the last aisle when she felt someone’s arms wrap around her waist. She gasped as Kid whispered in her ear.
“I’m sorry Lou, but I’ve been wanting to do this since I talked to you that very first time. You’re voice has been haunting me ever since. I didn’t think this day would ever come and now I don’t want it to end. Come with me. Let’s run away from here and forget about everyone and everything. I know the library is important to you, but will you leave it for a few days with me?”
Lou couldn’t believe her ears. He was asking her to run away with him. With her heart pounding, she did the only thing she could do. She turned around in his arms and kissed him like she’d never kissed anyone before. She’d only known the man for a few hours, but he was the one thing missing from her life. If she didn’t go with him, her life would never be what it should be. She stopped the kiss long enough to say yes. To hell with Jimmy Hickok, her boyfriend for the last couple years, to hell with the library, her passion until that morning, and to hell with the consequences.
Kid lifted Lou into his arms and headed out of the library. The patrons were shocked to see their head librarian being carried out by the handsome writer. Their first thoughts had been that she was hurt, but as they watched the couple they noticed Louise nuzzling his neck.
“Miss Louise! What about Officer Jimmy??” The whole town had been observing the romance between the lovely librarian and the moody police officer. Most had believed there would be a wedding in the future, but that was obviously not the case.
“Tell him I’ve had a better offer.” Lou yelled over Kid’s shoulder as he carried her to the car and to a life she had never realized she could have.
