Leaving Liberty (8 page)

           
She tugged the library key out of her pocket and slipped it in the door.
Marie’s keychain was heavy with colorful beads and figurines. Most of them
looked like summer art projects. Which reminded her she needed to get planning
in a hurry if she was going to keep the summer reading program on track.

           
Turning the key into the heavy door, she caught a look at her own reflection.
New pink cardigan from one of the little shops on Main Street and gray dress
slacks were comfortable but dressy. Her usual bright gaze and a hint of a smile
spoke of inner purpose. Better than the first day she’d arrived, that was for
sure. Just the memory of her soaking wet hair and bloodshot eyes made her
cringe. Lane Bennett had seen her at her worst. One good thing about their meeting
at the cabin was that he now knew she brushed her hair like a regular person.

           
Pushing the door open, she paused on the carpeted stairs. The library felt
hushed and expectant, ready for someone to put an end to the enforced silence.
She jogged the first flight to the landing, patent leather ballet flats making
hardly any sound. Her mind flashed back to that first day and the obnoxious way
her shoes had squelched and slipped. Lane didn’t seem like a guy without a
sense of humor, but he’d never said a word. Probably very wise. At that moment
she might have used one of those wet shoes as a weapon.

           
She gazed around, willing her mind away from the rainy day of Marie’s funeral
and into the moment. This library was worthy of being saved, worthy of being a
haven of safety and comfort for all the children of the city. She let herself
dream for a moment of a library full of kids, books being checked out and
enjoyed, walls covered with bright art projects. It was going to be one of the
best summers in recent memory.

           
A knock on the heavy glass of the front door sounded like a bomb in the quiet
space. Daisy put a hand over her thumping heart and stepped back down the
carpeted stairs. A tall, thin female figure was peering through the glass, one
hand raised to give another knock.

           
Daisy swung the door inward. “Hi there! The library isn’t quite open to the
public yet but I’d be happy to--”

           
The woman didn’t bother to wait for the rest of Daisy’s speech but squeezed on
through. “Oh, I know that. But I was thinking if we’d better get the book drop
cleared out and everything checked in before people start complaining about
their fines.”

           
The book return. How could she have forgotten to check it? “Good idea, but I
can handle it.”

           
Gray hair pulled back from her face and held in a leather tie, the woman turned
to her and raised one dark eye-brow. “It’s okay to accept help. You can’t run
the library alone. Even Marie had volunteers.”

           
“She did?”

           
A warm chuckle filled the foyer. She shrugged off a purple cable knit sweater
and hung it over the chair at the desk. “I’m Nita. Jan and I help organize and
run errands around here.”

           
Daisy let out a breath. “Well, I’m glad to have some help, I suppose.”

           
“No suppose about it. The book return is so full that books are sticking out
the chute. And with all the rain we’ve been having that could be a disaster.”

           
She wanted to slap a palm against her forehead. If she was going to work in the
library for the summer, she really needed to get a handle on the daily tasks.
“We’ll have to erase all the late charges.”

           
Nita threw a glance over her shoulder. “You haven’t been in here for a while,
have you? We’ve got a great system, all automated, linked to the whole state.
Super easy to use. We can alter the check-in date backward, so we don’t have to
erase late fees or calculate the dates.” She’d snagged a small key from the peg
board near the office door.

           
“Grab those book bags on the coatrack. Come on and let me show you everything
we do during the opening shift.” Nita marched past Daisy although her tone
wasn’t unkind in the least.

           
A heavy canvas bag in each hand, Daisy followed the older woman out to the
sidewalk, past the muddy flower beds and to the large blue box on the corner.
Nita inserted the tiny key in the side panel, swung it open and tugged the
large rolling cart from down below. Books upon books were piled inside. The
spring loaded bottom of the cart was pressed almost to the lowest rung.

           
Between the two of them, they’d cleared the book return in a few minutes.
Lugging them back to the library was another story.

           
“I thought I was in shape,” Daisy huffed between steps.

           
“You exercise with fifty pounds of books?” Nita’s voice was just as breathless.

           
A snort escaped her. She didn’t like to exercise much at all, only when her
jeans reminded her that a sweet tooth was a quick way to gain weight.

           
She paused at the steps, resting the large canvas bag on the sidewalk. Nita
rested next to her. “Marie did this every day the library was open, rain or
shine. She would never let the volunteers clear the book drop.”

           
“Because they might miss a book?”

           
“Oh, no. She was just one of those people that always took the hard job before
anyone else could.”

           
They stood there quietly for a moment, staring up at the red brick building,
windows gleaming in the early morning light, wrapped up in memories of the
woman who had left such a space to fill.

           
Daisy hefted the bag to her shoulder and let out a squawk of surprise as it
continued into the air.

           
“Let me take that. And that.” Lane stooped to take Nita’s tote and nodded at
her. “Morning, Nita.” He’d come up on the grass beside them, footsteps muffled
by the damp earth. Sammy ran to greet them with bright eyes, mouth open, tongue
lolling.

           
“Morning, Lane.” Nita turned and headed up the steps as if a man in full police
uniform was the obvious answer to their problems.

           
“You don’t have to do that.” Daisy looked up at him, noting the cap pulled low
on his brow, narrowing her eyes against his too-handsome face. Hero complex all
the way. He probably would have had nightmares if he’d been forced to walk on
by a woman in ‘need’. Well, newsflash, she was perfectly okay with carrying her
own bag, even if it did weigh about forty pounds.

           
“You want it back?” His voice was deeper than she remembered. One side of that
perfect mouth was lifting up, eyebrows raised.

           
“Yes, actually.”

           
But he didn’t hand it back. Lane stood there, head tilted to one side, both
totes balanced easily. “Why?”

           
“Because you don’t think I should be here. You don’t want the library to stay
open. This,” she pointed at the tote, “might be against your principles.” She
couldn’t help the edge in her voice. It still niggled that he’d wanted to deny
her that cabin.

Sammy nudged her leg with his big golden
body, as if to say she should get over it so they could all be best friends.
She lowered a hand and scratched his head, unable to resist his dog friendliness.
Resisting his owner was no problem.

           
 “True, I don’t think we should prolong the process, but I can certainly
carry a bag of books without an attack of conscience.”

           
“Huh.” Daisy crossed her arms over her chest. Maybe she was pushing her luck.
If she really wanted him to stay out of her business, to not give her any help
at all, that would apply to the pretty little place she’d just signed papers on
for the summer. He could cancel the lease, make her life harder than it already
was. But somehow she knew Lane wasn’t that type of guy.

           
“You’re stubborn.”

           
“Why, thank you.” She didn’t budge.

           
He lowered the tote to her level, waiting for her to grab hold, keeping Nita’s
on his other shoulder. He touched the brim of his hat, not moving it much, more
of a reflexive gesture than an adjustment. “So where do we draw the line? Does
this mean I can’t check out any books?”

           
“I would never do that.” Daisy looked up quickly, ready to launch into a
description of how much she believed in libraries, but caught the flash of
laughter in his eyes. He thought this was all just a joke and she was the punch
line. Irritation bloomed in her chest. “But how about we skip the
hot-cop-rescues-stranger-in-town part and just get on with our lives.”

           
As soon as the words were out of her mouth she wanted to snatch them back.
Geez. If this wasn’t her life in Liberty in a nutshell.

           
His eyebrows rose and he looked like he was searching for something to say.
“Hot cop?”

           
“Sorry. Inappropriate. I’m not getting a lot of sleep. Rhonda’s basset hound
barks from the moment the sun comes up. He’s like the dog version of a
rooster.”

           
“When are you moving to the cabin? Do you need any help?” He looked genuinely
concerned.

           
Again with the helpfulness. “Thanks, but I don’t really have anything. I think
I’ll return the rental and buy a bike to get to the library and back. My
clothes will be shipped from home soon.”

           
He nodded, still looking thoughtful. “Well, let me know if you need anything.”

           
Daisy hefted the bag one more time and headed up the stairs. Sammy trotted by
her side, and Lane followed behind. “I will.”

           
“Liar.” He didn’t even both to say it under his breath.

           
She turned, pushed past the point of politeness. Two steps above him and they
were eye to eye. The expression on his face was mischievous, teasing,
heart-stopping. She’d sucked in a breath to give a snappy retort, but whatever
she’d meant to say evaporated into thin air. His half smile turned to a full-on
grin at her angry expression.

           
He seemed to be waiting for her to say something. One part of her wanted to
lean forward and inhale that scent of soap and pine, to put out a hand to see
if his lips were as soft as they looked. Fortunately, there was another part of
her ready with a large stick to beat back the crazy impulse.

           
“Lane, let’s be honest.” She watched his smile slip, a little satisfaction for
the way he’d chased the thoughts right out of her head.

           
“Again? Once a week is my limit.”

           
Daisy couldn’t bite back a surprised laugh. “That’s a bad trait for a cop.”

           
“Agreed.” He shifted the bag on his shoulder. “But I know what you’re going to
say.”

           
“Really?” She tried to sound interested and it came out closer to skeptical.

           
“Really. You want me to stay out of your way while you run the library for the
summer. Because we disagree, you don’t want to accept any help at all.”

           
“That’s about it.”

           
“Sorry, not possible.” He stepped to the side and continued up the steps, Sammy
trotting alongside.

           
“Excuse me?” It wasn’t easy to keep up with him and Daisy felt her shoulder
muscles complain under the strain.

           
Lane motioned her inside. “Since you’re determined to stay, there’s nothing I
can do to change your mind. But I can’t ignore the fact you’re here in town, or
that you might need help once in a while. I won’t pretend you’re not here.”

           
She didn’t want him to ignore her. Not at all. The thought of him walking by
her without a glance made her feel a little sick to her stomach. He wasn’t
quite a friend, but whatever he was, she didn’t want to be invisible.  

           
He pointed to a point just inside the door and said, “Stay”. Sammy took up his
post with only a hint of disappointment. He probably would love to run through
the library, smelling all the books he could reach.

“Fine.” She wanted to be stubborn, not
moving on until they’d hashed out their differences but common sense and the
threat of a sore shoulder made her settle for a glare as she swept on past.
Another set of steps, this time much more slowly. She really needed to get some
steady exercise.

           
“Thanks, Lane, dear. I have your books all checked out.” Nita was at the desk,
stamping due date stickers. She pushed a pile of hardback mysteries to the
corner.

           
“My books.” He repeated her words slowly, wondering. “Marie must have ordered
these from the main library in Denver after I said I liked this author.” It was
almost as if he was talking to himself.

“Did she do that a lot?”

 He lifted the tote to the counter
and started to unpack the books before he answered. “She did for me. I’m not
sure about anybody else.”

Nita nodded, already scanning barcodes
to check the books in to the system. Her eyes were sad but her tone was light.
“She sure enjoyed finding books for people. It was like she was ordained to by
God to place the right books in the right hands.”