Page 7 of Pay the Piper

It probably wasn’t the best idea for my first day on the job to be the day my target comes in. It’s just a library. How bad can it be?

Bad.

Who knew being a librarian was this rough? A library is supposed to be peaceful, not the embodiment of stress itself. Maybe it’s just because of the kids program on Thursdays, but I’ve been running around like a chicken with my head cut off from the moment I clocked in.

I was hopeful that I would have some time to spend with Ellie before her class started, but that pipe dream went out the door fast. Hers was the last group of the day before closing, too. Now I have to wait a whole week before I get another chance. Fuck, Conor is going to kill me if I don’t—

“It’s Abby, right? Would you like some help?”

Turning from the stack of books I’ve been shelving, I see the woman in question looking up at where I’m standing on my ladder.

“Um, yes! And you’re Elia?”

She grabs a book from my pile, looks at the spine, and holds it up for me to grab. “Yes! But you can call me Ellie. Is Abby short for anything?”

“Nope!” I say, taking another book from her and putting it in its place. “Just Abby. Thanks for the help, but you don’t have to—”

“Oh, don’t mention it. I usually always stay later and help clean up after my class. I used to really get my workout in on the ladder, but since I got pregnant, everyone has forbidden me from climbing anymore. I’m an excellent hand-er off-er though.”

With a laugh, I take the last of the books in the stack for this section. “Thank you, I would absolutely love your help. This is my first day, and it’s been…a lot.”

“I knew I hadn’t seen you here before! Are you new to the city or the job?” Ellie asks as she rolls the book cart as I move to the next shelf.

“I moved from Canada last week.” Oh fuck, I’m supposed to have been a librarian for years. I should be used to this. “I worked as a librarian there, but things were less…chaotic. We didn’t have a children’s program. It was more of a professional study library.”

What the hell is a professional study library? I guess “I worked at a college library” wasn’t normal enough. Dammit, I’ll need to tell Conor to make sure that lines up.

“We have a ton of kiddos in this area, and since we do all of the programs on one day, Thursdays here are insane. The rest of the week isn’t quite so hectic, though. It’ll probably be more your speed if you’re used to quiet adults.”

Phew, she didn’t call me out on being a weirdo. And also, thank God this isn’t what it’s like every day, or I think I might die.

“Do you lead other classes?”

“Oh no, just the one on Thursday. I have a pretty packed volunteering schedule. But I come in all the time on my way to and from my other obligations. I love to read.”

“Same. What do you like?”

The career as a librarian might be a fabrication, but I do love to read. And the crazier, the better. Diving into incredible worlds has been the only escape from my real life.

“Oh, um.” Ellie blushes. “I mostly like, uh, well…romance.”

I can’t help my burst of laughter. “Monsters or aliens?”

“Both!” she blurts out, causing me to sway on the ladder as we dissolve into giggles. “I like other things, too. I’ve gotten really into hockey romance since meeting my fiancé.”

“Oh, does he like hockey?” I ask, hoping I sound like someone who genuinely doesn’t know that her man and her two brothers play.

“No, he plays. He’s actually the goalie for the Thunder Bay Rising Tide.”

“No way! I love hockey. Growing up in Canada, you kinda don’t have a choice.” I laugh. “How did you two meet?”

“Well, my brothers also play for the Tide. But it’s a little more complicated than that. They always had a very strict rule against me dating their teammates. Teddy and I—Oh, his name is Teddy, by the way—anyway, Teddy and I met volunteering at a NICU nearby. We fell in love pretty quickly, but we both communicated like idiots. It all came crashing down in the worst possible way, but everything worked out in the end. Now we’re engaged with a baby on the way!”

“Aw, congratulations! A great big hockey family!”

“If my fiancé has anything to say about it, it’ll be growing exponentially. He’s been obsessed with me being pregnant…which, if you knew him, is saying something, considering his baseline. Do you have any children?”

And there it is. You knew this would be a question, and you practiced what to say. “No, I don’t.” Very simple: no reason for anyone to ask any follow-up questions. Three words you can just say, and then redirect the conversation right back to Ellie’s family, where it belongs.