Page 40 of Seabreeze Library

She tried a different approach. “Is there more you’d like to tell me? Many guests have confided in me, so there isn’t much I haven’t heard.”

Libby frowned, and a heavy sigh of relief escaped her lips. “I’d like that.” She glanced around. “Can we talk on the beach?”

Touched by her reaction, Ivy nodded. Whatever was troubling Libby, she preferred to speak privately. Looking down, she noticed Libby’s cowboy boots under her flowing cotton dress. “I have a basket of flip-flops for the beach by the back door.”

Libby followed her, and they changed their shoes for the beach.

Pausing by the door, Libby said, “I haven’t told anyone besides my best friend about this.”

Ivy didn’t know what she was referring to, yet she sensed the young woman needed reassurance. “I won’t share what you tell me.” She hoped she could keep that promise. She would try unless Libby was involved in something illegal or harmful. But she didn’t get that feeling from her.

The overwhelming feeling Ivy sensed from Libby was fear.

14

“Ishould start with my real name,” Libby said, walking beside Ivy on the beach. “It’s Elizabeth. In school, I went by Elizabeth or Beth, but my mother always called me Libby. After she died, I just wanted to hear that name again, so after I left Phoenix, I became Libby again. Libby the librarian seemed to flow better. I also reverted to Becker, my mother’s maiden name, because my father never wanted anything to do with me.”

“I’m sorry you lost your mother.” A thought occurred to Ivy. “Isn’t there a library app by that name?”

A small smile tugged Libby’s lips. “That makes it even easier for people to remember me.”

Ivy slowed her pace and waited for Libby to continue. Rushing the young woman wouldn’t help.

The tide was going out, leaving patches of wet sand that gleamed in the spring sunshine. Nearby, families with children worked on sandcastles, and seagulls glided above receding waves.

Finally, Libby spoke again. “I haven’t been completely honest with you.” Her voice was quiet, almost lost in the sound of thewaves. She stopped walking and faced the ocean. “I’d like to find my people in Summer Beach and help the community with library services. But that’s not the reason I left. It was personal, and that’s why I’ve kept moving.”

“I sensed that. Many people move for personal reasons.”

“I left Phoenix because I broke up with my boyfriend,” Libby said. “I was studying for my master’s degree in library sciences when I met him. It wasn’t long after my mother passed away in an accident, and I guess I needed someone. All my friends were getting married and having babies, so I figured we would, too.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Dolph was fun at first, but he would go off on emotional tangents. He would get so angry that it scared me. His anger wasn’t directed at me, at least not initially. Looking back, I think he began to change when I gave up my apartment and began planning our wedding. First, he blamed his outbursts on me and then on the stress of his job. Or the person who cut him off on the highway, or the overworked waitperson. It was never his fault.”

“Did you ever seek counseling?”

“Dolph wouldn’t go, and I didn’t want to go without him. He became more and more abusive. Emotionally at first, then physically.”

She winced and twisted a strand of hair around her finger, a nervous gesture Ivy had noticed. “I filed a restraining order against him and left. I couldn’t stay there anymore.”

Ivy’s heart ached for the younger woman. “That must have taken a lot of courage.”

“I don’t feel brave,” Libby said, shaking her head. “Most days, I just feel scared. I’m afraid he’ll track me down. He’s been trying.” She kicked at the sand lightly. “That’s why I bought the bookmobile. It wasn’t just because I love books, though I do. It was a way to keep moving, to not stay in one place too long.”

“That was smart.”

“I bought it on a whim from a bookstore chain that used it for promotions. They were closing and auctioning everything, including the bookmobile, which they had trouble selling because of how it was outfitted. But it was perfect for me, and I had a little money my mother left to me.”

“Do you think Dolph is still looking for you?” Ivy asked. She thought of the call she’d received. She would tell Libby, but she wanted to hear her story first.

Libby shrugged. “Maybe. I blocked him on social media and later changed all my social accounts, along with my phone number. I don’t like to post my photo anywhere. Still, my friend who knows him says he’s obsessed with getting back at me. That’s the friend who painted the bookmobile for the bookstore. I don’t want to put her in an awkward position, so I don’t tell her very much.”

Libby slid off her flip-slops and dug her toes into the sand. “Even though I have a few friends in Phoenix, I don’t want to return. Too many sad memories there. I want to start a new life, but I wonder if it’s too late.”

“Too late?” Ivy echoed, surprised.

“I turned thirty last month,” Libby said as if that explained everything. “All my friends back home are married with kids. They have careers, houses, and husbands. They have goals and direction.” She wiped tears from her eyes. “Five years of my life with Dolph, gone. I made a terrible mistake in waiting, thinking he’d turn around.”

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