Page 25 of Guys Can't Write Romance
“She thinks he can help Daze fix her male lead,” Chloe cut in.
“My male lead is just fine,” Daisy said.
“Sure,” said Chloe. “If by ‘fine’ you mean dull and sleep-inducing.”
“He’s not sleep-inducing,” Daisy objected.
“Some of us would differ on that,” said Chloe.
“And some of us would be wrong,” Daisy shot back.
“Why not just ask Ethan to help you with that?” Ava suggested.
Chloe snorted. “Because the point is to make him less dull and sleep-inducing.”
Ava’s expression cooled noticeably as she shot Chloe a look that might have intimidated opposing counsel, but seemed to bounce off the fiery artist entirely. “Your disdain for Ethan is entirely unwarranted. Ethan’s a mature, responsible adult, unlike this delinquent Daisy’s chosen to spend so much time with.”
“I didn’t choose this,” Daisy said quickly. “It’s been forced on me.”
“Well, let’s just hope it doesn’t leave any permanent scars,” Ava said, her tone suggesting that she was already picturing worst-case scenarios.
And she had no idea of just how right she was about to be.
Chapter six
Libraries, Chaos, and Quiet
The Central Library was Daisy’s sanctuary, a cathedral of knowledge with soaring ceilings, elegant archways, and, most importantly, blessed silence. It was where she came to gather her thoughts, to research, and to write when her apartment felt too confining.
Today, however, her sanctuary had been invaded.
“This place is like a tomb,” Chad whispered, though his version of whispering still carried to at least three nearby tables, earning them their first collective glare from fellow patrons. “Do they pipe in extra quiet or something?”
“That’s the point,” Daisy whispered back in an actual whisper volume. She led him to a table in a quiet corner towards the back, dodging his attempts to look at what books people were reading as they passed. “Some of us need quiet to concentrate.”
Daisy set her bag down, unpacking her laptop, notebook, and color-coded pens she arranged neatly on the table.
“So,” Daisy said, plugging in her laptop. “What do you think?”
“It’s... great...” Chad trailed off, his eyes scanning the area like the quiet might ambush him from behind. “If you’re a librarian. Or a serial killer.”
Daisy sighed, ignoring him as she clicked open her manuscript and went to work.
Following her lead, Chad opened his notebook and flipped to the scene he was working on. He stared at it, tapping his nose with his pen. He finally wrote something down, then a few seconds later scratched it out and went back to staring. A moment later, he was clicking his pen in and out.
“What?” Daisy said, looking up from her laptop and shooting him an annoyed look.
“It’s too quiet,” Chad said in his not-so-quiet library voice. It was met by several ‘shhh’s’ from behind a bookshelf. He leaned forward. “I can actually hear myself think. Do you know how weird that is?”
“It must be terrifying. Try not to listen. Unless they’re telling you to run in front of a train.” She turned back to her laptop.
Chad leaned back in his chair and looked around at the shelves of books like they were closing in. He got up and walked over to a section stacked with dusty old books. He removed a particularly old one. “Did you know some of these books are older than my grandma? And probably less fun at parties.”
Daisy looked up again from her laptop. “Focus, Chad.” Then, remembering what Chloe said, “And put that book back where you found it.”
Chad slid the book back onto the shelf and sat back down. “Are we done yet?”
“No. We haven’t even started. Now, focus.”
