Page 13 of The Library of Second Chances
I heard from Sarah today. She’s still freelancing, but she thinks she might be landing somewhere soon. She asked if you’re working on anything new, and I told her I would check in with you. I know you needed time to get over the shock of what happened with your first book, but it’s been nearly two years. Have you been working on anything? Do you still want to pursue being an author? It would be a shame to see a talent like yours wasted.
Leona
Lucy read the final question again, her heart thumping. Did she still want to be an author? Of course she wanted to be an author. But wanting to be an author and becoming one didn’t always go together. She didn’t think she could survive spending months pouring her heart and soul into another book only to be told it wasn’t good enough. Again.
As she pondered how to reply to Leona, one of the bookstore’s resident cats, a gray-and-white tuxedo cat named Lizzy, brushed up against Lucy’s leg, arching her back as she begged for pets. Much like her literary namesake, Elizabeth Bennett, Lizzy was headstrong and impossible to ignore. Along with Alice, a muted tortoiseshell cat, Lizzy lived in the bookstore, much to the delight of customers both young and old. Lucy headed to the back room to see if the cats needed feeding, Lizzy following so closely at her heels she nearly tripped over her. As Lucy was pouring a fresh bowl of food, she heard the bells on the front door jingle.
“I’m sorry, we’re not open yet—” Lucy rounded a bookshelf toward the back of the store and spotted her best friend. “Taylor! Why are you here?” Lucy practically jogged across the store to hug her. “I thought you didn’t get back until the weekend.”
Taylor flopped down in the nearest armchair, letting out a huge sigh. “Never left. Jack twisted his knee walking up my stairs yesterday.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ve been telling him to see someone about his knee for months, but you know how he is. Thinks he’s Superman.”
“Oh, no, I’m sorry you didn’t get your vacation,” Lucy said, dropping into the chair next to Taylor. “But, boy, am I glad you’re here.”
“Yeah, I got your text. Sorry I didn’t text back; we were in the ER in Jacksonville all afternoon and evening. So they really did bring in some new consultant?”
“He’s the worst. Slick, arrogant. Thinks he knows what’s best for us when he hasn’t even taken the time to get to know us.”Handsome. The most gorgeous green eyes you’ve ever seen.An image of Logan’s lopsided smile, his lone dimple punctuating his chiseled features, flashed through her mind and she shook her head to try to dislodge it.
“Why do they always want to bring in someone from the outside?” Taylor said.
“New perspectives and all that.” Lucy waved her hand in the air dismissively.
“Yeah, Jack was complaining after he got back from his last business trip that we still don’t have DoorDash or Uber Eats. What do we need that for anyway? You can get anywhere on the island in fifteen minutes or less.”
Lucy sighed. Ever since Taylor had met Jack, when his company relocated him to Heron Isle to become the general manager of the resort on the north end, Lucy worried he would grow tired of small-town life and take Taylor away from her too. Taylor was a phenomenal hair stylist and makeup artist who made a nice living for herself with all the destination weddings that took place on the island, but Lucy was sure she could do that in any other town where she followed Jack. Taylor had movedto Heron Isle as a teenager, so although she liked it here, Lucy wasn’t sure she’d always want to stay. Jack could probably make a compelling case for somewhere else where Taylor could make a bigger name for herself.
“So what’s this guy’s deal? What’s he wanna build down by the water?” Taylor asked.
“Who knows?” Lucy threw up her hands. “He only spoke at the meeting for a few minutes. Babbled about big projects he’d done in Phoenix and St. Louis, like that’s supposed to impress us. Why would they even bring in someone from a big city? And why would someone who’sso fabulouswant to work here anyway? Smells fishy to me.”
“Well, I’m sure he’s no match for my best friend, Miss Downtown Business Owners Council President.” Taylor bowed from her chair, her brunette hair tumbling over the shoulders of her yellow sundress that highlighted her summer tan.
“Yeah, pretty sure they’re going to regret appointing me. They thought it was funny to nominate me when I wasn’t at the meeting, but the joke’s on them now.” Lucy tried to muster a laugh, but she was genuinely worried her fellow business owners had made a major mistake when they appointed her their leader.
“Nonsense.” Taylor rolled her eyes. “You’re young and you’re smart. You went off and got that fancy degree.”
“In Library Sciences.” Lucy shook her head. “I don’t know anything about city government or real estate development.”
“You’re good with people, though. No one’s ever met you who didn’t like you, and you’d talk to a brick wall. Have a conversation with this guy. Figure out what he’s all about.”
“Oh, we’ve had a conversation.” Lucy rolled her eyes. “I actually met him before the meeting. He probably thought I was flirting with him.” Lucy buried her head in her hands. “But it was before I knew who he was.”
“Wait.” Taylor sat up in her chair, turning to the side to lean toward Lucy with a smile, waiting for more details. “He’s cute? Is he single?”
“I don’t know, and I definitely don’t care.” Okay, the thought had crossed her mind, but she wasn’t going to let it go there again. “He’s the enemy, remember?” She was reminding Taylor as much as herself.
“Yes, absolutely.” Taylor wiped the smile from her face and did her best to look serious, her brow furrowed. “But how handsome of an enemy are we talking?”
“He could be cast in a Hollywood movie kind of handsome.” Lucy sighed. “And I think he knows it. Seems like the type who uses his good looks and charm to get what he wants. You should have seen Missy Goodwin at the meeting. She was practically drooling over him. He made this big show of tearing up the previous proposals, and she actually clapped.” Lucy shook her head. Missy owned the flower shop in town and was a hopeless optimist. She gave everyone the benefit of the doubt, even when they didn’t deserve it.
“What are you going to do?”
“I actually came in early so I could hit some of the other businesses that open before me. I think we all need to get on the same page. He said he’s going to start visiting all the big groups in town, and I want us to strategize before he gets to us.”
“Well, you were successful last time. They did abandon the other proposals.”
“Did they? Or did they just bring in reinforcements?”
“Did you just read a war novel or something? This whole conversation is starting to sound like a plan for battle.”
