Page 9 of So Right
“Not quite.” He picked up his glass to take a drink. “I don’t suppose you want to come pick grapes again this weekend?”
“Actually, I would, but I have to work.”
He set his glass back down. “Here or the library?”
“Both.” She took another bite of salad.
He leaned against the wooden back of the booth. “Do you ever get a day off? I guess that’s a stupid question, because you did last Saturday.”
She nodded as she swiped her napkin over her mouth. “That was a special case actually. I hired a part-time employee at the library last month because, yes, it would be nice to take a day off now and again.” She chuckled. “I do take days off. Okay,dayoff. Mondays. The library’s closed Mondays and Wednesdays, so I told myself that I should take at least one of them off both of my jobs.”
“Damn, you work as much as I do.” He grinned, always glad to find a kindred spirit. “But then I know we’re both introverts, and working too much is just part and parcel of that, isn’t it?”
“It can be, yes. I didn’t always used to work this much, though.” She dropped her gaze to her salad and gathered up what looked like some specific items for a savory mouthful.
“What changed?” He wrapped his hand around the base of his glass as he waited for her to finish chewing.
She shrugged. “I don’t know. The library, I guess?”
The way she looked off to the side and then refocused on her salad gave him the impression shedidknow and maybe just didn’t want to say. The introvert in him sure as hell wasn’t going to press her on it.
He recalled a conversation they’d had at some point in their acquaintance in which she’d said she’d always wanted to be a librarian. “Will you be able to work at the library full-time some day?”
“I’m pretty close to that. What would be better is if I could have a second full-time person, but I don’t know that Ribbon Ridge has the infrastructure to afford that. My salary is heavily subsidized by a grant from Archer Enterprises as it is.”
Ah yes, the Archers—an economy unto themselves. Not that Luke would complain. They were incredibly generous with their time and money, and no one loved Ribbon Ridge more than them. “Well, you never know what the future holds. And it sounds like you’re doing an incredible job with it. I still need to stop in.” He gave her a sheepish look.
“Whenever. It’s not going anywhere.” She moved her salad around with her fork. “Anyway, sounds like you’re really busy.”
George brought Luke’s burger and a soft drink that he set in front of Kelsey. He winked at her. “You forgot your Diet Coke again.” He looked toward Luke. “She always does that.”
“Notalways,” she protested with a smile. “But thank you. I really appreciate it.”
He chuckled. “Someone’s got to look after you,” he said before returning to the bar.
“Things will calm down a little after the harvest is done,” Luke said. “Then it’ll be Hayden’s show.”
She sipped her Diet Coke. “What do you do after the harvest—in the winter? I imagine you’re far less busy.”
“Yes, but there’s still plenty to do. I’ll plant new vines in November.” He started in on his burger.
“Really? I didn’t realize you could plant that time of year.”
He waited to answer until he swallowed. “Yep, but then things do slow down for a while. I take my vacation in the winter.”
“That’s great if you like to ski, unless you go somewhere tropical.” Her eyes took on a dreamy, far-off look. “That sounds lovely.”
He set his burger down and wiped his mouth. “I do like to ski, actually. I typically go on some sort of outdoor adventure. I’ve done a combination climbing and ski trip. That was intense. Last winter, I went to Costa Rica.”
“Well, that qualifies as tropical to me—and exotic. But then, Florida qualifies as exotic to me too.” She laughed. “I’ve never been off the West Coast.”
He swallowed his tater tot and stared at her. “Seriously?”
She nodded. “Seriously.”
He shook his head as he picked up his beer. “That’s not right. I’d urge you to go somewhere—hell, I’d offer to take you—but I somehow think you wouldn’t take the time off.”
She smiled. “I would, but I can’t. Not yet anyway. Maybe when my part-time employee has a little more experience. And I’d have to make sure she could even work that much. She’s a grad student.”
