6
Kristin
It was late afternoon and I was alone at the library. Thursday was always the day we stayed open late, and Karen and I traded off working Thursday nights to keep things fair. This was Karen’s week, so she had taken off early and would come back around 3 PM to pick up the evening shift. The library was often quiet between two and five anyway, with only the occasional person coming in to do some research or read.
I was able to get work done in my office and kept an ear out to hear if anyone came in or needed help at the desk. I started mapping out some ideas to get teens to come down more often to the library and see we had a lot to offer, like movie nights they would like, or getting guest speakers on topics of interest to them. It would take some work, but I was sure I could cultivate some interest in the place.
All the while when I was typing or researching on my computer, I kept up in the background the information on Wes Martin. I wasn’t exactly sure why I left it there, but there was something about him that I found intriguing and, well, attractive. It had been a long while since I had a date or a boyfriend, and there was something about this man I was drawn to, even if he was thirteen years older than me.
I was staring at the picture on my computer, daydreaming, when I heard a cough out in the library that startled me. It startled me so much that I spilled coffee down the front of my white blouse. It wasn’t hot, but it was enough for me to take notice right away.
“Shit!” I yelled in aggravation and reached for tissues on my desk to blot up the coffee seeping through my blouse.
“Everything okay in there?” I heard a deep voice ask from out in the library.
I froze for a moment, realizing whoever was out there just heard me swear and I was going to have to find a way to cover for it. I found myself wiping faster and faster on my blouse as I stood up to walk out there and offer help to this person.
I walked through the doorway, still wiping my blouse, and looked around, not seeing anyone standing at the front desk. I then looked over at the tables and saw a gentleman sitting there with the newspaper. He peered over the newspaper and looked at me.
“I’m sorry about that,” I mumbled, still lightly wiping my blouse. “I heard you cough, it startled me and I spilled my coffee. I didn’t think anyone was out here.”
The gentleman placed the newspaper down and stood up, walking towards me. He was tall, wearing a black leather jacket and blue jeans. He did not look like the typical patron here at our library. He was what my mother always called a “manly man” – he was tall, looked rugged and strong, and had the walk and demeanor of someone that was confident.
He stood in front of me while I was behind the front desk, still furiously wiping my blouse, and suddenly I felt like a nervous schoolgirl in front of him. Even the smell of him, the mix of the cologne he wore, the soap he used, and his leather jacket, was making me feel weak in the knees. I got a closer look at him, and while he seemed somewhat familiar to me, I could not place him at all.
“I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said to me nicely. “I just had a tickle in my throat is all. Must be the air in here.”
“Well, it is a bit dusty in here sometimes,” I replied.
Really, talking about dust? Get with it, Kristin! I thought to myself.
“I hope it didn’t ruin your blouse,” he said to me as he looked down at me. It was then that I realized the coffee stain was right on my right breast and had soaked through the white blouse enough so that my shirt was a bit see-through, revealing the lacy cups of my favorite bra. I now felt even smaller and blushed a bit.
“Oh, I’m sure it’s fine. No worries, it was my fault completely,” I said as I reached over and grabbed Karen’s red cardigan sweater that was hanging on the back of a chair and quickly put it on so I could cover up. “Is there something I can help you with?” I asked, looking to change the subject. His deep blue eyes now moved up from the sweater to meet mine.
“I’m just meeting my daughter here after school,” he told me. I saw him look around the library. “I haven’t been here in a long time,” he said to me. “It looks like there have been some changes.” His eyes came back and rested on me once again. He was much taller than me, perhaps almost a foot, and just having him standing there talking to me was making me feel giddy.
“Yes,” I said, clearing my throat, “I have tried to update the place a bit since I have been here,” I said proudly.
He turned to me again after looking around some more. “Oh, you’re new in town?” he asked me.
“Well, I have been here for about two months, so I guess I am still new. I’m the librarian, Kristin Arthur,” I said to him, holding out my hand.
He reached over and took my hand in his to shake it. I could feel the warm, strong grip of his hand right away, and it sent shivers through my body.
“It’s nice to meet you, Kristin,” he said with a smile. “I’m Wes Martin.”
I mindlessly kept shaking his hand, enthralled by his look and touch. I felt even more embarrassed that I did not recognize him right away, but with the clean-shaven face and short hair, he did not look like any of the pictures I was just ogling on my computer.
“The… the baseball player, right?” I said as I gently pulled my hand away.
“That’s right,” he said as he looked down, almost as if he felt embarrassed by his fame. “Do you follow baseball?” he asked me.
“No... I mean not really… I was never a big sports person. I’m sorry,” I said, feeling flustered.
Wes let out a light laugh. “Don’t apologize,” he said to me. “You don’t have to be a baseball fan. It’s kind of nice to meet someone in this town who isn’t.”
I could feel my feet shuffling on the floor as I looked for something else to say, and then it dawned on me.
“You said you’re meeting your daughter here?” I asked him. “Is that Isabelle Martin?”
He looked surprised that I knew who she was. “Do you know Izzy?” he asked.
“Well, not really, we just met yesterday,” I said honestly. “I brought a book out to her yesterday that she asked about.”
“You brought a book out to her? Is that some new policy at the library to make deliveries?”
“She… she had sent me an email asking about Dracula and that she wanted it to read with her grandmother, and I thought if she couldn’t get here…” I was fumbling for words again, not sure if he was upset I went out there or not.
Wes laughed again. “It’s okay, really,” he said as he looked into my eyes again. “Izzy and my mother read a lot. It was very nice of you to do that.”
I could feel myself blushing again as my body felt a warm rush go through it. Wes stepped closer to the front desk.
“Now that I know you deliver, I may take you up on that service,” he said, smiling at me.
I couldn’t believe he was flirting with me. The line was a little lame, but he clearly was flirting to see if I was interested.
“I’d be happy to help,” I said quietly, gazing up at him.
Just then I heard the front door open and close.
“Dad?” a voice questioned. I saw Wes turn quickly towards the front door, and I looked over as our gaze broke.
Isabelle ran over to her father and gave him a big hug around his waist. Wes hugged her tightly back.
”What are you doing here?” she said as she kept hugging him. She broke the hug quickly and looked up at her father. “Is everything okay? Is it Grandma?”
“Everything’s fine Izzy,” he said, comforting her. “There’s nothing wrong with Grandma. And if there were, why would I be at the library?” he said.
“Why aren’t you in Florida?” she asked, looking up into his face. He looked over at me, and I moved to try to busy myself with some work behind the counter so that it seemed like I wasn’t intruding.
“It’s a long story; I can explain it to you at home,” he said as he started to move her towards the door.
“Wait,” she said to him. Isabelle walked over to me at the counter and handed me a book. “Here’s your book back,” she said to me with a smile, giving me the copy of Dracula.
“You finished it already?” I said to her, shocked she read it that fast.
“Yeah,” Isabelle told me. “I read some with my grandmother, about half, and then she fell asleep, so I just kept reading it until I was done. It was really good. Thanks for bringing it out to us.”
“Sure, no problem,” I said to her as I put the book to the side. I watched Isabelle walk back over to her father, giving him an admiring look as she put her arm around his waist.
Wes looked back over at me and smiled. “Thank you for your help, Kristin,” he said to me.
“You’re welcome,” I replied. “Come back again soon,” I told Wes. “I mean… the both of you.” I was feeling flustered again.
“I’m sure we will.” Wes and Isabelle walked out the front door, passing Karen just as she was walking in. She smiled at them as they passed, and then shot me a look as she raced over to me at the desk.
“That was him!” she shouted.
“I know it was him,” I said to her casually. “What are you doing back here already? You’re not due back here yet.”
“I was running errands and thought I would come in and grab my sweater,” Karen told me then narrowed her eyes. “Why are you wearing my sweater?”
I looked down at the sweater and blushed. “I spilled coffee on my blouse as soon as Wes walked in, and… well…“ I pulled the right side of the sweater open to reveal the stain on my shirt.
“Nice look,” she said to me sarcastically. “Cute bra, by the way,” Karen told me. “I am sure ‘Wes’ liked it too.”
“That is his name Karen,” I said, trying to justify my words.
“Oh, I know it is. Funny how you call Clyde Stuart ‘Mr. Stuart’ when he comes in, and not Clyde.”
“Clyde Stuart is seventy years old,” I replied.
“My point exactly,” Karen answered. “You are completely crushing on Wes Martin right now.”
I stood there, trying to think of a defense for myself, but I couldn’t come up with anything. “So, what if I am?” I said defensively. “You saw him, and he seems very nice, and he was so sweet with his daughter… and… and I think he was flirting with me,” I said shyly.
Karen moved behind the counter and gave my shoulder a light push.
“Get out!” she shouted.
I let out a little laugh. “He did,” I told Karen. “It was a little corny, but it was definitely flirting. I am sure he does it all the time with women.”
“Not that I know of,” Karen said as she sat down in the chair, spinning it around. “Kris, I’ve lived here my whole life, and I grew up with the legend of Wes Martin. I’ve seen him around town after his wife left him, and I never saw him flirt with anyone. He’s always polite and cordial, but that’s about it. If he was flirting with you, he’s got some interest.”
Hearing Karen say that made me feel pretty good about myself, and it made me wonder if I would see more of Wes Martin anytime soon.
Karen cleared her throat to snap me out of the haze.
“What?” I said to her.
“You might want to go home and change your blouse before Clyde Stuart comes in and lets the rest of the town know you’re putting on a show at the library today,” Karen said with a laugh.
I turned red and took off her sweater, handing it to her. I quickly grabbed my coat and put it on to cover up, and hustled out the door.
Part of me was hoping I would run into Wes again in the parking lot, but when I got out to my car, they were nowhere to be found. I climbed into my car and drove back to my apartment, still thinking about those blue eyes looking at me.