Lovestruck in Fortune's Bay: A Fortune's Bay Novella

by Joslyn Westbrook

  Bret nodded. “Every town has the bad mixed in with the good. That's what law enforcement is for.” He paused, slipping a curious glance to Max. “ Can I ask you a question?”

  At that moment, Max nearly lost her mind because their hands brushed for a nano-second. “Of course, ask me anything.”

  “How did a young woman like yourself become mayor of Fortune’s Bay?”

  Max was used to this question with an understanding of what drove curiosity. She was indeed young to be a mayor. Even so, she knew the town better than anyone else.

  “After earning my college degree in business, I worked as an intern for the City Manager and eventually got hired on as the Assistant City Manager. Four years later, the City Manager was elected mayor and I was selected to be the new City Manager.”

  “Selected, huh?” Bret smiled as the two of them continued to stroll along the sidewalk.

  “You picked up on that, huh? Yep, I was selected. Supposedly no election was necessary as it was deemed no other person knew how to manage the city better than I did—so I was told, anyway.”

  They moved along, now crossing a small street that led to the library, as Max went on to summarize her rise to mayor.

  “Then, about four years later, at the end of the mayor’s term, he wanted to retire, with no one in the running to replace him. So town council voted to do away with the City Manager title and position, and I was subsequently appointed mayor.”

  Bret nodded. “Impressive journey, Madam Mayor. I look forward to working with you when I’m appointed sheriff.”

  The pair walked up the short flight of steps that led to the library door’s entrance. As they stopped short at the door, Max’s eyes brightened as she replied, “I’m looking forward to a productive partnership, Lieutenant.”

  Every time Max stepped into Fortune’s Bay Library, she was mesmerized. Not only because of her personal love of all things book related, but also because it was indeed the Taj Mahal of libraries. The interior much resembled an upscale bookstore with sectional rows of books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, a snazzy Young Adult nook, a cute children’s book loft, and a media center equipped with state of the art computers, printers, and tablets. Paintings of Destiny and Anastasia, Fortune’s Bay founding pirate, hung on walls all around. The library also had an indoor cafe called Kismet Coffee and Tea that boastfully served up coffee, tea, and an assortment of cakes, cookies, and specialty pastries.

  A satisfied smile tugged at the corners of Bret’s mouth as his eyes blazed with awe. “Wow,” was all he muttered.

  Max giggled. “Yeah, that’s the reaction we were going for when we remodeled this place.”

  “It’s palatial, Max. I’ve never seen a library of this caliber.”

  “It was my first project as City Manager.” She stood taller at that revelation, proud of her accomplishment.

  “Well done. I’m impressed.”

  Max’s mouth eased into a comfortable grin. “Thank you. Now, let’s find that book we came here for.”

  Just then, Laney the librarian peered from the self-help section and smiled as she spotted Max and Bret. “Madam Mayor, hello! What brings you in here,” she paused, looking down at her watch, “five minutes before closing time? I’ve got that copy of Chloe Davenport’s new novel set aside on my desk for you,” she added, now standing in front of them. She glanced at Bret all googly-eyed. “Hi, I’m Laney.”

  “Laney, this is Lieutenant Hartley. He’s new to the force and new to town. I brought him here to check out the book about Fortune’s Bay.”

  “Oh, excellent idea.” Laney said with a smile that faded only seconds later.

  “Something wrong, Laney?” Max asked.

  Laney’s eyebrows knitted. “Um, Madam Mayor, it’s just that I’ve got plans tonight with the family and—”

  “Say no more, Laney,” Max interrupted holding up both palms. “I realize we arrived just as you were about to close up.” Her eyes scanned the library. “How about I close up tonight? You know, after we find the book, of course.”

  Laney’s worried expression softened. “You’d do that, Madam Mayor?”

  Max nodded. “Of course. Just give me the alarm code, and I’ll be sure to lock up properly.”

  Laney’s entire face lit up as she moved in close and hugged Max. “You’re absolutely the best.” She looked over to an amused Bret and reiterated, “She’s the best.”

  Laney grabbed her purse, wrote down the alarm code on a small piece of paper, and handed it over to Max. Then she went back to her desk to grab the copy of the book she was holding for Max.

  “Here you are; this copy is on me. Thank you so much, Mayor.”

  Max and Bret watched an extremely giddy Laney walk over to the exit door, then, as if she remembered something, Laney swung around to face Max. “Oh, Madam Mayor?”

  “Yes, Laney?” asked Max, her eyes momentarily fixed on her new book.

  Laney waved her hand as if to dismiss the last-minute thought. “Oh, never mind,” she said before finally heading out the door.

  Seconds later Max stowed her book in her purse, then led a still awestruck Bret to the reference section where copies of The History of Fortune’s Bay were kept.

  “Here it is. Easy-peasy.”

  Bret took possession of the exquisitely designed hardcover book, giving it a quick once-over. “Thank you, Max.”

  “Oh, it’s my pleasure. Don't worry about having to officially check it out. I know where you live and work if you fail to return it soon.” She ran her hand through her hair and stifled a yawn. After waking up early, all anxious to confront Bret this morning, she was surely getting tired now.

  “Come on, let’s get the alarm set and head out. I’ve got another early day tomorrow.”

  Bret nodded following close behind Max, already flipping through pages of the book that would undoubtedly expose him to the town’s history.

  Max set the alarm on the keypad next to the door. “Okay, I think that’s about it. You ready to head out?”

  Bret pretty much had his nose buried in the book, yet managed an audible, “Mmmhmm,” as Max nudged at the exit door’s push bar.

  Only, the door didn’t open.

  Bret’s eyes parted ways with the book as soon as he realized Max was heavily engaged in a one-on-one battle with the door. “What’s wrong?”

  Max scowled. “The door. It won’t open.” She made another attempt at pushing the door open, and it still wouldn’t budge.

  Bret moved in and a sense of relief came over Max. Surely his muscular arms would be able to handle the unruly door.

  Bret pushed. Then pushed again. Then once more. “Nope. It’s stuck. You’d better turn off that alarm and set it again once we get the door open.”

  Max huffed her way to the keypad and emphatically pushed in the code, disabling the alarm. “What do we do?”

  “The emergency exit?”

  Max’s eyes lit up. “Of course! It’s in the back.”

  The two sprinted to the back door then pushed to open it. Yet, just like the one in the front, that door also proved to be stuck.

  “What the heck?” Bret let out a heave as he kicked the door. “Has this happened before?” His question instantly sparked the memory of Cindy’s mention of the library door yesterday in Max’s office.

  “Oh right, the librarian told my secretary the door had been getting stuck lately. I assumed she called the electrician to come take a look.”

  “The electrician?” Bret asked, giving the door another nudge.

  “Yes. Um, well the library doors are powered by some auto-electric panel circuit thingy.” She bit her lip while she tugged on a strand of hair.

  “Circuit thingy?” Bret gave a lopsided grin. “You’re real sweet. Now let’s figure out how to get out of here, shall we?”

  Max bobbed her head in agreement. She wanted nothing more than to get home, take a bubble bath, and get lost in her favorite author’s new romance novel. Not be locked up in the library with a man w
ho was—who the hell was she kidding? What woman wouldn’t want to be locked up with Mr. Delectable Blend of Perfection? She couldn’t ignore how her heart was beginning to flutter each time he looked at her. Still, she was a sensible woman who wouldn’t fall for a man she barely met, especially when their initial introduction was not at all her idea of romantic meet cutes she’d often read about. She was still slightly annoyed at that ticket incident, even though he was only doing his job.

  The two walked back to the front of the library and, out of instinct, Max tried to shove the door open once more.

  “It’s still stuck. Crap. Now what?” She turned to Bret who was feverishly pacing the floor, holding his cell phone in the air.

  “Awesome. No cell phone signal,” he said before he plopped down into one of the comfy chairs in the center of the library. “Might as well get comfortable until we figure out how to get out of here.”

  Max’s face turned red. “You can’t get comfy. You should be helping me. I mean you’re a cop. Don’t you have some sort of super-cop survival skills to employ?”

  Bret sunk his head in his hands for a minute, then pinned a look of wonder on Max. “Super-cop survival skills?” He chuckled. “You are one hilarious woman.”

  Max took in a deep breath as she paced the floor, then stopped and held up her index finger. “What about your gun?”

  Bret’s face went blank. “My gun?”

  “Yes. Can’t you like, shoot the push bar then kick the door open or something? It works all the time on TV.”

  “Right. On TV. I’m not shooting the door, Max.”

  Defeated, she walked a few steps over to where Bret was sitting and slid into the chair across from his. She placed her purse on the square table positioned between them, tossed her cell phone inside of the purse, and sighed. “My phone died plus my charger is in my car back at Wilde Pirate. It has all of my contacts in it, including the electrician who wired the doors.”

  “My phone is fully charged. I just can’t get a signal.”

  “You can log on to the library WiFi to make calls that way. The code is Read A Book.”

  Bret must have found that funny because he let out a long and exaggerated laugh as he keyed the WiFi code into his phone.

  “All connected now. What’s the name of the electrician? I’ll look it up on Google.”

  Max yawned. “Marty Williams.”

  After finally being able to successfully contact the electrician, Bret and Max had no choice but to figure out what they would do to busy themselves as they waited. Marty wouldn’t be able to get to the library for several hours.

  “Well at least we won’t starve or die of thirst while we wait,” Bret joked as he sauntered toward the library’s café.

  It had been just a little over an hour since they realized the doors were stuck, so by now boredom was settling in. The two had perused through rows of books in the Do-It-Yourself section, unsuccessful in their quest to find books like Breaking Out of a Library for Dummies, to help them escape.

  Max had slipped out of her black high heels and let her long, hair down. If she had to spend the next few hours waiting for the electrician to arrive, at least she could do so in comfort. She followed close behind Bret, toward the café, as the thought of a light snack to help pass the time did seem quite reasonable.

  “The café sells Vanilla Kisses mille-feuille. You should try some.”

  Bret spun around on his heels, showcasing a furrowed set of brows. “A mille, what?”

  Max giggled as she brushed past him and darted into the café area. “It’s their signature pastry.”

  “As long as it’s sweet I’m game for trying new things.” He noticed the coffeemaker on the countertop. “Would you like some coffee?”

  “Sure. If you can figure out how to operate that thing. It’s barista quality and I have no clue how it works.”

  “Well, perhaps my super-cop survival skills will kick in and I’ll figure out how to operate it.” He winked and began to fiddle with the coffeemaker’s controls.

  Max wasn’t a big fan of sarcasm, although she had to admit it only magnified his charm.

  After a few seconds of toying with the coffeemaker, Bret figured out how to turn it on, at least. “There, now if I were coffee where would I be?” He searched through several cabinets, where coffee was nowhere to be found. “Great. A coffee café that has no coffee.”

  Max laughed. “There’s coffee around here somewhere, I am sure.”

  Opening the compact refrigerator underneath the counter, in search of bottled water, Max discovered there was something far better than coffee or water combined.

  “How about this?”

  Bret’s eyes glistened with amusement. “Wine? Why on Earth does a library café have a bottle of wine?”

  “Book Club. Twice a month, the ladies’ auxiliary club holds a Book Club meeting here. Book Club is nothing without wine,” Max explained as she stood on tiptoes, reaching for two wine glasses in one of the overhead cabinets.

  While Max stood on tiptoes trying ever so hard to reach, Bret walked up behind her and grabbed a hold of the two glasses. And when Max whirled around with only the bottle of wine between them, her knees weakened as her heart danced the funky chicken.

  “Book Club. Naturally,” Bret said in a breathy tone that made Max begin to feel dizzy.

  His eyes rested on her for a few lingering moments as she struggled to breathe like a normal person.

  “Right. How about we have a seat at one of the tables and enjoy wine and pastries?” Max suggested, looking into his eyes, although standing this close to him was perfectly fine too. The smell of his cologne accompanied by the heat of his body next to her own was electrifying.

  “Or we can just sit on one of the comfy sofas.”

  His suggestion was just as sensible. “Of course.”

  Max grabbed her purse from off the table, by the comfy chairs, before she joined Bret on the sofa. He placed the two wine glasses on the large rectangular table positioned in front of the sofa, and Max set the bottle of wine, two plates of pastries, napkins, and forks on the table.

  She eased down onto the sofa and said, “Bon Appetit,” as Bret opened the bottle of wine.

  After pouring them both a glass, he lifted his and said, “How about a toast?”

  “Sure. To what?”

  “Our truce. May it be forever lasting.”

  “I will certainly toast to that.”

  Silence lingered between them as they sipped wine and devoured the delicious pastries. When Max was done with her plate of yumminess, she reached into her purse and took out her new novel. There was no better way to pass time than with a good book. Besides that, she needed to sink into some sort of a distraction. The budding attraction toward the man sitting only inches away from her was getting difficult to ignore.

  Bret folded his arms. “Is that a romance novel?”

  Max cut her eyes at him, feeling the need to defend herself from his mocking tone. “Yep. Sure is. Why, is there a problem?”

  Bret chuckled. “Don’t get defensive. I just didn’t expect you to be the type to get lost in a romance novel.”

  Max closed the book, held it against her chest, and glared at the man whose smirk was dashing and irritating at the same time. “Care to elaborate on what type gets lost in a romance novel?”

  Bret shoulders dished a small shrug. “There are myths.”

  “Myths? I see. Well now, Myth Boy, there are also myths about men who draw conclusions about women who read romance novels.”

  Bret’s eyes narrowed. “Okay...just what myths are those?”

  In one swift move, Max lifted her chin, folded her arms, and emphatically placed her feet on the table before spilling a one-word declaration that made her feel like a boss. “Jealousy.”

  Bret granted that response a speculative scoff along with an even more speculative set of raised eyebrows. “Jealousy?”

  “Yep. Jealous of the romantic heroes women fall in love with.�
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  Bret shook his head. “Now that’s ridiculous. Why would a man be jealous of a fictional character?”

  “Because book boyfriends are the epitome of how a man should be. In fact, I suggest every man read a romance novel. They’d learn a lot about how to romance and woo a woman.”

  “Wait. Book boyfriends? And for the record, I have no problem romancing and wooing a woman.”

  Bret’s tone was as smooth as melted chocolate. Even so, Max was not about to rely on a simplistic statement, which to her, sounded more like a challenge.

  “Oh really? Give me an example of your idea of a romantic evening.” Max placed her book on the table and relaxed into the couch. She wanted to give her undivided attention to Bret, certain he would fail at delivering a scenario far greater than one she’d ever read.

  Shifting into a more comfortable position, Bret leaned back into the couch with one arm resting over the cushions. “My idea of a romantic evening is sitting on my favorite recliner, watching football, while the woman brings me beer on demand.”

  Max’s jaw plummeted. She swore she felt her face go through a metamorphosis of ten shades of anger. Not only was his sarcasm larger than his ego, it was also more infuriating than the smug grin pasted on his face.

  “Truce officially over,” Max just about growled through a set of perfectly gritted teeth. She shot up from the couch, grabbed her empty dishes, then stomped over to the cafe.

  What the hell did I do to deserve getting trapped in this place with him?

  “Come on, Max. I was only kidding.” He wasn’t too far behind her with his empty dishes in hand.

  Max wasn’t hearing it. His words only proved her point. She placed her dishes in the sink and turned to head back toward the couch. She wasn’t expecting Bret to be standing there, close enough for her to notice a tiny scar on the bottom of his chin. Part of her wanted to run her fingertip softly across the scar and reach up and kiss it. Then the much more sensible part mentally slapped a heap of sense back into her.

  Focus on how much he annoys you, Max. Not how much you want him to hold you.