The Bookworm Crush

by Lisa Brown Roberts

  Amy loved Dallas. Not the way Viv did, of course, but as a friend. He was funny and sweet and smart. Best of all, he read novels—fantasy and sci-fi mostly. A hot nerd, for sure, but nerdy enough Viv had nicknamed him McNerd, which had stuck.

  “Dude.” Toff rolled his baby blues at Dallas. “Books do not save lives. You might save them with your Jackie Chan moves, but not a book.” He glanced at her and shrugged apologetically. “Sorry, Ames, I just don’t—”

  “I dare you to read one,” Amy blurted. Adrenaline spiked her pulse rate. Had she said that out loud? Based on Toff’s shocked expression, she had.

  Dallas laughed. “I second the dare. Do it, Flipper.”

  “Please,” she said, hoping she didn’t sound pathetic. “Just try a few chapters. I promise you’ll be hooked.”

  Toff stared at her, and for once she couldn’t decipher his expression.

  “Yeah, uh, thanks, but I’ll pass.” He stood up abruptly. “I’ve gotta split.”

  Embarrassed, Amy set the books aside. So much for her first attempt at book pushing. So much for helping out her secret crush. Stupid, stupid idea, she berated herself as Toff called out a goodbye to Viv and did the bro-dude handshake/hug thing with Dallas.

  Toff paused when he was halfway out the door, turning back to Amy with a crooked smile. “Stay out of trouble, Bonnie.” The door slammed shut behind him, the tinkling bells echoing in the store.

  Through the window, Amy watched Toff emerge from the bookstore into the sunlight. Within seconds, a group of girls surrounded him like they’d followed a homing beacon. He threw back his head and laughed at something one of them said, then slung his arms around two of the girls as they wandered off.

  Amy’s heart sank all the way down to her toes. Yeah, they’d fake relationshipped their way out of trouble, but Toff would never see her as more than Viv’s weird book-nerd friend with a yarn-bombing side hustle. With a sigh, she resumed knitting as Viv rang up the two picture books the parents had picked out for their kids.

  Viv said goodbye to the customers, then joined Amy, sitting across from her. She cleared her throat and focused on her with big brown eyes full of sympathy. “Toff’s the Jerry Maguire of Shady Cove, Amy. You know that. Great at friendship, bad at romance.”

  Ouch. She knew exactly what Viv meant. She loved that movie, even though it was old-school.

  “I know how impossible it is to turn off a crush,” Viv said sympathetically. “I love Toff, and I wish he were right for you, but he’s not. You deserve a prince, not a court jester.”

  Amy appreciated her concern, but part of her rebelled at the assessment. Shouldn’t she be the one to decide who was right for her? She started to say just that, but Viv was frowning at her phone. She looked up, pinning Amy with a determined stare.

  “A lot of people already posted for the first challenge. You need to post yours ASAP.”

  She swallowed. Viv was right, but…

  “Maybe I shouldn’t bother. Look how last night turned out. It was a disaster.”

  “What are you talking about?” Viv protested. “That bench is amazing. People have been taking pictures of it all morning.” She tapped her phone screen. “And it’s perfect for the first challenge. Total cover love.”

  “Yeah, but…” Amy chewed her bottom lip. “I don’t think it was worth the stress. I’m not cut out for competition. I’d rather read about it than do it.”

  Viv didn’t say anything, but Amy could tell she was processing what she had said and didn’t like it. Viv had a horrible poker face.

  “Listen to this,” Viv said, scowling at her phone. “This is today’s HeartRacer tweet. ‘Are you a fierce and fanatical reviewer? Strut your stuff on social media and tag us. If we like your posts, we’ll retweet and regram. You get new followers and a shot at meeting Lucinda. Three challenges. Three chances.’”

  Viv set her phone aside, laser focusing on her. “That’s you. A fierce and fanatical reviewer.”

  Amy squirmed at Viv’s intensity. “That’s us. If I do this, it’s with you. That’s the plan, right?” That’s how they’d always done everything.

  Ever since they’d met, Viv had been in command and Amy had been the copilot. When Viv started her book review blog, she’d had to convince her that readers wanted her book opinions, too, insisting on posting Amy’s reviews, which had morphed into Redhead Recs, and readers loved her book recs.

  Same with their Lonely Hearts Book Club. Viv got the club up and running, and Amy eventually became the co-leader, after more coercing from Viv. Now she loved running the meetings, but that was because she felt safe with the small group of readers who loved romance as much as she did.

  Viv went quiet again, her attention shifting to the framed library READ posters on the walls. Amy loved those posters. Her favorite was the one with Gal Gadot, star of the Wonder Woman movie. If she could be a superhero, she’d choose Wonder Woman, hands down.

  “I love books as much as you do,” Viv finally said, “but Lucinda’s your unicorn author. You have to meet her. She hasn’t given an interview or done a book signing for almost twenty years.” Her eyes went wide. “Since before we were born.”

  “But you want to meet her, too, right?” Amy asked, trying to tamp down the panic rising in her chest. She couldn’t do this contest by herself. No. Way.

  Viv shrugged. “I get to meet a lot of authors when my mom’s friends come here to do book signings.”

  “But they’re mystery authors,” Amy protested, “not romance authors.” She inhaled sharply. “I’m sorry. You know I love your mom’s mystery series.”

  “It’s okay,” Viv said. “I know what you meant.”

  She didn’t understand Viv’s sudden lack of enthusiasm for the contest. She and Viv considered themselves ambassadors of a maligned genre, raving about romance on their review blog. True, Viv wasn’t as big of a Lucinda fan as she was, but Lucinda was an icon.

  Meeting her would be like Charlie winning the golden ticket and visiting the chocolate factory.

  “Look,” Viv said, “I know you wanted us to do this together, but I really need to spend time with Dallas before he leaves for school. It’s already going to be tough, since I’m working in the store so much.” She smiled reassuringly. “You can win this without me, I promise.”

  Amy gaped at her. “The odds of me winning are a zillion to one.”

  “No problem,” Viv said. “You’re one in a zillion.” She leaned in, determination tightening her features. “You have just as many opinions as I do. Your reviews are fantastic.” She tugged at her necklace and grinned. “Honestly, you should be in the spotlight, not me.”

  Wow. Amy didn’t know what to say.

  She chewed her lip. Maybe it was time to stop playing it safe.

  “You really think I can pull it off?” Amy asked, but deep in her heart, a dream was burrowing in and taking root. “Even after how I messed up last night?”

  “You didn’t mess up.” Viv’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “And really. If you can fake out a cop with Flipper, you can definitely win a social media contest.”

  …

  Amy squinted in the bright sunlight, adjusting her phone’s camera filter. She snapped one last photo of Lucinda’s new book perched on the bench, making sure to include in the frame the poppies she’d knitted.

  After talking with Viv, she had a lot to think about. She still didn’t believe she could win, but she also didn’t want to look back with regret, knowing she hadn’t even tried to meet the person who’d inspired her love of reading.

  Taking a fortifying breath, she uploaded her photos to Instagram, tagged HeartRacer Publishing, then entered her usual bookworm and bookstagram hashtags, along with a few customized ones.

  #PoppiesArePopping #UnicornAuthor #NoRegrets

  She hesitated, recalling Toff’s comment about posting his own bench sel
fie. What the heck. If she was posting this, she might as well go all in. Besides, he had way more followers than she did. She could use more eyeballs on her account. Maybe they’d like what they saw.

  Amy’s fingers flew across the screen as she canceled her original post, screenshotted from his page the selfie he’d taken, then created a new post—a collage with her photo and Toff’s selfie photo. She tagged @SurferGodCA, then added all the hashtags again, plus a new one, #BonnieandClyde.

  She squeezed her eyes shut, wished on her bench for luck, then opened her eyes and posted the photos. Grinning, she realized she’d forgotten one more hashtag: #HereGoesNothing.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  After leaving the bookstore, Toff returned to the beach, taking occasional breaks from surfing to flirt with girls chilling on the beach and on their boards challenging him for waves. Girls liked him—a lot—and he returned the favor.

  He wasn’t a total player––he stuck with one girl at a time––but just for a short time. Usually three weeks max. Almost six weeks with that Swedish foreign exchange student his sophomore year, but that had been his patriotic duty.

  “Hey, Toff! Come hang out with us!”

  A bunch of younger kids swarmed him as he kicked back on his towel, taking a rare solo break.

  He shaded his eyes to check out his fan club. He recognized the groms as beach regulars. His dad had always taken time to teach other kids when Toff was a little grom.

  Some families went to church together. Toff and his dad surfed. Dad believed in karma and paying it forward, and so did he. Plus, the kids made him laugh, especially the redhead with the smart mouth who pushed his way to the front. He definitely remembered him.

  “Can you help me with my nose riding?” The redhead squinted down at him. “Um, please?”

  Toff grinned up at the kid. He’d helped him out before, but he couldn’t remember his name. Something about him was familiar, though, like a shadow of someone he knew.

  “Have you tried it?” he asked, standing up and brushing sand off his arms.

  “Yeah, but I’m not very good.” The kid shuffled his feet in the sand while his friends laughed and poked at one another.

  “So you’re a longboard fan?” That was Toff’s ride of choice. As much as he liked competing as a short boarder, he loved long, chill rides on his log with his friends or by himself.

  “I like both.” The redhead shrugged. “You make everything look easy. How do you do it?”

  Toff grinned and ruffled the kid’s hair. “Come on.” He headed toward the water, his own board in tow, the kids trailing him like puppies chasing a big dog.

  “What’s your name?” he asked as the redhead staked pole position right next to him, motioning his friends to step back.

  “I’m Brayden.” He eyed Toff with a sly grin. “You’re dating my sister.”

  “Wh-What?” Toff gaped at the kid, who might as well have sucker punched him.

  Brayden must have confused him with someone else. The D word made him twitchy. Dating meant commitment. Restaurants and movies and…and…presents and other stuff he’d never done with a girl. That was Dallas’s style, not his.

  “Amy,” Brayden prompted. “You dropped her off last night. Way after curfew.” The kid waggled his eyebrows.

  So that’s why he looked familiar—the red hair. Something about the smile, too.

  “Smooth move.” Brayden pantomimed driving a car. “Rolling in with no headlights and the engine off.”

  Toff smirked. “You always spy on your sister?”

  “Nah.” Brayden shrugged. “She doesn’t do anything interesting. Usually.” He side-eyed Toff. “She never misses her curfew.”

  Toff appraised Brayden through narrowed eyes. Had Amy told him they were dating as a cover story? That made sense. Being out with a guy was better than confessing she’d been out breaking the law, not that it was much of a law. He still laughed whenever he said the word “kniffiti” out loud, which he had, more than once.

  “How come you two are sneaking around, anyway?” Brayden puffed himself up like he was ready to throw down. Toff swallowed a laugh.

  He’d never dealt with a girl’s protective brother before. Facing down one half his size was funny as hell. Toff grinned at his inquisitor. He’d already pretended to be Amy’s boyfriend once to keep her out of trouble. Might as well do it again.

  “We’re keeping things on the down low.” Toff glanced around, pretending to be worried about eavesdroppers, then leaned over to whisper in Brayden’s ear, following a hunch. “Since your parents are strict about her dating.”

  “Oooh. I get it.” Brayden’s shoulders relaxed. “That makes sense, especially since you’re, you know, you.”

  Toff straightened. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Well, you’re not exactly…” Brayden waved his hand around like Toff had flies circling him. “I mean, the last guy she dated showed up in a tie.” He clutched his neck like he was strangling himself. “He was boring, but my parents liked him. ‘Official seal of approval.’” He made air quotes, and Toff laughed.

  Two girls strolled by, slowing down to check him out. Instinctively, Toff flashed his sexiest grin.

  “Hey!” Brayden yelled at the girls. “Keep moving!” He turned his fiery glare on Toff.

  Toff’s mouth dropped open; then he shrugged an apology at the girls. “Sorry, ladies.” The girls exchanged confused looks and walked off.

  “You shouldn’t be flirting, since you have a girlfriend,” Brayden accused. “It’s one of the dating rules.”

  “Rules?” This was worse than faking it for the cop.

  Brayden’s face blotched the same red as Amy’s had when he’d teased her about kniffiti. “Yeah. She says she doesn’t want me to be a Wickham,” he said. “She says his name like he’s a serial killer.” He crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue, then pantomimed stabbing someone with a knife.

  Toff laughed. This kid was a crack-up. “Who’s Wickham?”

  “Knowing her, some guy from a book.” Brayden rolled his eyes. “She acts like people in books are real, dude. It’s so weird.”

  Toff could easily picture Amy lecturing her brother and Brayden balking. Two battling redheads. After what he’d seen last night, though, he’d put his money on Amy. There was a spark inside her just waiting to be lit.

  “You don’t need to worry,” Toff said. “I don’t know who Wickham is, but I’m sure you’re not a serial killer.” He tousled Brayden’s hair again. “Ready to work?”

  “Yeah.”

  As Toff directed Brayden and his friends to set up their boards on the sand to practice cross-stepping, Toff thought about Amy.

  How she’d curled up against him in his van, her hand on his chest, blinking at him with those pretty eyes he hadn’t appreciated until that moment. The way she’d looked at him… For a few seconds, he’d believed her act. He’d forgotten he was faking, too. His body had lit up, firing on all cylinders, and if the sheriff hadn’t been there, he would have kissed her.

  But talking to her in the bookstore this morning had reminded him why she belonged in his friend zone. Amy was smart. Bookish. Sweet but kind of clueless about real life, believing that reading a book would somehow make him feel better about his dad’s wedding. Plus, she was one of Viv’s best friends, so if he screwed things up, Viv would bust his balls. So would Dallas. Literally.

  “Hey, Toff! Am I doing this right?”

  He watched Brayden, who wasn’t doing it right but looked up at him with a hopeful expression.

  Toff grinned. “Let me show you.”

  …

  Amy wasn’t thrilled about tracking down Brayden on the beach, mostly because she knew exactly where to look—wherever Toff was. She was already regretting tagging him in her Instagram post and regramming his selfie. Had he even seen it yet? Even if
he hadn’t, when he finally did, she didn’t want him to think she was turning into a creepy stalker because of last night.

  Shading her eyes, she scanned the beach…and there they were, the blond Pied Piper and the children he’d lured with his surfboard.

  Great.

  She made her way slowly across the sand, stopping to say hi to a few friends—aka stalling—but she couldn’t avoid him forever. Once she reached them, she hung back, hoping to make eye contact with Brayden while not attracting Toff’s attention.

  Unfortunately, her brother spotted her instantly, waving his hands in the air. “Hey, Amy! I was right! I told you your boyfriend would hook me up with a lesson!”

  Toff turned around, shooting her a sexy, knowing smile. She froze. Icicles filled her veins instead of blood. She couldn’t have moved even if she’d wanted to. Unfortunately, Toff moved, heading straight for her after saying something to the kids.

  He stopped in front of her, staring down at her with laughing eyes. “Hey, girlfriend,” he singsonged. “What’s up?”

  “I’m not— I didn’t tell him— He’s just—” God, she hated how much Toff rattled her, standing there all buffed and tanned in his swim trunks. With any other guy, she’d laugh this off. But not with him.

  Toff grinned, tossing his hair out of his eyes. “You don’t have to explain, Ames.” He gestured back and forth between them, shaking his head. “Definitely not happening.”

  Her mouth fell open. He didn’t have to make it sound like a joke, let alone a horrible idea. Where was a stabby knitting “stick” when she needed one? Was this what dating Toff would be like? A constant barrage of cocky attitude?

  She narrowed her eyes, annoyed. “I know this isn’t happening.” She mimicked his hand gesture. “My brother got the wrong idea when he saw you drop me off last night.”

  “We’ll have to crush his dream,” Toff said, smirking. “But we should let him down slowly.”

  Her heart pounded against her rib cage, demanding to know what was going on, but she didn’t have any answers. Desperate to escape whatever game Toff was playing, she turned her back on him and waved at Brayden.