Page 52 of Love in the Stacks
“That’d be great, if you don’t mind,” I say. “We’re celebrating the presentation, and he’s part of that.” I shrug. “Only seems fair.”
“Agreed. Plus, I’d like to talk to him more. It’s my job as your big sister.” She grins.
I roll my eyes. “I already told you it’s not like that,” I say. “But listen, can you ask him? I don’t want to seem … whatever.”
She nods, and we head into the room. Adam sees us walking up the aisle and waves weakly. “How are you holding up?” I ask him as we approach.
Adam lets out a long breath. “I’m nervous,” he admits. “I’m used to being the behind-the-scenes guy, not the guy everyone’s looking at.”
“Hey,” I say, placing my hand on his arm and waiting until he meets my eyes. “You’ll do great. We practiced a bunch, and we’ll work together. Don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging.”
His face relaxes and the corners of his mouth tip up. “Thanks, Nicole,” he says quietly. “That means a lot.”
Molly clears her throat. “Hey, Adam. We were wondering…” I glare at her. “I was wondering,” she amends, “if you’d like to join Nicole and me for dinner after this. To celebrate your presentation.”
“I don’t want to intrude on your time together,” Adam protests.
“No, you wouldn’t be,” Molly reassures him.
Adam looks at me, a question in his eyes.
“Please, Adam,” I say, holding his gaze. “I want you to come.”
Adam smiles shyly. “In that case,” he says. “Of course I’ll come.”
“Awesome!” Molly says, thrusting out her hands in a double thumbs-up. “I’ll leave you two to finish setting up.” She moves to the back of the room and takes a seat.
As our presentation’s start time inches closer, the room fills up. And then overflows. When the room moderator calls everyone to attention, the audience is standing room only, with a few people still trickling in and settling against the side walls of the room.
The moderator introduces us, and I speak first, giving the background and purpose of the graphic novel collection.
“Welcome everyone, and thanks for being here. Today, we’ll walk you through the processes we followed to start a graphic novel collection in our liberal arts college library,” I begin in a clear, confident voice.
Despite our practice and training, Adam’s nerves show through during the presentation. His hands are visibly shaking, so he shoves them into his pockets. His voice is a bit shaky, too, nothing like his cool, assured timbre when we’re talking one-on-one. But the content is spot on, and I jump in on his parts when it looks like he needs help. Overall, I think it’s going great, especially judging by the profusion of questions and comments at the end.
Our session is in the last time slot of the day, and with no one coming in behind us, we hang out for close to fifteen extra minutes answering additional questions and sharing experiences with the other librarians in attendance.
I’m riding the high of accomplishment, of being good at my chosen career. What I’m doing at work is making a difference in people’s lives. I’m meaningfully contributing to my profession. After the hard work Adam and I have put into the graphic novel collection project over the last six months, it’s validating to know that our ideas are well-received and appreciated by our peers. It strikes me again what a big deal it is to present at NLA; how this room was overflowing with colleagues interested in hearing what I had to say. Contentment washes over me, calming me internally in a way I can’t remember feeling in years.
Chapter twenty-four
Adam
Well, at least it’s over. And I didn’t vomit. That has to count for something.
The presentation was a blur. I guess I talked about the stuff I was supposed to talk about? Nicole bailed me out a couple of times, smoothly continuing my train of thought without flustering me further.
I steal a glance at Nicole, and she’s in her element—talking to several audience members who approached her when the session ended. She’s so good at this.
Ever since Nicole opened up to me the other day in the auto shop, my brain has been busy arranging and rearranging what I know about her, filling in the gaps that existed before, and creating a fuller picture of the woman she is. Understanding her strength and what she’s overcome only serves to cement my awe.
I value Dr. Parker’s advice, and now that I have a better understanding of what Nicole’s ex put her through, I can see that being a constant in her life while still giving her the space to sort through her own feelings, has been the right call. She’s lonely, but afraid to be vulnerable. I can relate.
I’m a patient man, but these last few days with Nicole are testing me unlike anything else. My yearning for her has become a physical ache radiating out from my chest through my entire body. To be around her and not touch her, not take her in my arms and taste her lips, is the most exquisite torture. The tension between us is building, ratcheting up with each flirtatious comment and stolen glance. I know she feels it too. She must.
As most of the attendees file out of the room, I start closing out the windows on the presentation laptop. I glance over at Nicole again, who is smiling and talking with her sister. A cold hand touches my arm, and I turn to see a woman around my age, with curly red hair and glasses. I paste a closed mouth smile on my face and raise my eyebrows.
“Hi,” she says shyly, her cheeks pink.
