Page 8 of Must Love Libraries and Libations
“What are you—” I began in a low voice, but unmoved, the girl cut me off.
“You have no right to speak to Elder Theodonna like that. None,” she told me hotly. “You can dislike the idea of a party as much as you want, but that is an elder,” she said, pointing behind her where she had left the others. “She is an appointed steward of this village of which even you are a member. And this library is part of that village.”
“Perhaps, but I am the guardian of this library. I will not have its solemnity intruded upon by clanging music and loud enchantments. Aside from the sheer noise of the event, your plans are disruptive to the bookwyrms, the Wyrmwood tree, and there are books in this library,” I said, glancing over my shoulder at the codex, “that cannot be agitated. No. No food in the library. No music in the library. And for the love of all things, no loud noises.”
To my surprise, Melville huffed at me in annoyance.
I arched a questioning eyebrow at him, then turned back to the half-elf. The matter was settled. Why wasn’t she leaving?
“You will apologize to Elder Theodonna,” she said, her mirth replaced by a surprisingly serious tone.
“I will not apologize for doing my duty. I have been the protector of these books since this place was nothing more than an open-air stall at the side of the road.”
“I didn’t say anything about your duty to the books. That’s an entirely different issue. I was talking about you being rude and boorish toward an elder!”
I winced. I couldn’t remember the last time anyone had dared to speak like this to me. I studied the girl closely. She had fury in her face, her cheeks red, her eyes—were they hazel or merely a shade of green, I wasn’t sure—shimmering with anger. Her quick, angry breaths once more made her generous breasts rise and fall in a way that made my cock tremble. The effect took me by surprise, and for a moment, I feared my physical response to her might undermine my authority.
“Get out,” I said, turning from her. “I have work to do.”
“This conversation is not over.”
“It is for now.”
“You will apologize. The library belongs to everyone, Master Erasmus, not just you. And even you owe the elders your respect. If you can’t show even the minimum of courtesy, you aren’t really a part of this community, are you? In that case, you might as well just sit on the eaves and glower at everyone for all you’re worth.”
With that, she turned and left the chamber, the door swinging closed of its own volition behind her.
Outside, I heard the half-elf speaking to the others. The librarians who tended the library kept their voices mellowed, but Elder Theodonna and the girl—Miss Windsong, wasn’t it?—did not speak so quietly. I tracked their voices as they headed toward the front of the library and out the front door.
It wasn’t until they were gone that I felt like I could breathe again.
With my hand wrapped around my quill, I closed my eyes and breathed in and out, trying to steady my thumping heart and calm the heat that had pooled in my loins. My cock had risen to full alert. Even now, Miss Windsong’s scent lingered in the air. Was that freesia? Freesia and something sweet…bloomberry bread, perhaps. My remembrance of her supple, curvy body had my blood thundering. My tail twitched with excitement.
What was happening to me?
I had no time for carnal inclinations.
I had important work to do.
And yet, I imagined my forked tongue sliding across the mounds of her breasts, down her belly, my hands gripping her hips as my tongue?—
No. Absolutely, not. I had no right to think of Miss Windsong like that.
I sighed.
She had not been wrong about Elder Theodonna. I had been rude. But this was all too much. Too much loud music, food, and modern festive enchantments.
Just too much.
And everything was so…new.
I looked around the room at the ancient tools laid out on my workbench. One of my enchanted quills was working on transcribing a runic piece, my old wooden toolbox for mending books sat in the corner, a pot of ink in one corner of my desk, another pot of enchanted untangling ink in another jar—old magic, old tools, old…
Old…me.
Everything around me was from centuries gone by.
I was just like the books themselves.
