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“Don’t worry, they’re fine. They’re just shoes.”
“Says the guy who folds his dress shirts before having sex.”
“Point taken. And speaking of suits, I only need a few minutes to get ready, and we don’t have to be at the gala for another hour, so how about we relocate to the bedroom? I’ve got a steamy little surprise hidden in a book with a very famous prologue.”
“God, I love your sexy literary puzzles.” I almost jump his bones on the spot, but the secret I’m keeping from him dries up any desire I’m feeling and replaces it with nerves. So I lie. “I promised Amelia I’d be there early to help set up. You know, because I’m the one giving the opening speech.”
Bryan stares at me for a second, almost like he can tell I’m hiding something, and then nods. “All right.”
My hair and makeup are already done for the video, so all I have to do is slip into my little black dress and matching cardigan.
Bryan steps up behind me to nuzzle my neck. “You look so beautiful, Jane.”
“So do you.”
He’s wearing a black suit—much like the one he wore the first time we met—and I can’t help thinking how lucky I am that this man is mine.
He leads me to our self-driving car and gets behind the wheel. He may like driving, but he loves coding—and testing his code—even more. The car does all the work, but I make sure he keeps his hands on the wheel. Not that I don’t trust my man’s programming skills, but even he doesn’t know all the quirks of every situation. Like the fact that Byron 1.0’s programming didn’t account for Icelandic authors having their first and family names inverted in catalog records, so Byron was shelving them all by the wrong name. A minor oversight in a library; not so minor when you’re in a vehicle that’s traveling in the wrong direction.
We arrive at the library and Bryan lets me out so he can park the car—or in this case, sit back and relax while the car parks itself—and I head straight to the nonfiction section.
One perk of having worked at the library for so many years is my ability to memorize—and locate—Dewey Decimal numbers, so I quickly find 618.24 MUR. I head to the picture book section next, and grab the green and red book at PIC BRO. Then I speed walk to the romance section, where Byron 1.0 hangs out at night. Not because he has good taste—though he does—but because his programming has him shelve romance last.
“It’s been a while, big guy,” I tell the robot. “How’s it shelving?”
Byron, of course, doesn’t reply because, unlike Jane 1.0—the companion robot Bryan’s working on—he’s the strong, silent type.
“I have two books for you to put away, but I’m going to hold on to them until Bryan gets here, okay?” I pretend Byron nods and smiles as I continue my one-sided conversation, just like in the old days.
“I’ve really missed this place. It’s nice to be back… but also bitter sweet. Filming at home in our home library is great, but there’s just something about this place. Seeing books with worn spines because they’ve been loved and read so many times. Helping people find what they’re looking for. Sharing the love of reading with the community and?—”
“Jane, is that you?” Amelia pops her head around the corner. “I thought I heard your voice. You’re here early, which is good because I have news. I just got off the phone with the president of the Library Board.”
“Not two sentences I’d expect to hear together!” I joke as her words bring me back to that fateful day when I got laid off, met Bryan, and my world completely changed. “Two years ago, I would never have said this, but being replaced by a robot was the best bad thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Amelia’s face falls, like Humpty Dumpty. “You don’t miss working here?”
“I didn’t mean it like that. You know I loved working here. You’re an amazing boss.”
“You just don’t want to come back.”
“What? No, I didn’t say that. It’s just not an option.”
“It is now. Thanks to all the publicity your videos bring, we’re so busy, Tabitha and I can’t handle the volume of work on our own. We’ve both had to work overtime, and quite frankly, we’re exhausted. And since the pilot project for automating libraries was a bust, just like I predicted, we need actual staff to keep up. So the Board has agreed to fund a new, permanent, full-time librarian position. Of course, I want it to be you. You’re the perfect person for the job, and you deserve…”
Amelia keeps talking, but I don’t hear her. All I can think is that there is nowhere I’d rather be. Except…
“Jane.” Amelia snaps her fingers in front of my face.
“Sorry. I want to say yes, but…” I trail off when I spot Bryan heading toward us. I quickly hide the two books I’m holding behind my back.
“What—” Amelia starts to ask, but I shake my head, willing her not to say anything.
Thankfully, Bryan doesn’t notice our exchange. He gives me a smile that sets my heart on fire and wraps an arm around my shoulder. Then he turns to my former boss. “Nice to see you, Amelia. Where do you want us?” At her blank look, he adds, “Jane said you needed help setting up?”
“Oh, um…” Amelia smiles a bit too emphatically and shoots me a wide-eyed ‘help me’ look. She is a terrible liar.
“Actually.” I take Bryan’s hands and gaze deeply into his eyes. “I just said that to get you here early to see Byron.”
