Now it was Rosalyn’s turn to purse her lips at him.
Mrs. Peters prattled on. “Rosalyn was always in here checking out the classics and reminiscing about her favorite young adult novels.” The white-haired woman pointed down to the brightly decorated children’s section. “My goodness, but you must have readIf You Give a Mouse a Cookiea hundred times.”
“Sothat’swhy it was always checked out,” Cade joked.
Mrs. Peters frowned at him. “Harper will be handling our Friends of the Library booth for Magnolia Days. You’ll have to get with her about the story hour times, the used-book sale, and the like. I wanted to make sure you two were properly introduced and on the same page.”
Ha. “Same page.” Cade snorted. “Get it?”
Mrs. Peters’s eyebrows furrowed so deep, it appeared a caterpillar had roosted above her eyes.
Yep. She got it. Cade sobered again. “Harper and I go way back.” He nodded at the petite redhead, who had the decency to smile sheepishly from behind the counter. Maybe she, too, was remembering all the sexist quips she’d spouted at him in front of Amber a decade plus ago. “I didn’t realize you worked here either.”
“Probably because you’re not a frequent patron.” Mrs. Peters lifted her chin. “Too busy with the television, I’d imagine.”
What on earth had he done to this woman? Cade scanned back through his years of juvenile pranks, but couldn’t think of any that had?—
Oh, yeah.
He winced as images of a freshman-year dare filled his mind. The football team. Running under the moonlight. Balloons full of shaving cream dotting the library courtyard. They’d assumed the security guard, one of the players’ good-natured uncles, would stumble upon them on duty, but apparently, Mrs. Peters liked being early to work even back then.
Something else Dad had to bail Cade out of.
He sucked in a breath. “You know, Mrs. Peters, I really am sorry about that prank we?—”
“Well, look who it is!” Delia Boudreaux shuffled through the automatic doors of the library. Her short hair was freshly curled, her bright pink lipstick only slightly smeared. “Cade Landry, you never texted me back.”
“Mama D! Look who graduated from a walker to her cane.” Cade leaned in for a hug, grateful for a friendly face to balance the pursed lips still pointed in his direction. “I apologize for not spamming you back with a dozen flamingo emojis.” He should have. Mama D was a local favorite, and her surgery had been a long time coming. It was good to see her out and about.
“My Wordle score has improved too. I’ve averaging three guesses now.” She shook the cane at him. “As for this old thing, I keep reminding myself it’s better than the wheelchair I was in before my surgery.”
Cade stepped back to give her room. “Much better. You’ll be running the Magnolia 5k in no time.”
“I don’t know about all that, but I’ve got to be ready to dance at Noah and Elisa’s wedding.” Delia wiggled her hips. “Of course, he hasn’t proposed yet, but we all know it’s coming.”
Cade choked back a laugh. He couldn’t wait to tell Noah about this one.
Delia turned to Rosalyn. “And speaking of weddings, you must be Cade’s friend.”
Now he just choked. “Mama D, you know Rosalyn. We went to school together.”
“Rosalyn Dupree. Yes, now I see it.” Delia tilted her head back, her eyes gleaming. She’d known who Rosalyn was the whole time, the old bat. “You haven’t been home in a while, have you dear?”
“In longer than I would have liked.” Rosalyn accepted the hand Delia held out. “But it’s good to be back for a while.”
“You be sure to come by the diner. I’ll have Elisa give you some dessert on the house.” Delia grinned, still clutching Rosalyn’s hand. “Or maybe Cade could take you…”
Oh no. “You need to call that surgeon, Mama D.” Cade wrapped an arm around the woman’s stooped shoulders, freeing Rosalyn from her grip. “I think they accidentally took your social filter when they fixed your hip.”
Rosalyn covered her mouth with her hand and looked away. Harper ducked her head, but her shoulders silently shook behind a curtain of red hair.
“We can’t wait to watch you perform.” Mama D beamed. “I heard the rumors. You’re bringing our little circus up to an entirely different level.”
Rosalyn’s eyes darted to Cade, but her expression remained composed. “I’ll do my best.”
Mama D nodded. “You’ve got a real gift. I’ve seen you perform on the internet—I wasn’t as lucky as Cade here to get to see you in person.”
Uh-oh. Rosalyn didn’t know about that time he’d come to see her. How did Mama D know? The only person he’d ever told was Elisa…oh. He sighed.
