"Lee, don't forget to text me before you go on your date," Claire reminded me as she parked her BMW in front of Athena's Used Books. "I'll be in a meeting all afternoon, so I can't take calls. But please text me, darling."

"Claire," I grumbled. "It's not a date! And yes, I'll text you!"

"Okay," she muttered, unconvinced. 

As I turned to climb out of the car, she reached out and grabbed my arm. "Wait!"

I settled back into the passenger seat, dubiously watching Claire root around her purse. My confusion deepened when she pulled out a small container and pressed it into my hand.

"Pepper spray?" I asked incredulously, my mouth popping open.

"Keep it, please," she begged. "I'll feel better knowing that you have it."

I didn't know whether to be touched by her concern or mortified by the thought of carrying pepper spray to my "not-a-date" with Jason. Realising that there was no point in arguing with Claire, I stuffed the canister into the bottom of my bag with a resigned sigh.

We finally exchanged goodbyes, and I stepped onto the pavement, my Ray-Bans shielding my eyes from the bright sun. I glanced to my right, sunlight glinting off the sign that said "Java Lava" in bright, bold letters.

I'm going to meet Jason outside the café for the first time, I thought to myself, excitement and tension warring inside my head. 

I headed straight into Athena's Used Books as I had decided to spend the day there until three in the afternoon. Upon entering the store, I found Zach towering over an old woman near one of the aisles, their backs turned to me. He murmured something to the customer, eliciting a shrill, shaky laugh from her.

I walked over to the counter that held the ancient, mostly nonfunctional computer, shuffling around awkwardly. A few moments later, Zach turned around towards the counter, carrying numerous hardbound books as though they weighed nothing. The elderly woman followed, her face alight with obvious adoration for Zach. 

"Leena!" Zach exclaimed when he finally noticed me.

I smiled, offering a greeting to him and the lady standing nearby. 

"Hello," she replied warmly, the creases around her eyes deepening as she smiled.

"Leena, this is Bonnie," Zach indicated to the woman. "Bonnie, meet Leena."

"Nice to meet you, Bonnie," I said. 

"You too, dear," she nodded, her short, grey ponytail bobbing.

"Please, carry on," I said to Zach and Bonnie. "I'll just have a look around."

I stepped into one of the aisles, savouring the musky smell of a hundred books. Toying with the straps of my backpack, I studied the chaotic arrangement of paperbacks and hardcovers. The air around me turned cooler when I ventured deeper into the store, randomly picking up books and replacing them.

Suddenly, a bleep sounded from within my bag. I rooted around it, grimacing when my fingers came into contact with a cold metal canister. 

A smile tugged at the corners of my lips when I found my phone and saw a text from Jason: Hi, Leena. See you at three? :)

I replied: Yes. :)

Still beaming, I tucked my phone into the pocket of my jeans.

"Hey," Zach's voice sounded from behind me. 

"Hi," I said, turning to him.

Dressed in a navy blue V-necked shirt and black jeans, Zach looked like he had stepped right out of a fashion magazine. 

"Your customer has a crush on you," I teased, thinking back to Bonnie's undisguised admiration for him.

"Can't really blame her," he joked, winking.

With a laugh, I turned back to the bookshelf. "How do you ever find anything in here, Zach? These books are arranged in no particular order."

"I know," he sighed, rubbing his forehead with his fingertips. "But I can't imagine taking them all down and rearranging them."

"I'll help you," I offered with immediate earnestness.

"What?" he asked, his eyes widening with hope. "Really?" 

"Yeah! I'll be here until three today," I said. "If you don't mind me staying in the store, that is."

"Yeah, I don't mind!" he grinned, his perfectly aligned teeth peeking out from his lips. "That's great!"

Zach and I decided to get to work right away, choosing the leftmost aisle first. The tall, wooden bookshelf held a hundred books, twenty each in rows of five. We pulled them all out, creating several piles on the floor around us.

Suddenly, I was worried that I might come across the books that Claire had submitted to the store. If not for a phone call from her, I would have told Zach all about the books. Although I genuinely liked and trusted Zach, the desire to confide in him was now outweighed by the urge not to discuss dad and Claire's inexplicable divorce.

"How about one genre for each row?" Zach suggested, interrupting my thoughts. "Two rows of miscellaneous on top, then romance, thriller, and mystery. We can make little labels for the rows in every aisle." 

"Yeah, that sounds good," I approved. 

"Wait," he said, stepping over the stacks of books. "Let me put on some music before we start."

He turned and walked to the front of the store. A few moments later, the soft orchestra music that usually played in the store was replaced by a familiar pop song.

Zach returned to the aisle, bobbing his head along to the beat. Sitting cross-legged on the floor, we divided the books into five new stacks based on genre. Cold air blasted from the air conditioners as the upbeat music made the laborious task easier.

Sharp hitches of laughter bubbled up inside me when Zach threw his head back, belting the lyrics to the song in a loud, off-key voice.

"Come on, hun," he urged, nudging my shoulder with his. "You know the words!"

I fidgeted, my stomach knotting into a tough bundle of nerves.

"Come on," Zach smiled encouragingly. He swayed back and forth, several books stacked precariously in his arms. "Sing!"

Kissing my dignity goodbye, I joined him. My discomfort ebbed as my soft voice mingled with Zach's booming baritone. We half-sang, half-laughed until our stomachs hurt. The morning gave way to a hot afternoon as Zach and I filled each shelf, row by row, book by book. By the time we finished rearranging the first aisle, it was 2:30 PM. 

Convulsing with laughter, we collapsed onto the floor, wondering how the time flew by so quickly.

***

I waited for Jason outside Java Lava at exactly 3:00 PM. To ease my nerves, I busied myself with counting the cars on the street.

"Leena," a deep male voice called from behind. 

I whirled around to find Jason smiling down at me.

My breath caught in my throat at the sight of him. In the sunlight, his eyes were more beautiful than ever. Rays of light glinted off them, accentuating the difference in colour. I wondered if Jason's hazel and grey irises would ever cease to fascinate me.

Probably not.

"Hi," I greeted him finally.

Jason studied me, my skin prickling under his careful gaze. He opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. Shaking his head, he smiled again.

"I'll get my car from the parking lot," he said. "Wait right here."

I watched as he walked away, unable to stop myself from admiring his tall frame. The fabric of his green t-shirt clung to his softly defined shoulders and torso. His muscles were sculpted, but subtly so. My thoughts ran haywire as I found myself envisioning Jason without his shirt. Suddenly, my skin burned with heat, and the sun had nothing to do with it.

I forced myself to count the cars again. 

A few moments later, an old but clean, black Chevrolet pulled up in front of me. Jason climbed out and held the passenger door open. 

"Thank you," I smiled, climbing into the air-conditioned car. 

Returning to the driver's seat, Jason asked, "Ready?"

He rested his beautiful hands on the steering wheel and smiled, waiting for my response. Although I had only met him twice before, his presence filled me with an unfamiliar warmth that I had begun to crave.

"Ready," I confirmed with a kind of certainty that I had never known before.