"All the praise it’s received is just...so unbelievable.  How does it not go to your head?  They say you may sell more than Fifty Shades in the coming months."

“I guess I’m just humble, you know...I never had much growing up or after high school.  I was a college drop out with a kid to feed, and writing was sort of a vice for me.  My grandmother always told me to keep writing and to never stop.  I think that if you live your life as a regular joe, when something like this happens to you, you’re able to keep your ego in check.  Well, that, and my girlfriend would make me sleep on the couch if I started to act like the king of the fiction world....”

“You’re right.  I totally would.  Smart boy.”  I smile at him, and flick off the television, as he squeezes my thigh, and I kiss him on the mouth.

“Twelve weeks at number one, and Raegan says I’m not going anywhere,” he smirks.  “I need you to keep my ego in check.”

“Are you kidding? He needs me to keep his ego in check,” I laugh.  “Good thing he’s got his hands full with Sandra.  That woman runs him ragged, but you know, I think it’s for the best.  He doesn’t have time to get drunk and do all the raunchy stuff he used to.”

“Better him than me.  That girl tried to seduce me in a bookstore.”

“I got to you first,” I smirk.

“You did, huh?”  He smiles and pulls me closer to him, before giving me another deep, passionate kiss.  “How’d I get so lucky?”

“You put your book on hold with the right lady.”

“That I did.”

It’s been a whirlwind, ever since Justin was able to move back here with me.  After we were moved into the new apartment, Raegan got right down to work with Justin on his book.  I was there for him everyday, looking after Ben when he really couldn’t.  I would bring him to school, and pick him up, on the condition that the three of us would always be able to sit down to dinner together each other.  For the most part, Raegan allowed him to hold up that end of the bargain, except for release week, but I gave that to him.  

The book has been accepted so well by the public.  Its first week on the market, we sold two hundred thousand hard copies, double that for ebooks.  Memoirs shot to number one on the New York Times best seller list, and a huge book tour followed along with multiple radio and talk show interviews.  Justin was reluctant to pull Ben from school for it, but after much discussion on the subject, we decided it was the best thing.   He’s more like my son now, than anything, and when Justin and I get married, I have every intention on adopting him.  

The tour did Ben good.  He was able to experience parts of American he wouldn’t have seen otherwise, and the three of us got to bond as the family we wanted to be.  It was during the second month of that book tour that Justin put a ring on my finger, and even though we hadn’t been together a full year, I knew it was the right move.  There was nobody else out there for me, Esmerelda the librarian turned assistant to the biggest book agent in America, and there was nobody else out there for Justin, the country bumpkin who was beyond the small town life.

We were made for each other.  That’s what everybody says, anyway.

Sandra is proud.  Proud of me for taking a risk for once, for going after a feeling that wouldn’t go away.  She’s also thankful to me, for bringing Raegan into her life.  Like I said, she was just what he needed.  She was spunky enough for the raunchy side of him, but sentimental enough to calm him down and bring out his true emotions.  He’d never say it, but he loves her more than anything, and I’m sure once enough time passes, he’ll put a ring on her finger too.

My parents are excited that I’ll be getting married, they like Justin too, and my mom has been very excited that I’ve decided not to work in a library after all.  Although, once all this book hoopla dies down I fully intend on volunteering at one, starting a program that involves Ben’s school and another senior book club.  I may have a much different life now, but I’ll always have a passion for helping people.  

As for Justin’s family, they’ve started to come around.  He’s doing a book signing tomorrow, in Wytheville, as part of the promotion, and his whole family is coming out.  His mother and I have talked, like Justin told me we would one day.  It’s been all phone calls, but I know we both feel better about the situation now than we did originally.  She really is a great lady, it just took her awhile to understand her son.  Until this year, I don’t think anybody in his family did, his father most of all.

He’ll be the hardest to crack, but he’s coming to the signing and we’re all having supper afterward.  Justin says its a good sign.  That when his father wants to have a classic family supper it means he’s accepted the way things are.  Finally, all of that aggression that’s existed between them will be put to rest.

I can’t wait.  I can’t wait for him to just be able to live his life without all of that on his shoulders.  He loves his family, and all he’s ever wanted was for them to accept him, and lately...me.

“You think I’ll get my Pulitzer one day?” Justin asks, the longing apparent in his eyes.

“I think so,” I smile.  “You just have to find the right kind of inspiration.”

“Oh, I already have it,” he says, with a sly smile.  “I want to write about this guy...how he used to stare at this girl every Friday afternoon, praying that she’d get the guts up to say hello, since he was too timid.”

“Sounds familiar,” I smile.

“Maybe I’ll call it Fridays, Three Fifteen.”

“Sounds relatable.  Very bookshelf intriguing.  The dollar signs are sparking in my brain.”

“Okay, Raegan,” he laughs.  “You know, the girl in the book...she saved that guys life.  She went chasing after him, even though he was too stupid to keep in touch.”

“Sounds like a smart girl,” I giggle.

“The smartest.”  He kisses me and stares back into my eyes.  “I love you, Esmerelda the Librarian.”

“I love you too, Mr. Sports Fiction.”

The End