#Excerpt “Scotsman in the Stacks” by Alana Oxford

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Paige wants two things: to land a full time librarian job and find the man of her dreams. On the cusp of thirty, she finds herself suddenly single and working part-time in a Michigan library. A handsome patron with a delicious accent appears at the reference desk, inadvertently sparking an idea that might help her land the promotion she so desperately needs. But that’s not the only thing he sparks.

James is in town from Glasgow, Scotland, on a summer artist residency. Luckily, the trip got him away from the pressure he feels to take over his uncle’s river tour business. He only wanted to clear his head and make his art in peace, but he wasn’t counting on finding an attractive librarian to fill his days.

With only eight weeks before James goes home to Scotland, Paige knows she should protect her heart. After all, she already wasted years with her commitment-phobe ex. But the more she gets to know James, the less she can stick to her plan to just be friends. Is she just wasting her time again, or can they bridge the ocean between them to find a happily ever after of their own?

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EXCERPT

In this excerpt, main character, Paige, has just met love interest, James and is telling her BFF, Kayla about it. (Norm, who Kayla mentions, is an annoying and overly-friendly library patron that Paige has to deal with regularly.)

 

By the time she got into her apartment, she felt like she was soaring through the stars with all the force and energy of a rocket ship. No trace of closing shift exhaustion. She could stay awake all night if she had to. Maybe she would.

She popped a frozen dinner in the microwave and called Kayla. It was after nine o’clock but she couldn’t go to bed without telling her best friend about this.

“Hey,” Kayla answered. “How was work today?”

Paige felt her excitement bursting against her ribcage. She couldn’t contain it any longer.

“I met someone!” she squealed.

“Wait. What?” There was a shuffling sound as though Kayla had dropped something or was moving in to hear better.
Paige realized she may have been a tad overenthusiastic and misleading. “Well, I didn’t meet someone, meet someone, but this gorgeous Scottish guy came into the library today and he was chatty and so dreamy.”
“Tell me every single detail.”

Paige grinned and the whole story tumbled out. The accent, the blue eyes, the sleeve tattoo, all of it.

“That’s awesome! He sounds gorgeous. And that definitely sounds promising.” Kayla sounded impressed and happy for her friend.

“It would—” Paige paused a moment, coming back down to earth. “But it’s not meant to be.”
“What the heck are you talking about? He saved you from Norm. He’s coming to your book discussion. He sounds like living sex appeal. Don’t go sabotaging yourself already!”
Paige sighed. “It’s not me. It’s life. Don’t forget the part where he actually lives in Scotland. That’s a heck of a long distance commute for anyone. And he’s only here for eight weeks anyway. To be honest, I don’t even know if he’s at the beginning of those weeks or somewhere in the middle.”
“Paige, stop.” Kayla was already developing a mom voice and she didn’t even have the kid yet. “It sounds like he was interested. I guess you’ll have a better idea when he comes to the book discussion.”

“If,” Paige corrected her, discouragement taking a firmer hold of her. “Just because he seemed into it tonight doesn’t mean he’ll actually show.”

“You said he was sitting in the chair reading the book. That’s a pretty substantial clue as far as I’m concerned.”

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Author BioAlana Oxford

Alana Oxford is a Michigan author of romcoms, sweet romance, and humorous women’s fiction. She wants her stories to bring sunshine and smiles to her readers. She enjoys improv comedy, moody music, everything book related, and has an ongoing love affair with the United Kingdom.

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