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“Ha, ha.” Lance rolls his eyes. I always give him shit for being a nurse, but the truth is he’s a real hero. I’m just a hot-head.
“Do me a favor, though?”
“Anything, brother.”
He digs into his backseat and pulls out a stack of books. “Can you drop these off at the library for me?”
I do a double-take. “That was not what I was expecting.”
“They’re already late, but you can just drop them in the book drop.”
I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve never been to our library. I’m not against reading, but it always puts me to sleep. I haven’t gotten through a book since high school, and even then, it was probably just the cliff notes.
“Sure, man.” I take the stack, throwing the books onto my front seat. “Did you read all of these?”
“Yeah.” Lance’s face turns red. Most of the books are fantasy. A few look like they may be horror.
“You’re such a nerd.” I smile. He knows I’m teasing him.
“Thanks.” We clasp hands before getting in our cars. I sigh, realizing I don’t even know exactly where the public library is. So I tap it into my GPS. Turns out it’s much closer than I thought.
I pull up alongside the building and spot the green book drop, but when I approach, I see a sign on it that says, “Lock broken; please return inside.”
“You’ve got to be shitting me.” The things I do for friendship.
I find a parking spot on the side of the building and gather Lance’s returns. The building is large enough to be almost intimidating. Libraries are not my thing, but the return’s gotta be close to the front, right? Like the old video rental stores.
Inside, the comforting smell of books hits me. It’s like Barnes and Noble without the hint of coffee in the air. The wide, tiled foyer is almost regal. Overhead a domed skylight allows the day to pierce through.
Ahead, the book drop sits right in front of me. Thank God. I feel a little out of place here.
The books fall with a clunk, and I turn, ready to leave, but nearly crash into a library cart filled with books. I take a stepback, ready to apologize, but the words die in my throat. I can’t believe my eyes.
“Teddie?” She’s dressed modestly in a baby blue sweater set and a pair of plaid ankle pants. But even in the conservative getup, she’s a stone-cold knockout.
“Stark. Oh my God.” Her smile instantly warms me. “I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again.”
“Yeah?” I ask, feeling suddenly self-conscious. “You work here?”
A little laugh escapes her mouth. “Yeah, I’m a librarian.”
“That’s so…cool.” I mean it when I say it. Yeah, it’s a bit of a fantasy, the sexy librarian by day and the sexpot by night. But this is more than a coincidence, and I wonder deep down if Lance set this up. “Have you had lunch?”
Teddie shakes her head. “Let me get my purse.”
Looks like I won’t be going to the diner alone after all.
Chapter Four
Teddie
I’d be lyingif I said that I hadn’t imagined Stark walking into my library, but I never actually thought it would happen. Still, here he is. I grab my purse from the break room, still reeling from his presence. He’s even bigger than I remember, his muscles more pronounced against his tight black t-shirt. My last impression of him was quite aggressive, but now he seems almost gentle. The man is a mystery, one I’d like to unlock piece by gorgeous piece.
I shade my eyes from the sunlight as we walk out into the parking lot together. “We can take my car.” He shrugs his massive shoulders. His bright green eyes leave me breathless.
“Where are we going?” I huff out a little laugh.
“Oh, I thought we’d just go to the diner down the street.”
