1

Ben

The clock on my dashboard tells me I’m ten minutes early as I pull into the parking lot of one of Chicago’s public libraries. I reach for the hardcover suspense thriller in the seat next to me and check my hair in the rearview mirror before getting out of my truck.

My teenage daughters, Kinsley and Katie, have been here since early this morning. Their high school internship started a few weeks ago after school let out for the summer. It’s a good program, keeping the girls busy and out of their mother’s hair.

I didn’t object to the idea of the internship, even when I knew I would have to drive an extra half an hour to pick them up on the days they spent with me. I didn’t mind it because it gave me the opportunity to see her again.

The sexy librarian I haven’t been able to get out of my head, not since the day I first laid eyes on her. It was a few months back. Since my company specializes in working on historical buildings, the city hired us to oversee some minor modernizations.

She was sitting at the main desk, the last stop on my walkthrough with the city planner and my foreman. She looked up from her book, gave us a shy smile, and answered all our questions with a delicateness I’ve never seen before. Her soft voice was like music to my ears; the more she spoke, the more I wanted to listen. I found myself entranced by her, soaking up every detail of the beautiful creature in front of me.

I cross the threshold, push open the door of the building, and spot her right away. She’s sitting in the same place I saw her all those weeks ago. Taking a second to catch my breath, I remember the book in my hand, and then I slowly approach the desk. She looks up at me, and her eyes light up with recognition.

Mine.

Where did that come from?

I push the thought away, trying not to focus on the way my body has come alive at the sight of her. It’s always like this, and I suffer for hours after leaving her.

“Good afternoon, Ben,” she says, closing her book and granting me her undivided attention. When she smiles up at me, I feel it in my cock. I shift, moving closer to the desk, trying to hide my body’s reaction to her. All I can think about is how much I want to make her smile like that every day, right before I bury my cock inside of her.

“Hello, Cami.” I nod, giving her a smile back, fighting the primal urge to lean over and kiss her senseless. Instead, I lift my book and place it on the counter. “Thought I’d return this, since I’m done reading it.”

“Great. Tell me, what’d you think of it?”

“It was pretty good. Thanks for the recommendation.” When I picked the girls up last week, I asked her for a book recommendation, mostly to have a reason to speak with her.

“I have a little confession to make.” Her face grows serious as she leans closer and lowers her voice. “I haven’t read it, but in my defense, I’ve been told it’s a great read.”

“I see.” I smile down at her. Her confession isn’t surprising; she doesn’t come across as the Dean Koontz type. Especially after I found myself tearing through the pages, trying to find some insight into who she is, only to come up short. “Mind if I confess something, too?”

She nods at me with curious eyes.

“I already knew that.” She frowns, tilting her head to the side, trying to figure out how I knew she hadn’t read the book. “I’ve never seen you read anything not written by Austen or Brontë, in fact, this one I’ve seen three times now.”

She looks down at the book in front of her and places a gentle hand on top of it—Pride and Prejudice. I have a feeling it’s her favorite, which would explain why I’ve seen her with it more often than any other book.

“You’re very observant,” she says in a low her voice and peeks up at me from beneath her thick, dark lashes.

“When it comes to you, I am,” I confess, but the sound of my daughter screeching from across the room keeps me from saying anything else.

Cursing inwardly, I turn around and spot both my daughters headed this way.

“Dad.” My oldest, Kinsley, stops in front of me with a smile. I’m instantly suspicious. She doesn’t smile, at least not at me, not since she discovered boys and makeup.

Cami reaches out, and our fingers brush as she takes the book from my hand. The sensation sends a shiver throughout my body. I look back at her, wondering if she felt it, too, but she’s already resorted back to librarian mode, and the warmth I saw in her eyes has been replaced with professionalism. My heart aches a little, not ready for our time together to end.

“Dad,” Kinsley calls again, this time gently grabbing my arm. “Can I drive home today?”

“Hi, Kins, how are you?” I ask, trying to hold back my annoyance, cursing myself for not getting here sooner. Something happened today, something between us, and I can’t explain it. All I know is, I want more of it.

“Dad, please, can I drive?” She bounces from one foot to another, ignoring me.

“Don’t let her,” Katie speaks finally, irritation written all over her face.

“Hey, what’s your problem?” Kinsley turns and faces her younger sister, her face flushed with annoyance.

“You almost got me killed this morning. That’s my problem.”

“Enough.” My voice transforms into stern father mode, and both girls quiet down. “Now is not the time. Kins, I’m driving you and your sister home today. You need to get better with your mother’s car before you get behind the wheel of my truck. Now, please, wait outside for me.”

Both girls grumble all the way out of the building, but I ignore them, quickly turning back to Cami with an apologetic smile.

“Sorry about that,” I say, but she holds up a gentle hand and stops me. She smiles and lets the warmth seep back into her eyes.

“Don’t worry about it. Sisters argue. I get it. I have an older sister. Don’t worry, they’ll outgrow it.” She laughs lightly. “One day, they’ll be best friends.”

“I hope you’re right.” I exhale loudly, half chuckling, half groaning, then Katie peeks her head back in and wails at me.

“Daaaaaaaaaad! Kins pinched me.”

I roll my eyes and lift my hand, silencing Katie’s complaint. Cami’s shoulders shake with laughter over the situation.

“Goodbye, Cami,” I sigh before turning away to follow my girls. Next time I pick them up, I ‘m going to be here extra early.

_______________

As we walk to the truck, Kinsley’s eyes are glued to her phone, but Katie’s watch me with curiosity.

“I like her, Dad,” she says softly, moving to walk next to me.

“You should like her, Katie; she’s a nice lady,” I reply. Katie’s always been the shy one of my daughters, so her telling me she likes someone is a big deal for her, but I don’t think too much about it.

“No, Dad, I like her… for you.”

Her words almost cause me to falter my next step, but I manage to hide my surprise.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You like her,” she explains, watching as Kins throws her backpack into the front seat. She frowns but doesn’t say anything to stop her, even though it’s Katie’s turn to sit up front. “She likes you, too.”

“Katie…” I stop and turn toward her, wondering.

“You shouldn’t be alone.”

“Katie—”

“I mean, it’s okay when Kins and I are with you, but when we’re not… I worry about you.” She tucks a stray strand of dark hair behind her ear. “Mom’s happy with Bill. You should be happy, too.”

“I’m happy,” I tell her, not believing the words any more than she does.

“You don’t have to pretend with me.” She shakes her head before hefting her backpack higher onto her shoulder and walking past me to the truck. “Just think about it, Dad. And so you know, Kins feels the same way I do.”

I take a breath to steady the pounding of my heart, and I watch as she climbs into the backseat without looking back. Hearing my daughter, knowing her concerns, I can’t help wondering if she’s right.

This is the last thing I expected to come from this day.