Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 43749 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 219(@200wpm)___ 175(@250wpm)___ 146(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43749 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 219(@200wpm)___ 175(@250wpm)___ 146(@300wpm)
“You don’t say?” I try to smother my grin, and it’s almost impossible.
“If you ask me, that girl could use a few pushes against the stacks, if you know what I mean.”
My eyes widen in shock at the sweet little old lady.
“Oh, don’t make that face. I was young once.” She looks me up and down again. “My late Andrew wore a size thirteen.” She winks at me and then points to the stairs behind her. “At the top, take a left. She’ll be all the way in the back.”
“Um, thank you, I think.”
“Anytime, handsome,” Mrs. Maggie says. “Oh, and don’t worry. We don’t have cameras back there. I’ve been trying for years to get some installed, but it’s never in the budget.”
“I thought you said you were young once?” I tease.
She lets out a quick laugh. “Oh sweetie, it’s not to stop people from fooling around back there. It’s so I could watch the show.”
My mouth falls open before I shake my head and back away from the desk. Mrs. Maggie doesn’t say anything else and goes back to stamping books.
As I race up the stairs, I can’t help but think that Mrs. Maggie might be the coolest old lady I’ve ever met.
Chapter Seven
BRONTE
I pace back and forth between the bookshelves. This corner of the library with the research textbooks has always been my little hideaway. When I was in high school, I’d come here after school and read through them.
It wasn’t hard for me to easily lose myself in the information I craved. There’s a website where people search for case law, and when they find it, they upload the legal documents. I would spend hours sifting through these books, hoping to find the answer. I always wanted to be among the first to respond because it felt like a game I could win.
It was better than going home to an empty house. My father was always on the road working and even more so when I got older. At least when I was in the library, people were around. It was quiet but not too quiet.
Right now, I have no desire to scour through old textbooks. Even if I opened one, I don’t think I would be able to take anything in. I’m so distracted that I know I'd read the same page over and over again. It’s because all my thoughts revolve around Marcus. Who was the attractive woman in his office? And how the heck was he able to touch me like he knew every curve of my body?
When I worked for him before, I never missed how women would watch him. Women that were way more in his league than me. I even harbored a slight romantic interest in him prior to his awareness of my existence, but back then, my interest was primarily focused on his skills and talent in the courtroom.
I learned about him through reading case law. In fact, the first time I saw his name was right here. The experience of meeting him in person was overwhelming. I had already built him up so much in my mind that I never thought reality could top that. I was oh so wrong.
The second I saw him, my whole body lit up in a way it never had before. I was so terrified that I built walls to keep him at a distance. Marcus bulldozed right through them each time. A part of me had truly enjoyed that. Here I am hating being alone, and he was always trying to get close, but I was running.
When I hear the heavy thud of footsteps coming toward me, I stop pacing. There’s no way he’s found me, but Marcus can be determined when he’s in pursuit of something he wants. To be safe, I slide to the end of the stacks and press my back to it.
I tilt my head, trying to listen, but there’s only silence. Disappointment starts to hit me, which is insane because I don’t want him to find me.
Then I gasp because he’s suddenly there, filling up all the space in front of me. I’m pinned to the end of the bookshelf, and somehow I’ve cornered myself.
“You ran from me.”
“I didn’t run.” I push my glasses up my nose. “I walked quickly.” Marcus tilts his head before shaking it. “I’m doing research.”
His hands come up on either side of the shelves, and I’m truly caged in. “You’re not going anywhere, teapot.” Marcus dips his head, and then I feel his mouth at my neck. He kisses me there before I feel his teeth nip at me. “I wasn’t done with you.”
“That’s part of the problem.” I whisper the words because now that he’s here, all my thoughts are getting jumbled.
“Tell me,” he demands, and I bite my bottom lip. It might be better when he’s pushing my buttons so I’m not so vulnerable. “I can’t fix it unless you do.”