Second Chance by Audra North Read Free Book Online

the air between them, when she heard Collin’s voice.
    “Marnie?”
    What was he doing in here again? He should be on the highway by now, heading back home to whatever place he lived in. The place where she didn’t belong, regardless.
    Except…well, that wasn’t fair to him. He’d taken time for her. He’d helped her. And that was more than she could say for any other man in her life.
    Kiss a guy who saves you...
    For a second, Marnie imagined what that might be like, to pull Collin’s head down to hers, to feel his lips sliding over hers—
    “Marnie?” he called again.
    Bill disappeared immediately, almost as though he was a ghost balloon that someone had just popped out of existence, and Marnie blinked at the empty space where Bill had just been, wondering where he’d gone.
    “Marnie, are you here?” Collin’s voice sounded closer now, and Marnie shook off the fantasy.
    “Over here,” she called back. “In the row labeled ‘305.31 to—” she craned her head to look at the call numbers written on the paper signs she’d taped to each end of the long shelves. “362.2.”
    No doubt he’d just forgotten something and was coming back to collect it so that he wouldn’t have to make a separate trip and have to see her again. To have to bear to look at her.
    I can’t even bear to look at you .
    That was exactly what her father used to saywhen she would try to get his attention for some accomplishment, like an art award or a reading comprehension test that she’d scored well on.
    She heard Collin’s steps coming closer, and then there he was, backlit by the main room lights as he stood at the end of the row. His broad shoulders were clearly outlined, and the way he was standing, legs slightly apart, only served to enhance how very masculine he was.
    It made her want to reach out and trace her hand over his body. To push his clothes off and pull his shadowy self down to cover her, right here in the stacks.
    “I’m sorry, I know you’re closed now. But the door was open and I figured I’d come back in. My car won’t start.”
    She shook off thoughts of him thrusting into her and tried to focus on the car problem, but the words came out thick and slow. “Oh, no. I’m sorry to hear that. Did you accidentally leave your lights on, or something?”
    He stepped closer, and her senses went haywire, her fingers curled inward, trying to find purchase in the fog that was clouding her brain.
    “No, they turn off automatically. I don’t understand. I just bought it last year, and I took it in to have it serviced barely a week ago. They probably messed something up.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, rumpling the dark strands. She imagined it was her fingers stroking through his hair as his tongue played with hers…
    “Do you mind if I use the computer to look up the numbers of tow services? It’s a little easier than having to do it on my phone, since I don’t have to flip back and forth to call around. And it’s definitely warmer.”
    Oh, goodness. She’d been thinking about kissing him while he’d been waiting for her help. She hoped she wasn’t blushing.
    “Sure, no problem. Come on, I’ll let you use my laptop in my office, since it’s a newer computer and faster than the public ones. Just let me lock the doors first.”
    She slipped past him, taking care not to touch him lest she go up in flames, then led him out of the stacks and over to the large double-doors of the front entrance, where she tried to throw the steel rod that locked the right door into place. The left door would then bolt into the right one. But no matter how hard she pushed at the metal, it wouldn’t budge. She tried pulling it upward, instead, but still no luck.
    “Strange.”
    “What’s up?”
    “Usually, I don’t have a problem to get this rod to move up and down easily, but today I’m yanking on it with practically all my strength and it just won’t budge. Our maintenance man recently gave the sheath a