Date in the Dark (5 page)

I’ve turned him down twice now, and he still
wants to buy me a cup of coffee. What am I missing? I gaze up at
him and lick my lips to keep from smiling. “Okay, that would be
nice. Thank you.”

How could I say no? I mean, look at him
today, heather gray slacks and a dark blue button-down under his
black jacket. Today he’s sans tie and has the top button undone.
I wonder how easily I could undo the rest of them.
There’s
no doubt in my mind he looks just as good underneath his close as
they do on him.
Holy crap.
What has gotten into me? I sound
like I’ve never seen an attractive man before.

“Hello, miss?”

My attention snaps to the young man behind
the counter waving at me. Parker chuckles and nudges me forward
with his hand on my lower back. “Hi, yes, do you want to order? The
others in line probably wouldn’t mind going in front of you,
especially if you wanted to keep checking out the man behind you.
He has great—”

“Yes, I’m ready,” I snap.
Crap on a
cracker.
Parker is a beautiful distraction and it’s going to
ruin me. I better order a double shot to keep me on my track
today.

“I’ll take a peppermint chai with
two
shot of espresso, please.”

“Whoa, long weekend?” Parker laughs next to
me. “I’ll take a dark roast, black.”

Gross
. That’s the first unattractive
thing about him, and it’s coffee for crying out loud. Who cares
about his choice of beverage?

“You look beautiful this morning,” Parker
places his wallet back into his pocket as he walks up to me. “If
you hang around the bookmobile too long, people might forget what
they really came for,” he says, shooting me a wink.

I press my lips together to keep my jaw from
dropping and try to look calm as I stare at him. Is he serious? No
one’s going to be thinking about that. Or wait? Is that what he’s
thinking? I should have said “yes” when he asked me out.
No,
damn it, Allie. Stop that!

My mouth opens to tell him how wrong and
inappropriate his statement was when my eyes meet his. They have a
gentle sparkle in them and when he gives me a half smile I decide
not to acknowledge that he said anything about work. Instead, I
smile back.

“Thank you,” I tell him just as they call out
our names to gather our coffee. Without saying a word, we each grab
our cups and head for the door. We move next to each other as if
this is a routine we’ve done day after day for years. I might not
be completely against that idea, but I definitely need to be
cautious about it.

He pushes the door open for me and grins as I
step through. This is going to be one interesting day and I sure
hope I focus more on the event than on my co-host.

Parker

“Thank you for your help, young man.”

“Anytime, ma’am. Please let me know if I can
help you with anything else.”

I finish helping the elderly woman I’ve been
assisting for the last half hour. Leaving her with a few good
romances to choose from, I head back to the lobby. The book mobile
is in full swing, and the entire main floor of the library is
filled with people. It’s a great turnout for the first day. All
morning it has been non-stop and for the first time in the last two
hours, I finally have a few minutes I can spare. I search the crowd
for Allie and find her standing behind the checkout counter with a
group of older ladies. She’s laughing as one lady talks with her
hands and the other women nod to whatever it is she’s saying.

I can’t pull my eyes away from her smile. The
way her entire face lights up is a sight that’s going to get to me
every time I see it.
Maybe I can get her alone for a few minutes
before we start the author signing this afternoon.

“Hey there.” A woman’s voice pulls my
attention from Allie. Her friend from the coffee shop last week
stands in front of me. She’s wearing a red shirt with no sleeves, a
short black skirt, and some kind of foot heel thing for shoes. From
the outfit she has on, you wouldn’t think it was winter outside.
One look at her and you know this is one woman who isn’t afraid to
show her bare skin.

“Hello, miss. Can I help you with something?”
I ask.

“I’m Kelly—” she says, offering her hand.
“—I’m a dancer, photographer, addicted reader, and the best friend
of Allie Monroe.” She blinks a few times too many as she looks at
me.

I let out a small laugh. “Well, that sure is
one intense job to maintain.”

“Oh no, dancing is easy. I’ve been doing it
for as long as I can remember.” Her grin gets bigger. She obviously
didn’t get my joke, but now isn’t the time to point it out. We
stand there for a moment until she looks back up at me nodding with
a small smile. “You were referring to the best friend part, huh?”
She blushes and tucks a stray hair behind her ear. “You’re
funny.”

“I was,” I say with a nod. “But dancing is
hard work too. Especially when you have two left feet like I
do.”

“Well, if you must know—” she straightens her
posture and puts her hands on her hips, “—being Allie’s best friend
is the easiest job on earth. She’s kind, caring, smart, and funny.
Anyone would be lucky to spend time with her and—” She stops
midsentence and her eyes go wide as if she just remembered
something.

I laugh at her awkwardness and somehow in
that moment my eyes find Allie’s from across the room. She’s
watching me, but doesn’t look away. With a slight nod, she walks in
the other direction.

“Excuse me,” I say and follow her. I don’t
like the worried look Allie just gave me and I hope it had nothing
to do with me talking to her friend. I wave to a few coworkers and
members as I look past them searching for Allie. I find her in her
office sitting behind the desk with her head down as she rubs
circle on her temples.

“Is everything okay?” I ask with a knock.

Her head snaps up and the desk chair she’s
sitting in rolls back. The soft features of her face light up and
her lips twitch before she pulls herself back to her desk.
“Everything is fine. Things are off to a great start, don’t you
think?”

I nod and make my way into her office. I
glance out the window behind her to see the snow falling fast and
then take a seat on the edge of her desk. The same side Allie is
sitting on.

“Yeah, it’s going great; the older women are
having a good time. I’m starting to think some of them are playing
the I’m-too-old-to-do-it-on-my-own card way more than they should.
I’ve probably picked out at least ten, minimum, romance books for
them to read.”

Allie laughs. “Mrs. Wilkerson and Mrs. Olson
will play that card as long as they know you’re working here.”

She’s been watching me. I like knowing
that.

“I talked to Levi and Amber a few minutes
ago, and from what I gather, they’ve been checking people out
non-stop. Is this how it was last year?” I ask.

“Last year, no.” She shakes her head. “There
weren’t any events.”

“Really? You didn’t plan a single one?”

“I wasn’t the assistant then. I was only a
technician. I tried to convince them they needed to do something,
but they didn’t listen.”

“I’m sure they’ll always have an event after
this year.”

“Yes, I suppose they will.” She lets out a
deep breath. “I guess I’d better go check on Amber and Levi.” She
stands and walks around the desk on the opposite side of where I’m
sitting.

“I checked with them about twenty minutes ago
and they were doing fine.”

She pauses in the doorway and looks back. Her
head tilts to the side. “And they have enough cards?”

“Yep.”

“The lines aren’t getting too backed up for
them?”

“Only once, but I stepped in to help. It’s a
really good thing they trained me on checking people out even
though I don’t do it daily.”

“Well, what about the—”

“Gift bags? All filled and provided to each
and every person who’s stopped by the front counter.”

Allie’s eyes brighten as she watches me.
“You’re not making any of this up, are you?”

“Not a single word.” I push off the desk and
walk toward her. I move slowly while she crosses her arms and takes
a step back. She bumps into the doorframe and startles herself.

“Well, I still need to double check that all
the authors will be here for the signing.”

It sounds like she’s trying to convince
herself that there’s more to do. It’s probably a good thing I
already took care of everything for her.

“I did that first thing this morning. Why
don’t you relax for a bit? I’ll make sure everything goes smooth
until the book signing starts.”

Stopping right in front of her, I soak up her
vanilla scent and the fact that she isn’t stepping away. I can’t
help but wonder if her body tingles the way mine does whenever we
get this close to each other.

The relief that fills her eyes, along with
the deep breath she releases, makes me proud. I think she just
learned she can trust me and possibly that she might be into me. A
guy can hope.

“Okay, maybe for a moment.” She steps back
into her office and her body brushes against mine when she
passes.

“Take all the time you need.”

Chapter Six

Allie

The morning book mobile went off just as
planned. The only thing that didn’t go as planned was Parker’s
ability to get everything I needed or wanted done ahead of schedule
and that Kelly showed up. I panicked for a moment thinking she was
telling him that I might really be into him. But as soon as he saw
me across the room, it was like she wasn’t even there. The worst
part, deep down I was happy he excused himself to come find me.
Dating coworkers has always been off limits to me. It’s not a rule
made by the library, it’s rule made by me. But now, I’m starting to
rethink this idea.

The lobby is still full when I step out of my
office. Men and women are either in groups or standing in lines
near each of the tables, and more are coming through the door. A
few local authors are here to read excerpts from their books, and
after that, a book signing. I asked Parker to greet them as they
arrived so I could pull myself together.

“Allie! Hey, there you are. I’ve been looking
for you. Had I known you were in your office—” Kelly puts her hands
on her hips. “—wait, you can’t be in your office and also be making
this go off incredibly well.”

“I know, I know,” I say as she falls into
step with me. “But surprisingly, Parker is a huge help.”

“Well, that’s actually something I wanted to
talk to you about.” She pins me with a glare. “The poor guy can’t
even pull his eyes away from gazing at you long enough to notice if
anyone is talking to him. He likes you. And he doesn’t look at you
the way others have, I think Parker might be a good guy and I think
you should give him a chance.”

“He was gazing at me?”

“Ha!” she shouts and shakes her finger in my
face. I swat her hand away and pull her into a vacant office before
anyone can notice us. “I knew it. I knew it. Okay, so what is the
new plan?” She starts to pace the small space. “How are you going
to tell him you like him?”

“There isn’t a new plan. Unless it gets me
out of this thing tonight?”

“Nope, you’re going.” she laughs. “Hey, you
found a guy you like, now it’s my turn.”

I shake my head. Of course finding a guy in
complete darkness is how she would do it. Kelly is all about
surprises. “Okay then. Now, I need to get back to work so I can get
out of here at a decent time.” I step out of the office, and she
follows.

“We are riding together tonight, so I’ll be
at home waiting for you.”

I nod. “Oh hey, can you take Bell on a quick
walk when you get back? I don’t think I’m going to have time to
take her and I feel bad with her being inside all day.”

“Yes, I will, now hurry up and I’ll see you
at the apartment.”

Kelly grabs her coat off the rack by the
front door and doesn’t bother even zipping it up before she’s out
the door. Life is nothing short of exciting with someone like her
as your best friend. Giving my full attention back to the event, I
find Parker doing just as she said. A half grin tugs at his lips
and he gives me a small wave.

I can feel the heat rush into my cheeks as I
blush and look away.

Parker

Allie didn’t argue today for a ride home, but
she also hasn’t breathed a word since she got into my truck. It’s a
short drive, but her silence is starting to wear me down.

“Today went perfect, don’t you think?” I
ask.

“Yes.”

“Did it go exactly as you’d hoped it
would?”

“Yes.” She nods with a sigh. “It went better
than expected. Thank you for everything you did today.”

“It wasn’t a problem. You had the entire day
planned out perfectly. Besides, had something gone wrong, I bet you
would’ve known how to fix it.”

She laughs and from the corner of my eye I
see her whole body relax.

“You seem tired. Is everything alright?”

“Yes, everything is fine. I’m just a little
in shock at how well everything went considering you had only one
day to prepare. I had months, and you acted like everything was no
big deal while I stressed every second of the day worrying
something might go wrong.”

“What did you think was going to go
wrong?”

Looking out the window, she scrunches up her
nose then scratches it. I barely hear the mumble that comes
out.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” I ask with a
laugh. Clearly there’s something she doesn’t want to tell me.

“Nothing,” she says quickly.

“Then you were worried because…” I pry.

“Okay!” She throws her hands up and laughs.
“I thought you might mess something up and that I’d have to fix
it.”