by Mel Spenser
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.
Miss Me?
TOP SHELF
An imprint of Torquere Press Publishers
PO Box 2545
Round Rock, TX 78680
Copyright 2007 Mel Spenser
Cover illustration by Alessia Brio
Published with permission
ISBN: 978-1-60370-392-5, 1-60370-392-6
www.torquerepress.com
All rights reserved, which includes the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever except as provided by the U.S. Copyright Law. For information address Torquere Press. Inc., PO Box 2545, Round Rock, TX 78680.
First Torquere Press Printing: May 2008
Printed in the USA
Chapter 1
"Excuse me."
"I'll be right with you, sir. Just let me close this file." Andy closed the book order he'd been working on and glanced up. He literally did a double take. The man looking back at him from across the reference desk was gorgeous. At least, his upper half was anyway.
When Andy just stared back at him, not saying anything, the guy tilted his head and smiled. "Could you tell me where the cookbooks are?" He had the sexiest brown eyes…
"Um…cookbooks, right?" Andy snapped out of it and pushed up his wire-rimmed glasses. "Oh. Yes. In the 640s. Let me show you where they're at."
Andy got up from behind the desk, waited for the man to join him and then led the way toward the shelves. He asked over his shoulder as he walked, "Is there any particular type of cookbook you're looking for?"
"Actually, I need something on barbeque. My sister and her husband are coming to visit and I thought I'd try that. I'm really a lousy cook. Well, really I don't cook at all. But I thought I could handle something on the grill. You cook?"
Andy gave a snort. "Hell, no. But I do know how to order take-out." He stopped in front of the cookbook section. The guy following him obviously wasn't expecting him to stop so abruptly and ran in to him.
"Oh. Sorry."
"That's okay. It happens all the time." Turning toward the shelves, Andy gestured broadly with both hands. "Here are the cookbooks." He paused, looking closer at the book spines. "And here are the barbeque books." He pointed to a smaller section, then leaned over and pulled out a couple of the newer ones.
Andy straightened. He turned while absently running a hand through his wavy blond hair, brushing it off his forehead. He looked up at the other man's face and gave a little intake of breath when their eyes met. The man noticed and offered him a slight smile.
Andy handed him one of the books. Still holding his gaze, the guy took it and let his fingers touch Andy's, lingering there for a couple of beats. Being fair-skinned, Andy blushed to his roots.
"Could you help me find something on marinating kabobs in particular?"
"Oh. Sure." Andy cleared his throat and tried to recover. "Let's look in the index and see if we can find anything." As he flipped to the back of the book he glanced up. The man was standing so close that Andy could feel the heat of his body. He was looking at Andy and not even pretending to pay attention to the book. Andy's stomach did a little flip and he felt another blush creeping up his neck to his face.
Not bothering to step back, the guy gave Andy an engaging smile and held out his hand.
"My name's Nick Marshall, by the way. I work in the high-rise next door."
Andy juggled the book he was holding so he could shake hands.
"I'm Andy Griffin. Nice to meet you."
Nick took Andy's hand in his. He held it longer than necessary, then let go.
"So, are you a librarian?"
"Yeah. Card carrying. I'm the manager of this branch. I haven't seen you in here before." I would have noticed, he thought.
"I've only lived in Houston for about five months. My company just relocated to the building next door. It's going to be handy having a library so close."
Let's hope he uses it a lot, Andy thought.
"So you don't cook much either?"
"Uh, no. I recently bought one of those converted lofts over in the Montrose area." He paused to let that bit of information soak in, watching Andy closely for a reaction. The Montrose area had the highest concentration of gays in Houston.
It did indeed soak in, and Andy said, "Oh. Yeah." God, what was wrong with him? He was so tongue-tied he was going to blow it. And not in a good way. He needed to salvage this fast. "I own a house in the historical area off of Hawthorne. So we're practically neighbors." Good. At least he made that clear, and he could tell that Nick caught the significance as well.
"Anyway, the loft's got a nice private patio garden, so I thought I'd try to make like a host when my sister comes to town."
"There are several good barbeque joints in the area," Andy suggested. "You could always order take-out and serve it on the patio in your own dishes."
Nick laughed. "I like the way you think. That's starting to sound better, to tell you the truth. But maybe I'll do a dry run and see if I can actually create something edible."
"That's probably a good idea. It wouldn't be too suave to serve burnt kabobs."
They looked at each other. The space between the shelving was not that wide and Nick's larger body took up a lot of it. Andy noticed that Nick was about four inches taller. He caught the scent of soap and a faint hint of cologne mixed with the masculine smell that was Nick. For some reason, the word pheromones popped into his head. His next thought was that he had too much useless information rattling around in his head. It was a hazard of the job.
They were both brought back to planet earth by Betty Jo's voice.
"Andy. Sorry to interrupt, but could you help the lady on number eleven? She can't save her file to her flash drive. I could finish here for you."
Andy shot her an exasperated look, rolled his eyes and jerked his head toward Nick. He looked back at Nick and gave him a grimace of a smile.
Betty Jo got the hint and stammered, "Oh! Well, um... Let me go see if Pamela can help her."
"Hey, you go ahead. I'll look over these books for a few minutes and see if I get inspired," Nick said.
Resigned, Andy said, "Her flash is probably not compatible with our system. Hell, hardly anything is compatible with our half-assed system," he added under his breath. He looked at Nick. "Well, let me know if I can show you anything else."
As he took the other book from Andy, Nick said, "I just may have to take you up on that."
Andy's heart was pounding as he walked toward the computer area. He looked at Rhonda, who was sorting a book truck. She looked up at him and he waggled his eyebrows at her as he passed. When he was done helping the lady on eleven, he headed back to the reference desk. On his way, he glanced down the 600s aisle. Nick was still there thumbing through cookbooks.
"Andy, who's the hottie?" Rhonda had joined Betty Jo and they were both grinning at him.
"Well, ladies. Before you get too excited… he just bought a place in the Montrose area."
"Crap! Never mind then," said Rhonda. "Why is it that all the cute ones are either gay or married?"
"It may have something to do with the location of this branch. It is near the gayest part of Houston," said Andy.
"He's definitely a cutie, Andy. But you know the rule of thumb. If a grown man is in the library during a weekday, he's usually either jobless or a nut," Rhonda reminded him.
Betty Jo stood there nodding her head in agreement and said, "Yes, and you remember what happened to you before."
"Don't remind me." His e
xpression turned grim.
He shook off those thoughts. Then he brightened and said, "Anyway, it just so happens that he works in the office building next door. He's wearing a silk tie, expensive shoes and quality fabric. Those are all good signs."
"You already noticed all of that, did you?" Rhonda teased.
"Well, of course… Anyway, he just bought a loft. So we can surmise he's employed. Also, it's 98 degrees outside with about 500 percent humidity and he doesn't stink like the usual crazies that come in here."
"Wow. You work fast," Rhonda said.
"Hey! He offered it up," Andy said. "Now we just have to eliminate the nuts part. If we can get him to cough up his ID, we can verify his info."
"Ix-nay on the azy-cray Andy. Here he comes."
Andy looked over and watched Nick walk toward them. Man, he was fine looking. Dark brown, nicely-cut hair, dark eyes, muscular and tall. He was definitely over six feet. Andy did like them tall, dark and handsome. He fleetingly wondered if all of the man was in proportion as he glanced at Nick's thumbs.
"Hey, Andy. I'll get these two." He held up a couple of books in one large hand. "I guess I'm going to need a library card. Since I just moved here recently, I don't have one yet."
"I'll take you to the circ desk and we'll get you set up with one," Andy said as he walked over with Nick to get the card.
"Hey, Bill, can you help him get a card?"
Normally Andy wouldn't be involved in helping people get cards, but he was itching to get a look at Nick's info. He hovered around behind the circulation desk, nonchalantly checking over some paperwork. As Bill created his record, Andy happened to notice from his driver's license that Nick Marshall was 32, 6 foot 2 and weighed 205 lbs. Damn! So far, so good.
When Andy was satisfied that Nick wasn't, at least on the surface, unemployed and crazy, he headed back to the reference desk. As Andy sat there, he took the opportunity to check out Nick from behind. Nick had a slim, muscular build. He was in shape, but not beefed up or muscle bound. A perfect looking ass connected to a pair of long legs. The man was gorgeous, no doubt about it.
He was staring at Nick's ass, and daydreaming about what he would like to do with it, when his view was suddenly obstructed by a rather large, sweaty individual with pendulous breasts wearing a blue knit tank top and no bra. "Do you have the latest Danielle Steel book?" Using his carefully honed librarian skills, he quickly glanced down to avoid making eye contact and hoped that Betty Jo would take the bait. She did, of course. Betty Jo could always be counted on. She was just the most pleasant person Andy had ever met. Talking like they were old friends, Betty Jo led the lady off to find the latest Steel masterpiece.
The view to the circulation desk cleared.
Shit! Nick was no longer there. Andy sighed and slumped his shoulders.
"Uh, Andy?" He jumped when he heard Nick's voice to his left. Nick casually rested his hand on the elevated reference desk. His shirt sleeve was rolled up, and Andy couldn't help but notice his tanned forearm with its dusting of dark hair. Man, he had a sexy wrist. "I know we just met and all, but I was wondering if you wanted to get together some time."
"Oh!" Andy snapped out of his reverie and pushed up his glasses. "Sure! Sounds good."
Nick cleared his throat. "Well, how about tonight then? Are you busy?"
"I don't have any plans."
"We could go get something to eat." He looked a little uncertain. "I mean, you got to eat, right?"
"Yeah. That would be great!"
"What time do you get off?" Nick asked.
That was a loaded question, Andy thought. How soon could he get Nick alone?
"We close at six tonight."
"So, can I come by later?"
"Sure. Come around to the back. That's where the staff exits."
Nick flashed him a relieved smile. Oh, lord! A dimple! Andy hadn't noticed it before.
"Great. Well, I guess I better get back to work." Nick pushed back from the desk with the heel of his hand. "See you later then."
"See ya."
Andy watched Nick's ass as he walked to the door. He watched Nick stop to hold the door open for an elderly lady before he left the building. Such a gentleman.
Andy continued to watch him until he was out of sight. Then he left the reference desk, walked off the public floor, through the staff workroom, and into his office. Once there, he did his happy dance.
"So? Tell us, tell us!" Rhonda and Betty Jo had followed him back and were standing in his doorway, grinning.
"He's meeting me after work." Andy was beaming.
"Way to go, studly!"
Chapter 2
The rest of the afternoon dragged by. However, Andy took the opportunity to do a background check on Nick using the usual sources. He didn't find an arrest record, which he considered a good sign. Nick wasn't married, and Andy would have been very surprised if he had been. No kids, of course. He discovered that Nick had previously lived in Indianapolis before moving to Houston last February. Then he went to the County Tax Appraiser's website and verified that Nick was telling the truth about his loft. He was glad that he knew where to look to find all the pertinent information. One could never be too cautious.
Finally, it was time to close. Andy was especially efficient at clearing out the library that evening, shooing out all the hangers-on. Then he bustled around the workroom, encouraging the staff to finish up. Once he got them herded out the back door, he cut the lights and set the alarm.
When he stepped out the back door, Nick was standing there waiting for him. He was talking and joking with the staff as they headed to their cars. When he saw Andy, he smiled.
"You ready to go?" He was flipping his key ring on his finger.
"All set."
"If it's okay with you, we can take my car and I can drop you back later."
"Sure."
They walked over and got into Nick's Audi coupe. By this time, the rest of the staff had cleared out of the parking lot. Once they were buckled in, Nick stopped and looked over at Andy. They were very close in the small car. He placed his hand on Andy's thigh, just above the knee.
"I've been thinking about this all afternoon." He leaned over and hesitated long enough to give Andy a chance to stop him. Andy didn't. Nick closed the gap and kissed Andy full on the lips. Andy felt heat rush straight to his groin and his stomach did a flip. Nick's hot, wet tongue darted and teased Andy's lips until they parted, letting him in. He slanted his mouth over Andy's as their tongues licked and stroked. He deepened the kiss further as he ran his hand up Andy's thigh.
After a few moments Nick broke the kiss and leaned back a little. From mere inches away, he looked at Andy's wet, thoroughly-kissed lips. Then he raised his brown gaze to meet Andy's. He drew in a shaky breath. "God, you're so cute. You've got the prettiest green eyes."
This caused Andy to blush yet again. Well, this was turning out better than he was expecting. Good-looking guy with money and a nice car…. Wait a minute. Cute? Pretty? Oh, geeze. Better to go with it for now.
Nick sat back in his seat and put the car in gear. "So, what are you hungry for?"
"There's a little place off Westheimer," Andy suggested.
"Lead on."
Andy directed and Nick drove. They made small talk on the way to the restaurant. Nick asked Andy about the library and how long he'd been a librarian. They talked about where Andy had gone to school and some of the other places he had worked at.
About twenty minutes later, they arrived at the restaurant parking lot and pulled in to a space. Before he could turn off the car, Andy put one hand on top of Nick's that was resting on the stick shift. Nick turned to look at him and their eyes met. There was no mistaking the heat between the two.
"Hang on for a sec." Andy leaned over close to Nick. "My turn."
They both closed the distance this time and met with an aggressive, open mouthed kiss. Their tongues tangled wetly, and Andy gave a whimper. The sound seemed to electrify Nick. He gave a low, thro
aty moan and his hand came up to cup the back of Andy's head. With his other hand, he took one of Andy's and held it as they continued kissing.
Nick slowly moved Andy's hand and rested it on the bulge in his trousers. When Andy's hand came into contact with Nick's erection, pure adrenalin shot through Andy causing him to shiver. He cupped and kneaded Nick through the layers of fabric while they kissed. There was no doubt that Nick was hard and straining in his pants. Andy was so hard he could probably cut stone.
Nick brushed his lips across Andy's and whispered, "I want you so bad."
"Me, too."
Nick gave him another light kiss. "If we don't stop now, we're going to have to skip dinner."
