Wynne would be a liar if she tried to say that she'd never imagined this. There had been too many moments when she had considered him, debated what to do about him, remembered his smile and the way it felt when his hand enveloped hers. There had been too many moments when she'd wondered what it would feel like to be kissed like this by him. It didn't change the worries that she had. It didn't change her objections to his choices. And those objections didn't change her feelings, which happened to be driving just then, when her fingers were fisting in the sides of his shirt and her stomach was exploding with nervous energy and when she was very definitely kissing him right back.

At last she broke the kiss. She had to. Even if there wasn't so much conflicting craziness in her head, they were at the Library, for heaven's sake. There were people around. People who expected her to be acting professionally. And she had a book club meeting to moderate in less than half an hour, flushed cheeks and all.

Wynne struggled to even out her breathing as she bent her face downward, not looking as she brought her hand up to brush against his cheek. "Leathan," she murmured. There were so many words on the tip of her tongue, so many ideas and mixed up messages that Wynne didn't even know where to start. "I just don't know how this can work. I just, I don't know."

JOEL WATKINS