The Billionaire's Librarian Harem

Chapter 7: The Assignment

REBECCA

Jace's tongue flicks over his bottom lip as he eyes my mouth. His breath is warm, smelling of spearmint as his soft, full lips inch closer to mine.

My heart slams in my chest when his smoldering gaze lifts, meeting mine. Every nerve in my body feels Jace's simmering stare. Wetness pools between my thighs. My nipples tighten, straining against my bra as I wait for what's coming.

Jace Montgomery is about to kiss me, and I don't know if I'll be able to stop kissing him once we get started—

Just then, Jace pulls away with a sharp intake of air. He turns away from me, allowing me to pick up my jaw from the ground and regain my senses.

"You can get back to work now," he says without so much as a glance over his shoulder. "Now that you know which books need rebinding, you can work on them whenever you can."

I look down at the book in my hands. Is this the same man I was inhaling the scent of the leather and pages with moments ago?

"I have an appointment to get to, so I won't keep you," he says to the bookshelf. "Let me know if you have any questions."

I can barely stammer a response before Jace nods firmly, mumbles "Good" and sees himself out. The temperature drops the moment he leaves the room, and I watch him disappear at the end of the hallway.

What just happened?

I return the book to the crate, leaving everything the way it was. Once my heartbeat returns to normal, I head back to the archives.

***

More than an hour later, focusing on work is still a challenge. I can't get my mind over what happened earlier with Jace. I thought for sure he was going to kiss me, only for him to awkwardly pull away and try to get as far away from me as possible.

Did I do something wrong? The heat between us was undeniable, and it's hard to believe Jace didn't feel it, too. We were all alone in there, bonding over bindings and—

That's when realization dawns on me. He was showing me a future work project because he's my boss. He's not supposed to be kissing me! I'm not supposed to feel aroused whenever I'm in his presence!

Though I'm disappointed, I'm also relieved that we didn't kiss. At least, I should be.

I need this job more than anything. My career depends on it! I work for Jace, and I have to be professional.

The only problem? Jace is the hottest, sexiest man I've ever met. Even when he was the Smoothie Jerk at the coffee shop making silly Mayflower jokes at my expense, he was sex on a stick.

No man has ever had this effect on me before—not even Brad, and we were together for years. There's just something about Jace that stirs up—

"Well, if it isn't the librarian."

Shaken from my thoughts, I turn to see Violet leaning in the doorway. As always, she looks like she just stepped off a runway, her dark hair tied up in a high ponytail, her lips covered in a flattering shade of plum lipstick that brings out her eyes.

"You seem to be settling in well, Ramona."

"It's Rebecca," I say with a forced smile. "And I hope so. There's a lot to take in here."

"Well, Jace seems to think you're doing just fine."

I can't help but wonder if she's being sarcastic or not. There's a slight edge to her voice, and her tight-lipped smile isn't reaching her eyes. It's definitely not the same smile she had in the tabloid photo of her and Jace together.