She smiled up at me with rosy cheeks and stood.

“Good morning, Maggie.” She extended a hand.

“Hi, Susan,” I said as I took it. “Good to see you.”

“Have a seat.” She motioned to the chair, and I sat down. “Thank you so much for starting on such short notice. We’re lucky to have you. Our benefactor is coming in tomorrow, and we’ve had a lot of trouble finding a qualified candidate to run the reading enrichment program.”

“It’s my pleasure, really.” I set my bag down next to my chair and folded my hands in my lap.

She leaned on her desk. “Your credentials are just outstanding, and the references we spoke to had nothing but good things to say. We’re feeling a bit like we’ve won the lottery,” she said with a smile. “Today I’ll need you to fill out some paperwork, and we’ll be touring the facility. I want you to meet the kids, and then we’ll need to sit down and talk through some curriculum points. I’d like to have a loose plan in place for the meeting tomorrow.”

“I’m sure I can get something together in time.”

Susan adjusted her glasses on her nose. “Perfect.” She picked up a packet of papers from her desk and handed it over to me. “So, just to go into a bit more detail on what we touched on yesterday, your volunteer position will be three days per week for the kids in the shelter, similar to library programs. We want to bring reading into the children’s lives in a way that shows them the magic of books and imagination. We’d also like to discuss an adult reading workshop, which we would schedule based on the interest we receive.”

I flipped through the packet, a set of paperwork to fill out and some program overviews.

“This summer we’ll have larger groups of kids than you’ll have starting out, once all of the kids are out of school. It’s when they need us the most, the time when they’re unsupervised. Our shelters are mostly families trying to get back on their feet. Most have jobs, the kids in school, trying to maintain their lives even though they’ve lost their homes. It’s a transitional place for them, a place for them to find solid ground again. Any questions so far?”

“No, ma’am.”

She smiled and stood. “Great. Let’s have a look around.”

I gathered my things and followed her out of the office and through the building — through the kitchen and rooms, the common areas, the playroom where I met the kids who weren’t old enough for school. We ended up in the common office, a room set up with a few older desktop computers, round tables and chairs, a wall of packed bookshelves, and one super hot guy.

He was a bit older than me, with blond hair and a killer smile that he shot at me like a laser beam.

Susan gestured to him, and I think his smile got even brighter. “Maggie, I’d like you to meet Brian, our illustrious chef and head of our kitchens.”

He stood and extended a hand. “Nice to meet you, Maggie.”

“Likewise,” I answered, taking it with a smile. He gave it a solid squeeze.

“Maggie will be heading up our reading program.”

He nodded amiably. “Great. Catherine will be glad to hear we finally found someone.”

“Yes, she will.” Susan sounded relieved and turned back to me. “You can store any supplies you have here and use the space for anything you may need. For the meeting tomorrow, if you could put together a proposal for your plan for the children’s program as well as a general supply list, that would be a great start. And, no pressure, but if you have any ideas for the adult program, I’m sure Catherine would love to hear them.”

“All right. I think can manage. I have some good ideas on where to start.”

“Wonderful, Maggie. Let’s plan on meeting this afternoon to go over what you come up with. I can’t thank you enough for your help. Are you all right to set up here in the office? Do you have everything you need?”

“I do. Thank you, Susan.” I adjusted my bag on my shoulder with my mind already turning over ideas.

“Just let me know if you have any questions or need any guidance.”

“I will.”

I moved to sit a table away from Hottie Von Chefpants as Susan left the room, feeling him watching me with his pencil hovering over his clipboard.

“You’re welcome to sit over here, if you’d like.”

I smiled politely, since refusing wasn’t an option, not after he’d offered. “Sure.” I set down my bag and took a seat across from him. “What are you working on?”

He leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his golden hair. “Menus for the next month and our grocery list for Catherine. She helps procure the donations we need to keep this place up and running.”

I pulled a binder of lesson plans out of my bag and set it on the table. “How long have you worked here?”

“Two years. Doesn’t pay much, in money at least.” He smiled at me again — it really was a pretty smile, kind and genuine.

“Yeah, I hear that. I was a teacher in my past life.”

“You’re not from around here.”

“Is it that obvious?”

He smirked. “A little hard to disguise that accent.”

I dug around for a pen, wondering if I’d be able to get any work done in the office after all. “I just moved here from Mississippi.”

“Small town girl in the big city, huh?”

I raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know that I’d call Jackson a small town. Maybe compared to New York, but isn’t everything?”

Brian laughed, his eyes twinkling. “Fair enough. Are you in the market for a tour guide? Because I know of a mean coffee shop around the corner that I think you’d love.”

I raised a brow. “Already asking me on a coffee date?”

He shrugged. “I’m not known for passing up opportunities with beautiful, charitable Southern girls who are new to the city.”

I smiled, shaking my head. “That’s awfully sweet of you, but I’ve got to pass.”

He nodded, unable to fully hide his disappointment behind a smile. “I should have known you’d already have a boyfriend.”

“Who says I have a boyfriend?”

His smile fell. “I’m sorry, I—”

I waved him off with a sigh. “I’m sorry. It’s not you, you seem perfectly nice, and I’m pretty sure that with a smile like that, you have no problems finding a date. It’s just that I’m just getting out of a serious relationship, and things are … complicated for me.”

“Bad timing. I get it,” he conceded.

I smiled.

“Well, let me know if things change. You know where to find me. And in the meantime, we’ll be friends?”

“Sounds more like my speed.”

“And we’ll have Folgers instead of the Sumatra blend.”

I chuckled. “Deal.”

He made to get up, smiling at me. “I’ll go start a pot so we can get ready for Catherine. Cream and sugar?”

“Just sugar, thanks.”

I watched him leave the room, shaking my head at myself. I hadn’t thought twice about turning him down, even though he was … safe. He was the kind of guy I should be going after — a nice guy who worked in charity with a kind smile and a great body. I bet he gave back rubs and bought girls flowers before he took them on dates to hip coffee shops. But I wasn’t interested at all. Not even a tiny little ovarian flutter.

It was so easy to say no to him, but somehow I couldn’t deny Cooper when he set his mind to something. I wondered what in the hell that meant, other than I was apparently a glutton for punishment.

My phone buzzed on the table, and I picked it up to find a text from Cooper. Never mind speak of the devil — I couldn’t even think of him or he’d appear.

How’s work?

I texted him back. So far, so good. Got a lot of work to do before tomorrow. What’s up?

Come by before you head home. I’ll order dinner. 

Ah, the old feed-and-fuck?

I mean, when you put it like that…

I smiled. Sure. I’ll text you when I’m on my way. I can’t stay late though, okay?

I’ll take what I can get. See you tonight.