Second Chance by Audra North

right question.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “I mean, as much as she was curt and unpleasant with actual people, she revered books. If I asked her what she thoughtI should read, as a thirteen-year-old girl who liked math, she would scoff and point in the general direction of the reference section. But if I came from another direction and asked her which books were worthy of being read , that had this kind of plot, or that kind of characters, she would start waxing lyrical, even going with me to find them.
    “I like the idea of helping other people find their own bit of magic. Books can fill a void and be your best friend, or the sister you never had, or a boyfriend or—”
    “A father.” He couldn’t resist saying it, and Marnie blushed. Shit. Had he overstepped? He’d just wanted her to know that he understood. That even though his family had stuck together, it wasn’t all sunshine and roses, either. He rushed to explain.
    “My mom could probably use books. She misses Ireland a lot. I mean, she likes it here, but everyone is still back there. Her sisters and brothers and all her school friends. She’s the only one. Her father died a few years ago and she went back for the funeral, but after she came home she wouldn’t say a word about it, almost like she was in too much pain from having experienced the reunion in the first place.”
    “Do you miss it, too? Ireland, I mean.”
    He breathed a sigh of relief that she hadn’t chastised him for getting carried away a minute ago. “I don’t remember it well enough now, I guess. Maybe someday, I’ll—”
    Bang!
    A loud, metallic sound reverberated through the library.
    What the hell was that?
    He looked at Marnie, who was pale-faced and shaking, the book in her hand threatening to slip from her fingers.
    He grabbed the book and set it back on the cart. “I’ll go check it out. Stay here.” On impulse, he brushed a kiss on her temple, and it was as though the contact sparked something in her, because she sputtered to life, her cheeks going bright red and endearingly attractive.
    “You don’t have to. I’m sure it was nothing.” She was gripping his arm, her eyes almost imploring, as though she were…hiding something?
    No. He was imagining that. He had to be. She was probably just scared—for herself and for him. His face softened. “Let’s go together. Come on.”
    He took her hand, and for a moment all he could think was This feels right .
    And then he led her out of the stacks.
     

Chapter Seven
     
    There was no doubt in her mind that Bill was the reason for that loud bang. He had to be the least subtle ghost she’d ever known. Not that she’d known any others, but still. What a nuisance.
    Collin paused at the circulation desk, a long, wraparound partition, and let go of her hand. She tried not to sigh in disappointment. It had felt so good to be taken care of, even if it was just the reassurance of a warm, strong grip.
    “I think it came from my office.” She gestured through the doorway and followed him as he strode toward it. They rounded the circulation desk and walked into the office, and what she saw there nearly made her groan in annoyance.
    The bottom drawer of her desk was open, pulled out along its entire length.
    What was Bill up to?
    “Oh, well, that explains it.” She tried to make herself sound casual, like this kind of thing happened all the time, but she was looking all around the room, trying to see if Bill would appear so that she could tell him to cut it out, already. “The box I found in the attic—or, I mean, the archives—is in this drawer. It must have banged against the side when the drawer slid open.”
    She stepped forward and pulled the lovely wooden box out before sliding the drawer shut, snapping it tightly.
    “Okay…” He frowned. “That would explain the banging sound, but how did the drawer slide open, in the first place?”
    “Uh. Maybe I didn’t shut it all the way. I’m not sure. Things here are a