Page 1 of The Secret Crush Book Club (Peach Blossom #3)

One

T he house was quiet. Too quiet. The once-familiar sounds of her sisters arguing, and their father, Daniel, caught in the cross fire of trying to calm them down, was now replaced with uncomfortable silence.

Once upon a time, Dani had prayed for peace so she could at least hear herself think, but now the only sound seemed to come from her own breathing.

She was quickly finding that she hated it.

Finishing a day of work should have been a good thing, and overall, it was.

But with Jordan at the library, and the rest of the family scattered about, Dani was bored.

It was a Thursday evening and if not working the evening shift, most of her friends were home with their families.

Now that she worked the day shift, she had evenings free and fuck all to fill them with.

“Well, this was not what I was expecting,” Dani muttered to herself as she changed the television channel again.

There was nothing to watch. Nothing to do.

Sleeping this early would mean waking up far before dawn, and that still left the next two days for her to get through.

Having Friday and Saturday off was coveted, so she was trying hard not to be ungrateful.

She worked with several other nurses who would gladly take the time from her if she asked.

They would also, no doubt, have more ideas on what to do with the time off than she did, which was a whole lot of nothing.

“Hey, kiddo. What are you doing staring off into space?”

Dani smiled and looked up. “Just contemplating homicide. Trying to decide if I should bury the body or take some time off to drive down and drop it in the Everglades.”

With a snort, Daniel walked over to her. “Maybe you should let whoever live. You’re too cute to go to prison.” He dropped a brief kiss on her forehead.

“Only going to prison if I get caught,” Dani replied. She took a moment to get a good look at him. “Where are you going in your Sunday best?”

He shook his head, but his lips quirked up in a smile. “It’s seniors’ night down at the rec center, and I told Clarence and Prichard I’d meet them there.”

That was news to her. Still, as unexpected as that tidbit was, she was glad he was getting out and not spending all his time alone in the house. Kind of like Dani was doing now. Damn. Even Dad has more of a social life than me. The thought was disconcerting.

“Well, you have fun and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

He raised an eyebrow at her, but eventually left.

Dani heard his ancient Ford truck start up and once the sound faded away, she realized she was once again sitting alone with only the television for company.

This was starting to become a pattern. With a sigh, Dani pushed up off the couch and grabbed her keys.

There was no point in sitting around the house.

She stewed in her thoughts the whole drive to the library.

Jordan spent several nights a week there.

He had joined their esports club last year and enjoyed it so much he kept it up.

Dani hadn’t known what to think of the whole thing.

When she was his age, video games were something they did alone or with just a few friends at someone’s house.

There weren’t actual clubs dedicated to it.

When her dad had heard about it, he had joked about how the world had changed.

When she realized how similar they had sounded, she had almost gagged at realizing that she had become her parents.

It was a terrifying revelation, but one she refused to dwell on. She was still young. She was still hip.

Do kids these days even say hip anymore? She had no idea.

She pulled off the road at the gas station to fill up the car and grab a snack for herself and Jordan.

The kid was going through another growth spurt, which meant not only was she going to have to once again replace his entire wardrobe, but also if he didn’t have something to nibble on every hour or so, he turned into an absolute beast.

Inside the gas station, she went straight to the chips and grabbed a couple of their favorites, and chose a couple of sodas to wash them down after. When she got in line, she jolted as her name was called by a familiar voice.

“Dani?”

Fixing a fake-feeling smile on her face, she turned slowly and came face-to-face with Zavier.

She had gone out with him a few times last month before realizing that the chemistry she had been hoping for was just not there.

He was a nice enough guy, but boring. If not for the fact that he had impeccable taste in choosing restaurants, she probably wouldn’t have gone out with him a second and then a third time.

She had paid for her own meals each time, so she didn’t feel as guilty as she would have if he’d covered everything, but she still felt bad when she admitted that she didn’t see things going any further. He had taken it well, thankfully.

“Oh, Zavier. I didn’t see you come in.” She winced internally at how awkward that sounded. When the cashier called her to come forward, Dani latched on to that. She hoped he didn’t say anything more, but that hope was dashed as he spoke up again.

“How are you doing?”

She half turned, trying to convey she was busy without seeming rude. “I’m doing great.” There was a moment where neither of them spoke before she begrudgingly spoke up again. “How are you doing?”

“Great,” he replied with a wide smile. Dani hoped that he didn’t think she was giving him another way in. “I got the promotion I was telling you about. I’m Miami-bound in a couple weeks.”

“That’s awesome.” She truly did think that was great for him, but it just highlighted another reason why she knew things wouldn’t have worked out.

The farthest she had lived for any amount of time was Atlanta for a year and a half for college before circumstances had her returning home.

Regardless, it had only taken a few months for her to realize that big-city living was not something she wanted.

Peach Blossom was home for Dani. Sure, she liked vacations as much as the next person, but she had no desire to be anywhere else.

“I’ve heard Miami is a great city.” She grabbed her purchases.

“Sorry, I have to head out to pick up Jordan. It was great seeing you.”

He called out his own goodbyes as she made her way outside, and Dani was relieved to see he was parked on the other side away from her. She concentrated on getting her gas before hopping back in the car and driving off.

When she pulled into the library parking lot, the sun was slowly dipping beyond the horizon, but it was still pleasantly warm outside.

Spring was slowly melting into summer, and soon enough she knew it would be hot and too humid to stand.

She was already regretting wearing jeans instead of grabbing a pair of shorts when she had changed out of her scrubs.

Spending so much time in uniform meant she rarely knew what to wear outside of it.

Usually she got home, showered and changed into pajamas for the rest of the night.

But now that Vini was out of the country with Jessica on some whirlwind vacation, and Ava and Grace were joined at the ass more often than not, she was the one picking Jordan up from the library in the evenings.

It wasn’t a bad thing, considering he was her kid after all, but it was just another reminder that things were slowly but surely changing in the Williams household.

Inside, the library was cool, and Dani fluttered her eyes as she let the refreshing air rush over her.

It was quiet in the way most libraries were, and she paused just inside the door, not quite sure where she should go.

It wasn’t like she never came in. She had picked Jordan up earlier in the week, so she knew where he was.

But she was early, and she knew he would not appreciate being interrupted or having to stop early.

The kid was serious when it came to his gaming, and since she was paying for him to participate, she had no desire to cut his time short. With a sigh, she headed to the counter.

“Hey, Zoey.”

The library’s newest librarian blinked quickly before her lips turned up in a soft smile.

She had been the one to start the esports program when she had moved to Peach Blossom a little over five months ago, and if you asked Jordan, the sun shone out of her ass.

After the first meeting, he had come home so energized that Dani almost didn’t know what to do with him.

He had spoken of nothing but Zoey for that first month and even now, almost half a year later, he still had nothing but good things to say about her.

“Hi, Dani,” she replied, her voice pitched soft enough that Dani almost had to lean forward to catch it. For someone as tall as she was, Dani had been surprised that Zoey was so soft-spoken when she’d first met her. “You’re here early.”

That was certainly true. Dani had only a vague idea of her plans when she had made her way to the library, but now that she was here, she couldn’t exactly recall what she wanted to do.

“Did you need help with something?”

Did she ever. “Probably need help with my entire life.” She hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but it was out there now.

Zoey’s eyes widened behind her black square-shaped frames, but Dani figured she might as well keep on going.

“Got any books to help someone through a quarter-life crisis? They aren’t my usual go-to when I grab a book.

I’d much rather read another banger from Caitlyn Martin and lose myself in someone else’s drama instead of my own, but it is what it is. ”

“Um,” Zoey stammered as she looked down at the computer in front of her. She typed in a few things before pausing and looking up at Dani from over the rims of her glasses. “We have some self-help books if that’s what you’re looking for?”

Figuring that she had traumatized the poor woman enough, Dani nodded. Self-help is probably what she needed anyway. Maybe she could find a book to help explain why she felt so upended lately.

“That would be great. Could you point me in the direction of that section?”

“Sure,” Zoey replied, nodding. “Or… I could show you to it? I have some books I need to put away in that area anyway.”

“If you don’t mind.”

She shook her head, smiling again. “I’d love to. It’s what I’m here for after all.” Zoey signaled to the other librarian before walking around the counter and toward Dani. She gestured for her to follow.

Peach Blossom’s library wasn’t the largest, but it did have two levels.

Dani hadn’t spent much time there even with Jordan coming multiple times a week.

She usually just waited for him outside or went straight to the conference room they always occupied.

As much as Dani loved to read, she usually got her books delivered to her e-reader or purchased them online.

Going to the library or waiting for a book to be available always seemed like a waste of time before.

When they turned down another aisle, Dani caught another glimpse of Zoey in her glasses.

“Those look really cute on you.”

“What?”

“Your glasses,” Dani elaborated. When Zoey stopped walking and faced her more fully, she knew exactly who the glasses reminded her of. “You look like a sexy Black version of Velma. Especially with the cardigan.”

Zoey’s eyes widened. “Oh! Um, thank you.” She looked down and for a moment, Dani worried that she had offended her.

Before she could say anything, Zoey gestured at the books on the shelf.

“These are all the self-help. I wasn’t sure which ones you really wanted to browse, but there are a lot of great titles to choose from. ”

Dani smiled, gently hoping that she looked harmless enough.

She hadn’t meant to embarrass the other woman.

Clearly, she needed to work on her socializing skills if she was going to go out in public more.

“I’m sure I can find something, though it would be easier if there was a title specifically about quarter-life crises.

” When Zoey didn’t say anything, Dani internally sighed and vowed to look up a book on how to not make things fucking awkward.

“Thanks, Zoey. I appreciate you helping me.”

Zoey nodded before taking a step backward. When Dani turned to look at the books in front of her, Zoey’s voice caught her attention.

“It’ll be okay.”

Dani furrowed her brow, not sure how to respond. Her silence must have worried Zoey into speaking up again.

“Everyone has moments like that,” Zoey continued. “Where they aren’t sure about the way their life is going. But it’s okay, I think. No one said you have to have everything figured out.”

It was the longest conversation the two of them had ever really had, and Dani felt something shift.

The words weren’t overwhelmingly positive or poetic, but they were said firmly enough to catch Dani’s thoughts and leave her speechless on how to respond.

By the time she finally formed words, Zoey had already turned and walked away, leaving Dani standing alone, gaze locked on her retreating frame.