I had been stacking books all morning, and my arms and back ached. Don't get me wrong - I love my job in the busy city centre library, but I preferred my stints of checking books in and out or manning the enquiries desk to putting the 'returns' back on the shelf. Having worked here for the past five years, I had long ago perfected the technique of supporting a sorted stack of books on the fingertips of my right hand, resting the weight against my body as I piled the tomes to chin-height before carefully walking to the shelves and using my free hand to replace the books in place. As I am only a touch over five foot tall, reaching the higher shelves was quite a stretch at times, and rather tiring.
My boss approached me. A typically starchy spinster of a librarian, Miss Crawford held all us younger library minions in terror 'Sarah, can you take a turn on the enquiries desk ?' she asked. 'Maria's cold is getting worse and I'm sending her home before she infects us all. Tim can stack the shelves instead.'
Inwardly cheering at my good fortune, I murmured my agreement, and took my seat at the enquiries desk while Tim took over my task. I had a batch of new books to catalogue while I sat at my station. I had not been working at the new acquisitions for more than ten minutes when I was aware that I had a customer.
Closing the Dewey index before me, I settled my glasses more firmly onto the bridge of my nose and glanced up. He was certainly the best looking guy I had seen in many a moon - tall, wide-shouldered and suntanned. Soft dark curls flopped over his forehead and into amazingly blue eyes fringed with dark lashes. He had the most sensous mouth I had ever encountered - a mouth fashioned to be kissed. My eyes tracked surreptitiously down his body. Very nice. Very, very nice. In deference to the blazing sunshine outside he was wearing a blue check shirt, open at the neck to show a strong throat and some intriguing chest hairs. A pair of sunglasses dangled by one arm from his shirt pocket and a small backback hung from one strap across his back.. Denim cut-off shorts and trainers completed his outfit. Oh my, his thighs were quite hairy. Long, golden hairs... just how I liked them. The longing to reach out and stroke those thighs was almost irresistable! My mouth grew suddenly dry with lust and I gulped instinctively, dragging my gaze back to his face.
'G'day.' the stranger began with a disarming smile. I smiled encouragingly in response. I should have guessed he'd be Australian!! 'My travels have brought me to London, but I'll only be here a few weeks.' he continued 'Is there any way I can borrow books from your library during my stay? I'm lodging at the youth hostel just up the road.'
I shook my head sadly 'I'm afraid you'd have to have a permanent address before you can register to take books away with you,' I replied 'But we do have a reading room here.. You can sit and read in there as long as you like, and if it will help I can put your current book under the counter each night so that you can collect it the next day and carry on from where you left off. How does that sound?'
His mouth formed a little moue of disappointment. 'I'd have preferred to have taken the books away to read in the evenings.' he said. 'I wanted to take my book into the pub, sit in the corner with a nice cold beer and relax. I've got a lot on my mind, you see and find the evenings hard to get through. With nothing to do, my mind dwells on the past. Anyway, sitting in your reading room will be like being back at school again. It's probably like an exam room with lines of desks!'
'Oh no, it's not like that at all!' I laughed. 'This building is very old and the reading room is set out in booths to allow private study. Some of them even have lovely oak panelled doors that you can close. You're not really allowed to drink beer in there - officially, that is - but provided you were discreet and closed the doors, I think you'd be safe.'
What was I saying! This was entriely against the rules. NOBODY was allowed to eat or drink anything on library premises, and if Miss Crawford had heard me give this advice, I'd be out of a job. But something about those blue, blue eyes, that smile, that softly accented deep voice combined with those golden-haired thighs had mesmerised me, and I no longer cared. If the gorgeous guy before me wanted to get absolutely rat-arsed in the privacy of the reading rooms and dance naked on the desk not only would I gladly let him but probably join in and damn the consequences!
'That sounds ideal!' the big Australian replied, sticking out his hand in introduction 'I'm Dan, by the way.'
'Sally.' I shyly replied, losing my hand into the grip of the huge paw he extended. Jeez, if the old myth about the size of a man's hands being an indicator of the size of his cock was true, those shorts must be hiding something bloody wondrous! Pulling my mind from such thoughts, I suggested 'If you'd like to choose your book, I'll take you to the reading room.'
I tried not to watch him as he perused the shelves, but my eyes were irresistably drawn. Dan glanced briefly at the fiction section, then I lost sight of him as he turned the corner towards the poetry shelves. After a while he reappeared, holding a slim volume in his hands. I recognised it to be part of the Oxford Shakespeare edition.
'Shakespeare's Sonnets.' he murmured quietly in explanation as he lay the book upon my desk. 'I always turn to these when I'm feeling down. I write 'em myself, but I'm not in the mood at the moment. You wouldn't think it to look at me, but three days ago I was in Paris, and the happiest man alive. I'd spent two months living with a beuatiful girl. I was so sure this was forever that I'd found a job in a bar there. I phoned my folks back home to tell them I wasn't coming back. Then one night while I was out at work her ex- came visiting. I got back in the early hours to find my stuff out on the street. He poked his head out of the bedroom window and basically told me to fuck off. I think I must have been just a revenge-shag for Therese after all. Something to make her bloke realise what he was missing. Everything I'd loved about Paris turned sour, so I decided to move on. I decided to catch the Eurostar and give jolly old Blighty a try!'
Despite the jokiness of the fake Brit accent he'd affected on the last sentence, I could still hear the tremor in his voice. For all his huge size, this man was surprisingly fragile. Overwhelmed with pity I briefly covered his hand with my own as I whispered 'I'm sorry....'
His eyes flew to meet mine in startled surprise and with a gentle smile he turned his hand beneath mine, long fingers meshing with my own. 'How about showing me this reading room, then?' he asked softly, a gentle smile curving his lips.
I pressed the bell, and Christine came from her office to take my place at the enquiries desk, which had to be staffed at all times.. 'I'm just showing this gentleman to the reading room.' I explained as I picked up the bunch of keys from my desk. Chrissy grinned broadly. 'I bet you are!' she murmured beneath her breath. She had the filthiest imagination I'd ever encountered and I guessed it was working overtime at the moment!!
Dan picked up his book and followed me along the corridor, through the reference library and up the stairs to the cool hush of the dark panelled reading room. It was very rarely used, and today the only occupants were a couple of our elderly regulars, perusing the daily newspapers at the desk by the sunny window and quietly discussing the headlines.
'Are those the booths? They look like confessionals!' Dan remarked eagerly, striding forward to pull the handle of one of the doors, then turning back in enquiry at finding it locked. I showed him my bunch of keys and walked forward to unlock the door he had tried. Inside, the booth was also oak panelled. Bright sunshine fell in crazy colours through the ancient coats of arms set in stained glass bosses in the tall windows. A desk and chair took centre stage in the room, and one wall held shelves of elderly, forgotten tomes which had fallen from favour in the main collection below. The musty, dusty smell of crumbling paper and dry leather bindings perfumed the air. Dan breathed deeply. 'How lovely!' he exclaimed, stepping into the centre of the room, pulling the door shut behind him. 'I adore the smell of old books, and the light in here is fabulous!'
'If you find the colours too distracting I can draw the blinds for you and switch on the electric lights instead.' I explained helpfully. 'This building wasn't always a library and I think this entire floor must have been a ballroom back in the days when it was a grand house.'
'No, no. I love the light!' Dan exclained, turning to face me, his face alive with pleasure. He was standing so close I could smell the tang of his aftershave. His attention was drawn to the locket I wore around my neck. It had belonged to my great-grandmother and was an antique in rose gold and mother of pearl. Long fingers dipped towards the cleft of my breasts, lifting the locket to admire it.
'This is nice.' Dan remarked, resting the knuckles of his right hand upon my flesh as he leaned closer to admire the locket. 'Very nice.' he murmured. I got the feeling he wasn't referring to the locket any more!
He glanced up enquiringly 'Boyfriend's picture inside?' he asked softly. I shook my head. 'No - there's no one.' I replied. Something about this big, golden stranger made me heartily glad that there wasn't.
'Good.' Dan replied. I could feel the warmth of his breath against my skin, and caught my own breath as a heady rush of desire made me suddenly dizzy and weak. I could feel moistness gathering between my thighs at his very proximity. I glanced up into his eyes, longing for him to kiss me and unconsciously signalling my acquiescence. Dan let the locket drop but left his fingers in conact with my skin as his free hand almost lazily encircled the back of my neck, drawing me closer to the kiss. The hand that had once held my locket moved smoothly downward into the neckline of my blouse to slide steadily into my bra. He paused a moment, tacitly allowing me an opportunity to object if I wished. Instead I shifted my position to grant him easier access. I allowed the weight of my breast to rest in his palm. Dan began gently rubbing his thumb over my nipple, whch hardened almost painfully at his touch. Almost unaware of what I was doing I eagerly opened my lips beneath him, taking the initiative and invading his mouth with my tongue. My arms encircled his neck, rejoicing in the softness of those dark curls beneath my fingers.
Dan's lips found my ear, gently nuzzling and biting as I melted inside. 'Can you lock the door from the inside?' he asked . His warm breath tickled my ear and I felt a frisson of desire. 'Uh-huh...' I responded, no longer capable of coherent speech. Somehow, my trembling fingers managed to work the lock. I turned back towards Dan, lifting my face for an other of those dynamite kisses. Instead Dan was lifting me, laying me with my back on the dusty desk while my legs dangled over the edge. He tenderly removed my glasses, putting them safely on one of the shelves. His fingers fumbled urgently with the buttons of my blouse. Willingly I parted my legs, allowing Dan to stand between them. He was breathing fierce and harsh now as he eased my blouse open. Dust motes sparkled in the shafts of sunlight that surrounded his head as he stood silhouetted by the bright window. Dan's hands cupped my breasts as the hardness of his cock strained against the fabric of his denim shorts. Vivid hues of sunlight through stained glass painted me as I lay upon the desk, blouse open. Heraldic beasts shimmered across my bare midriff.
''I want you stripped so I can see all those colours across your naked tits.' Dan murmured, pushing his hands behind my back to undo my bra. My breasts spilled out and with a groan of sheer lust, Dan leant forward to capture my left nipple in his mouth. I arched my back upwards from the desk, pushing more of my breast into his mouth while my fingers tangled his har. Dan moved his attention to my right breast while I unbuttoned his shirt, filled with a need to feel his warm flesh beneath my fingers as I slid the garment from his back. He was truly beautiful, this stranger from another land. Broad shouldered, finely muscled and with a fuzz of brown hairs high up beneath his throat and in a curve beneath each of his pecorals. Pulling myself upright, I lapped at at his chest, nipping at his small brown nipples with my teeth and nuzzling at his chest hairs. Dan had moved his hands onto my hips as he rucked my skirt even higher, his exploring fingers stroking, stroking ever higher until he had wriggled a finger under the elastic of my sopping wet panties.
Surprisingly gently, he deliberately grazed his fingers over my nether lips several times before making contact with my clit. I jerked in his arms, almost coming at that slight touch, and Dan shushed me before bending to kiss me full on the lips to stifle my cries. As he kissed me, he moved his thumb to gently circle my clit while simultaneously he slipped his finger deep inside my wet, willing body to finger-fuck me. I could feel my soul unravelling at this dual attack on my senses. I broke off the kiss, grinding my clit upon his circling thumb and inviting the invasion of his long skilful finger as I gasped loudly into his shoulder. The shudders of sheer ecstasy started to build deep inside me and I could feel my twitching cunt spasming around his finger. I tried not to make too much sound, stifling my groans of pleasure into Dan's shoulder as the ecstasy shook me. When I had quietened, Dan smiled at me with sheer joy as he gently laid me back upon the desk then knelt so that his face was between my spread thighs. I felt him tugging at my panties and obligingly raised my hips to be rid of them. The first touch of the tip of his tongue against my clit was like electricity. I was so sensitive that Dan's ministrations were almost painful in their intensity. He gently licked and explored my quivering clit, drawing the tender morsel into his mouth. After gently parting my lips he probed with his tongue, tasting, testing my reactions, finding out what made me shudder with passion - learning my body. I heard the unmistakeable sound of a zipper descending. The rhythmic movement of his shoulders indicated that he was gently frigging himself at the same time as his mouth and tongue were driving me crazy. With a long sigh of pleasure he finally drew away, leaving me wide open and panting with lust.
He rose to his feet again and I experienced the warmth of skin against mine. The golden hairs on his upper thighs tickled the softer, sensitive flesh of mine as he moved closer. I raised my head to look at him with undiluted lust. His cock was gloriously long and thick, curving slightly against his belly. Drops of pre-cum juices were already oozing from him in anticipation of the pleasures to come. His eyes were dilated with lust, his lips slightly parted as his hands stroked my thighs.
'Please... please...' I whispered, raising my hips towards him beseecingly. He smiled tenderly as he lifted my left leg and settled it against his shoulder. He moved his hips forward fluidly to slide the head of his big cock inside my wetness, teasing me as my eyes silently beseeched for more. I wanted the full length of him. I wanted him to fuck me hard, and he knew it. With a grin he withdrew his cock again and I almost wailed in disappointment. Playfully he swiped the head of his cock, wetted with our mingled juices across my throbbing clit, and again my back arched from the desk in reaction. No sooner had this new sensation registered than with one hard thrust he was deep inside me, his cock taking up a fluid rhythm that I matched stroke for stroke. I could feel him hitting my cervix at every giant stroke and my breath stuttered in my throat. On and on he went tirelessly so that I lost all track of time. Eternity seemed to be full with this moment of being so completely filled myself. Dan finally pitched forward across my body and I curved my leg across his back gripping him tightly in my arms, forcing him even deeper inside me. I could feel the muscles in his back tense as the orgasm started to hit, then he thrust deeply three or four times, emptying himself inside me. Once agian the coloured light in the room seemed to fill my very soul as I shook with release, the fluttering walls of my vagina gripping him as he poured himself into me. For a moment we lay gasping, overcome with the intensity of the moment, then he helped me to shakily sit up. Still standing between my thighs and with his subsiding cock buried within me, he took me in his arms and kissed me deeply, pushing my hair out of my eyes.
'Oh Sally - what a fantastic girl you are!' he murmured against my hair. 'I must see you again.'
'Well, the reading room is always at your disposal,' I replied with a chuckle as we drew apart. To cover the slight awkwardness of the moment I retrieved my panties and bra and began to make myself presentable again 'but if Miss Crawford catches me in here with you I'll be for the high jump. We might have to find somewhere more discreet next time - if you fancy a next time, that is...' The words froze in my mouth as I heard the unmistakeable sound of a key in the door. I'd forgotten that Miss Crawford had a set of duplicate keys!
The door swung open to reveal the horrified face of Miss Crawford. Dan had made a grab for his shorts at the first warning rattle of the lock, but was still shirtless and busy zipping up his fly as the door actually opened. Miss Crawford took in my flushed face, tumbled hair and open blouse at a glance. Dan sheepily picked up his discarded shirt and slipped it over his body.
'Miss Prior,' my boss began. 'I'll give you five minutes to make yourself presentable, then I expect you to report to my office. I hope you realise this behaviour simply cannot be tolerated. I will telephone the Board of Governors of the library immediately and ask them how to proceed, but I feel instant dismissal will be the certain outcome. As for you, young man. Your continued presence will not be tolerated in this library and if you are still here by the time I have finished speaking to Miss Prior, then I will have no alternative than to call the police to have you evicted. Five minutes, Sarah.' With that, she pulled the door to and left.
'Shit, shit shit!' I muttered under my breath as mortification at my situation set in. 'I'm not looking forward to this at all....' I picked up my glasses from the shelf and put them on again. Suddenly I was back to being plain old Sally Prior, spinster of this parish, and very very scared....
'Then don't go and see her.' said Dan, matter-of factly, picking up his backpack from the floor.. 'Let's both shoot through. Ask that girl on the desk to fetch your coat and bag, and we'll both get out of here straight away. She's given you five minutes of get-away time after all. I'd say use it! The old cow can sit in her frigging office all day long and wait for you.'
I buttoned my blouse, deep in thought. Miss Crawford was probably on the phone right now, sealing my fate. I was almost certainly out of a job in ten minutes time anyway. What did I have to lose?
'Okay!' I said with a laugh almost of relief. Dan and I clattered down the stairs, heedless of the reference library users who 'shushed' us all the way out. Chrissy was intrigued when I asked her to fetch my coat and bag from the staff room, but when she saw the dust stains on the back of my black velvet skirt and my dishevilled appearance she grinned broadly and hurried to do my bidding. Dan and I linked hands and ran from the building, breathless and happy. We walked to the park and sat side by side on a bench. Dan reached for my hand, meshing my fingers into his comfortingly.
'What now?' I asked him. He sat for a while in deep thought.
'D'you have any savings?' he suddenly asked me. I thought about the five years of scrimping together money towards a deposit for my own little apartment away from my mum and dad. I had about seven thousand pounds in my savings account. Not a lot, but it would have to do. I nodded.
'Can you get to it?' he asked.
'It'll take about three days to transfer, but I have money in my other account I can use until then.' I replied.
Dan rummaged in his backpack, producing a crumpled envelope. He showed me the return half of a flight ticket. 'See this? This is an open ended ticket.' he explained 'It means I can go home whenever I want to. To Australia, that is. I just call the airline and take up my seat, all paid for. My folks own a small vineyard out near Adelaide and I'm their only son so one day it'll all be mine. I suppose that's why they paid for this trip. My one chance to get all my travelling out of my system before I settle down and join the family firm. Working the land is hard at times, but it sure can be a rewarding life too. It's nice out there, Sally. What I'm trying to say is that I suggest we travel around England together for a month or two, just to see how we get on together. At the end of that time you can either come back here, find a new job and pick up your life again or come back to Adelaide with me. You can buy yourself a return ticket to England just in case you find you can't stand the life - or you can't stand me. If you decide to stay you can cash the return half in and stay with me for as long as you want me. How does that sound?'
'It's tempting, but what'll I tell my parents? This is all so sudden...' I whispered.
'We've got a couple of months travelling around England before we have to make our minds up about Australia. I think we'll be fine.' Dan put a warm, comforting arm around my shoulder. 'We'll tell them together. We'll go there now if you want to. I'll prove to your mum and dad that I can take care of you. It's probably not a good idea to tell them we only met today though!!'
I smiled up at him, my eyes filling with tears. I knew nothing about this man but I sensed I could trust him. 'Okay. I'll go with you.' I replied.
'Good! How about Manchester? I've even got some light reading for our coach journey!' Dan replied, pulling the book of Shakespeare sonnets from his bag.
I feigned outrage. 'Are you purloining library property?' I enquired in a fair imitation of Miss Crawford's voice.
'Yeah, I guess I am. I'm not only pinching the most beautiful book in her library, but the most beautiful girl too.' Dan replied. His face sobered as he glanced down at the book, his thumb sliding over the cover in a manner that sent tremors of remembered pleasure through my body. When he looked up at me again, tears of happiness shone in his remarkable eyes.
'Thank you, my darling' he said finally. 'You've made me want to start writing sonnets again.'