Page 2 of Taming Grumpy Dr. Beast
Someone must’ve misplaced it.
Irritation swirled and tightened my chest as my phone played that wretched song again.
I jabbed at the smooth face of my phone, silencing the next alarm of the many I’d set. It would take too long to disengage them all.
I shifted my body forward, closer to the nearby books, while my eyes scanned the titles, and checked each individual shelf.I don’t have time for this.I huffed, nerves beginning to flare as I realized I was going to be late.
Finishing the first shelf and not finding it, I moved my gaze up to the next row, and the one after that. I prayed it might be in one of the five rows below. If not, I was going to have to abandon my quest. My paper and overall grade would suffer for it. Worst of all, my pride in my work would take a direct hit. I barely had any time to spare before I had to leave to take Dad to his appointment.
I dropped into a crouch and balanced on my toes. I’d just finished the remaining rows when I heard the familiar whirl of the mechanical bookcases.
Weird.
No sooner had the thought left my mind, then the stack slowly inched toward me. The trash-compactor scene inStar Wars — A New Hopewhere Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca flashed in my mind. Only this wasn’t a movie, and the walls were really closing in on me!
Shit!Was the stack malfunctioning or was someone else down here?
Short, quick breaths burst past my trembling lips as the space closed in on me. I popped up just in time and smacked the button to move the stack back. Once I was certain it had stopped, I squatted down and resumed my search.
I’d only gotten through half of the next shelf when that whirl started up again. I leaped up and pounded the button for a second time. The wall shifted back into place, but then I heard the distinct grind of metal as it started moving my way yet again.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I ground out.
The bookcase suddenly stopped and a gravelly voice called from the other side, “Is somebody in here?”
“Uh, yes.” I tried to temper my annoyance. “Try checking before you move the damn stack next time!”
“Jump out for a minute,” he said in a clipped voice. “I need to get a book in this stack, and I don’t have time to wait.”
I curled my hands into a fist, my nails biting into my palm.
He doesn’t have time to wait? As if I’m here just for the fun of it.
Typically, I’d play nice, smile and let this guy grab his book, butnottoday. I didn’t have time to be accommodating. Dad had waited nine months to see this doctor and I was not about to reschedule it. I had every right—and just enough time—to grab this book before him. Whoever this guy was, he could wait. Hewouldwait.
“No, sorry. I can’t.” I said without bothering to sound sincere. My finger tapped the button near me. As the stack moved back in the other direction, I could hear his surprised growl.
“What the hell?” A shiver ran through me as his raspy voice deepened and filtered through the books.
Not wanting to think about my reaction, I focused on being happy I’d won that round. I crouched down to finish checking the bottom shelves when the wall started moving again.
Who does this asshole think he is?
My face heated as I popped up and hit the button to shift the stack away from me. A second later, it changed directions. Fury churned in my gut. I smacked the buttonagain, halting its movements once more. This guy was unbelievable.
“Stop. Moving. The. Wall.” My teeth clenched together so tight I hoped my words were loud enough to reach him.
“If you just step out, I can get what I need, and then you can get back to whatever you were doing.” I heard the click of his button as he chose not to wait for my response or any sign I was moving out of his way.
I gasped. The nerve of him. “Whatever I am doing, I’m sure, isfarmore important than what you’re doing.” I jabbed at the button on my side.
This was a war, and I intended to win.
The stack shifted forward and then moved back toward me. This time, as I stretched my fingertips to hit the button, my eyes caught the title I was searching for. The metal bookcase shrieked a warning, pulling my attention back. My stomach dropped as I realized I was a few seconds too late at stopping the movement of the shelves.
“Stop,” I screeched. I was about to be crushed between the two imposing and incredibly heavy bookcases.
I leaped toward the button, already feeling the book spines biting into my chest. Thank God I’d worn a padded bra today. I leaned back, knowing I had very little wiggle room, when the metal shelf behind me dug into my hip.
