Is Dees's fixation with Katie akin to a father's love? Why is he powerless to stop it though he knows that his adoration for Katie is somehow wrong and abnormal?

Lee Martin's The Bright Forever tells the story of Katie, a nine-year-old girl who goes missing on a bike ride, sending her small town into a panic. Henry Dees is Katie's teacher, who spends the day tutoring her before she disappears. That evening, the police come by to talk to him because he saw Katie earlier that day.
Dees admits to having fatherly feelings toward Katie. He doesn't have any children of his own and is fond of her. While it's not made clear whether or not these feelings are sexual in nature, they are inappropriate, and he acted on them once, giving Katie a kiss on the cheek during a tutoring session.
Dees doesn't want to reveal his feelings for Katie in case someone might think it's wrong and stop him from communicating with her. Without the kids he teaches, Dees feels his life is empty, but it's especially empty without Katie. He cannot bear to lose her and would risk everything else to keep her in his life.