Page 20 of Deadly Oath

“I’ll get one of those, too,” I tell the barista, pointing at the cinnamon roll. “Heated up, please?”

I haven’t stopped thinking about Kian since last night, but I also haven’t stopped thinking about that burger, either. After a lifetime of avocado toast, quinoa bowls, and endless salads, eating something like that felt like an almost sinful experience. The kind of thing that I only ever used to do on vacations, and even then, extremely sparingly.

Coffee and cinnamon roll in hand—now also dripping with butter that Marie eagerly tells me is from a local farm, and delicious—I follow her back to where Cindy is sitting. Daphne is in line, and she raises a hand towards me, smiling at Marie.

What do I have to do to get them to like me?I suppose gossip about my date is as good of a start as anything. And maybe they’ll actually have some advice for me.

“Okay, tell me about this hot date,” Cindy says eagerly as we sit down. “Who on earth was it with?”

“I have some idea,” Marie says with a small smirk, and I bite my lip.

“Kian. Sheriff Brady,” I qualify, but from the way Cindy’s eyes go wide, she realized who I was talking about as soon as I said his first name.

“Ofcourseit was Kian,” Cindy says, and Marie clicks her tongue, giving Cindy a warning look.

“What?” Cindy says defensively. “Look at her. Gorgeous as a supermodel. And he’s the new hottest thing in town. Of course, he went for her.”

I feel an uncomfortable, squirming sensation in my stomach. It doesn’t feel like a compliment. “I didn’t encourage it at first,” I say quickly. “He asked me out when he stopped by a few days ago. I told him no, actually. And then there was that incident out on the trail, with the rattlesnake, and then I caught a pan on fire while I was cooking, and he happened to be passing by, and?—”

Cindy rolls her eyes. “Hehappenedto be passing by? Are you really that naive? He clearly was just looking for an opportunity to save you again.”

“Is that such a bad thing?” Marie asks insistently. “I think this is good. Another reason for you to settle in and try to feel at home here. You have friends, and now a potential romance.”

Friend,I can’t help but think—I’m not really sure I can count Cindy, or Daphne, or any of the other book club girls as actual friends. But I understand her meaning.

“I’m not sure about it,” I admit. “He took me out on a date last night. And he’s kissed me once. But?—”

“Whokissed you?” Daphne chimes in as she joins the circle, and before I can speak, Marie eagerly fills her in. Daphne’s eyes go wide, too, and when she looks at me, there’s a hint of jealousy. But it’s not the way Cindy looks at me, like she’s borderline pissed that I swept in and scooped up Rivershade’s hottest new bachelor. It’s almost as if she’s reassessing me—as if she respects me a bit morebecauseI seem to have managed it.

Not that I really think I did anything. Kian seems more than eager to get to know me all on his own.

Shouldn’t that be a red flag?I wonder, as Marie recounts the story of the rattlesnake rescue. Maybe—but even if it is, I don’t want to reject it. I’m used to men wanting me because of who my father is, because of what marrying me would gain them in money, power, and prestige.What I’mnotused to is a man genuinely desiringme. Genuinely showing an interest inme, even if that interest is wrapped up in teasing that feels like it has an edge to it, sometimes.

“I don’t know why you’re even hesitating, honestly,” Cindy says, taking a sip of her coffee. “If he showed an interest in me, I definitely wouldn’t.”

Daphne doesn’t say anything, but I see a flicker in her gaze. Something that makes me think that despite the wedding ring on her finger, if Kian showed an interest in her, she wouldn’t say no, either.

Why doesn’t he show an interest in someone like Cindy? I wonder. Cindy is the type I would think that he would go for. Curvy figure, large and perky breasts, honey blonde hair, and big hazel eyes. She has girl-next-door but with an added splash of sexiness written all over her, and she’s the type of girl that I would imagine someone like Kian going for. He clearly thinks I’m spoiled and a bit difficult. I keep needing his help, and he seems borderline annoyed by it.

“I don’t even know if he likes me,” I blurt out, desperate for someone to help me work through all the confusion in my head. I feel like I’m flailing around blindly, and I want advice. “He seems like he’s teasing me sometimes. Like he finds things about me irritating. It’s almost like he’s making fun, a little.”

Marie laughs. “That’s just how men are, Sabrina. They pick on girls they like. It’s that playground thing, you know?” She pauses, and when I don’t nod in agreement, she frowns a little. “You know. When boys pull a girl’s hair they like. Or steal her pencils. Bully her a little. It’s their strange way of showing they’re into you.”

“Is it?” I went to a private school that mostly kept the boys and girls apart. That wasn’t my experience. But I don’t want to say that aloud. “So Kian teasing me means he likes me?”

“You really don’t have any experience with this, do you?” Daphne interjects.

I shake my head quickly. “My family was very—restrictive. That’s part of why I left. To get some space.”

That last half isn’t true at all. Not in the slightest. But I can’t saythe real reason, and it’s as good as anything to get some advice about what I’m supposed to do now.

Daphne nods, as if she understands. “You should enjoy this, then,” she says. “Even if it doesn’t go anywhere, it’sKian Brady, Sabrina. Every woman in town would die to have his attention. Just have fun with it. Have fun getting to be a little wild, a little free. No one here will judge you for it.”

Looking at the expression on Cindy’s face, I’m not entirely sure that’s true. But I feel a flutter of encouragement, all the same.

I want to explore this with Kian. I want to find out where it might go. And even if it doesn’t go anywhere at all, for once in my life, I want to find out what it might be like to choose someone for myself. Casual or serious, Kian offers something that I’ve never experienced before. And for the first time since Caldwell dumped me here, I feel like something good might actually come of this.

My phone buzzes, as I reach for the plate that has my cinnamon roll on it. I slip it out of my pocket instead, and my heart nearly stops in my chest for a moment when I see the message that pops up on the screen.

---