Page 69 of Hotter 'N Hell

“He invited Saylor to go watch him,” Mary announced.

Thank you, Mary.I was tempted to kick her under the table, but then she’d probably ask me why right in front of everyone.

“You’ll have to tell us all about it next Saturday,” Mary told me.

I hadn’t agreed yet. But she’d missed that small detail. I gave her a tight smile and took a quick peek at Jude, who was eating, but not looking at me. Sibby sat down beside him and whispered something quietly to him, drawing his attention away.

It was rude not to respond to Crow, and there was no reason for me not to go. Friday night, I’d probably be with Gathe, doing the same thing. As much as I’d like to be with Jude, that wouldn’t happen. Ever.

“That sounds like fun,” I told him before taking a bite of the mac and cheese and tasting nothing.

Every nerve in my body, including my taste buds, was solely focused on Jude. But he didn’t glance my way once.

Twenty-Five

Saylor

The rest of the meeting, I couldn’t even say Jude treated me like everyone else. He acknowledged them. I might as well have been invisible.

Sunday, I worked on my tan and managed to read an entire book. It was a romance, and the sex scenes helped fuel my imagination since there was none of that happening in my life, but I read every last word. The only pages I read more than once were the explicit ones.

Jude texted me at ten p.m.

Jude:

Are you awake?

I didn’t respond.

Monday, Sister Mena tried not to smile when I walked in the door, but I saw it. She wasn’t fooling me. The caramel vanilla cappuccino I brought her with two different cake pops only made her love for me grow. I broke down boxes, hauled them to recycle, discussed the space for the food pantry with Sister Mena, who was much more agreeable—thank you, Starbucks—and got the hell out of there at four before Mena locked up and left.

No late-night texts.

Today, I decided that I was going to shake off my feelings. I was playing some stupid game with a priest. We weren’t being anything remotely close to friends. He had gotten me to come back, and now, there was some weirdness, and I didn’t know the rules. Sister Mena wasn’t here on Tuesdays, which meant I had to deal with the fact that Jude could show up at any time and I’d be alone. If he asked me why I’d ignored his text, I would be honest. I hadn’t wanted to. Okay, well, that was a lie. I had wanted to, but I was pissed.

Unlocking the door, I went inside, turned on the lights, put my binders down, and tucked my purse under the cabinet. I’d not gotten coffee, but I would survive. Maybe go there for lunch.

Right when I opened my blue binder to see what else I needed to get finished, the door opened. I had locked it. That meant it was someone with a key. I knew who without looking.

“Good morning,” I said, lifting my head with the best smile I could muster. “How can I help you?”

The hard expression on his face and the fact that he continued stalking toward me wiped the smile off my face. I wasn’t invisible today. But perhaps being invisible would be better.

“Wake up on the wrong side of the bed, Father?” I quipped.

He stopped and planted both hands on the counter between us. “You’re avoiding me again.”

I shrugged. “I didn’t think you’d notice. Seeing as, on Saturday,I became invisible.”

His nostrils flared as he stared at me. “What would you have had me do, Saylor? Look at you and grow more livid by the moment, ready to rip a man’s head off right in front of everyone?”

I frowned. “Are you jealous of Crow?” I asked, wanting him to admit it.

“Yes.” He seethed. “I am jealous of Crow. I’m so jealous that I can’t sleep. I can’t think about anything else. It’s a constant taunt that never stops.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “The part of the talk you gave me on my birthday didn’t involve me not dating people. I wasn’t aware that would be an issue.”

He shoved off from the counter and let out a maniacal laugh so unlike him that I tensed up. “Yeah, well, seems I wasn’t prepared for my reaction. I didn’t know there was this threat to my sanity waiting, untouched, until I watched you smiling, flirting, sitting too damn close to another man. And then saying yes to a date with him.” He ran a hand through his hair.

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