Page 17 of Mass Sins

“Hi, it’s good to hear your voice,” she said.

God, she was too damn sweet.

“You too.” I paused for a moment, before asking her the question I didn’t want to ask over text. “I would’ve love to ask you this face to face, but I figure this is okay too. Do you want to go out with me, Bennie?”

I had learned from my brother that Bennie was twenty-five. Twenty years younger than me, but with the way she was, I knew she was more mature than most women my age. She had been through a lot already, and things like that make a woman grow. She was strong, and that’s one of the many things that were attractive about her.

“I’d love to,” she replied. I could hear the smile in her voice, and I wished I could’ve seen it.

“Great. How about a nice dinner? Any special requests? Restaurants you’ve always wanted to try?”

“I’m open for anything,” she told me before adding. “Surprise me.”

Yeah…I could do that.

“Alright, I’ll set something up. When do you have time?”

She thought about it for a moment before replying with, “Tomorrow night?”

Very short term, but I had time tomorrow night. And I wanted to see her again. “Sounds good to me.”

“Great. I can’t wait.” The smile in her voice was hard to miss.

“Perfect. If you send me your address, I’ll come pick you up at your place at six.”

“I’ll text you my address. I’m excited,” she admitted. She didn’t sound nervous, which kept me calm too.

“I can’t wait to see you again. I gotta admit…I’ve been thinking about you the past week,” I told.

She was silent for a moment as my words lingered, and when she spoke again, my heart almost busted by how soft and sweet her voice was.

“I’ve been thinking about you too.”

I smiled and rubbed my jaw, letting out a soft chuckle. “Glad you decided to call me after all. I’ll make tomorrow special for you. I promise.”

There was silence again, and I wondered how long it had been since she last heard a man say something like that to her. I didn’t know much about her past relationship, but the look in her eyes when she hinted on her ex had told me all I needed to know. I wasn’t planning on asking her about her ex, and how he managed to break her so much, but if she ever gave me the chance, I’d show her just how good she deserved to be treated.

“I can’t wait,” she then said, her voice a whisper. “I gotta go now. It’s late.”

“Yeah, I don’t mean to keep you up. I’ll see you tomorrow then. Good night, Bennie.”

“Good night, Joska.”

I stayed on the line until she hung up, and before starting to plan our date for tomorrow, I received a text from her with her address. She lived in Central Boulder, whereas I lived further south of the city. It wouldn’t be a long drive though.

Just from the conversation we had, I knew Bennie was special. In a way, it was foolish of me to think that everything would work out perfectly with her. That after just one date we’d decide that we were right for each other.

But then, this pull I felt toward her was one I had never felt before.

And between all these exciting thoughts I was having, I was neglecting an important fact.

Bennie was a sweetheart, and she had gotten to know me as a priest.

I was supposed to be the one to help her with her crisis of faith, but I feared that I was about to turn into one more thing she needed saving from.

Chapter 7

BENNIE

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