Page 54 of Reckless Harmony

Or Bea would eat your body before it could smell.

She laughed out loud, glancing down at Bea. “He’s got me on that one. You would totally eat my dead body, wouldn’t you, sweet girl?”

Rayna

You’re not wrong.

Stark

I rarely am.

She rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at her phone screen, but her pulse did that weird fluttering thing again when she saw the three dots.

Stark

Just promise me you’ll use my gym rather than the death trap equipment from the seventies.

Rayna

It’s from the eighties, but, yes, I’ll use your gym instead. And I’m still not selling my property to you.

Stark

I heard you the first time, Ms. Abrams. Enjoy your evening.

She tossed her phone on the couch, a little weirded out by how disappointed she was that Stark had ended the conversation.

“Whatever, Bea. I hate him, and he hates me, and I don’t care what he says. He’s only doing this to try to convince me to sell. But I’m happy to let him have his delusions while I use his kick-ass gym. In fact, I’m treating myself to something nice this evening and trying out the fancy new gym right now. Be good while I’m gone, sweetie.”

She leaned down and kissed the dog’s forehead before heading to her bedroom to change into her workout clothes.

CHAPTER 20

“Excuse us, please. You’re in our way.”

Nola took a step back, her friendly smile faltering when the two women gave her and her sign a frosty look before continuing into the community center.

Not that she could blame them. She stared at the sign she held. She had chosen one that said, “Repent, sinners!” in big red letters. In her mind, it was the least offensive choice of the signs her father had piled in the back of his SUV for the protesters to choose from. She couldn’t force herself to pick up the signs reading ‘homosexuality is a sin’ or ‘whores burn in hell.’ Not when she didn’t believe either to be true.

“You okay, Nola?” Josephine asked. She was around Nola’s age, with short blonde hair and a passion for God and diamond painting kits.

“Fine,” Nola said. She glanced around for her father or Abraham, but they were both at the far end of the protest group. She and Josephine had drifted away from their fellow protesters, but she still lowered her voice. “I don’t want to be here. Protesting against people trying to help innocent animals isn’t right, Josephine.”

“I understand, but how they’re helping animals is a sin, Nola,” Josephine said earnestly. “They’re promoting sex before marriage and encouraging the sin of homosexuality.”

“Going on a date doesn’t mean it ends in sex,” Nola said.

“That isn’t what our fathers say,” Josephine said. “Sinners who don’t know God’s love and how important it is to stay pure before marriage are having sex on dates all the time.”

Nola didn’t reply. Familiar guilt crept into her, and she didn’t dare look toward Abraham again for fear the truth of what she did with him on a regular basis would be written all over her face for Josephine to see.

Not so regular anymore, Nola. Abraham no longer finds you attractive. He doesn’t even know you have a tattoo yet because he’s avoiding being intimate with you.

That wasn’t true. Abraham was just very busy lately. She hardly saw him at all anymore. He was either working, helping her father with church matters, or spending his free time with the men’s prayer group. She missed him, but she understood the importance of his faith to him.

Do you miss him, though?

“Nola, what are you doing?”

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