Page 54 of Austen Persuaded

“I’ll just throw out an idea first, and you can all feel free to jump on board or disagree and suggest something entirely different.” Desperation surged in me, and I plunged forward with the only idea I could think of to get rid of him. I couldn’t suggest the theme of romance tonight, since he’d made such a big deal of hating it; it would only make me look bad. “So, I was thinking we’d start with something broad, since we’re just getting to know each other and it’s a larger group. How about women’s fiction?”

All was quiet except for a child’s tantrum nearby near the pregnancy book section. A few people in the group opened their mouths to speak and then apparently thought better of it. All were looking either at me or at Kylan and Zachary.

His deep voice arrested me once again, and I felt shivers through my body. “I’m in. I love women’s fiction.” As I reluctantly made eye contact, his face broke out into a wide smile, though not at me. He was grinning as he looked around the room at the women practically ogling him. “As long as it’s not a romance novel. Romance in a plot I can tolerate, as long as it’s not the main plot.”

He’d stabbed me once again with his diatribe against romance. I wasn’t the only one who looked stricken; a few women pouted openly at his declaration.

Kylan looked over at Zachary, who was nodding in agreement. “Zachary here is majoring in women’s studies, so it seems like a great fit for us guys.”

“Well, the men have spoken, so I guess that’s what matters,” I said irritably as I tossed my hair back.

Heads snapped in my direction, and jaws dropped.

What was that?

They’re going to hate me already on the first day.

He brings out the freaking worst in me.

“Women’s fiction was your idea, Ms. York,” Kylan said, crossing his arms over his broad chest as his mouth twitched at the corners.

Is he trying not to laugh at me?

Pressing my buttons on purpose?How dare he—

I stopped the stream of thoughts in their tracks. I needed to get myself under control.

While smoothing my hair that didn’t need smoothing, I smiled as serenely as I could. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

He nodded slightly in acknowledgement but said nothing, his expression revealing nothing. No one else spoke, with the air so thick with tension.

Once again, Carlina saved me. “You can’t have a good book club without some heated discussions and passionate exchanges, I’vealways found.” I laughed in relief, and many others joined me, nodding in agreement.

Kylan seemed like he was going to say more but didn’t. Instead, he studied me with hooded eyes, his legs outstretched and crossed at the ankle. I asked myself once again why I was looking at him and found it difficult to catch my breath. This was ridiculous. I’d seen and dated plenty of guys since him, many of whom were objectively just as attractive as Kylan, if not more so. But there was something about him. Or something aboutmethat was reacting to him in such an annoyingly strong way. I had to put a stop to this somehow. I’d have to strategize later.

Once I’d facilitated the discussion and eventual decision of which book to start with and how to find a copy—Hakeem would be very pleased with the resulting sales tonight—I asked if anyone had questions.

When no one seemed to have any, I added, “Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I’ve already set up a Facebook group for us, so we can discuss and debate outside of our weekly meetings too. In particular, we could discuss online and vote on the next books we’ll read, so we’ll have more time in our in-person meetings for talking about the books themselves. It’s a private group, so just look me up on Facebook, and I’ll add you to the group.”

Crap.

Oh, crap. I don’t want Kylan contacting me on socials. No, no, no!

Maybe there’s another way; I could direct them to contact Sai instead—she’s a younger person anyway—

My thoughts stilled when one petite young woman raised her hand and spoke softly. “Have you thought about having a Zoom option? For those who … can’t attend in person, for one reason or another?”

I glanced at the woman, whose face was red and fingers were white as she clutched a purse in her lap tightly. Perhaps the woman was shy or agoraphobic, or maybe she had an illness that made it difficult to leave home frequently. I felt a wave of sympathy and then admiration for the woman’s courage in asking this question in front of a largegroup. “I actually haven’t looked into an online option, but that is an excellent idea. I feel silly for not considering that before—thank you so much for bringing it to my attention. I do want this group to be as inclusive as possible. Annalise, right? Iloveyour name.” I smiled widely at the young woman, whose rigid pose relaxed just slightly.

I checked the clock. “And that, my new friends, is our first book club! It’s 8:25, so I’ll let you all leave a few minutes early. Feel free to eat more cookies or take them with you.” I smiled and then turned to thank Sai for helping out, but the girl ran off before I had a chance. Shaking my head, I leaned down to gather some things I’d left under my chair, including my phone and some notes.

I noticed the blinking notification and unlocked my screen quickly. A message from Rainn. No,lotsof messages from Rainn.

Rainn

Annie!

Annie, come on! What are you doing that you’re too busy to text me?

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