Page 33 of Desert Thorns

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Coco and Noa Rose started talking over each other, but I didn’t say anything. Something about Josh didn’t sit right with me. I had a feeling he saw Bella as a trophy. She was absolutely gorgeous, not to mention one of the sweetest souls I’d ever met. Maybe Bella liked him, but something told me the only reason she’d said yes to that date was because of the pressure her parents put on her. Because they wanted her to date a guy coming from a good family. But how was I supposed to tell her that?

We moved our tea party into the kitchen where we made and devoured tacos while my clothes were being washed and dried. Eventually, Noa Rose had to return to work. We were in the middle of sharing what God had been teaching us lately when the doorbell broke into our conversation.

“This has to be Father Cruz.” I rose from the chair and headed into the hallway. Since he had to visit someone in thisneighborhood, he’d offered to drop me off at Coco’s and pick me up again after his visit was over. Wanting to respect Kingsley’s request to not leave the monastery alone, I had jumped at the opportunity.

I opened the door, finding not Father Cruz standing on the illuminated porch, but Kingsley in his habit and sandals. My belly did a little flip.

“Hey.” He smiled down at me, the hints of dark circles under his eyes poking at my conscience. He’d spent the past five nights outside the guesthouse, sleeping in the grass. And while he’d insisted he did that a lot and loved it, something obviously robbed him of the rest he needed.

“Hey. What are you doing here?”

“Father Cruz had an emergency, and since I’m on my way back from seminary, I thought I’d pick you up instead.”

An emergency. Of course.

The idea of getting to drive back to the monastery alone with Kingsley sent a thrill through me. I shouldn’t get so excited, but we hadn’t had the chance to talk since my nightmare because we’d constantly been around people. I still had to thank him for what he’d done that night.

“You must be Brother Samuel.” Bella squeezed past me and extended a hand to Kingsley. “I’m Bella.”

He shook it, smiling. “Nice to meet you, Bella.”

She nearly melted, her face glowing like a Christmas tree. Oh boy, hopefully she wouldn’t start drooling.

“Don’t forget your clothes.” Coco stepped up to me with my duffle. The smell of fresh detergent nearly made me weep. I’d already panicked about having to handwash every single piece like the monks did.

Before I could take the duffle, Kingsley reached for it.

Coco handed it to him. “Thanks for taking care of our girl.”

He cleared his throat. Gave a curt nod.

Sensing how uncomfortable he was, I turned back to my friends. “All righty, ladies. Thanks for this fun evening.” I hugged them both, then followed Kingsley down the porch steps—

Someone caught my arm from behind. “Harley, the way he looks at you . . .” Coco whispered.

I turned to her. “What do you mean?”

She glanced at Kingsley, then back at me. “You guys have to be careful.”

“I agree.” Bella nodded. “The man carries a torch for you.”

Coco snorted. “Not a torch. A flipping flamethrower.”

There it was, other people seeing it, too. I hadn’t wanted to admit it. He was a monk about to become a priest, for Pete’s sake. He wasn’t supposed to look at me like that, and I wasn’t supposed to develop feelings for him. But I couldn’t help myself. Not after everything he’d done for me.

I shook my head. “Don’t worry, we both know our boundaries.” I did, even though I loathed them. It was like God had sent me a gift I wasn’t allowed to unwrap. The perfect man I couldn’t have.

The look Coco cut me spoke volumes.

“I’d appreciate prayers anyway.” Just in case I got ideas I shouldn’t.

A moment later, I sat in the passenger seat of the F-150, Kingsley behind the wheel. But instead of taking the interstate leading west, he headed north.

“Where are we going?”

“To Romeo Marino.”

I whipped around in my seat. “What? Why?”