Page 24 of The Sin Eater
With that, he heads out, his worn biker boots knocking on the wood floor. I watch him until he’s through the door and out on the street, and when I turn back around, Jett’s grinning at me so hard I’m afraid they’ll sprain something. “What?” I ask, though I know what.
“He’s married, or as good as.”
Shaking my head, I take my goods to the register. “It’s not like that. I was just trying to figure out the deal with that carnival. It’s gotta be too cold and wet for an outdoor event.”
Grin broadening, Jett punches in the charges on the register. “You should invite Ezra to go with you.”
“What?” It comes out more like a squawk, and I busy myself with the card reader.
“Here.” Jett produces a smaller version of the flyer and hands it to me. “I’ve been before, and it’s totally date material.”
There are many ways I could respond, so I choose the lamest: stuffing the flyer in my sandwich bag and turning on my heel. I’m carrying the coffees I’d ordered—one for me and one for Ezra—in a tray, and I scurry out of the shop before they can say anything else.
I’ll take a certain amount of shit from Dorinda because she’s my sister, but I do not have to put up with the person who runs the coffee shop giving me love life advice.
Still, I trot right over to the morgue. The cappuccino earns me a brief smile, followed by a scowl that’s darker than a midnight thunderstorm. We’d been fine the other night. We’d been more than fine, really. Now that I’ve had a glimpse of what’s underneath the armor, his about-face only makes me want him more.
“Check this out.” I dig the flyer out of the bag and hand it to him. “We should go.”
He snorts a laugh. “You’re high.”
“I’m dead serious. Jett and their friend Micah said the weather should be good this weekend, and it’s out at Marymoor Park... .” My voice fades away in the face of his frozen expression.
He hands me the flyer back. No, he doesn’t hand it to me, he crumples it up and presses it against my chest. “Nope.”
I automatically cover his hand with mine, and yes, touching him at work is probably a bad idea. “Think about it, and if you change your mind—”“
“I can’t.”
“What’s stopping you?”
He rubs his face with an open palm, like he’s trying to hide a smile that’s sneaking out despite his bad attitude. “See ya later, Big D, and, uh, thanks.”
With a shrug, I put the flyer back in my sandwich bag and head for the door. Dorinda is right. I need to find a different sort of person to crush on. Mumbling a goodbye, I leave him with his cappuccino and his odd mood and go back to sorting people in the ER. I take a bite or two of my panini every time I make it to the desk, and my coffee has long since gone cold before I finish it.
I’ve almost got things locked down for end of shift when my text message alarm sounds. It’s from Ezra.
Okay. Saturday night. You’re driving.
I text back,I’ll pick you up at four. Even leaving that early, it’ll be almost dark by the time we get out to Marymoor. The flyer says the Carnival will be open till eleven, so I’ll just trust that whoever’s running the place has the sense to supply plenty of lights.
And tents.
And those electric heaters used for outdoor seating in restaurants.
And that Ezra dresses warm enough.
I shake my head. There are so many ways this could go wrong.
Chapter Nine
Ezra
Acarnival? Seriously? Damon invited me to a carnival. What kind of 1950s throwback nonsense is this? I can’t even askdude, whyor I might pop off with something even bitchier than normal. If I didn’t like him, it wouldn’t matter, but I do, so it does. Every morning, he brings me a cappuccino and I try to be gracious. Or gracious-adjacent. He probably thinks I’m outright rude, at least according to Geneva. As soon as he leaves, she starts giving me shit about the way I talk to him.
Grandma always said I was too ornery for my own good.
I tell myself that going out to dinner with Damon was a mistake.And I lie like a rug. He’s fucking gorgeous, he can hold up his end of a conversation, and I can’t wait to get those big strong hands all over my body. I’ve stopped warning myself to stay away from him. The ending’s going to suck so I’m determined to enjoy the ride.