Page 56 of For I Have Sinned

I don’t say anything in response. Instead, I take a bite of my chicken while Joanna and Bekah continue to talk about the movie.

Trying not to make it obvious, I lift my eyes to the table in front of us to look at him again. He is still talking with Father Keaton, but this time, Father Alexander is looking at the man beside him.

As if he can sense me, he turns his head slightly, meeting my gaze. I divert my eyes to Father Keaton, who is not looking at Father Alexander or me, but at the blonde sitting next to me.

This is the second time he has looked at her in this way. When I pivot my head to peek at Joanna, she is holding a tiny smile, and her cheeks are turning a light shade of pink.

What the heck is going on?

I keep eating, but I do continue to watch their interaction. When I see them exchange another smile, I’m positive something is going on between them.

The minute I finish my dinner, I stand, not wanting to stay any longer. I place my plates in the container for dirty dishes and leave the dining hall without another word.

As I walk down the hall, I sense a presence behind me. Sure enough, when I peek over my shoulder, Father Alexander is following me.

“You should really stop stalking me,” I say.

“I’m not stalking you, Celine,” he responds as he catches up to me.

“Then why are you following me?”

“We were both finished with dinner, so I figured we could get started with the prayer early.”

I round the corner, entering the hall where the library is. “Sister Greta is probably still in her office and won’t like that we are bombarding her with our presence so late at night.”

“It’s eight. She is in her room by now.”

I stop walking, turning to face him. “It’s weird that you know that. Are you stalking her, too?”

He rolls his eyes, and my god, why was that so hot? “I’m not stalking anyone.”

“Could have fooled me,” I quip, and walk into the library.

Sure enough, it is silent, and when I walk down the hall to Sister Greta’s office, she isn’t sitting at her desk.

“Why do you want to do nightly prayers in the library?”I spin on my heel to head back to the main room and slam into him.

His hands meet my waist as mine press against his chest to keep me steady. “So no one would interrupt us.”

I’m hyper aware of how he is holding me. His touch is hot, and it feels like it will burn through the fabric of my dress at any second. Dropping my arms, his loosen around me, allowing me to create a distance between us.

“Then why wouldn’t you choose your office?” I ask to break up the tension sizzling in the air.

“Because sometimes Father Keaton works late, and I don’t want to disrupt him.”

I nod slowly and bite my lip at the questions that have been running wild about Father Keaton and Joanna.

His head jerks to the side, and his eyes narrow. “What is it?”

“I just—well, I don’t even know how to say it without sounding crazy.”

“I won’t think you’re crazy,” he reassures me.

“Okay…” I run my hands over my face and groan. “I think something is going on between Father Keaton and Joanna.”

His entire body stiffens, and his eyes grow wide. Great. He thinks I’m insane for accusing them of fornicating.

“What makes you think that?”