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I clear my throat. “Well, you’re not alone. This is the first, actual date—not date, I’ve been on since I was a teenager.”
Her brows narrow. “What?You’re like… I figured all you MC guys were getting around. I mean…look at you.The whole muscled, inked, beard thing is a vibe around here. Women must be throwing themselves at you.”
“If they are, I don’t notice.” I glance toward her. “I suppose the same could be said for you. You’re very pretty, so I can’t fathom why you’re all alone?”
“Oh.” She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “Yeah, no. No one talks to me.”
“Someone must talk to you. What do you do?”
She drags in a deep breath. “I clean rooms at the inn on Main Street. It’s a shit job.”
“You’re doing something important, though. People at the inn need you.”
She smiles. “I guess. I always thought I’d be a librarian. My friend, Grace, works down at the library in town and I’m so envious of her. Every day, she’s surrounded by books. Funny thing is, she doesn’t even want to be there. She wants to work at the bakery. What about you?”
I chew my lip and stare out at the night sky, taking in the cool breeze of autumn as it rolls across the hills. “If you want to be a librarian, why not go for it?”
“Oh, well, there’s only one library in town and that position is filled. I think they have part-time jobs available, but that won’t work. I need a steady income. What about you? What do you do?”
I avoided the question the first time, and I’m not sure I can anymore. It’s not that I don’t want to talk about the priesthood, I do. It’s my life, but there’s a part of me that could live a few minutes in this fantasy where I see a beautiful woman, genuinely connect with her, and imagine an alternate future. Though, I guess that’s not fair. “Currently, I work construction, but I’m next in line for the priesthood up at Hickory Church.” For the first time in my life, the words sting as I say them, and I can’t figure out why.
Her eyes widen and she stops in her tracks, turning toward me.“The priesthood?”
I nod and sigh. “Yeah.”
She shakes her head as though she’s trying to catch up with everything I’m saying. “Wait, so you’re like apriest, priest? Like you don’t have…” She clears her throat. “Like you’remarriedto God?”
I nod. “Unofficially, yes. I’ve gone through seminary, background checks, the whole thing. Right now, I serve as a transitional deacon. It’s required for about a year before you become ordained, but I’ve been stuck for a while.”
“Why?”
“Ah, past life stuff. I was a wild child.”
“How so?” Her brows are knit together, and her arms are crossed as she stares toward me. “I mean, you don’t have to tell me.”
“No. I’m an open book. I was a rowdy young adult. I had a past where I spent a lot of time doing things that weren’t approved by the church. My biggest vice when I was younger was gambling. I got addicted to the thrill of winning and it nearly wrecked my life. It got so bad that I lost not only all of my world’s possessions, but anyone else’s who would loan me anything. Luckily, with the help of friends and church, I was able to come out better on the other side. I worked hard to pay off all of my debts and sought forgiveness.”
She smiles and touches my arm. “That must have been hard. Is that when you decided to become a priest?”
“I wanted to make sure I gave back to those like me who were lost but needed to be found. Unfortunately for me, my past has made the bishop of our region skeptical of my devoutness. So, now I’m in a holding pattern until I’ve proven my sincerity.”
“So, how long can they hold you back from being ordained?”
“As long as they want to, but I suspect they want me to drop out of the MC as well. Motorcycle clubs and churches aren’t usually viewed in the same light.”
She turns away and we begin walking again. “So why don’t you leave the MC?”
“That’s not an option. These guys are the only family I have, and they’re as much of the reason why I’m here today as the church. I can’t turn my back on one half of my salvation for the other. It’s a package deal.” I chuckle a little under my breath. “Besides that, look at this lodge. A massive charitable undertaking done by this very MC. One can only hope that acts like this will help change the opinion of the bishop.”
“Yeah, I see how that makes sense.” She grins as she says, “But that doesn’t explain why you’re selling yourself in an auction. You’d think being sold to the highest bidder would raise some eyebrows.”
I laugh and scrub my hand down over my beard. “Well, historically, it was always just an excuse to go out on a date with Mrs. Robinson. She’s the woman you saw me helping into the elevator. So, as you can see, I’m clearly an unstoppable ball of sexual energy.”
She smiles. “I love Mrs. Robinson. She helps me out with Austin when my sitter is busy.”
I make a mental note to talk to Mrs. R about how she knew the woman she was pushing me toward this evening. Funny, she failed to mention that.
“Austin?That must be your son.”
