AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A man approaches our table, his confident smirk matching the swagger in his step. “Hey girls,” he says.
“Hey, Kev,” they all say with varying degrees of enthusiasm. He turns his attention to me. “You’re new here, aren’t you?” he asks. He’s handsome in a preppy, clean sense. Nothing like Dante.
“Yeah, I’m Madison,” I reply.
I glance at Dante, who’s now standing. He’s watching Kev with a dark expression that sends shivers down my spine.
Kev sits on a spare chair next to me, leaning toward me. “I could show you around town.”
Tessa laughs. “Trust Kev to be the first one to swoop in and try and get the new pickings.”
The other girls laugh.
“Ignore them,” Kev says. “What do you say?”
I shake my head. “It’s nice of you to offer, but I’ve already got great guides.” I smile at the girls at the table.
“Exactly, she doesn’t need you, Kev,” Eva says.
I glance toward Dante, and he’s closer now, eyes dancing with barely contained rage.
“Come on, they can’t show you as good a time as I can,” he says, placing a hand on my thigh.
“I said no, thanks,” I say, trying to remove his hand.
He squeezes harder, almost hurting me.
“What the?—
Dante’s there before I can protest at his obvious disregard for my disinterest. “She’s not interested, Kevin,” he says, oddly calm considering how dangerous his eyes look.
Kev’s brow furrows. “What the fuck is a priest doing in a bar?”
Dante clears his throat. “Having a drink. It’s not illegal. Now, get your hands off the woman. She said no.”
Kevin stands, his face paling at the tone of Dante’s voice. “Fine. Calm down.” He holds his hands up. He backs off, leaving me with a sense of relief.
If he hadn’t, I’d hate to think what kind of display of violence Dante might have resorted to.
Dante’s gaze softens when he returns his attention to me. “Sorry, I was leaving and overheard. I don’t like it when men take advantage of women like that.” He glances at all of the girls for an equal amount of time. “Enjoy the rest of your night, ladies.” He walks out of the bar, leaving me staring after him. It’s clearer than ever that Dante is dangerous, yet I’m drawn to him more.
I notice the quizzical look the girls give me.
“That was odd,” Harper says, brow furrowed. “I’ve never seen Father Jensen here in the four years since he arrived, and certainly not acting like he’s going to cause a bar fight.”
Tessa laughs. “Maybe the priest has the hots for the new girl.”
I swallow hard, feeling the heat radiating across my skin as she’s hit the nail on the head, even though she’s joking. “Don’t be ridiculous. He’s a priest.”
“Yeah, a priest who scared off Kev like a seasoned bouncer,” Harper adds, sipping her drink. Her eyes are on me, curious.
“He’s certainly different,” I say.
“Different, as in, I’m totally into our parish priest kind of different?” Tessa teases with a smirk, her eyes sparkling with amusement.
I roll my eyes, trying to laugh it off. “Yeah, right. Me and the priest, imagine that,” I say, deflecting the conversation away from Dante.
Tessa and Harper exchange glances and chuckle, convinced by my feigned disinterest. But as the night wears on and the wine flows, I find my thoughts drifting back to Dante, the mysterious priest with a dangerous edge. The night grows into a blur, but one thing remains clear: Dante Jensen is a man I can’t easily forget.
