Page 2 of Hot Girls Read Book Club

He hesitates for a beat too long, eyes squinting like he’s trying to figure out how to respond before his lips twitch into a sideways smirk.

“…Sure.”

I clap my hands, bouncing slightly on my toes, looping an arm through his and almost dragging him toward the table. Without thinking, I pull out his chair for him.

He quirks an eyebrow at me.

“Never had a woman pull out my chair before.”

My cheeks heat as his deep voice rumbles through me.

“Ha! What can I say? I’m just a gentleman like that,” I say with a flourished bow. I turn quickly, widening my eyes. Even I’m mortified by how awkward I am.

Be cool.

I slide into my chair, gently pushing the tray of cookies toward him. It’s almost comical, seeing the small cookie engulfed by his massive hand.

“We should do introductions,” I say, giving him what I hope is a friendly smile.

He pauses, making a show of looking around the empty room and the vacant chairs surrounding the table. I swallow hard, also taking it in.

“It’s just us.” He scowls.

“I know, but we just met, and I really like knowing my friends’ names.”

“Friends?” His eyebrows shoot up.

Embarrassment flares again, but I shove it down quickly.

“Of course, you came to my book club, therefore we’re friends now,” I start, smoothing my hands over my hair, tightening the messy knot at the top of my head. “My name is Lily Caldwell. I moved here for the open librarian job a couple of months ago. I’m thirty-two, and I’ve loved romance books since I was a teenager. My favorite authors right now are Ali Hazelwood and B.K. Borison. Your turn.”

He watches me carefully, eyes roaming over my face, and I get the distinct impression that he’s really listening to my words. I shift uncomfortably in my seat, not used to this level of attention.

He clears his throat. “Jax. Jax Mason.”

I blink, holding my smile in place, waiting for him to continue. When he doesn’t, I fold my hands together on top of the table in front of me.

“Okay then, Jax. What else can you tell me? Where are you from, what do you do?”

“I—uh… grew up here? Bellewood, born and raised. I own the garage down on Main.” He sits up a little taller at that, pride surrounding his business clear in his expression.

“Well, I love that! Welcome, Jax. It’s so nice to meet you. Let’s get started, shall we?” I pull out my copy of Deep End by Ali Hazelwood, opening to my first tabbed page.

For the next twenty minutes, I ramble on and on about how much I love the characters and plot. How I appreciate Ali’s attention to detail, consent, and trust between her characters. How she’s one of my all-time favorites because her romance arcs always parallel the rest of the plot in terms of growth and development.

All the while, Jax chews quietly, cookie after cookie, nodding periodically and humming a noise of agreement every so often. He doesn’t interrupt, but he does pay attention, and that—unfortunately for him—encourages me to keep going.

I could talk about how much I stan this author until his eyes glazed over, but I finally pause to breathe once I’ve gotten my feelings out in the open.

“Sorry. I do that, sometimes,” I confess, dipping my head and tucking the loose strands of hair that have escaped my bun behind my ears.

“Do what?”

“Talk non-stop when I’m nervous.”

He shrugs, biting into another cookie.

“Doesn’t bother me none.”