Page 3 of Hot Girls Read Book Club

“No?”

“Means I don’t have to.”

His words have me dragging my eyes up to meet his gaze. He doesn’t smile, but there’s something comforting in the way he’s looking at me. John hated it when I’d run off on a tangent, but Jax genuinely looks unbothered.

“What did you think of chapter sixty-five?”

He stares at me, unmoving, and I can’t tell if he’s processing the question or searching for the right words to say. The people-pleaser in me immediately rises to fill the silence.

“Oh God, you hated it. That’s okay. A lot of people hate third-act conflicts. Actually, I kind of hate them too sometimes because—”

“No.” He blurts.

I pause, squinting my eyes. “No?”

“I liked it.”

“…Oh.”

“It made sense.”

Then, it’s my turn to stare at him. The third-act conflict in Deep End makes sense to him? Huh. I thought, for sure, he’d push back on Scarlett fleeing from Lukas after their secret relationship was revealed. Hell, even I wanted to scream at her, but this man saw her struggle and understood it.

More than that, he validated it.

His eyes hold mine for another second before he flicks his gaze to the clock on the wall for the time.

Eight o’clock.

Time somehow evaporated, but you know what they say: Time flies when you’re having fun. And that’s exactly what this was—fun.

“Well, I successfully did almost all of the talking,” I sigh, pushing back and standing from my chair. “See you in two weeks?”

My question sounds almost desperate, and I cringe, hoping he doesn’t read too far into it. He looks hesitant, and I brace myself for the excuses, the rejection.

“Yeah.” He jerks his chin.

“Really? Okay, here…” I lean across the table, scrawling the title and author of the indie book I chose for the next meeting in the little notebook in front of him. “This is the book for the next meeting. It should be a pretty quick read.”

He glances down at the notebook, slowly picking it up and reading what I wrote. The corners of his mouth tip up as he turns to leave without uttering another word.

I wrap my arms around myself, smiling at his back as he walks through the doorway, pausing for a brief moment and tossing a glance over his shoulder.

“Nice meeting you, too. Lily.”

WHY THE HELL did I check out a romance novel from the library and take it home with me?

Sure, I told the pretty librarian that I’d be back in two weeks for the next meeting, but only because the wobble in her voice when she asked almost cut me off at the knees.

I was looking for the town hall meeting when I stumbled into her book club. Before I had a chance to explain that I had the wrong room, the tiny firecracker of a woman was crossing the room and pulling me into her orbit.

By the time I could get a word in edgewise, she smiled, and the whole world froze on the spot. Nobody ever smiles at me like that, not since Samantha left and I spiraled in the worst way possible.

Lily doesn’t know me or my past, meaning I got to just bask in her warmth without worrying about what she thought of me. She said we’re friends now, but she doesn’t know me.

Once she does, we won’t be.

But that doesn’t matter, because I’m not really going back.