Page 61 of Renegade Rift

I just thought?—

“Her date.” Paige confirms and even though my body is rigid with shock, I feel the punch in my gut. But Paige doesn’t notice because she mistakes my silence for misunderstanding. “It’s where a minimum of two people gather to get to know one another with the intention of maybe one day seeing each other na?—”

“Thank you,” I snap, not needing the imagery. “I know what dating is. I just didn’t know Juliet was doing so.”

Paige searches my face. Her blue eyes narrow to slits like she’s almost seeing something but isn’t quite sure.

I wait.

And wait.

It’s not until I’m about to turn and grab my shit to put it away that her brows reach her hairline and her eyes go wide. “Well shit. Color me stupid.”

“What?” I don’t have any clue what that means.

“You want her.”

“Who?”

“Juliet. I mean, of course you want her. Who wouldn’t? But youreallywant her.”

“No, I don’t.” Espinoza’s words echo in my head, and as soon as they do, I taste the lie in my mouth.

Fuck.

Paige chuckles and rolls her eyes. “Yeah okay, and I’m the tooth fairy.”

I cross my arms over my chest and dig in. Do I think she and Espinoza are right? Maybe. Am I willing to admit that to her before I admit to Juliet? Not a chance in hell.

“What makes you think I want Juliet?” I ask.

She lifts a finger. “Well, there’s the fact you’ve bent over backwards to make sure she’s okay.”

“That’s what family does.”

Another finger. “Sure, but there’s also those crystals over there.”

My eyes narrow. “What about them?”

How the hell does she know about those?

“Oh, we know all about them.”

“We?”

“Yes, Etta knows too.”

Fuck.

I’m going to kill my teammates. “Carson?”

He’s the most likely culprit. Smitty and Espinoza might be all in on pranks and talking shit, but neither of them is meddlesome. Carson, on the other hand, can’t help himself.

“No.” Paige shakes her head. “We ran into a very lovely woman named Jo in the hall on the day Etta moved in.”

I scrub my hand over my face. “Damn it.”

Kiefer’s wife is as bad as Carson. She would love nothing more than to see me wifed up so she’s not the only woman at our D&D games.

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