Page 33 of Ice Princess

My Adam’s apple bobs. Why is my heart misbehaving again?

Rebel pulls a pink bottle of hand sanitizer from her purse and squeezes a dollop into her palm. When she notices me watching, she freezes.

“Want some?”

I pull my hand back at first, afraid that I’ll tremble too much. I’m normally steady and unflappable, but I don’t feel like myself when I’m in front of her.

“Whatever,” Rebel says when I retreat. “But just know that people are watching.”

I glance around and notice the locals ducking behind their menus and whispering while sneaking peeks at us.

I offer my hand.

She shares out the sanitizer and says, “I get it. You’d rather not eat with me. But this kind of comes with the territory, don’t you think?”

My eyebrows hike.What?When did I say I didn’t want to eat with her? All I did was reject her hand sanitizer. How did it turn into her glaring at me like that?

Rebel whisks her dainty hands together. “I didn’t want to crash your lunch either, but if I avoided you, Mauve would find it weird.” She nods decisively. “However, this is awkward and uncomfortable for me too. So when she brings the food, I’ll make an excuse to leave and eat in my car.”

“You’d rather eat in your car than share a table with me?”

“I’d rather eat next to a garbage dump in the middle of a volcano.” Rebel’s harsh words are delivered with another one of her fake smiles. “Does that answer your question?”

The ring is behind the comforter.Dad’s voice returns to me and I almost laugh out loud.

The likelihood of Rebel and I getting married is so low, only a hockey puck would be able to limbo under it.

The woman is infuriating to the infinite degree.

My jaw flexes. “If you’re uncomfortable with me, I can leave first. You can have the table.”

“No, I’ll leave,” Rebel insists.

I get up.

She does too.

“Stay,” I tell her. “I can eat at the stadium anyway.”

“No, you were here first. You should stay.”

“Where are you two going?” Mauve asks, approaching us with two trays in hand.

“Yeah,” a low, familiar voice says.

I stiffen as my Uncle Stewart steps out from behind Mauve and towers over our table. “I was just thinking I should join my nephew and his girlfriend for lunch.”

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

REBEL

I’d rather swimin a shark-infested ocean during my monthly than sit for a meal with Stewart Kinsey.

He made his disdain for us at The Pink Garage abundantly clear. So clear, in fact, that Chance set up a security system at the garage to keep an eye on April when she’s locking up at night.

I do think that’s overkill. My mom worked for Stewart Kinsey in between planting and harvesting season at the apple orchard. I grew up in his mechanic shop, so I mean this when I say…

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