Page 53 of Heart Stopping
"The chef? What does she have to do with this?" Jules looked so confused, his expression was almost funny. If we were talking about anything but what we were actually skirting around, I'd have a good laugh.
Instead, I scanned the room, watching the last of the customers file out the door, talking and laughing.
Harlow's staff hurried around, picking up the last of the dishes and carrying them to the kitchen. Also talking and laughing.
This place of Harlow's, it was a pocket of warm and cozy in an otherwise dark world. Yeah, I know, so poetic. Accurate though, amiright? Of course I am.
"The truth is," I drawled, "we're gathered here tonight to talk about baking club. Now the first rule of baking club," I held up my finger, "is that we don't talk about baking club."
Archer snorted a laugh and Cass smiled.
Jules looked as confused and irritated as ever. "Baking club? What the fuck are you baking? Weed brownies? Looks to me like you've had too many of them."
"And you haven't had enough," I told him. "If you had, you'd be much more zen. Like my friend Hardcore here." I placed a hand on Archer's shoulder. "He's not easily excited." At least, not as far as I'd seen.
"Hardwick," Archer corrected. "I'm not, but it's not because of weed. I haven't smoked any of that in weeks."
Jules shook his head. "I'm not baking. Whatever the hell is going on here, I don't want anything to do with it." He placed his hands on the table, to either side of his empty bowl, and started to push himself to his feet.
Cass' hand snapped out and grabbed his wrist. "You're going to want to hear this. Sit down."
I think I speak for everyone at the table when I say we were all surprised at his tone. And a little bit aroused.
Even more surprised when Jules actually sat.
"Better be worth it," he muttered.
"Good night," Harlow said as she ushered her staff out the door before closing and locking it behind them. She leaned against it for a moment, her eyes closed, breathing out through plush, pursed lips. Lips that I was now imagining wrapped around my cock. That really would make for a good night.
She shoved herself off the door and walked towards us, taking the last seat at the table. Giving Jules a look like she wished he'd evaporate into thin air.
What do you know, we had something else in common.
"Jules should know what's going on," Cass said, his tone between the commanding one he'd used with his brother, and his normal geek voice. He wanted to be heard, but wasn't convinced we wouldn't dismiss the idea out of hand. Or that Jules wouldn't.
"Can we trust him?" I leaned back and placed my hands behind my head, eyebrow raised.
"I trust him," Cass said. "He knows what happened to Auggie and who did it."
Jules' eyes looked ready to burst out of his face. Which would be fascinating, but unfortunately didn't happen.
Next time, maybe.
"What does this have to do with Gr—" Jules closed his mouth with a snap of his teeth.
"Granger Fairfield," Cass finished for him. "You said you wanted to kill him."
I glanced over to Archer.
He sighed. "There's also no research on how many people say they want to kill someone but don't actually act on it. I'm going to say a high number."
I nodded and turned back to the rest of them.
"Right," Jules said carefully. "It was hypothetical."
"Like people laughing their heads off," I offered. "As far as I know, that's never literally happened."
"Yeah, what Bonehead said." Jules shrugged.
