Forever Saved - Kathleen Brooks Page 0,63
like an athlete or military man. “I’m not Catholic.”
“Sugar, half the town isn’t, but Father Ben is a good one. He captured a terrorist at my wedding. Yanked him right from a tree.”
Stella turned her head slowly to see Aniyah standing next to her in tight jeans that showed off her curves and big platform wedge sandals. “What?”
Aniyah looked pityingly at her. “Oh, sugar. Don’t you worry about your little problem. We’ve faced far worse. If Pam hasn’t run someone over with her Hummer yet, it just ain’t that big of a deal.”
Ariana nodded in agreement. “And Aniyah hasn’t even pulled her gun yet.”
Stella decided she was hallucinating. A priest, a demon, a gun-toting beauty, and a hit-and-run momma. Yup, she had to be hallucinating.
“Stella, this is Father Ben. He’s the rector of St. Francis Catholic Church. He performs the most beautiful marriage ceremonies,” Tammy told her with a serene smile as Jace groaned.
“And takes down terrorists, I hear,” Stella said with a slightly hysterical pitch to her voice.
“Only those two, or was it three times?” Was he joking? Stella just stared. She didn’t know what to say. “Anyway, it’s lovely to meet you. Welcome to Keeneston. If you need anything at all, I’m always available to listen, help, or marry you. June tenth would be lovely.”
“Father Ben,” Jace said through clenched teeth.
Father Ben shrugged. “The church needs new pew cushions.” As if that made any sense to Stella.
“Is this the beautiful woman who has taken our most eligible bachelor off the market?” Mr. Tall, Dark, and Dangerous asked. Heaven and hell now stood side by side. Maybe pigs would fly next.
“Kale, how are you?” Jace shook his hand and then turned to Stella. “This is Stella Winters. Stella, this is Ahmed and Bridget’s son, Kale.”
“Want to go for a drive and tell me about this problem you’re having?” Kale grinned and every single woman in the vicinity immediately thought some very dirty thoughts. The sigh she heard from Molly all the way across the parking lot proved it.
Father Ben blessed himself at the mention of a car ride.
“I think I’ll pass. How are you going to help me?”
“Just give me your phone and I’ll find out who sent the text.”
“The sheriff’s department already tried.”
Kale laughed. Ten women practically fainted.
“That’s like asking a toddler to explain Kafka’s Metamorphosis in the original German. Trust me, I got this.”
“Sweetheart,” Jace whispered to her. “Kale works for people we don’t even know the names of. He’s a genius.”
Stella reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. “My code is—”
Kale laughed again. “That’s cute.” He put her phone in his back pocket as his eyes traveled over her. “Nice watch,” he told her and she lifted her wrist to look at it.
“Thanks.”
“You run?” Kale asked.
“Yeah. This maps my run and offers suggested routes.”
“Nice.” He held up his arm to show her his watch. “Mine does, too. I love it. Well, I’ll get to work on this and see what I can find. You’re lucky. Jace is a good one.”
Kale smiled again and someone fainted behind her.
Ariana rolled her eyes. “He’s just a man, y’all.” She crossed her arms and glared at Kale’s retreating back.
Jace looked at the ground and coughed. Aniyah shook her head. “He’s not just a man. He’s one fine-ass man.”
“Why don’t you like him?” Stella asked as Kale stopped to talk to Ariana’s family.
“I do. We’re like brother and sister, that’s all. We grew up together and we’re just seeing differently right now. A momentary spat.”
Aniyah leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Did you all hook up?”
Ariana’s eyes went comically wide. “No. Eew. Did you not hear the brother- sister part?”
“Then what is it?” Aniyah asked and Stella had to admit she wanted to know, too.
“We used to be in this immature competition about who could get the most famous person to date them. It was totally juvenile. After I got involved with Daughters of Elizabeth and started traveling the world to see human rights issues in person, I put a stop to the stupid competition. I grew up. He didn’t. We got into a huge fight and said some mean things to each other. However, they hurt more because they were true. He called me a materialistic spoiled brat. And I was. Truth always hurts the most, right? But I’m not anymore. I’ve really worked hard to see what I can do to help others. But last year Kale accused me of doing it only to get more attention.”
Ariana