suggested. You could kiss him right now and I bet he wouldn’t even pull away.
I shoved the thought down. I didn’t want to kiss Connor.
Connor opened his mouth. Closed it again. Swallowed. Even in the emerald-colored dusk, I could see his pulse jumping in his throat.
Finally, he took his hand off my shoulder and said, voice rough, “You should go. Text me once you’re inside.”
He turned away, a clear dismissal, but he couldn’t hide the desire in his eyes.
I wondered what mine looked like.
It felt like half the island was crammed inside Scott’s house that night. He lived in the oldest section of Adair, and while the house was historic, it wasn’t very big. Scott had owned a much larger house in the Heights up until two years ago. Right before he got into politics, as it turned out.
The smaller home was part of the ‘just folks’ persona he tried to cultivate. Anyone who was fooled by the size of his house, though, clearly wasn’t looking very hard. Everything inside it was expensive, from the furnishings to the champagne that bow-tied caterers were passing out on silver trays.
Ostensibly, this was a ‘get to know your council member’ party, but while most of the richest families on the island were there, very few of the working class people I knew were.
I caught sight of Nora Ortega, a journalist from the Adair Gazette, across the room. I’d gone on a few dates with her years back, but it had never turned into anything real. None of my relationships since high school really had.
I waved to her, but someone pulled her into a conversation before I had the chance to say hello. Probably for the best. I was supposed to be finding Scott’s study.
I drifted through the living room and dining room out into a hall in the back of the house. I stood for a moment, trying to decide which way to turn, when Scott himself solved the matter by emerging from a doorway two doors to my right. I caught sight of bookshelves and the corner of a mahogany desk before he pulled the door shut behind him.
“Julian,” Scott said. “I didn’t know you were coming tonight. Great to see you.”
Something about Scott had always seemed oily. His tone was pleasant enough, but his smile never reached his eyes. Like a snake who’d studied human mannerisms enough to imitate them, but had never quite mastered actual human emotions.
He stuck his hand out and I shook it, feeling ridiculous. When you went to school with someone from kindergarten through twelfth grade, you didn’t need to shake hands when you said hello. Even when you weren’t friends. Maybe especially if you weren’t friends.
“Hey, Scott.” I did my best to make my own smile more convincing. “I heard you were doing this as a community get-together. Thought I’d come out and support.”
“That’s great, that’s just great.” Scott pumped my arm vigorously. “You know, I’ve always thought we should have been closer friends, Julian. I’m a big fan of your father’s. He’s a great man.”
How many times can you say the word ‘great’ in a row before it loses its meaning?
“You know, he’s got a men’s group at his church that I think you’d like,” Scott continued. “A lot of Summersea’s movers and shakers are there. A great place to make connections.”
He finally let go of my arm and I fought the urge to wipe my hand off on my leg.
“Well, my dad does care a lot about his parishioners.” I tried to keep my voice neutral. Part of my uneasy truce with my dad involved not calling him an arrogant jerk in front of other people. “I know the health of the congregation is important to him.”
“Oh, it is, it is,” Scott agreed. “But it’s more than that. Your dad’s really opened my eyes to the fact that God rewards those who follow his commandments. There’s a whole bunch of people who’d love to help you out, if you ever wanted to stop teaching and move into a more substantive job.”
That was where I lost my patience. It hadn’t taken very long, all things considered. And here Connor was, calling me too forgiving.
“I actually consider teaching to be very substantive.”
Scott blinked. “Of course. I didn’t mean to say it wasn’t. I know it takes up a lot of time. Hell, my wife used to be a teacher, before we had kids. I remember she and all her girlfriends from work used to spend hours