Page 11 of Liar
I said nothing, only meeting his stare and holding it.
“What are you doing here?” Sawyer asked. He had to have been cold; though he was sweaty, he wore nothing but athletic shorts, and with the cold breeze outside whipping around, his nipples were hard.
It was time to take this inside.
“I came to see you,” I said, pushing past him and entering the house I’d spent so much time in last semester. For Ash. I did a lot of things for Ash; the list was ever-expansive and held no limits. I would do any and everything for her, and then some.
I headed to the living room, finding nothing at all had changed. It was as if I’d never left this place.
My eyes fell to the couch—had sex with Ash there—before moving to the French doors that opened out into the backyard and patio. There, too. Not to mention everything that had gone on upstairs, in the bedrooms, in the shower… I wondered if Sawyer knew we’d used his house as a home base, if he knew the sheets he slept on were stained with Ash, Declan, and me. Not Will, though. That one had never felt comfortable enough here to be with her, and to that I said: good.
Sawyer followed me, studying me as he took a huge sip from the water bottle. His chest breathed heavily, and he stared at me as if I was a stranger to him. In a way, I was. After all, I’d chosen Ash’s side over his; tempted him to fall back into his bad habits and then made him suffer from withdrawals when I realized Ash cared for him too much. I’d been a little hot and cold with him, hadn’t I?
That would change from here on out. Either he proved he belonged here, with us, or he would leave.
“Why?” he asked me.
I had my hands in my jacket’s pockets, the collar upturned.
Before I had the chance to answer him, Sawyer went on, “No, it’s good you’re here. I…I’ve been meaning to text you.” He was silent for a while, moving to set the water bottle on the coffee table near us. A quick rub of the towel on his face and his chest caught most of the sweat that had formed there, an afterthought of his workout.
I stayed quiet, waiting to hear what he had to say. He was going to text me? I wasn’t sure if I believed it, but maybe he thought the same thing I did: give me time, let the semester start before trying to step in.
Ash had told him she was with us, so Sawyer knew she wasn’t available. If he wanted to be with her, if he wanted to earn back her trust, he’d have to get on my good side, and Declan’s, and Will’s.
Good luck with that last one. Oddly enough, Declan was very compliant when Ash was involved. He was head over heels in love with her, watched her with doe eyes. He would invite his worst enemy into bed if it would make Ash happy.
Will? Will was the opposite. Will was overly protective of those he loved, which I could relate to. Didn’t mean I particularly liked the guy—he seemed to be doing just fine, considering the fact that he’d killed his own father. To a normal person, murder should weigh heavily on their shoulders. It didn’t seem to mean much to Will. Even though he and his father didn’t get along, you’d think he’d still be a bit more depressed. Most people couldn’t handle blood on their hands. Such an event was usually traumatic.
“I wanted to talk to you,” Sawyer said. “Without Ash around.”
I cocked a brow. Oh, this had to be good.
“You…I thought you were on my side, but then you chose her over me,” Sawyer went on, his wide shoulders rising and falling once with a silent sigh. “And then you tried to…I don’t know, get me out of the picture. I guess what I need to know is if you and I are going to have more problems when it comes to Ash. I don’t want to have to watch my back around you.” His emerald gaze narrowed a bit. “I know what you’re capable of, Trav.”
I stared into his eyes as if I could ascertain the truth from them. He sounded genuine, which was exactly what Ash said when she described him to me. He sincerely wanted to be better, to do better. It would take more than words, though.
“I don’t think you do” was what I settled with saying.
Sawyer cocked his head, a half-smirk growing on his lips. “Come on. Her ex is gone. Tell me you didn’t have anything to do with that.” Silence as his words sunk in, and I wondered if Ash had told him everything. If she’d told him my family and I had taken care of Ray, or if he’d simply put two and two together. “That’s what I thought. I mean, I got into a lot of shit, but nothing like that. Serial killers are in your wheelhouse, not mine.”
He was right, but I didn’t want to admit it. I stayed quiet, knowing I looked unimpressed.
“My point is, I don’t want to fight with you anymore,” he told me, running a hand through his hair, sticking its lengths straight up. “I don’t want to have to watch my back and wonder if you’re going to sabotage me or worse.”
“You only have to worry if you hurt her.”
“Or if you think I’m going to,” Sawyer said, knowing me all too well. I guessed all those years as his friend really did teach him something about me. “Listen to me, okay?” He took a step closer to me, his frame practically towering over mine. He was tall and strong, intimidating to those who didn’t know him. To those people who did know him, like me, he barely made an impression. “I’m not going to hurt Ash.”
I tilted my head, slow to say, “It’s times like these when words mean less than actions. If you want to prove yourself, you’re going to have to do just that. I won’t be satisfied until Ash is, and even then, you know it’s not just me. Declan and Will are in this, too. It isn’t just about you and Ash.”
“I never said it was.” Sawyer shook his head, sighing. “It’s never been just me and Ash. From the beginning, it was all of us.” His green gaze fell to the floor, and he shrugged, almost chuckling as he added, “She caught all of us, even when we were at our worsts.” His gaze lifted, meeting mine again. “She deserves us at our best, now.”
Ash…was right. As I stood there, staring at him, listening to him, I came to the conclusion she was right. Sawyer had changed. Whether he would stick to this new him was beyond anyone’s guess, but he seemed to really want this. If he really wanted her, he’d work for it. Work for her. Maybe Sawyer could turn a new leaf, and things could finally settle down around here.
“I agree,” I was slow to say.
“I know you’d do anything for her,” Sawyer said.
