Page 74 of Sinful as They Come
“Your daddy said I’m not allowed to talk to you anymore,” he said lowly, his eyes running up and down my form for a second.
“He’s... protective of me.”
“I think he just hates me.”
“He doesn’t...” But my voice trailed off. I hadn’t been there, but I was certain Sawyer was right. “Look, my dad hates most people. You guys have something in common, actually...”
Sawyer let out a soft, barely there chuckle. “Yeah, maybe. Anyway, I gotta find Brodie. He’s probably around here somewhere getting wasted. But... Thanks again.”
“Sawyer, wait,” I called out before he completely turned around. I had something to tell him as well.
“Yeah?” He moved back over to me.
My breath caught in my throat for a moment when we locked eyes. “Thank you... For the other night... At Alden Lake... I didn’t say thank you when I was at your place.” Shame is all I felt. How embarrassing was it to thank the guy I was supposed to hate with everything in me? Sawyer should have laughed right in my face. But he didn’t.
He shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket. “You don’t have to thank me for that.”
“No, I do. I appreciate you... You talking to me to that night,” I said. What else could I say? Thanks for comforting me after my boyfriend pressured me and made me feel like I owed him something I wasn’t ready to give? “So, thank you.”
“It’s fine, Holly.” Sawyer gave me a little nod before turning around, beginning his hunt for his drunk cousin. The conversation had left me feeling a little lighter than when I had walked in the front door. Carter had been so dismissive earlier, but knowing Sawyer liked the article and made a sale had definitely improved my mood. We had a past... but I wanted good things for him. He deserved that.
If only my boyfriend was the one making me feel better. Wasn’t that the way things were meant to be?
Chapter 24
SAWYER
It wasn’t going to be easy to forget that conversation with Holly. I couldn’t get her out of my head. The way she smiled at me, the light in her eyes, how her cheeks turned that perfect shade of pink… And she looked so good in that dress, the color contrasting against her sun-kissed skin. What the hell was Carter thinking? He had the chance to spend a night with her alone and instead he brought her to some stupid party so he could get drunk. Fucking idiot.
I needed a distraction, because I was thinking about Holly way too much lately – in ways I never had before. Forcing my brain to focus on finding Brodie, I spent a good ten minutes moving through the drunk mass of people. When I got back inside, my eyes finally landed on my cousin in the corner. He was busy with a girl: an excited grin on his face as he talked animatedly with his hands. I wasn’t going to get in the way of that, so I moved to the kitchen so I could grab a beer. Lucas had at least stocked the fridge with a large supply of drinks.
Leaning against the counter, I nursed the beer, letting the bitter liquid hit my tongue. One drink was going to be my limit since I’d be driving me and Brodie back tonight. Maybe Brodie wouldn’t be coming back with me, though...
As I took another slow sip I realized I could see Carter in front of me. With a girl who wasn’t Holly. I narrowed my eyes at the back of his head.
What the fuck was his problem?
He was so shameless about it too. Holly wasn’t even that far away. Holly, who got all dressed up for their fucking date, only to get dragged to a party with assholes getting black out drunk.
Taking in a deep breath, I realized then how badly I needed a smoke. My hand inched toward my pocket, watching as Carter leaned in closer and closer to the girl. His lips ghosted against her neck as he whispered something in her ear. The girl giggled and gave Carter a kiss to the cheek.
I rolled my eyes. He really, truly did not give a fuck. He whispered one last thing into the girl’s ear before she nodded at him, spun around, and walked away. My guess was that she was gonna hunt down an empty bedroom.
“You’re not really gonna do that, are you?” I called out to him, unable to keep my mouth shut.
Carter spun around and looked at me. There was a lazy grin on his face as he took some sluggish steps towards me. Dude was already drunk out of his mind and clearly couldn’t handle his alcohol.
“Oh, Trailer Park Trash was invited, huh?” Carter asked, voice all smug.
I shrugged at him. “Believe it or not, but we share a mutual friend.” How did Lucas hang out with this asshole?
"You here to start a fucking fight?"
"Nope."
"Then what do you want?"
"You didn’t answer my question.”
