Page 22 of Beehive Yourself
I don’t needto look in the mirror to know my face is red because my heart is pounding in my chest and I’m starting to sweat.
BETH: OH MY GOD YOU HAD SEX WITH HIM
BETH: Good for you girl
HALLIE: Beth!
BETH: You totally did, you little harlot
BETH: I’m so proud of you!
HALLIE: As you can imagine, this complicates things
BETH: No it doesn’t
BETH: You like him, he likes you, and you’re having lots of sex. What’s the problem?
HALLIE: You’re joking, right?
BETH: You’re being dramatic—it’s only a big deal if you make it a big deal
BETH: Why don’t you just ask him and see if he’s comfortable with it before you start hyperventilating…
HALLIE: I have to go to work
BETH: DON’T CHICKEN OUT JUST ASK HIM
BETH: It’s going to be fine baby sister
HALLIE: I hope you’re right
But what ifshe’s wrong?
15
SAWYER
Hallie had been working her ass off the last few days, and despite my best efforts, I worried about the inevitable crash. She seemed off but claimed it was just stress from the hospital. My father’s life—and now my brother’s—as the sheriff of our small town had revolved around the same long, tense hours.
The tragedy of the job.
No town is immune.
I’d watched it from the outside but I’d never experienced it firsthand. And no matter how many meals I prepared or orgasms I gave her, it wouldn’t be enough to fix it.
I’d taken my frustration down to the beach and swam in the ocean, moving against the current with strong confident strokes, my body sliding easily through the water.
The ocean is the one thing I could never give up. My siblings and I had gone to Cedar Lake throughout our childhood, but it was nothing like this.
Hell, I’d never even seen a lighthouse before I moved here.
The thought has me smiling as I turn on the outside shower, barely waiting for the water to warm up before stepping under the spray and dropping my board shorts to the wooden planks.
“Okay if I join you?” Hallie’s sweet voice is a purr as she peeks in the side and smiles.
“Always,” I tell her, slicking my wet hair back and watching her undress. “Didn’t expect you back till later.”
“We had enough people on the schedule, and I just needed to get out of there.”
