Wet (The Water's Edge #1) (28 page)

Idiots.

I had two meetings with Grady about photography opportunities at Water’s Edge, and he had my hopes up, alluding to a big project he wanted to assign me to but was just waiting for the final approval from his boss. As I left our meeting that Thursday, I asked Grady if he’d had a falling out with Rue.

His face blanched, and he froze with his hand on the doorknob to see me out. “Why? What did she say?”

Interesting.

“She didn’t. But things seemed tense between y’all the other week.”

His knuckles turned white, and his lips pressed into a hard line. “I have no problem with Rue. If something seemed off, it must be on her end.”

Riiiiight, nothing weird going on there at all.

I smiled at him and slipped out of his office, leaving him to his thoughts, and unable to stop myself from wondering what Rue had found wrong with him. I’d almost asked last weekend, after we finished
Crazy Stupid Love
for the millionth time, but something stopped me every time I went to open my mouth. Meddling never helped, in my experience.

As I left the resort, I ran into Theo in the parking lot as he was headed to his car, which was parked a few spots ahead of mine.

“Hey, Sadie! What are you up to tonight?”

I shrugged. “Maybe a run down on the beach? Nothing much.”

“Have you been to the drive-in yet? I feel like getting out of town for the night. Want to see if Rue wants to go, and we can make a night of it? If we leave in the next hour or so, we have time to grab some munchies and get there before the show starts.”

My eyes widened. “There’s a working drive-in movie theater around here?”

“Yeah, about an hour inland, past the Air Force base. There’s a double feature at sundown.”

I hesitated and checked my phone. No messages. My fingers tightened around the device, as if it was its fault I hadn’t heard from
him.
“You know what, Theo? That sounds perfect.”

If he could detect the forced enthusiasm, he didn’t show it.

“Great!” He stubbed his rubber flip flop against the asphalt and peeked up at me from under his floppy hair. “Do you mind driving? The Wrangler would work better than my piece of shit here. I’ll spring for gas and food.”

My eyes softened. “No problem. Want to swing by after you change?”

By the time I got home, took a shower, and threw on some comfy clothes — Nike shorts and a faded Vanderbilt shirt — Rue had packed us a cooler of beer, and Theo had arrived with two Piggly Wiggly bags of junk food.

This was exactly what I needed. A night with friends, way too many calories, and physical distance from everything that reminded me of West.

On the car ride, we cranked up the radio and sang along to Top 40, failing horribly at the hip hop songs but singing louder just the same. Well, Theo and I failed. Rue held her own, the pink tips of her hair whipping around her as we flew down the highway.

Dusk was falling when we pulled into the field, and we divvied up the snacks. Little Debbie cakes, kettle chips, and more candy than we could eat littered the dash and console, and freshly-cracked beers were ready in the cup holders.

“What’s playing tonight, anyway?” Rue asked, taking a sip of Bud Light.

Theo shoved half an oatmeal cream pie in his mouth before answering. “Who cares?”

They clinked beer cans, and we settled back against the seats, Theo propping his legs up on the armrest, and Rue and I reclining the seats back.

We chatted while the opening credits rolled and trucks and SUV’s parked around us, gorging ourselves on artificial flavors and additives, washing it down with mind-numbing alcohol.

“We need to pace ourselves, guys. I’ve only got one more thingy of beer left.” She held up the empty plastic rings from the first six-pack.

The previews were just starting when two trucks pulled into the row behind us, about half a dozen vehicles down. One was a black extended cab pickup, the other a familiar jacked up dually.

My heart thudded, beating against my ribs and threatening to split my hard won indifference into something wide open and gaping.

The cellophane from my honey bun package crinkled in my clenched fist as I sat upright, squinting through the growing dark at the new arrivals.

Wyatt, Trevor, Aubrey, and two other skinny girls spilled out of the black truck, laughing and hauling gear with them. The door to the dually remained stubbornly closed for another dozen painful heartbeats.

Finally, it eased open, and there he was, looked deliciously rumpled in a wrinkled tee and cargo shorts.

West.

CHAPTER 17

M
y chest expanded sharply, humid air filling my lungs and forgetting to leave, and my foot reached for the brake pedal as if that would stop this whole scene unfolding before me.

I couldn’t look away as they lowered their tailgates and part of the group settled into cheap folding lawn chairs in the back of Wyatt’s truck. Aubrey skipped over to the dually and waited until West lifted her up to the high truck bed, his hands spanning her whole waist. She dropped down into one of his orange bean bags, wiggling her barely-covered ass into the vinyl, and stretched her long legs out in front of her, angling them across the space.

West hopped up into the truck bed, plopped on the other poof, and rested his head back against the toolbox, staring up at the sky, his whole body sagging.

A twinge of sympathy swelled — he looked exhausted — but I smothered it, burying it under a thick layer of I-don’t-give-a-shit.

The movie started, and I forced myself to face the oversized screen, although I couldn’t help stealing covert peeks. The brightness from the projector did a decent job of lighting the field, and I was a glutton for punishment, intent on watching how my own personal horror show was going to play out.

After my fifth or sixth glance to the side, Rue got annoyed.

“Sadie!” Her loud voice carried over the background music of the opening credits. “What in the hell do you keep looking at?”

She stood up on the seat of the Jeep and turned to her left, her chestnut and pink hair a beacon, causing several heads to turn in our direction.

My face burned hotter than last week’s sunburn, and I slunk as low as I could in my seat, wishing I could bury myself under all the wrappers on my floorboard.

From a few spots down the field, I heard Wyatt’s voice answer. “Rue? Are y’all here too?”

Rue lifted her hand in greeting, squinting his direction, and then she turned her big brown eyes to me, silently asking me questions I didn’t know the answers to.

I focused on my breathing, squishing my eyes shut in mortification. In, out. Slow and easy. Repeat.

A whoosh of air signaled my door being yanked open, and I grabbed the steering wheel as if I was in danger of falling out.

His presence was palpable as he loomed over me — I could feel his eyes raking down my body, a hot caress that had my traitorous thighs pressing together in response. Only West had ever made me feel that way — a visceral awareness that seeped through me, saturating my limbs with pure, unadulterated desire. I fought it, battling it into submission.

My body was weak. I knew it.
He
knew it.

I needed to let my head handle this conversation, not my worthless fluttering heart.

“Sadie?” His voice sounded low and rough, and I bit my lip, ignoring the curl of desire flaring inside me at just the sound of him.

Oh, now he wants to talk to me?

My inner bitch reminded me of the Italian princess currently warming his truck bed, and the flame fizzled out. My fingers relaxed, uncurled, and dropped back into my lap.

Tilting my head up to him, I responded in a curt voice. “Yes?”

“What are you doing here?” He sounded thrilled, a grin slashing his face, and he ran a warm hand down my cheek, cupping my jaw.

Rue snorted beside me. “I think the better question is — what is
she
doing here?” There was no mistaking the distaste in her tone as she nodded toward West’s truck.

He glanced over, running his hand through his hair and gripping the back of his neck. Turning back to me, he shrugged. “Wyatt brought her. I didn’t even know she was coming.”

I looked him in the eye and kept my question soft, fighting my growing need to yell at him from sheer frustration. “What are you doing here?”

He snagged one of my hands and starting tugging me from the Jeep. “Now? Watching a movie with my favorite girl.”

One foot was on the ground, one still in the Jeep when I pulled free, shaking my head. “Nope. You gotta do better than that.” I picked up my beer and took a swallow, needing to break physical contact with him.

The body is weak, the mind is strong.

Propping his arms on the doorframe, he leaned down, catching my gaze. He opened his mouth to speak, but Theo interrupted before any sound escaped.

“Damn, this is better than the movie. Is it going to be R-rated too?” He crunched on a handful of chips and held the bag out toward Rue.

I ignored him.

West moved closer and ran his fingers along my hairline, pushing a chunk behind my ear. “Sadie?”

My chest rose and fell as I gritted my teeth against the instinct to lean into his hand.

The mind is fucking strong.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I pushed my skull farther into the headrest. “It was a good question, West. What is she doing here?”

“Watching a movie, I guess. What are you getting at? I already told you I didn’t know she was coming. She rode with Wyatt.” His brow furrowed, and he backed up a step.

“And what about on Saturday?”

He regarded me steadily, meeting my gaze head-on. “My grandmother called me on Friday to ask Wyatt and me to please join her for a family dinner on Saturday. I didn’t realize she had invited the Perottis over for dessert to discuss the gala.”

I forged ahead. “And the picture?”

“What picture?”

“Palm tree, her wrapped around you, ring a bell?”

West clenched his jaw. “Her mom asked to take our picture. I didn’t want to cause a scene at my grandparents, so I posed for the damn picture. Hailey and Wyatt were standing right there too. We took a group shot after that. What’s going on here, Sadie?”

“Why haven’t I heard from you since Friday?”

Just then, Aubrey slipped up behind him, wrapping her arms around his bicep, tugging on him and licking her lips while staring straight at me, her eyes bright with victory.

“West, baby, you’re missing the movie. Come back to the truck.”

I saw red.

I saw motherfucking matador red.

“Hey, Sadie. I hope you’ve been getting the referrals I’ve sent your way.”

I attempted a smile of acknowledgement in her direction but ending up baring my teeth at best.

Sneaky bitch.

Aubrey pulled on his arm again.

Theo mumbled something behind me, and Rue shifted, pressing against my side, but whether it was to urge me on or to hold me back, I couldn’t tell. Holding my breath, I kept my attention fixed on West.

He inhaled and shot an irritated glance over his shoulder before pulling his arm free. “I’m good here.”

The corner of my lip twitched, but he saw it.

And then he swooped.

I was cradled in his arms and most of the way to his truck before I figured out what was happening. My hand pressed against his chest, and I froze, paralyzed between holding on tight and pushing him away. I couldn’t see where Aubrey ended up, but really, I didn’t give a fuck.

“Don’t even think it.” The warning fell hot against my temple, and my fingers curled into his shirt, still indecisive, fisting the worn cotton.

His muscles flexed beneath me, and I failed to stop the shudder that ran through me.

The body is weak, so fucking weak.

West set me on the tailgate before vaulting up next to me and pulling me into his lap on one of the beanbags. My ass rubbed against his crotch as he settled deep into the seat with me across him, stretching his legs out wide to cradle me in between them. He buried his face in my hair and took a deep breath, his chest pushing outward, and then he exhaled with a happy sigh.

Like a recurrent nightmare I couldn’t shake, Aubrey appeared at the tailgate with her hands on her hips, glaring up at me. Rearranging her sneer into a pout, her voice dripping honey, she appealed to West. “You gonna help me up too?”

I stiffened, my eyes narrowing to slits, but he wrapped his big arm around my middle, forcing me to conform to his relaxed posture.

He yawned before answering. “Nope. Why don’t you go sit with Wyatt and them? Do you want the other bean bag? I think me and Sadie can make do with one.” He flexed his hips and pressed his growing length against my side.

She couldn’t have seen his movement, but she must have noticed the change in my expression because her eyes widened and she stepped back, sucking in a breath and stumbling as she turned toward the other truck. Her words were ripped away by the breeze, and, while I didn’t catch the specifics, her angry tone wasn’t lost on me. I didn’t watch the rest of her retreat.

Instead, I rounded on West and pinned him with a flat look.

He gazed back at me through sleepy eyes, one side of his mouth hitched up. “You didn’t want her to stay, did you?”

I huffed out a breath but didn’t respond, continuing to watch him.

His brows drew together, and he brushed his thumb over my cheek. “Are you mad at me?”

My tongue traced my upper teeth in sheer frustration, and I pushed his hand off my face.

“I don’t get you,” I seethed. “You cancelled our date, ignored me all week, met other girls here, and now you’re acting like we’re together?” I tried to shove off his lap, but the slippery vinyl under me made it difficult.

West sat up straighter, leaning down until our noses were almost touching, his eyes glittering. His voice was dangerously soft. “You sound an awful lot like the whiny girl who just slunk away from here. And that’s not you. Now what’s going on?”

It wasn’t a question, it never was with him, and I swore under my breath.