14. Hallie
HALLIE
“ H ow is it we see you less since you moved to Starlight Bay than when you were traveling around? Can you find time for us soon?” my mother asks, the tease not quite hitting the mark.
“Of course,” I tell her as I drum my fingers along the steering wheel on my way to work. I did plan on seeing my parents more often. What I didn’t plan was Sawyer Kade absolutely owning my body every night.
The man was insatiable and that suited me just fine. I’d been deliciously sore and sated since he fucked me on the dryer.
And every other surface in the house.
He’d made it his mission to learn every inch of my body. I’d never had so many orgasms in my life, but I’m not complaining.
Not even a little.
“Your father and I would love to take you out to dinner. Have you been to Big Bob’s Barbeque? The pulled pork is to die for.” With a dramatic sigh, she adds, “Your father thinks their cornbread is better than mine, can you believe it?”
I stifle a laugh because the only kind of cornbread my mother has ever made is the kind that comes in the blue box.
“I can look at my schedule and see when I’m off next. I’m heading into work now.”
“You should bring Sawyer; we’d love to catch up with him too,” she says, the comment catching me so off guard I nearly swerve onto the shoulder before righting the wheel.
“Oh, um…is that a good idea?” I ask because how do you take your sister’s ex-boyfriend, who is now your current roommate and the man you’re having wild, unhinged sex with, to see your parents?
“Why not?”
For reasons I’d rather not get into.
Reasons I can’t possibly explain to my mother.
“No reason. I’ll ask him,” I tell her, my voice weak as I pull into the hospital’s staff parking lot. “I just got to work. I’ll let you know when my next day off is.”
“All right, honey. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Disconnecting the call, I stare at my phone, hesitating only a second before tapping out a message.
HALLIE: Mom wants me to go to dinner with them
BETH: This is a pretty standard parent/child activity even in adulthood
HALLIE: She wants me to invite Sawyer
BETH: Okay, well that’s a little weird but you’re roommates and they really liked him when we dated
BETH: Plus he’s local so I’m sure they’ve run into him over the years—built a relationship and all that
BETH: Weird but I don’t see why not
BETH: Unless you had sex with him
I don’t need to 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 if she’s wrong?