6. Sean
CHAPTER 6
SEAN
M y entire body is frozen except for my heart, which is hammering inside my chest hard and fast. For a second, I thought my eyes were deceiving me, but it was wishful thinking. The gorgeous woman who I was already dubbing the best hookup I’ve ever had is none other than Ashley. The buzz from the alcohol has vanished, and I’m stone-cold sober.
“Is this a sick joke?” she asks.
“What?”
“Did you know it was me this whole time?”
I blink fast, outraged by her accusation. “Do you seriously believe I’d do something so twisted?”
She pushes her hair back with a shaky hand. “I don’t know what to think.”
“I didn’t recognize you, all right? Your hair is pink, for starters, and I was buzzed. You didn’t recognize me either—at least, I’m hoping you didn’t.”
She hugs her middle and starts to pace. “Of course I didn’t recognize you, dumbass. It was super dark, and loud. Oh God. I think I’m going to be sick.”
I try to not feel offended, but it’s hard. Despite being disturbed by this revelation, I’m not disgusted by it. “Oh, get over it. It was just a fuck, and we aren’t related.”
She stops pacing and throws me a death glare. “Oh yeah, that’s my main concern. I screwed my stepbrother—I’m going to hell. It has nothing to do with the fact I hate your guts.”
This isn’t the first time Ashley has told me that, but tonight it hurts. I don’t know why. The darkness spreads through my veins, and the noise in my head gets louder. Fuck. Not this again.
I cross my arms. “We can’t change the past, but we should discuss how we’ll proceed from now on.”
Her gaze drops to my crotch, reminding me that I’m still naked. Apprehension slides down my spine. I didn’t bother concealing the scars on my forearms like I usually do when I know I’ll be undressing in front of others. I wasn’t planning on hooking up tonight.
It’s dark, Sean. She can’t see them.
She looks away. “You can start by getting dressed.”
I push my uneasiness aside and bring forth the arrogance I know makes her mad. “You’d better look your fill, sweetheart. This is the last time you’ll see me in my birthday suit.”
She faces me again, eyes narrowed. “Aren’t you conceited? I want to burn this memory from my brain.”
I smirk, then step closer. “Sure you do. You’ll be thinking about me naked for a long, long time. Whenever you feel an itch and reach for one of your toys, it’s my image you’ll see.”
Her green eyes spark with fury, and maybe it isn’t such a good idea to be invading her personal space while I have no clothes on.
“This may be a hard concept for you to grasp, but you aren’t God’s gift to women, and if the fate of humankind depended on us having sex for procreation, I still wouldn’t fuck you.”
Despite still reeling from having railed the girl I spent years aggravating, I’m amused by her reaction. “Except you already did, babe.” I boop her nose.
“You’re such a jerk, Sean.” She pushes me back, then turns and leaves the room.
My smile wilts to nothing, and the heavy weight of remorse crushes my chest. Once again, I couldn’t control my tongue around Ashley. It was always an irrational reaction, and I got proof of that tonight. When I didn’t know who she was, I thought she was smart and sexy, and even before our clothes came off, I was already planning to ask for her number.
This shouldn’t be a surprise. Despite the animosity, I’ve been crushing on her since we were teens. I got into a fight at that bonfire party because I was jealous.
The remorse gives way to worry. She’s alone in a party full of drunk idiots. I get dressed quickly and run after her. But I take too long, and finding her in the crowded room is impossible. I stick my hand in my pocket to get my phone and find something else first. Ashley’s panties. I never returned them to her. Shit. I get annoyed by the knowledge she’s walking around in that tight dress without underwear.
I fish my phone from my pocket and call her. It rings and rings before it goes to voicemail. It’s pointless to leave her a message. She’s pissed at me and will probably delete it. My guess is that she’s going home, so I make a beeline for the exit.
But someone blocks my way. “Sean, dude. What happened to your mask?”
“Alex?”
“No, it’s Logan.” He pushes his mask up his forehead. “Are you leaving already?”
“Yeah, I gotta wake up early tomorrow.”
He scrunches his brows together. “What for?”
“Gym. Later, dude.” I push him out of my way and walk as fast as I can toward the exit.
I have no idea how Ashley came the party, but she was drinking, so I know she didn’t drive. She’s too responsible for that. I bet she called a ride, and I’m hoping she’s still waiting for it. There are a few people hanging by the club’s entrance. No sign of her. Damn everything to hell.
I call her again, but this time, I leave a message. “Ash, please, call me back.”
“Hey Sean, what’s going on?” Jesse Hartnett, one of my teammates, asks. He’s not wearing a mask, and neither is his date, a pretty girl with strawberry blonde hair.
“I’m looking for someone... my stepsister to be exact.”
“We just got here. What does she look like?” Jesse’s date asks.
“Uh... she’s petite, and she has shoulder-length pink hair. And she was wearing a blue dress.”
“Oh, we saw her outside. She just left with Blair,” Jesse replies.
“Who’s Blair?”
“Ryder’s sister.” Jesse shakes his head. “Sorry. I forgot you’re a freshman. You don’t have to worry. Blair will get you sister home safe.”
“ Step sister.” I feel the need to make that very clear, especially after all the naughty things I did to her. “But thanks for letting me know.”
“No worries. Are you leaving?”
“Yeah. I’m a bit tired. I’ll see you at practice.” I turn to his date. “It was nice to meet you...”
“Oh shoot. I’m such an idiot,” Jesse chimes in. “This is Riley, my girlfriend.”
“Nice to meet you, Riley.”
“Likewise. Take care.” She smiles.
I force a grin to my face just to be polite, but the moment they enter the party, my smile vanishes. I should be thankful that Ashley found a reliable ride home, but I’m far from relaxed. I can’t believe we hooked up. As if our relationship wasn’t already explosive enough.
Truth be told, the most troublesome aspect of what happened isn’t the fact that I fucked my stepsister. It’s my desire to do it again.