TWENTY-SIX MAC
TWENTY-SIX
MAC
NOW
So that just happened. It did happen, right? Sawyer and I had a few shots of moonshine before heading to the dock. Did it fry my brain?
Sage thinks I planned that whole thing. Man, I wish I could have planned something like that. But nope. Sawyer and I were just talking, catching up. I was apologizing for Dave. It was emotional, but it felt good to close another door to the past.
I did see Sage glowering at us from the fire pit, though.
And maybe I remembered how he had acted with Sawyer last time.
Even before he knew Sawyer and I had a failed attempt at hooking up.
That interaction with Sawyer had led to him kissing my brains out.
So maybe I did play it up. Maybe I ignored him as he stomped his way down the dock. His anger is so predictable.
However, I mean how many times have I gotten him to do something dumb just because I taunted him?
Sage likes people to think he’s fearless, but he always needs a push.
What I did not expect was his dominating me into giving him head.
In front of everyone. Or how hot it was.
I came so hard, my vision is still spotty.
“You really think June didn’t see us?” I ask the drowned rat in the lake in front of me. He pulls himself up onto the dock and shakes like a dog. His muscles flex, the moonlight working like a paid extra to make his skin glow.
Damn, how dark it is out here! Lake water showers down on me. It feels pretty good. It’s been hot as hell all day.
“Nah. Even if she did, her eyesight sucks.” That’s true. June and the ladies have been out here before anyone else. There were already two empty boxes of wine by their chairs when I showed up. Even if she saw something, she’s hammered by now.
“Come on, Stuart. I need a drink.” His hand waves in front of me. I’m still kneeling on the wood like I’m about to pray below him. He helps pull me up to my feet, the dock rocking under us. It’s amazing it hasn’t broken apart and drifted out into the lake by now.
“I’ll get you a drink, baby,” I say smug as shit. “Harley stole a keg.”
“I saw.” We started walking, Sage still holding my hand in his. He switches the hold so his fingers link between mine. It’s wet and kind of slimy from the lake, but I can’t help but smile down at it. Every new thing with Sage is mind blowing. I mean, who knew hand holding was so revolutionary?
I still feel like shit is about to hit the fan. Like the sky is going to rain down on our heads. Life doesn’t work like this. Life isn’t this happy, this light and carefree. But I’m feeling the moonshine, and Sage is holding my hand. So I decide to ignore the sword over my head and just enjoy it.
At the end of the dock, just stepping into the sand, Luna appears. Hip cocked to the side, her arms crossed over her chest.
“Uh oh. Mom’s mad,” Sage jokes, making Luna’s scowl deepen. Tonight, she’s wearing a black bikini held together with silver safety pins. Her faded, blue hair falls in waves down her shoulders.
“You boys have some explaining to do. I mean June is here! And poor Lizzy is now traumatized.” Lizzy stands off to the side, rolling her eyes. “See? Traumatized.” She pulls Lizzy in front of her, using any excuse she can get to be close to her. She covers Izzy’s ears with her hands.
“I mean oral sex! On dock night! Lizzy is an innocent!” She stage-whispers the words with mock outrage. Our little rendezvous on the dock is not the most scandalous thing that’s happened at these things, I can tell you that.
Sage breaks out in laughter, deep and beautiful. I almost resent the fact that Luna caused it and not me. I’ve always prided myself on my ability to make Sage laugh. Luna just stole it from me, but the sound kills any jealousy. I love the way he laughs. When it’s real, it’s with his whole body.
“Lizzy is not innocent. She fucked Bryce Wilkins in high school during a football game. And Carter what’s his name right over there.” He points off to the side where the old boat house sits crumbling into the lake.
Luna shrieks, covering her own ears instead of Lizzy’s. “Now I’m traumatized! Boys are the worst!”
“Calm down, Power Puff. Let’s go get drunk.” I laugh, pulling Luna into my side—please note Sage is still holding my hand. Squeezing it tightly, refusing to let me go.
We all start walking towards the fire pit where most of the people are. The music is growing louder, but I weirdly miss Lizzy’s K-Pop. Shit is catchy as hell.
“For the record, I didn’t fuck Carter,” Lizzy feels the need to clarify.
“Thank God,” Luna mumbles, only for her joy to be squashed.
“I fucked Devin, his brother.” Sage and I both laugh, but Luna is jerking us to a stop, extracting herself from my side to wave her arms up in the air in exasperation.
“That’s worse. You get that, right? That’s sooo much worse, Lizzy!” Her hands latch onto Lizzy’s shoulder, shaking the laughing girl back and forth. “I’m gonna shake sense into you. Boys are dumb.” Shake. “Boys are bad, Lizzy. Bad!”
“Well, I can tell when we aren’t wanted.” Sage pulls me away from the silly girls.
For a while, we just enjoy the party. Have a few more drinks, laugh at Jeremy’s story of Sage falling in a hole on the job. No one seemed to notice what happened on the dock. Well, except Luna and the “traumatized” Lizzy.
Sawyer joins our little group eventually, sitting next to his brother Harley.
Sage glares at him across the flickering flames.
Does it make me a shithead for enjoying the fuck out of this?
I mean, he won’t attack Sawyer—I don’t think.
If he did, then I’d feel like shit, but this jealously is so goddamn hot.
When Sawyer finally has enough of Sage’s glaring, he comes over. He holds his fingers up in a peace sign, a panicky smile on his handsome face.
“I come in peace.” A nervous laugh bubbles out his mouth.
“You’re not coming at all,” Sage mumbles under his breath, the words getting lost in his cup as he takes a drink.
Since I’m drunk, my mental faculties are admittedly low. I laugh. “Come on now, there’s enough of me to go around.”
The look Sage gives me is pure wrath. He might not attack Sawyer, but he’ll sure as shit punch me. God, I’m messed up. Goosebumps flare across my arms despite the heat outside. He’s looking at me like he wants to murder me, and I am so turned on by it.
Sawyer stands, shuffling from foot to foot, clearly debating if he should just fuck off or not. But my focus is on Sage. It’s always on Sage. Is that bad? Shit, I’m way too drunk. All the drinks have my head swimming.
“I will kill you,” he says slowly, so slowly, making sure to say every word clearly. “I’ll just kill your whole family line.”
That has me dying. Laughter rips out my mouth, breath lost as I fucking cackle. Definitely too drunk. But it’s hilarious; he killed my dad, now he’s here, threatening me. For some reason in my alcohol-soaked brain, I can’t stop laughing.
My eyes start to water as I continue to laugh.
At this point, everyone is looking at me, confused why I’m choking on my laughs.
But they all join in anyway. Drunken laughter spreads like the plague around the fire.
Even a nervous Sawyer joins in, and my rage-filled Sage releases a robust laughter with the rest of us.
Just a bunch of fucked-up trailer trash laughing at death threats and jokes about murdered dads.
God, I’m happy to be home.