Chapter 13 August
THIRTEEN
AUGUST
“Woo!” Beau picks up another shot glass.
That makes five.
“Are you sure you don’t want to slow down?” Addie asks, drinking through her colorful straw; the hues imitate a lava lamp. “We have the rest of the night ahead of us.”
Beau turns to Addie and gestures his hand along his body. “Look at me.”
Addie tips her head back to meet his eyes.
He raises his eyebrows in question. “I’m six foot five and two hundred and twenty pounds of pure muscle. Do you know how much it takes for me to get just slightly buzzed?”
“Okay.” Addie holds up her hands.
He taps the counter. “Barkeep, another!”
“Who are you? Thor?” James says before taking a drink of his beer.
“He wishes he were me.” Beau flips his medium-length hair dramatically.
“Are we heading to the club or what?” Rowan asks.
This is how I know Rowan is seven drinks deep. He’s the last person to suggest going to a club, but he is the birthday boy, so we have no choice but to do as he says.
“Honey, are you sure you want to go?” Ellie asks, placing a hand on his stomach.
Rowan looks down and grins. “You are just so cute.” He bops her nose. “Onward! To the club we shall go.”
“Follow thy king,” Beau yells.
“What the hell is going on?” Hailey says.
“If they continue this,” Riley says as she walks in front of me, “I’ll have no choice but to sue for emotional damage.”
“No one is allowed to leave until Rowan leaves,” I say from behind them.
Riley looks over her shoulder. “Who died and made you queen?”
“You mean king?”
“Nope.” She gives me a grin. “Pretty sure I said queen.”
I guess it’s a good thing this is an adult-only resort. I’m sure children would be terrified to see two large men speaking the medieval language while slinging their drinks around.
The club is outside, near the same pool I was lounging earlier. Blue, pink, and purple lighting glow under the water. Party goers are in the pool while others walk around talking, laughing, and dancing.
A remix of songs plays through large speakers that stand tall on each side of the DJ’s booth.
A bachelorette group gathers around a standing table. One of them wears a headband with two pink penises bouncing on springs.
“Damn. And I thought I was the life of the party,” Beau says, staring at the same woman.
I smirk. “I bet you ten bucks to go over there and persuade her to let you wear it.”
Beau scoffs, turning to me as he walks backward. “That’s the easiest ten bucks I’ll make.”
I wiggle my fingers in a wave, and he gives me two thumbs up.
“Hi,” a soft voice says to me.
I turn to see a woman looking at me and take a step back when I realize just how close she is. Her hair is a faded pink, her nose is freckled, and she has big brown eyes. She’s wearing a long dress that drops to the ground.
“Hello,” I say, stuffing my free hand in my pocket.
“My name’s Casey.” She holds out her hand. Her fingers are painted a light yellow and the bracelets on her wrist cling together.
“August.”
“So August, what brings you here?”
I point my beer bottle toward Rowan, who is getting alcohol shot into his mouth with a water gun while Ellie laughs and cheers. He’s going to have a massive hangover tomorrow.
She turns and looks at him, then back at me. Her hair whips over her shoulder. “Oh, celebrating something special?”
“It’s his birthday. What about you?”
“A friend of mine is getting married.” She points at the group of women wooing.
As I look in the direction she’s pointing, I notice Beau has successfully put the headband on his head. He bows toward the ladies.
“Did that guy just get Rachel’s headband?”
I scrunch my nose and turn back to Casey. “Yeah, I owe him ten bucks.”
She raises her eyebrows and huffs out a laugh. “You should give him twenty. Rachel never lets any guy persuade her to do anything. He must be a smooth talker.”
I shrug. “He’s okay.”
She smiles and giggles while I finish the rest of my beer.
“Can I buy you a drink?” she asks.
Inside my head, I debate whether to take the bait and let her buy me a drink. I’m not sure why I care so much. It’s not like I’m with or attached to anyone—at least, that’s what I tell myself.
“Sure.”
One free drink won’t hurt.
When I follow her to the bar, I lock eyes with Riley from the other side of the pool. My stomach flips when her gaze follows Casey, who’s walking in front of me. She cocks an eyebrow at me.
I shake my empty bottle of beer.
She grimaces, obviously jealous, and I can’t help but boast inside. Her face is scrunched up like she’s disgusted. It’s so damn cute.
“What can I get you?” Casey asks.
“I’ll stick to this,” I tell the bartender, passing him my empty bottle.
While we wait, I lean on my side against the bar, crossing one foot over the other.
“So how long are you here for?” she asks.
“It’s our last night, so heading back home tomorrow.”
“That’s too bad.” She tilts her head and gives me a small smile.
I feel someone push past me. The bar isn’t crowded, and there’s plenty of space for people to walk around.
“Can I get another daiquiri please,” Riley says, then drums her fingers on the counter as she waits.
I turn to her, but I make sure I’m not facing away from Casey. I don’t want to come off rude; that’s not who I am, even if my eyes sparkle when they land on the blonde who practically pushed her elbow into my rib.
“Augustus.” Her eyes flick between Casey and me. While her voice is sweet, the undertone is dangerous. “Are you going to introduce me to your new friend?”
“Casey, this is my friend Riley. She’s here with our group.”
“Hi.” Casey gives Riley a friendly wave.
“Riley, this is Casey. She’s here with the bachelorette party over there.” I nod my chin toward the group of women who are laughing at whatever Beau is saying.
“Oh. Cute.” Riley looks at us again. “And what possessed you to talk to him?”
Casey raises her eyebrows and fidgets with the glass in her hand, tapping it with her nail.
“Uh.” She lifts a shoulder. “He seemed like someone who would be cool to talk to.” Even in the dim lighting, I can tell she’s blushing.
“Plus, it helps that he’s really cute.” She looks at me from underneath her lashes.
Riley’s smile is tight, and I think her eye twitches.
“Here’s your daiquiri,” the bartender says.
Riley doesn’t look at him. She forces herself to show her teeth before grabbing her drink. Her voice squeaks when she says, “How nice. Well, you two have fun.”
As she turns, she collides with someone. It plays out in slow motion in my head. Riley slams into a man’s chest, her mouth and eyes wide in horror. The red daiquiri pours onto her chest and down her dress.
Casey gasps, scrabbling to grab napkins from the counter. I force myself to move and grab the glass from Riley’s hand, our fingers brushing with a quick touch, and I set it down on the bar.
Her arms are splayed out, and she looks down at the mess she’s covered in. Casey walks up to her, repeatedly cooing, “It’s okay, we’ll get this cleaned up. It’s not that bad.”
“Shit, Riley, are you okay?” I ask.
“I am so sorry.” The guy she bumped into says. “That was my fault. Shit.” He hisses under his breath. He grabs napkins and carefully dabs at her arms.
Riley’s still planted in the same spot, the same position, not knowing what to do. She’s completely mortified, and I know I need to step in.
“Let’s go.” I grab her hand, locking her fingers between mine, and gently guide her away from everyone.
She doesn’t say anything, and she doesn’t fight me when I walk away with her. I feel like a dick for not saying sorry or goodbye to Casey, but that wasn’t my priority. The woman drenched in sugary alcohol with glassy eyes is my priority.
“It’s okay, I’ve got you.” I swing open the door that goes into a hallway.
Our shoes hitting against the marble floor echoes around us.
We approach the gold elevator doors, and I hit the button before looking around, hoping there aren’t many people that notice her.
Leaning in toward Riley, I place my hand on her lower back and whisper, “You’re okay. We’ll get you cleaned up in a minute.”
She doesn’t say anything, not even a nod or a glance my way. Finally, the doors open.
“Let’s go,” I whisper.
I jam my finger on button number ten, and the doors close. The sound of a small sniffle comes from my right when I realize Riley’s crying.
“Hey,” I murmur, turning her toward me.
Her bottom lip wobbles. “I’m sorry for being such an asshole.”
A strand of her hair falls over her eye, and I push it back, both hands cradling her face. “Don’t say that. You did nothing wrong.”
I’ve kept my eye on Riley all night, watching her order drink after drink. Bouncing from wine to hard liquor. She hasn’t been this vulnerable with me in years, and I can’t stand the sight of it.
One by one, my heart falls into pieces seeing her like this.
“Come here.” I wrap my arms around her, pulling her closer.
It takes her a second to finally melt into me. She digs her face into the crook of my neck.
“I’m sorry.” Her lips graze my skin, and I close my eyes, trying to remember what her lips feel like on me before she pulls away.
There’s a moment I can feel her heart beating at the same rhythm as mine as our chests press together. Or maybe I’m so delusional, so in love with this woman, that I want to believe our hearts beat together in sync.
I continue to hold her and stroke her hair. “It was an accident. The guy wasn’t mad. Don’t apologize.”
“No.” She shakes her head against my chest. “Not that.”
She lifts her head but keeps her arms wrapped around me. Her fingers grip the back of my shirt.
“What is it?”
“August, I—” Her lashes flutter, and she looks away.
I pinch her chin between my fingers and lift her gaze back at me. “Tell me.”
She scans my face with red-tinged eyes. Her gaze drops to my mouth, and she bites her lip. Her grip tightens in my shirt, her arms pushing me into her as much as our bodies will allow.
The tips of our noses brush, and I grip her hips. I wouldn’t be surprised if she could feel my heart pounding through my chest. We embrace each other.
Right now, it’s just us. No one knows where we are or what we’re doing. This can be our little secret. I just need a taste of her, and this isn’t enough.
Her eyelids become heavy, flickering closed. This is it. No more wondering what her lips feel like on mine. I can have her. I can—
Ding!
Her eyes open and she looks at me. I don’t move when the elevator doors open. She doesn’t let go of my shirt. A second later, someone comes from around the corner.
A man and a woman step toward the elevator, and when they come into view, Riley lets me go. I lock her hand in mine, and we walk down the hallway toward our rooms.
Riley’s back in motion, aware of what’s happening and paying attention. She lifts her small purse and pulls out her hotel key card before we stop in front of our doors. Neither of us moves or opens our doors. We don’t say goodbye. We say nothing.
“How are you feeling?” I ask.
“Sticky.”
We let out a small laugh, but her laugh turns into a sigh, and she stares at the dark gray carpet beneath our feet.
“Thank you for helping me tonight.” She touches my arm, dragging her hand down from my bicep and to my forearm, still holding on.
“You think I wouldn’t?”
Her thumb strokes my skin. “Didn’t know if you were enjoying your conversation with your new friend.”
I chance it and slide my hand into hers, locking our fingers together. Her wide eyes trail down to our hands, and a soft gasp passes through her lips.
“You’ll always come first.” I lean down, my lips hovering above her ear. “Sleep tight, Ry.” I kiss her softly on her cheek but don’t move, taking in the sweet vanilla scent that coats her skin.
“August,” her soft, velvet voice brushes my ear.
“Yeah?”
She bites down on her lip as she looks at my own. Maybe I need to step in before something else pulls us apart again. Do I wait for her to give me a signal? Do I chance it and fuck it up again like I did twelve years ago?
“Riley, if you’re gonna—” Before I can continue, her lips press against mine, and I’m taken aback.
Never did I think she would give in to her desires and needs. I thought I’d have to wait a million years for this.
I let her take charge, give her what she wants, while I soak in her warm, tender lips that don’t stop kissing me. Her fingers dive into my hair, and I get a taste of her tongue, swiping my lips, asking me to let her in.
Our tongues collide and tangle together, soft and sensual, desperate and needy. She pulls me in harder, our breathing heavy, and I’m giving her everything I have in me. Everything that I’ve kept inside me for years.
Deeper and deeper, we fall into our kiss while her hands roam my body. My head is light as I drink her in like she’s my favorite liquor.
She pulls back, her lips red and puffy. Her chest rises and falls as she catches her breath. The look in her eyes is wild and hungry.
“I need to go to bed,” she blurts out, turning on her heels and slapping her card on the key lock. The green light flickers, and the sound of the lock tells her she can open the door. “Night, August.” She doesn’t look at me when she pushes it open, runs inside, and closes it.
I stand by myself between our doors. My head is still dizzy, now filled with questions I desperately need answers to.
What just happened?