Chapter 13
THIRTEEN
FROM BONERS TO BODIES
CONNOR
The party was fun until it fucking sucked.
Meg rubbing up on me, blowing up our friendship as well as her friendship with Sarah, fucking sucked.
Sarah being in a weird standoff with Meg while everyone watched, fucking sucked.
But what sucked most of all was the way Sarah deflated and closed herself off after their little chat.
All she would do is give a tight-lipped smile and sip on whatever was in her red cup.
I stood next to her, trying to make small talk, but failed miserably. Every insecurity I had about this college thing crept in until I was Sarah’s twin—miserable, buzzed, and ready to leave.
“He hasn’t blinked in the last five minutes,” Sarah murmured, her chin lifting slightly toward Carter, who was watching us with a drunk, vacant stare.
My lips twitched, but I hid it behind the rim of my cup. “A rare skill.”
“Pretty sure it’s his only skill.”
I didn’t love thinking about what of his other skills Sarah may have sampled, but I appreciated the lifeline she’d thrown me. “Not everyone can be as awesome as us.”
“Or as drunk as he is.” She gazed up at me with a cautious smile. “We are pretty awesome.”
“You know what would be even more awesome?”
“What?”
“If we snuck away from the group. Maybe go somewhere decidedly less Greek?”
She nodded, her lips spreading into a genuine smile. “Running away from the Greeks?” She peeked over at her roommates, and they shared a silent conversation. “Okay, let’s go.”
We slipped on our sandals and walked toward the shore. I let her go a few steps ahead so my drunk ass could appreciate her in that sexy as hell swimsuit. It was a true testament to my self-control that I didn’t maul her when she took off that see-through dress thing.
It was too soon for that. I needed to be patient. But there was no harm in looking, right?
Her ass, which was the focus of many a daydream, bounced with each step, the modest cut of her bottoms leaving my imagination room to run wild. The light pink color of her swimsuit complemented her lightly tanned legs. Despite working outside at the camp, her pale skin seemed to repel the sun.
“The sunset is so pretty,” Sarah said, drawing my attention from her voluptuous figure.
Jogging to catch up, I glanced at the pink and purple sky, then back to her beautiful, smiling face. “Yeah,” I said, catching her hand and linking our fingers together. “Makes this whole day worth it.”
Sarah fluttered her eyelashes at me in mock surprise. “Do you mean you aren’t having fun?”
I laughed. “I am now.”
“Smooth, Mr. McCormick. Very smooth.”
“Are you having a good time?”
She dramatically sighed and looked down at our hands. “You know, I never really partied before, and now that I am? I’m not sure it’s for me.”
“Yeah?”
“I mean, I enjoy hanging out with my sisters and—” She rolled her eyes at me. “You.” We shared a laugh, and she shook her head. “It’s everyone else.”
“Fair.”
“What are your friends like?”
I thought about the guys and smiled. “They’re great. We’ve been friends since kindergarten, so at this point, they’re basically my brothers. Every summer, Tom throws a huge party for the Fourth of July out on his parents’ property. I was kind of hoping you’d want to come with me this year.”
“I could probably make that happen,” Sarah said, tapping her chin.
I pulled her to my side and dropped a kiss on top of her head. The casual affection felt natural despite us being on a quasi-first date.
I inhaled deeply and hummed. “Are you wearing perfume?”
“Mm-hmm.” She nodded, her curly blond ponytail bobbing against my neck.
“It’s nice.”
“Thanks.” She pressed her nose to my arm. “And is that, Dove?”
The heat of her breath on my bare skin made me tighten my hold on her. “Guilty. It leaves my skin soft and smelling nice. You should smell the sugar scrub I use once a week. It’s delicious.”
“Let me guess. It’s citrus?”
I leaned back to get a good look at her blushing face. “How’d you know?”
“That night in your car. You smelled all zesty.”
I opened my mouth, but someone screaming from the dock cut me off.
“She’s drowning!” One of the girls from the other sorority shrieked, waving wildly at the lake.
Sarah and I ran toward the crowd forming at the end of the dock. Scanning the water, I saw a tube floating away and a bunch of splashing behind it.
We shoved through the group, and without missing a beat, Sarah dove into the lake. I pushed people back from the edge, giving her plenty of room to drag up whoever was struggling.
“It was an accident,” a guy with long brown hair slurred, a long gash running along the side of his forehead. Blood dripped down his sunburned chest onto the worn, wooden planks where he lay. “We were just fucking around.”
“You don’t bring glass to the lake, Colby,” a fierce, tall blond snapped. “I swear, if Jana’s hurt, I’ll—”
Sarah surfaced from the water with a small woman in her arms.
“Jana!” the blond shouted, her hands going to her mouth as she watched Sarah swim toward the dock.
You had to admire Sarah. The girl was drunk as hell, but sprang into action like a goddamn superhero. The dock had gone silent, everyone holding their breath as they bobbed through the water.
When they got close enough, I reached down and helped pull the coughing girl out of the water. Sarah lifted herself out of the lake and went straight into barking orders. The blond handed her a towel, and she quickly wrapped it around Jana.
Shoving back her long braids, Jana gave Sarah a weak smile. “Thanks, Sarah.”
“No problem,” Sarah said between panting breaths. Her pale skin was bright red from exertion, making her look like she had a sunburn.
Jana’s warm brown eyes scanned the group, narrowing when they landed on the bleeding doofus struggling to stand. “You cut me and pulled me under, asshole.”
“I’m sorry, baby. I wasn’t—”
“Thinking. Story of your life,” Jana said, letting Sarah check for injuries.
“Looks like you got a little cut on your shoulder,” Sarah said, holding the towel to Jana’s dark brown skin. “Does anyone have a first-aid kit?”
“Right here,” Mona said, jogging up the dock with an enormous case. “Let me take it from here. You go get some water.”
The tall blond helped Jana stand, then held out her hand. “I’ll take care of her.”
“Blake, I—”
“I said, I got it.”
Mona shrugged and handed the case to her. “I want my first aid kit back.”
After Jana and Colby got fixed up, it was like nothing had happened.
The guys grilled, and they all ate and joked around as if someone hadn’t almost drowned just feet away.
While we ate s’mores, Kat’s douchebag ex, Duncan, brought out an acoustic guitar and assailed our ears with his rendition of some classic yacht rock song.
Glancing at Sarah, I caught her struggling to keep a smile on her face.
“Hey,” I said, taking her hand and pulling her into my lap. “You okay?”
“I’m okay,” she said, leaning against me.
The song ended, but Duncan dove straight into another.
“Less good now,” she muttered, her warm breath on my ear sending a shiver down my spine.
I left my arms loose around her waist, careful to keep my hands light on her legs. No need to make her think I was trying to cop a feel. “What? Not a big Steely Dan fan?”
Sarah barked out a laugh, drawing Mona into a conversation where they went back and forth, building the worst possible playlist. Kat carried over another round of drinks and joined in on the fun as she heckled her ex.
Every time Sarah leaned over to say something to Mona or Kat, her thigh pressed harder into mine, and she had to use an arm around my neck to steady herself.
We touched from shoulder to leg, and I wasn’t mad about it.
There were worse ways to spend a Saturday than at a party with a beautiful girl on your lap.
Sarah turned into me, her chin resting on my shoulder next to my ear. “How much would I have to pay you to destroy Duncan’s guitar and throw it in the fire?”
I squeezed her waist, right over where she had her tattoo.
I wanted to see that cute little pink heart again.
Shifting back on the crude, log bench, I caught the blush spreading from her cheeks down her neck.
Her eyelids lowered, and her lips parted.
The connection I always felt when we looked at each other consumed me.
As I leaned in for a kiss, Sarah jumped up and spun around.
“What the hell?” Ice-cold liquid soaked into her little cover-up thing, with the excess splashing onto my arm. Tiny ice cubes landed at my feet as I stood steadying Sarah.
The source of the chaos? A half-empty plastic cup in Meg’s hand.
“Oh shit. I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to—”
“Just shut up!” Sarah’s cheeks were beet red as she pulled her wet dress over her head and flung it in Meg’s face.
Meg rocked on her heels, taken aback by the acid in Sarah’s voice.
She turned to me, her eyes wide, begging for help.
I wasn’t sure what she expected me to do.
I glanced over at the Frattic girls and found Mona with her mouth hanging open while Kat stood behind her, struggling to get out of Jamie’s hold.
Mona blinked rapidly and then stood, picking up her beach towel. “Here, use this.”
Sarah snatched it from Mona’s hands and wrapped it around her, dabbing her chest with a frown.
“It was an accident. You have to believe me.” Meg reached toward Sarah, but Sarah stepped back into me.
“Maybe before today I would have believed you, but after everything that’s happened? Nah.” Sarah turned to Mona. “I’m going to go cool off. I’ll be back.”
Mona nodded. “Of course.” She hugged Sarah and sent Meg an unimpressed look. Prez wasn’t pleased.
Grabbing my hand, Sarah shuffled past the firepit and stomped into the darkness. I glanced back at Meg and found her staring at us, absolutely miserable as Mona talked at her.
“Hey, slow down.” When we reached the trees, I reeled Sarah back to me. “Are you okay?”