Chapter 26 #2
I bark out a bitter laugh, snatching an oversized T-shirt and shorts from my dresser. “Don’t play dumb, Wesley. You humiliated me. You were completely irrational, and if Emmett didn’t suspect anything before, he sure as fuck does now.”
He runs a hand through his hair, frustration radiating off him in waves. “You don’t get it, do you?”
“I think you’re the one who’s confused here.” I tug the shirt over my head, yanking the towel from my hair. “Making something out of nothing.”
“It’s not nothing,” he snaps, stepping closer, the heat of him pressing in even though he hasn’t touched me. His voice drops, ragged. “Watching him stand there, grinning at you like he had a chance—it made me want to break his fucking jaw.”
My heart lurches, traitorous bitch, but I don’t let him see the way his words affect me.
“It shouldn’t even matter, right? Because this”—I wave my hand between us—“is just a fling.”
His eyes flare, dark and wild. “You know that’s not true.”
I swallow hard. “It doesn’t change the rules. Your dad’s rule. The ones we agreed to. Remember those?”
“Fuck the rules,” he growls, and the sound of it rips straight through me.
Before I can think, his mouth crashes against mine again. It’s harder this time, desperate. My back hits the dresser, knocking over the lamp, but we don’t break apart.
I want to hate him. I hate that I want him.
His grip bruises at my hips, dragging me against him, and every ounce of fury twists into something darker, hungrier. He rips the towel from my head, tangling his fingers in my wet hair, pulling just enough to make me gasp.
“You drive me insane,” he mutters against my mouth, voice breaking. “I can’t stop wanting you.”
“I don’t want you to st—” But the words dissolve into a whimper as his hands slide beneath my shirt. “Please don’t stop.”
“I don’t want this to end,” he says hoarsely, dragging my shirt over my head, tossing it aside. “I just—fuck, Sadie—I want you. Only you.”
The rawness in his voice leaves me stripped bare. My hands fist in his shirt, pulling it off him to reveal his broad, muscled chest.
“This doesn’t change anything,” I whisper, running my hands down his torso, trying to convince myself more than him.
But then his mouth is at my throat, teeth scraping skin, his hips pressing mine, and the lie burns on my tongue.
We tear away our remaining clothes, each piece ripped off with frantic urgency, not caring where it lands. Surrendering to the desperate need for skin on skin, for contact.
The fight between us burns into heat, reckless and consuming, impossible to resist. His kisses are punishing, bruising, and I meet him with the same violence, both of us taking, unwilling to yield.
But somewhere in the chaos, we blur into something softer. His forehead drops against mine, his breath breaking as he whispers my name.
For a heartbeat, we aren’t reckless and forbidden—we’re raw and devastating, baring our souls to one another.
And when he pushes into me, the remaining fragments of anger dissolve. They leave behind something heavier, deeper, and terrifying in its intensity.
Each thrust is a promise we can’t make. A confession carved into my bones. Our bodies saying the words we can’t voice.
His hands grip my hips like he’s afraid I’ll slip away, like he’s holding on to more than just flesh. The rhythm builds, raw and relentless, until it’s too much—him inside me, around me, all-consuming.
By the end, I’m trembling, my heart split wide, like an unguarded open wound. He gathers me close, clutching me to his chest as if he could keep me there forever, his heartbeat wild against my back. And for one reckless, impossible second, I almost let myself believe he could.
The ranch is still half asleep when I slip into the passenger seat of Emmett’s truck. The lingering scent of rain from the night before fills the air, gravel crunching beneath the tires as he pulls away from the main house.
Wesley didn’t stir when I snuck out of my bed and pulled myself together. His arm had been heavy across my waist, his breathing deep, like none of this weighs on him the way it does on me.
I told myself I wasn’t going to overthink this—we are not together. He is not my boyfriend. But it’s easier said than done, especially with the ache still lingering in my body and the memory of his mouth on my skin.
It’s impossible to ignore the elephant in the room—or the heaviness in my chest—especially when I’m trapped in a truck with the elephant’s brother, who had a front-row seat to yesterday’s disaster.
“Thanks for driving,” I murmur as Emmett turns onto the highway, my voice still groggy and rough around the edges.
“Yeah, no big deal.” He flicks a glance at me before focusing on the road. “With Lane being away at the treatment center, the guys are already pissed to lose two more sets of hands, but…honestly? It’s nice to get away for a while.”
A humorless laugh slips out before I can stop it, and I shift in my seat, pressing my forehead lightly against the cool glass of the window.
Outside, the mountains glow in the pale light of sunrise.
A new day. A clean slate.
My friends are coming, and it feels like stitching together two different versions of myself.
I won’t lie—I’m nervous about how this weekend will go. I feel like a completely different person than I was before coming here. Something in me has shifted. I’ve found my voice.
For the first time in my life, I feel free—like I don’t have to put on a performance for anyone. I can just…be.
“Sleep okay?” Emmett asks, turning onto the highway.
“Not really.” Heat flares in my cheeks before I can stop it.
Because it was his brother who kept me up all night.
Emmett hums knowingly. “Yeah, I figured. I heard you tossing and turning all night.”
All the blood drains from my face and my body turns to stone. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch him stealing a glance at me.
“Something happen between you and Wes?”
My throat tightens but I force a shrug, keeping my eyes locked on the endless stretch of asphalt. “Your guess is as good as mine.”
“Everything okay between you two? Because it seemed like—”
“There is nothing between us,” I cut in a little too quickly. “Wesley is a dick, and unfortunately there’s no cure for that.”
Emmett blows out a long breath, shaking his head as he keeps his gaze on the road. “He just needs to get laid,” he mutters under his breath.
My entire body tingles, heat crawling up my neck.
Oh.
He did.
I turn quickly back toward the window, praying he doesn’t notice the way my face flames. My pulse pounds in my ears, but Emmett keeps talking, blissfully oblivious, while my secret screams in the silence between us.
“So…” Emmett cuts me a sideways look, a smirk tugging at his mouth. “Are your friends hot?”
I snort. “Reel it in, bud. They’re…a lot. Sometimes they’re even too much for me—and Mia would eat you alive.”
“I love a challenge.” He winks. “Being eaten alive sounds like fun.”
“Ew.” I groan, laughing. “Please don’t hook up with my friends.”
He grins, shameless. “No promises.”
Our timing could not have been more perfect.
Emmett pulls up to the curb just as my two best friends roll through the sliding glass doors of baggage claim, dragging their oversized suitcases behind them.
Mia spots me first, dropping her suitcase handle and launching herself into my arms. Her soft, dark waves spill across my face, but I don’t care. I cling to her, breath catching in my throat. I didn’t realize how much I’ve missed her until now.
She’s the one who pulls away first, pushing her huge sunglasses to the top of her head as she studies me.
People are staring—they always do. Mia is the kind of beautiful that commands attention without even trying, but she doesn’t even notice. All of her attention is on me. Her smile is knowing, like she can read the secret written all over my skin.
Tori lags behind, her red hair catching in the sunlight like a warning flare. Isn’t that a law of nature? Some of the most poisonous creatures in the world have the most striking coloring—a red flag to those who risk getting too close.
“Oh shit,” Emmett mutters under his breath, grinning. “You didn’t tell me one of your friends is a redhead. I love redheads.”
“Slow your roll, Romeo,” I say, narrowing my eyes at him.
Ignoring me, he steps forward and grabs Tori’s suitcase. “Incredible hair. I wonder how pretty it’d look wrapped around my fist.”
My jaw drops, but Tori doesn’t blink. “In your fucking dreams.”
Emmett clutches his chest like he’s been physically wounded. “Aww, come on, baby. Don’t be like that.”
Tori gives him a flat stare—until he nods to her shirt, which reads NOT YOUR BABY in a bubblegum pink script.
“Yeah, no,” she says, rolling her eyes. “I don’t fuck men who lack basic reading comprehension.”
“Careful.” Emmett laughs. “Keep being mean to me like that and I might fall in love with you.”
She turns to me. “Jesus Christ. How have you survived here this long?”
I just shake my head and smile, tugging both her and Mia into a hug. “I’m so happy you’re here.”
Emmett tosses their bags into the truck bed and we pile inside. I hook up my phone to the Bluetooth, because there’s no universe where I’m enduring two more hours of Katy Perry and Kelly Clarkson.
A text pops up at the top of my phone as I scroll for a song.
Vapid Dick <3
Can’t stop thinking about you. I want you again, every inch of you, riding my face until you’re crying my name.
You’ve ruined me, Sadie baby.
Heat flares up my neck. Mia leans forward on the center console and I quickly lock my screen. But I’m not fast enough.
“OH. MY. GOD.” She gasps, loud and theatrical. I wince. “Who is Vapid Dick?”
“I—it’s nothing,” I stammer, shoving my phone deep into the glove box like it’s about to self-destruct.
Mia narrows her eyes. “Riding his face is nothing? You’re being weird. Spill.”
“Shut up. It’s not—”
“Wait,” Tori cuts in, tilting her head. “Is it that guy you’re seeing…Blaine?”
I whip around in my seat. “Lane? No. I told you guys that was over weeks ago.”
Mia groans dramatically, smacking Tori’s arm. “We literally swore to never to bring him up again. He’s like Voldemort. He who shall not be named.”
“Okay, sorry!” Tori holds up her hands. “Fuck me for asking.”
Mia leans forward again, resting her chin on the seatback, her grin sharp as a knife. “So…if it’s not him, then whose face have you been riding, Sadie baby?” she teases.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Liar, liar, pants on fire.
“Really? You know playing dumb doesn’t work with me.”
“I’m not playing anything.” I shrug, because apparently I’m a liar now.
“I just want to make sure you—”
The driver’s door swings open and Emmett slides in, grinning as he buckles his seatbelt. “Alright, ladies,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows. “Are we ready to rock and roll?”
“If by ‘rock and roll’ you mean a quiet nap and a complimentary Xanax,” Tori mutters, leaning against the window, “then yes, let’s rock.”
Mia crosses one leg over the other, her sunglasses perched on her head. “Anyway, speaking of pain in the ass—Robyn is being a total thundercunt.”
I twist around, resting my head on the back of the seat. “What now?”
“She’s mad at the world and a heinous leech, what else is new?” Mia shrugs. “Also, it might have something to do with me bailing on a callback to come here.”
“What? Mia! We could’ve rescheduled.”
“It was my choice. Anyway, she’s been blowing up my phone, saying it’s ‘unprofessional’ to disappear without telling her where I’m going.”
“You call your mom by her first name?” Emmett asks at the same time I blurt, “You didn’t tell her?”
We all turn to stare at him.
Mia giggles. “Robyn isn’t my mom. God, wouldn’t that be a nightmare? I don’t have a mom, actually. Just two dads.” She tucks her hair behind her ear. “Robyn’s my manager. I told her I needed a break, and she didn’t ask where.”
I giggle, shaking my head. “What’s the headline this time? ‘Girl Gone Wilde’ again?”
“‘Wilder Than Ever,’” Mia says, grinning. “Apparently I’m dating a married French director. News to me. Also news to him and his partner, I’m pretty sure.”
“Oh yeah, I saw that one,” Tori chimes in, pulling out gum and not bothering to offer a piece to anyone else. “Honestly, you looked so good in those pap photos. Icon-level hair.”
“Thank you,” Mia says sweetly. “The dress deserved its own headline.”
“You two are insane,” I mutter, but I can’t stop smiling.
“So…” Mia leans forward, dropping her voice like we aren’t all in the same truck and can hear her perfectly clearly. “Is he going to be there?”
“Who?”
“You know who.”
I pretend to fiddle with the radio, even though my phone is already connected. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“You’re literally blushing,” Tori says, smirking.
“I have a sunburn,” I deadpan.
Mia leans in, narrowing her eyes, about to call me on my bullshit again, but Emmett cuts in. “Are we talking about Wes?” he asks, casual as ever.
I choke. “We are not,” I say quickly, turning up the volume four more notches. “Let’s just enjoy the scenic drive.”
“This is going to be delicious,” Mia teases. “Emmett, we need to make a pit stop. The cinematic level of tension this weekend is going to require popcorn.”
“There is no tension,” I lie.
“Oh, there’s always tension with emotionally unavailable men,” Tori says, blowing a bubble with her gum. “It’s, like, their love language or something.”
“Okay,” I snap. “Let’s all shut up and play the quiet game. Starting now.”