Текст книги "In Your Heart "

Автор книги: Micalea Smeltzer

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Текущая страница: 5 (всего у книги 20 страниц)

“Wow, the stars look so pretty from here.”

Ezra kicked the car door closed with his booted foot. “That’s because I’m carrying you.”

“Look at all of them. They’re so sparkly. Can I have one?” I reached my hand up and tried to grab one. I frowned. “I can’t reach it. Can you get it for me?”

“You’re never drinking ever again,” he groaned, adjusting his hold on my body as he climbed the porch steps. “Wrap your arms around my neck,” he demanded. “I have to put you down so I can get the door open.”

I did as he asked and my shaky feet touched the ground. I wobbled and he wrapped an arm around my torso, holding me against his chest so that I didn’t fall.

The door swung open and cold air hit my face.

“Oh, that feels good.” I smiled, leaning forward and trying to get closer to the deliciously cool air.

Ezra chuckled. “Come on, up you go.”

My legs were whisked out from under me once more and I tightened my hold around his neck.

“Are you carrying me across the threshold?” I asked, laughter filling the words.

“No,” he groaned, “I’m carrying my drunk best friend home. And could you loosen your arms? You’re choking me.”

“Oh, sorry,” I giggled. I leaned my head back and looked up at the ceiling as he started up the steps. “Everything looks so different like this. Oh, ew, you need to clean up there.” I pointed to a cobweb.

He sighed as we reached the top of the stairs and he turned down the hallway to the guestroom.

My fingers tangled in the silky strands of his black hair as he pushed the bedroom door open with a nudge of his shoulder. “Your hair is so soft,” I gasped. “Like a puppy.” He snorted. “I want a puppy,” I told him, my words slurring. “Can you be my puppy?” I rubbed his head as he laid me down on the bed. “I’d name my puppy Oliver. Isn’t that a good name for a puppy? I think it is.”

He chuckled, untangling my fingers from his hair. “Sadie, you might be the most hilarious drunk person I’ve ever met.”

“Aw, thanks.” I reached for his hair again—seriously, it was the softest thing I’d ever felt—and he grabbed my hands and held them in both of his.

“Sadie, stop,” he warned.

“I want to pet the puppy!” I pouted.

“My hair is not a puppy.”

“Well it sure feels like one. Could’ve fooled me,” I huffed.

He sighed heavily and released my hands. He grabbed my shoes and began removing them.

“Are you trying to get me naked?”

“No,” he glared at me, “I’m trying to get your shoe off.”

“I’d be fine if you wanted to get me naked.”

“Sadie,” he warned.

“I haven’t had sex in…” I tried to count, but my brain was too muffled to form a coherent thought. “A long time. That should’ve been another tip that Braden was cheating. I’m so stupid.” I smacked my forehead.

He grabbed my hand. “Don’t hit yourself.” His voice softened.

He finished removing my shoes and they dropped to the floor with a crash.

“What’s so wrong with me?” I asked him. “Am I so repulsive?”

“Sadie, repulsive is the last thing that you are. Braden is just…well, there are no words for what Braden is.”

“I used to have a crush on you,” I admitted. “Shit,” I slapped my hand across my mouth, “I wasn’t ever supposed to tell you that. I’m never drinking again.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Yeah, you won’t be drinking again if I have anything to say about it. So,” he grinned, “you had a crush on me?”

“Well, yeah,” I shrugged. “You’re hot. Who wouldn’t?”

He laughed and grabbed the blankets, trying to tuck me beneath the covers. My stomach rolled and I grabbed his wrist.

“I’m going to be sick¸” I warned.

“Shit,” he cursed. In a lightning fast move he grabbed the small trashcan and held it over for me. He held my hair back with his free hand as my body heaved.

I panted heavily, sweat breaking out across my skin. “Yep, I’m never drinking again,” I vowed.

He set the trashcan aside and looked me over. “Are you okay?”

“I think so.” I replied, my eyes growing heavy.

“Don’t go to sleep yet,” he warned. “I’ll be right back.”

He eased out of my room and flicked the light on in the hallway. I heard him fumbling in the bathroom and the sink running.

A minute later his shadow darkened the doorway and he strolled forward with two cloths in his hand. He crouched down beside me, his dark eyes full of worry.

Ever so gently he cleaned my mouth and then laid the clean cloth across my forehead.

“I’m not done yet.” He warned with a pointed look.

“I’ll try not to fall asleep, but no promises.”

He left me again and the stairs creaked as he went back downstairs.

I rolled onto my side, forcing my heavy lids to stay open.

Sleep. I needed sleep, and maybe some duct tape for my mouth before any more truths slipped past my lips.

When Ezra returned he had a glass of water and two pills.

“Here, take this.” He thrust the pills out to me.

I took them and the water. I set the glass on the table and he glared at me.

“What?”

“You need to drink all of the water.”

“Ezra.” His name sounded like a whine.

He crossed his arms over his lean chest and stared down at me. God, he was fucking relentless.

With a groan I picked up the glass once more and downed it.

“Happy?” I asked him, thrusting the empty glass into his outstretched hand.

“Immensely.”

He turned to leave and I grabbed his wrist. His steps halted and he looked down at me, his eyes shielded by his shaggy hair.

“Stay with me,” I begged. “I don’t want to be alone.”

Indecision warred on his face.

“Please?” My hand wrapped around his, tugging with as much force as I could muster, which admittedly wasn’t much in my current state.

“Why can I never say no to you?” He mumbled, looking up at the ceiling as if it held all the answers in the world.

“Because I’m irresistible?” I supplied.

He chuckled, his shoulders shaking. “Yeah. That must be it.”

He tugged his hand from my hold and started to leave. I let out a small sound of protest and he glanced back at me.

“I have to turn the hall light off.” He pointed.

“Oh.”

He did just that and darkness blanketed the space. I blinked my eyes, trying to get them to adjust to the now darkened room.

He left my bedroom door open and kicked off his boots before removing his shirt. Sadly, his jeans stayed on. I might’ve pouted. I really hoped it was too dark for him to see that.

He padded over to the other side of the bed and climbed in behind me, pulling the covers up and over us both.

I rolled over onto my other side to face him. He lay on his back and turned his head to look at me.

“Go to sleep,” he warned, his voice a low gravel.

“I don’t want to sleep,” I sulked.

“You need to.”

“You’re such a buzz kill.” I proceeded to poke his face.

He pushed my hand away. “And you’re drunk.”

“Really? I hadn’t noticed.”

He shook his head and put his hand over his mouth to hide his laugh. I sat up a bit, propping my body weight on my elbow.

“How come you’ve never made a move on me?” I asked, the words tumbling out of my mouth. “Why don’t you like me as more than a friend? I admitted to having a crush on you, but you’ve always been indifferent.”

He reached up and grasped my cheek. I startled at the gesture and my small gasp echoed through the room.

“I’m far from indifferent,” he growled lowly. “Trust me, there have been plenty of times where I wanted to make a move, as you put it, but I never did because your friendship is far more important to me than a quick fuck.”

I reached out with my other hand, laying it flat on his chest over his heart. “So, that’s all you thought we’d be if we moved past the friend stage? A quick fuck?”

I didn’t know why I felt so hurt by his words.

He put his hand over mine and swallowed thickly. “We were both young and the chances of us making it as a couple seemed slim to me. I wasn’t going to throw our friendship away to test the waters, so to speak. And then you started dating Braden. But if you really must know, I am insanely attracted to you.” His voice lowered to a husky whisper.

My breath came out in small little pants. I wanted desperately to lean down and kiss him, but something told me that he didn’t want that, and also I’d yet to brush my teeth after vomiting so that was a kiss no one wanted.

“You are?” I asked stupidly, blinking my eyes rapidly like he was a mirage that might disappear at any second.

“I don’t lie.”

I continued to stare down at him, not sure what to do with this information.

Ezra made the decision for me. He pushed me down lightly and pulled me against his chest.

“Sleep, pretty girl,” he commanded.

I didn’t know how he could possibly expect me to sleep after he told me he was attracted to me. The man was lucky I hadn’t thrown my panties across the room and mauled him with my vagina.

His fingertips brushed lightly against my neck as he pushed away my hair. My skin prickled with Goosebumps when his lips replaced his fingers in the barest of touches. My eyes fluttered closed and a happy sigh fell from my lips. Ezra was never so bold, and I wondered if he was only being this way because he believed I’d be too drunk to remember in the morning.

I would remember though. There was no way I could forget this.

DAYLIGHT SPILLED ACROSS my body and I groaned as it penetrated my closed eyelids.

“It’s time to get up.” A hand smacked my foot. “It’s noon already.”

“Go away,” I groaned, burying my face in my pillow.

“No.”

“You’re killing my buzz.”

“Your buzz wore off hours ago, now you’re just hung over. Get up, we have to go.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” I hugged the pillow tighter to my body and slowly peeled open my eyes. I was supposed to do paperwork at the store today since I put it off last night, but there was no way I was doing that now. “Gah!” I quickly covered my eyes with a hand. “Turn the fucking ceiling light off,” I spat.

“No,” he said again. I really hated that word. “Get out of bed and then maybe I will.”

“You’re evil.”

“Get out of bed, Sadie. Seriously, we have to go in…” He looked down at the shiny watch on his wrist. “Thirty minutes.”

“Where are we going?” I whined, still not making a move to get out of bed.

“Mathias called, he and Remy are moving into their new house today and he needs me to help.”

I reached out and poked his chest. “You said he needs your help, not mine.”

He captured my hand in his. “And I want you to come. Everyone will be there. Come on.”

I pried my hand away from his hold. “Fine, but I’m going to need more Advil.”

“I can get that,” he chuckled. “Anything else?”

“My sunglasses.”

He grabbed them off the dresser and handed them to me. I slipped them on and sighed in relief. “Much better.”

“Shower and get dressed.”

“Do I stink?” I asked, lifting my arm to smell.

He laughed and paused in the doorway. “You smell like a bar.”

“Lovely,” I sighed.

His boots slapped against the steps as he went downstairs, leaving me alone.

It took more effort than it should have to shower and get dressed. I chose to forgo drying my hair and instead tied it back in a messy bun. Even though I felt like shit I took the time to apply my makeup. Nobody wanted to see me looking like this. It was scary. And Mathias was the kind of guy to make a rude remark. I didn’t think he honestly meant to be so rude to people, he was just crass and didn’t think before he spoke.

I met Ezra downstairs and he already had a glass of water waiting with Advil. I’d tell him he was a saint, but he did wake me up so he was still on my shit-list for the moment.

I took the pills and emptied the glass of water. I poured some more water into the glass while Ezra fiddled with the toaster. After a minute two browned pieces of toast popped up.

He buttered them both, sticking one in his mouth, and put the other on a plate before handing it to me.

I waved it away. My stomach was too queasy to eat.

“Come on.” He set it in front of me, chewing on his. I swore the thing was gone in three bites. “It’s just toast. It’ll help.”

“You know what else will help?” I asked, pushing my sunglasses further up my nose. “If I poke you in the eyeball with a fork.”

“I don’t think rendering me eyeless would be helpful in this situation.” He washed his hands in the sink with his back turned to me. I was tempted to pelt the buttered toast at his back, but I refrained.

He turned back around, crossing his arms over his chest. “Eat, Sadie. You’re holding up progress.”

I rolled my eyes and stuck the toast in my mouth, making a very dramatic show of taking a bite. Crumbs dotted the corner of my mouth and I wiped them away.

“Happy?” I asked.

“For now.”

He smacked his hand on the counter. “Eat in the car. Mathias has already texted me ten times in the last five minutes.”

I followed Ezra out to the garage and paused. “When can I get my car?”

“Later,” he answered vaguely.

“You’re testing my patience,” I muttered under my breath.

He merely chuckled at me.

I was glad that he was still acting like himself though, after the truths we shared last nights.

And those truths…well, they had me thinking.

Thinking things I should not be thinking, that is.

Like me, and Ezra, naked and rolling beneath the sheets.

Yep, my thoughts should so not be going there. Especially after I had just ended my engagement to the Douche Lord.

Damn you treacherous thoughts!

Maybe I was still drunk…yeah, that explained it.

We didn’t talk on the way to Mathias’ house. Frankly, my head couldn’t take it. How he expected me to act like a civilized human being today was beyond me.

Ezra turned into the neighborhood, one I recognized since it was where his parent’s house was.

“Mathias bought a house in your parent’s neighborhood?” I asked, not bothering to hide the shock from my voice.

He nodded. “Yeah, a few streets over. He and Remy liked the fact that the houses were a nice size, but not too large, with decent sized lots. You know how Mathias is, he didn’t want to be too close to neighbors.”

I laughed at that. Mathias Wade might’ve been the lead singer of Willow Creek, but he was not a people person.

Ezra turned into a driveway, and I gaped at the pretty home. It wasn’t what I was expecting. The driveway wound up a hill, where the house sat overlooking the street.

The two-story home was covered in light gray siding with white trim. It had a gorgeous wraparound porch with a swing. There was a glass double front door and the windows were large, giving it an airy appearance. The grass was so lush and green that it reminded me of a golf course, and pretty flowers were planted across the front.

A moving truck was parked on the driveway and guys unloaded furniture and boxes.

“Why do they need our help again?”

He sighed. “It’s Remy and Mathias.”

I didn’t know much about Remy, but I did know Mathias, so that was enough of an answer for me.

Maddox’s sports car was parked in the grass and a large pickup truck that I knew belonged to Hayes took up another space.

Ezra put his car in park, blocking the exit of the driveway.

Before I could ask him why he was doing that and not parking in the grass like the other guys, he said, “Mathias is going to shit a brick when he sees that those two idiots parked in the grass. Just wait.”

I managed a small laugh and then winced when my head pounded. I rubbed my temples, trying to get the throbbing to go away. I really shouldn’t have drunk so much. Lesson learned.

Ezra slipped out of the vehicle and I was forced to follow him.

Immediately we stepped into drama.

“I’m going to kill him!” Remy shouted—I recognized her immediately with her platinum blonde hair and signature red lipstick. “I swear to God I’m going to smother him with a fucking pillow.” She stomped down the porch steps, Emma hurrying behind her. “Oh,” Remy paused suddenly, her hand falling to her small baby bump, “sorry baby, mommy said a bad word. Please forgive me, but your dad is being a pain in my ass. Butt. I meant butt.” She frowned at Emma, not noticing our presence yet. “Between Mathias and me our baby’s first word is going to be ‘fuck’. This kid is doomed.”

“Hopefully ‘mom’ will be a close second in the word department.” Emma shrugged.

“Eh,” Remy shrugged, “second will probably be ‘asshole’ because that’s what I keep shouting at Mathias. He is driving me nuts.”

“Ahem,” Ezra cleared his throat as we approached them.

Remy glanced away from Emma and sighed in relief. “Oh, thank God you’re here. Maybe between you and Maddox you can talk some sense into my husband. He’s trying to bubble wrap the fucking walls.” She winced and mumbled, “Crap, I did it again.” Taking a deep breath, she continued, “Anyway, he’s going way overboard with this whole baby-proofing thing and it’s just…a nightmare.” She rolled her eyes. “And he’s getting in the way of the movers, so they’re getting mad.”

Ezra saluted her. “I’m on it. We’ll tag team him.”

I watched him leave, disappearing into the house. I was left alone with Remy and Emma—and the moving guys that were wrestling with a massive dining room table.

“I’m sorry you had to walk into all of this drama,” Remy sighed, her hand rubbing absentmindedly against her stomach. “Mathias has been…extremely overprotective since we found out that I was pregnant.” She glanced at Emma and then me. “Do you know the other day he got mad at me for picking up my cat. He thinks if I pick up anything that weighs more than five pounds that the baby is going to fall out of my vagina. I’ve got news for him, the process of childbirth, sadly, isn’t that simple.”

Emma laughed and patted Remy’s shoulder in a familiar gesture. “He loves you.”

“He’s smothering me with his love. Seriously, I’m suffocating. And he will too if he doesn’t stop.”

I snorted and then burst into laughter, Remy and Emma joining in too.

“Ow,” I groaned when my head pounded with renewed vigor.

Note to self: Stop laughing while hung over.

“Are you okay?” Emma asked.

“Yeah,” I nodded, closing my eyes behind my sunglasses as I tried to get the blinking white lights to go away, “just a little too much to drink last night.”

“Why’d you have too much to drink?”

“Because I wanted to,” I replied. “Anyway,” I rubbed my hands together, “what can I do to help?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Emma shook her head. “Who did you go out with?”

“How do you know I went out? I could’ve gotten shit-faced at Ezra’s place and passed out in my vomit on the kitchen floor.”

“Did you?” She asked doubtfully.

“Well, no.” I admitted.

“Then answer my previous question.”

“Ezra took me out.” I squirmed, wanting to run back and hide in the safety of the SUV.

“And let you get drunk? Did you have sex?”

“No!” I screamed a little too loudly, causing the moving guys to turn and look at us. “Why are you so convinced that there’s something going on with us? I just broke up with Braden.”

Emma stared at me with a calculated look as if she was measuring the weight of her words. “I see the way you look at him.” She said the words slowly, gauging my reaction to them. I gave her nothing and remained stone faced. “The way you’ve always looked at him,” she reiterated. “I’m not sure if you even realize it.”

“I realize that you’re absolutely insane. He’s my friend. Nothing more.” I pushed the sunglasses further up my nose, hoping my cheeks hadn’t reddened with the lie. Only minutes ago I’d been picturing him naked, and now I was having to steadfastly defend the fact that were only friends. It was the truth though. Ezra didn’t want to take things further. He’d said as much last night.

“Who are you trying to fool?” She raised a single brow. “Me or yourself?”

“Nobody,” I replied easily.

“Mhmm,” she mumbled in disbelief.

“Haven’t you ever heard of friends with benefits?” Remy asked, interjecting herself into the conversation.

I choked on a laugh. “Of course, but me and Ezra? No way.”

“Crazier things have happened.” Remy shrugged. “I mean, I married that asshole.” She pointed at Mathias who stormed down the porch steps and proceeded to yell at the movers. From what I could gather they’d scratched a piece of furniture.

Behind him a large dog and cat bound out the door, down the steps, running through the yard. It didn’t look like the dog was chasing the cat, but more like they were playing.

“Mathias!” Remy yelled, heading over to her husband. “You let Shiloh and Percy out again. They’re going to get hit by a car.”

Mathias turned his attention from the movers to Remy, his hands resting on his hips. “Your cat is a fucking demon, Rem. You have to let it out once a day so its toxicity doesn’t pollute the house. It’s in the Taking Care of a Demonic Creature Handbook. You should read it. It’s also how I’ve learned to deal with you.” He grinned.

“You are so lucky that I love you more than I hate you.”

She laughed, fighting a smile.

“Back at ya.” He smiled lovingly at her and grasped her waist, pulling her in for a kiss.

I quickly looked away when it became heated.

“No surprise why they have a baby on the way, right?” Emma laughed at the expression on my face.

“None at all.” I shook my head.

“We’ll leave them to it,” she said, starting towards the moving truck.

I followed, happy to have something to do. She ventured onto the truck and grabbed a box labeled KITCHEN and handed it to me before grabbing another for herself.

Mathias and Remy were still making out in the front yard while their pets played. Maybe Mathias would be so distracted he wouldn’t notice the vehicles parked in the grass.

Emma knew the layout of the house already, so I trailed behind her to the back where the kitchen sat overlooking the backyard. There was a large pool and since the lot was so high up you could practically see the whole town from here. It was spectacular.

Emma sat her box down on the island in the middle of the open kitchen, and I did the same.

“This house is gorgeous,” I murmured, looking around in awe.

The floors were a dark, luxurious hardwood. The walls were all painted a neutral cream color that brightened up the space. The cabinets in the kitchen were also cream colored with a gold-brown granite countertop. The kitchen even had a built in bench with a table. Across from the kitchen was the family room that was currently in disarray. To our left was an archway where I figured the dining room was meant to be.

“Yeah, it’s amazing.” Emma grabbed a knife off the counter and cut into the tape. She handed me the knife before opening the flaps on the box.

I opened my box and discovered it was full of plates.

“Just pick a cabinet and start putting stuff away. They don’t care where it goes, and Remy wasn’t kidding about Mathias freaking out over her lifting things. He’d bust a vein in his forehead if she was in here trying to organize those.” She nodded her head at the plates I now grasped in my hands.

“It seems like they’d want some say,” I started.

She gave me a look. “I’ve been here since seven, so trust me when I say it doesn’t matter.”

I looked at her in disbelief. “Since seven? But you hate mornings.”

“I know,” she groaned. “Maddox bribed me.”

“With what?” I asked, mystified.

She cracked a smile. “Sexual favors.”

I laughed, shaking my head. The naïve little Emma I once knew was no more.

I carried the plates over to the counter by the sink and opened one of the upper cabinets. I carefully stacked the plates on a shelf—terrified I’d chip them. The last thing I wanted to do was break something that wasn’t mine. Except Braden’s nose. I’d enjoy breaking that.

Once those were put away I went to work on organizing the utensils in a drawer. Remy joined us, sitting on the floor to put away dishtowels. The guys argued by the staircase about how to install a baby gate.

“I don’t know why he insists on putting that up now,” Remy muttered, folding a towel. “We still have four months until the baby comes, and he won’t walk for a while.”

“He?” Emma shrieked, dropping the cup she was holding. Luckily it was plastic and didn’t break.

Remy’s smile was blinding. “Yeah, it’s a boy. We just found out this week.”

“I’m so excited.” Emma bounced on the balls of her feet. “There’s going to be a Willow Creek baby!”

I looked at her like she was crazy.

She frowned when she saw my expression. “Sorry,” she mumbled, “I’m just a little excitable these days. I think being cooped up on tour was really bothering me. So,” she turned back to Remy, “names? Spill.”

Remy bit her lip and peered around the edge of the counter where the guys stood.

“We already have a name picked out, but Mathias doesn’t want us to tell anyone the gender or name, in case it gets back to the media. He said this was a moment in his life he refused to share with the world until he had to.” She shrugged.

“You’re really not going to tell me?” Emma put her hands up in a begging motion. “Please, please, oh please tell me.”

Remy sighed. “Give me one of those.” She snapped her fingers and pointed to the knives I was currently organizing.

“Uh, why?” I asked, holding the knives against my chest like she might maul me for them at any second.

“Because I’m pregnant and I said so,” she huffed. I reluctantly handed her one. “If I’m going to tell you guys, and go against my husband’s wishes that no one know, then you’re going to have to swear a blood oath.”

Emma held her hand out.

“Are you crazy?” I asked Remy.

“No,” she drew out the word, “I’m a Mama Bear protecting my cub, work with me here.”

I grumbled, but held my hand out.

She nicked the meaty part of my hand, Emma’s, and her own. She joined our hands together and peeked around the corner at the guys one last time.

“You both have to swear on your lives that you’ll tell no one the name of the baby or the gender. And by no one, I mean these words better not even be muttered to your reflection in the mirror. Got it?”

“Got it.” I said.

“You have to swear.” Remy huffed in exasperation.

“I swear.” I had to resist the urge not to roll my eyes at her melodramatics.

“I swear,” Emma piped in, vibrating with excitement.

Remy smiled, satisfied with our vow. “There are paper towels over there if your hand is still bleeding.”

I looked at mine and saw that it had already dried since the cut was so small. Emma made no move either.

“Come on,” Emma pleaded, “the suspense is killing me.”

Remy laughed and rubbed her stomach. “His name is Liam Maxwell Wade.”

“Awwww,” Emma clapped her hands together, “I love it! It’s such a strong name.”

“We think so too.” Remy beamed.

“It’s adorable,” I piped in, because I felt like I needed to say something.

“Thanks.” Remy smiled in my direction. “Now get back to work,” she shooed us, “Mathias will get suspicious.”

Emma reluctantly returned to organizing the pots and pans while I finished with the utensils.

Several hours later all of us were tired and starving, so we took a break and ordered pizza.

We sat around on the floor of the family room, using paper towels as our plates. Emma and Maddox talked quietly together. Remy and Mathias were absorbed in their own little world as Mathias sang lovingly to her stomach in-between bites of pizza.

That left Ezra, Hayes, and me as the odd ones out.

Good times.

I sat sandwiched between the guys, eating my pizza in small dainty bites compared to the way they gobbled it.

Ezra stretched out his long legs and picked a piece of pepperoni off his pizza. He handed it to me and I gobbled it up greedily. I loved pepperoni.

“Thanks.” I bumped his shoulder with mine.

“So, how have you been?” Hayes asked. “I haven’t seen you since…” He scrunched up his nose, thinking. “New Year’s? Whoa, has it really been that long?” He muttered the last part in disbelief.

I turned to the band’s guitar player.

Josh Hayes was a good-looking guy, with angular cheekbones and sandy dirty blond hair that he kept swept away from his face. He was put together in a way that looked effortless, but you knew it actually took him quite some time to achieve it.

“Yeah, that long.” I took a sip of orange soda.

He shook his head in disbelief. “What have you been up to?”

“Catching my fiancé fucking someone else.”

Hayes shook his head. “Uh, yeah, Ezra told me.” He awkwardly scratched the back of his head and glanced over at Ezra, as if he was worried he wasn’t supposed to admit to knowing this bit of information.

“I’m pretty sure the whole town knows,” I mumbled, spinning the white soda bottle cap between my fingers.

“I’m sure it’s not the whole town.” He cracked a grin. “I bet those old ladies that Maddox knits with don’t know.”

“Hey!” Maddox glared, pointing a finger at Hayes. “Those ladies are my friends, don’t diss them.”

Hayes raised his hands in surrender, laughing under his breath.

“They’re sweet old ladies,” Maddox continued, “who not only teach me how to knit all the things, but they also bake me pie. Do you have pie, Hayes? I think not!”

We all busted out laughing, even Maddox.

I wiped tears away from eyes and said, “If you had a super power you’d be The Knitter.”

“And I’d knit my little minion creatures.” He grinned.

“Oh God,” Hayes laughed, “do you realize if our fans heard half the shit we talk about they’d realize what a bunch of nerds we are.”

“Speak for yourselves.” Mathias glared, huffing under his breath.

“Dude,” Hayes waved a hand in Mathias’ direction, “you wear fucking suspenders and look at those glasses you have on. You’re a nerd too.”

Mathias frowned and whispered something in Remy’s ear. She said something back and he kissed her, a smile tugging up his lips. In all the time I’d known the guys I’d never, not once, used the word happy to describe Mathias, but he definitely was now.

“So,” Hayes turned his attention back to me, “now that you’re single we should go out.” He grinned, waggling his brows.

Ezra stiffened beside me, but said nothing.

“Uh…” I started. I had no idea what to say.

“Come on,” he said, when I took too long to speak, “I don’t bite and I hear I’m a lot of fun.”

I laughed at that. “I don’t know.”

“Give a guy a chance, Sadie,” he pleaded, grinning at me, “don’t bruise my ego. It’s a gentle, easily hurt, thing. It’s just dinner.”

“Fine,” I agreed. I wasn’t ready to date, but I figured one night out with Hayes could be fun. He was a nice guy.

Ezra stood up and threw away his pizza crust, mumbling that he was going to the bathroom.

“Did I piss him off?” Hayes asked. “If y’all have something going on I don’t mean to butt in.”

“No, nothing’s going on,” I said quickly.

Hayes seemed appeased by my words and smiled broadly. “Good. I’ll call you.”