Page 32 of Sinful as They Come (Sinful Trilogy #1)

HOLLY

“Look, it’ll be fun. I promise. Stop looking at me like that.” Carter gripped the steering wheel of his car tighter.

“We were supposed to have a night out,” I said with a sigh. “Just me and you and not...” My eyes landed on Lucas’ house. Even from inside Carter’s car I could hear the music blasting. The long series of cars parked out the front let me know practically everyone from school was going to be there.

“Maybe we’ll grab something to eat after.” Carter rolled his eyes.

“I’m not really dressed for a party.” I looked down, eyeing the pink floral dress I had chosen for me and Carter’s date night. It was just past my knees, the material soft against my skin.

“You look hot. Come on. Everyone’s in there already.”

Carter got out of the car before I had the chance to protest. Holding back a sigh, I left the vehicle and quickly followed behind my boyfriend.

He seemed like he was moving as fast as he could into Lucas’ house.

He pushed open the front door and the blasting music quickly hurt my ears.

And my brain. Parties weren’t really my thing. Carter knew that.

“I’m gonna find some of the guys!” Carter leaned down to my ear.

“But—"

“I’ll be back in a minute!”

With that, Carter disappeared into the too big group of tipsy dancers. Some people appeared to be full blown drunk. I sighed, figuring I would just make my way into the backyard. Maybe I could get some fresh air at least.

It was a little quieter out there. The night air was cold so it seemed like most people were trying to avoid that. Scanning the crowd, I sighed in relief when I saw a dancing Annie.

“Hey!” she called out when I was next to her. “Wait, I thought you had that date with Carter tonight. Weren’t you guys going to dinner?”

Rolling my eyes, I nodded at her. “Yeah. But he really wanted to go to this party, so now we’re here. I bought a new dress for tonight. He didn’t even notice. That sounds so dumb, but I just wanted to spend the night with him.”

“Aw, Holly.” Annie wrapped an around me. “That doesn’t sound dumb. I’m sorry he did that.”

“Yeah, me too. I’m trying not to think about it too much.” I just wanted to change the subject. “When did you get here?”

Annie shrugged. “Like, half an hour ago. You missed a fun, little fight in the front yard. No cops showed up thankfully. And no, before you ask, Sawyer was not involved.”

My eyebrows furrowed, looking over my shoulder for a second. “Sawyer’s here?”

“Yeah. So is Brodie.”

“Oh. Well, I haven’t seen those two yet. I haven’t even seen Lucas yet.”

Annie suddenly groaned. “That reminds me. I was supposed to get chips from the basement. Lucas needs help being a good host.”

“Sounds spooky.”

“Tell me about it. You okay out here? I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

I waved a hand at her. “Go help Lucas. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

Annie squeezed my hand for a second before taking off back into the house. Sighing, I decided to do a little walk around the garden. Maybe that would help me forget about how mean Carter was being.

I was dodging people left, right and center.

It made sense the party was so busy since Lucas was one of the most popular guys at school.

And I had almost made it to the other side of the yard until I bumped into someone.

Or they bumped into me. Either way, I almost lost my balance until two big hands landed on my waist. My hands instinctively landed in front of me, and they pressed up against something hard so I could settle myself.

That was when I saw Sawyer before me.

I blushed, quickly pulling my hands away from him. “Sorry,” I said, my cheeks feeling too hot.

“Looks like you’re in a rush to get outta here,” he told me, his deep voice loud so he could speak over the music. Then his eyes lowered to my dress. “Also looks like you’re about to go on a picnic or something.”

“Yeah, I wasn’t expecting to go to this party tonight.”

“Lucas didn’t invite you? You gatecrashing, Malibu Barbie?”

“No,” I laughed. “He did. But... I was supposed to be at a nice restaurant eating some Italian food and staring lovingly into my boyfriend’s eyes.

” My voice was laced with bitterness. And that was because I was bitter.

I did not want to be stuck at some dumb party surrounded by drunk people.

And why the hell was I confessing all of this to Sawyer?

“Yeah, I saw him a couple seconds ago.” Sawyer rose his eyebrows up at me. “But I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Oh?” I frowned. Did he want to argue? Because I was too upset for that.

“The, uh, article...” Sawyer’s eyes darted to the side for a second. “I read it.”

Oh, God. Did he hate it? Sawyer’s painting was my favorite, and I thought what I wrote had made that known. “And?”

Sawyer rubbed at the back of his head. “I... I just wanted to say thank you.”

Oh my God. Sawyer Westbrook was thanking me. Me. Had I imagined the words? They sounded so odd coming from him with his gruff voice.

“You... You liked it?” I shook my head in confusion.

“Yeah, it was... What you wrote was nicest thing anyone’s ever said about me,” he continued, his eyes not quite meeting mine. “And someone actually bought that painting the other day.”

My eyes widened. And that right there was the nicest thing Sawyer had ever said to me . But I was happy for him. He deserved that. “That’s great news! Congrats.”

“You might know the guy.” His eyebrows furrowed for a second. “Eric something. Adams? Anderson?”

“Oh, yeah. He’s big on art. He works for the council and teams up with a lot of artists. Maybe he’ll buy some more stuff off you. He actually knows my dad.”

Sawyer gave me a little smirk. “Yeah, he happened to be at Eric’s place when I made the sale.”

“That doesn’t sound good.”

“Your daddy said I’m not allowed to talk to you anymore,” he said lowly, his eyes running up and down my form for a second.

“He’s... protective of me.”

“I think he just hates me.”

“He doesn’t...” But my voice trailed off. I hadn’t been there, but I was certain Sawyer was right. “Look, my dad hates most people. You guys have something in common, actually...”

Sawyer let out a soft, barely there chuckle. “Yeah, maybe. Anyway, I gotta find Brodie. He’s probably around here somewhere getting wasted. But... Thanks again.”

“Sawyer, wait,” I called out before he completely turned around. I had something to tell him as well.

“Yeah?” He moved back over to me.

My breath caught in my throat for a moment when we locked eyes.

“Thank you... For the other night... At Alden Lake... I didn’t say thank you when I was at your place.

” Shame is all I felt. How embarrassing was it to thank the guy I was supposed to hate with everything in me?

Sawyer should have laughed right in my face. But he didn’t.

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket. “You don’t have to thank me for that.”

“No, I do. I appreciate you... You talking to me to that night,” I said. What else could I say? Thanks for comforting me after my boyfriend pressured me and made me feel like I owed him something I wasn’t ready to give? “So, thank you. ”

“It’s fine, Holly.” Sawyer gave me a little nod before turning around, beginning his hunt for his drunk cousin.

The conversation had left me feeling a little lighter than when I had walked in the front door.

Carter had been so dismissive earlier, but knowing Sawyer liked the article and made a sale had definitely improved my mood.

We had a past... but I wanted good things for him. He deserved that.

If only my boyfriend was the one making me feel better. Wasn’t that the way things were meant to be?