Chapter 15

My house was seven miles away and in the dark walking very far wouldn’t be smart. Besides, Beau would just find me and drive alongside me trying to get me to get in his stupid truck. I turned and ran down the narrow paved road leading to the high school. The street lights lit up the tree-lined road enough to keep it from being spooky. It was less than a mile from Hank’s and I could go sit on the bleachers at the football field and have Sawyer pick me up there when he was finished.

My phone dinged and I glanced at the text message.

Beau: Ash I’m sorry. Please tell me where ur at

I clicked ignore and kept heading toward the football field.

Right before I reached the gate entrance, headlights illuminated the darkness behind me. I didn’t stop walking. If it was Beau, and I was pretty sure it was, I needed to get away from him. I wanted to cry and I couldn’t cry with him around to watch. His truck door slammed and I heard his feet running on the gravel. I’d never be able to outrun him but I could try.

“Ash, I’m sorry.” His arms came around me before I could break out into a run.

“Beau, let me go. I want to be alone. I’ll call Sawyer and he can pick me up later and take me home.”

“No,” he replied.

“That wasn’t a yes or no question. It was a demand. Now, leave.”

“Ash, you’ve got to listen to me. I didn’t mean anything I said. I was just trying to see the fire behind your eyes. I missed it and I selfishly lashed out knowing you’d get angry. I was wrong and I’m so, so sorry. Please.”

He buried his head in the crook of my neck and took a deep breath. If I had any intention of staying mad at him it flew right out the window when he did something so vulnerable as nuzzling my neck.

“So you don’t consider this a babysitting job in which Sawyer owes you one?” I asked in a much softer tone than I’d been using.

“God no, you know that,” he replied, still nuzzling my neck. He threaded his fingers through mine. “And asking for me as your spirit girl wasn’t some great service you did for him? Because I can refuse to do it and you can ask for another girl.”

He stilled then made a trail of kisses up my neck to my ear.

“The thought of you doing things for Sawyer on game day is hard enough. I couldn’t imagine you making cookies for some other guy and decorating his locker and kissing his cheek at the pep rally. The only spirit girl I’ll ever want is you.”

I turned around in his arms and stared up at him.

“I’m not real strong emotionally right now. With everything going on at home and then coming to school and seeing you . . .” I stopped explaining. Telling him how much I hated seeing Nicole in his arms and hanging on him wasn’t fair. He cupped my face in his hands.

“And I’m the biggest asshole in the world for not thinking about that before treating you the way I did. I’m so sorry, Ash, please forgive me.”

I stood up on my tip toes and kissed him. “You’re forgiven,” I whispered then reluctantly took a step back. “We should go,” I said then turned to go to his truck.

I didn’t scoot over to sit beside him as he pulled out of the parking lot. I glanced down at his hand and noticed the tight grip he had on the stick shift. This wasn’t how tonight was supposed to go. I was in Beau’s truck again. We were alone and it was okay with Sawyer. I sighed and turned my head to stare out the window and watch the trees pass by as Beau drove back to Hank’s.

“Wait here. I’ll be right back,” he said then jumped out of the truck and went inside. He returned seconds later with a takeout bag in his hand.

I watched as he climbed back in the truck and gave me his crooked grin.

“Bacon cheese burger on a toasted bun,” he explained as he held it out to me.

“Thank you,” I replied, feeling my heart swell up from the simple fact he remembered what I liked to eat here.

“I couldn’t let you go home tonight without feeding you. Especially after I’d made sure we would be eating somewhere you actually liked. I didn’t save you from the Shrimp Shack for nothing.”

So that was why Sawyer had changed the location. I grinned and opened the bag.

“Well, you still owe me your company while I eat.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Really . . . you think so?”

“Definitely. I’ll feel gypped if I’m forced to eat alone.”

He nodded and turned his truck towards the outskirts of town. It looked like we would be ending our night with a game of pool.

“You think you can remember those skills I taught you? Because I’d really like to see you bent over a pool table the rest of the evening.” The teasing tone in Beau’s voice did little to distract me from his words. My face felt warm and I cut my eyes over toward him.

“Damn. My imagination got away with me,” Beau said in a tight voice as he shook his head. “I need to think of something else. Fast.”

I needed to think of something else too but my mind kept replaying the night in the back of his truck. Every sound. Every touch. My body tingled from the memory.

“Please, Ash. Don’t look at me like that. I’m going to drive us to the bar. We’re going to play pool. That’s all. I can’t think about anything else. If I do . . . well, I just can’t.”

My breathing was a little shallow but I nodded then forced my mouth to open so I could take a bite of my burger. Anything to get my mind off how good it had felt wrapped up in Beau’s arms.

Neither of us spoke again until he pulled into the parking lot of the bar. I opened my truck door before he could do it for me, and jumped down. Having Beau touch me while my body was on high alert from the knowledge of just how good he could make me feel, was a bad idea.

“With Sawyer back in town I didn’t expect to see you walking back in here with her,” Honey Vincent said when Beau and I walked into the bar.

“I’m entertaining her for Sawyer, Mom. Leave it alone.”

Her eyebrows shot up and she glanced back at me. “So Sawyer’s okay with you hanging out with Beau, huh? Well, I’ll be damned. I’s sure he’d have a shit fit once he found out about the two of ya running around town together.”

“Beau and I’ve been friends as long as Sawyer and I’ve been. Sawyer is glad we’re rekindling our friendship,” I explained before Beau could say something snide.

“I’m bettin’ he ain’t got a clue you’re slumming it at a bar with Beau. If he finds out that Beau drags you out here then he ain’t gonna be none to happy about the two of you hangin’ out.”

“Stay out of it, Mom. We’re here to play pool.”

I let Beau pull me away from Honey before the two of them got into an argument over whether or not Sawyer would approve of my being here. I was almost positive he would be against it but it had become mine and Beau’s thing. I wasn’t willing to give this up too. I glanced back at Honey as Beau led me to the pool table. The disapproval in her eyes was obvious. She studied me a moment before shaking her head and turning to walk back to the bar.

“Sorry about her. She has warmed up to you some but she still isn’t crazy about Sawyer’s family, and you being Sawyer’s girlfriend makes you a part of it.”

I understood the unsaid words. Because I’d stayed with Sawyer and not chosen Beau over Sawyer I had a mark against me. In her eyes I was betraying her and Beau.

“That’s okay. I get it,” I assured Beau and picked up my cue stick.

“Alright Ash, it’s time for me to kick your hot little ass.”

“In your dreams, buddy,” I replied, knowing good and well he would beat me. I’d gotten better but not good enough to beat Beau.

Two games later I got a text message from Sawyer.

Are you at home?

I slowly lifted my eyes to meet Beau’s. “It’s Sawyer asking if I’m at home.”

Beau put his cue stick up and reached for mine.

“Tell him I’m taking you home now.”

I didn’t want to go home right now but there was no other explanation I could give Sawyer. I texted him back.

Beau’s taking me home now.

Beau nodded toward the door. “Come on, let’s go.”

He didn’t reach for my hand or touch my back the way he used to when we walked out of here. Instead he walked beside me not touching me or looking at me.

I got another text message.

Tell him to bring you to my house. Everyone’s in bed and I’m in the pool house. Come see me. I’ll take you home.

That wasn’t something I could ask Beau to do. He’d been wonderful after our fight tonight. Asking him to drop me off at Sawyer’s was too much.

Once we were in the truck I fiddled with my phone trying to decide what to tell Sawyer.

“What is it, Ash? What did he say to make you start chewing your bottom lip?”

I sighed and kept my eyes on the phone in my lap.

“He wants you to bring me to his pool house. I don’t want you to do that.”

Beau pulled the truck off the side of the road and then turned to look at me.

“Why?”

I glanced up at him. “Because,” I replied.

Beau let out a growl and slammed his palms against the steering wheel, causing me to jump.

“I can’t do this, Ash. It’s killing me. Having you this close and not touching you is driving me insane. You’re his, Ash. You’re his. You made your choice and I understand why you chose him. I don’t hold it against you but, dammit, Ash, it hurts.”

My chest felt as if it had been ripped open again.

“I’m so sorry, Beau. I’m sorry I did this to you. I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry I can’t make it better. I’m sorry,”

“Stop it, Ash. You have nothing to be sorry for. I started this and I’m the one who needs to end it. I just can’t seem to bring myself to stay away from you.”

I slid over and straddled the stick shift and laid my head on his shoulder.

He slipped his arm around me and pulled me tight up against him. I closed my eyes as he kissed the top of my head. Neither of us knew what to say. We sat in silence holding each other until my phone alerted us of another text message. I started to pull away but Beau held me against his side and cranked the truck.

“Just let me hold you a little longer,” he whispered hoarsely as he pulled back onto the road.

When we pulled onto Sawyer’s street Beau kissed my head one more time. “You better move over now.”