“I’m never going to live this down,” Allie whines.
Tripp gives her a teasing grin. “I can see the headline now.‘Kindergarten Teacher Arrested For Meting Out Justice’.”
I toss Allie a sympathetic look. “It’ll be fine. People will forget about it once the next big scandal hits.”
“Ugh. This is a fucking nightmare. I want to puke,” she groans.
“Should I pull over?”
She shakes her head, looking miserable. “No. Just take me home.”
“Are you sure? You don’t look so good.”
Sawyer digs an elbow into my side, making me wince. "I thought we already discussed how you shouldn't tell a woman when they look like hell."
I make an inarticulate sound.
“You can drop me off at Allie’s,” Tripp says. “I’ll just crash on her couch for the night.”
Tears continue to stream down Allie’s face, but she doesn’t make any objections, so I drop them both off at her place. Tripp will make sure she's alright.
Once they’re both out of the truck, Sawyer scoots over to where Allie had been sitting, creating a space between us I’m loath to admit I don’t want. I take the highway back toward the ranch and Sawyer’s house, the silence in the cab of the truck heavy and tense.
Sawyer clears her throat, turning toward me as the lights from town blink in the rearview mirror. “Thanks for your help tonight. I owe you one.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The air in the truck is thick, and I want nothing more than to reach out and skim my hand over Sawyer’s leg, to tuck that piece of hair she keeps trying to blow out of her face behind her ear and brush my fingers over the slight angle of her jaw.
She nods, flashing me a quick smile. “I can do that.”
Silence descends once more, making whatever tension is hanging in the air crack and fizzle over my skin, hot and edged in a desperate longing I haven’t felt in a long time.
I wonder if she feels it, too. This shift between us. A magnetic pull that has me unable to keep my eyes off her for longer than a few seconds at a time.
By the time I pull into her driveway, my body is pulled taut and I’m already half hard just thinking about how it would feel to kiss her, owning that damn mouth of hers as my fingers tangle in her red locks.
The second I put the truck in park, she’s out the door like she can’t get away from me fast enough, mumbling a quick “goodbye”. I watch as she walks up the steps of her lit up porch, her blue dress cinching in at her waist as it fans out and falls below her knees.
Dixie yips an eager greeting and Sawyer’s impassive expression melts into a breathtaking smile. My heart seizes in my chest, and I bite back the burst of desire flooding through me as she opens her door and walks inside, leaving me in my truck lusting after her like some damn teenager.
What exactly is it about her that has me so damn captivated?
Sawyer Addams is a walking paradox. She looks delicate, but she’s tough as nails with a wild streak that would have a weaker man trying to tame her. But she’s perfect the way she is. Rough edges, sharp tongue, and all. And now that I’m admitting to myself that I want her, I’m left wondering what the hell I should do about it.
You Wear the Hat...
Sawyer
“What do you think?” Allie asks. “You grab the cider, and I’ll snag us a table?”
My eyes bounce around the crowd. There’s a live band playing on the small outdoor stage and couples dancing on the dance floor, while others gather around a few small tables. Kettle corn pops at one booth andthe scent of fried food cooking at the food stands makes my mouth water.
I nod. “Sounds good.”
It’s been a week since dancing with Wes, a week since telling him not to stop making dirty promises, and a week since he bailed Allie and me out of jail.
Is it still considered bailing us out when Sheriff Andersen didn’tmake him pay a dime?
