The flush deepened. So much more she could say. She settled on “Thanks.”
“It’s good to be passionate about something.” Sawyer’s grin was only slightly teasing.
“Yeah? What are you passionate about?” And suddenly, she wanted to know.Neededto know.
Sawyer tipped her head, obviously thinking. “That’s a good question.Hmm.” She took a moment before she spoke. “Well, as a technical writer, I’d say I’m passionate about proper grammar. Punctuation. Spelling.”
Jenna nodded. “Valid.”
“I can be passionate about wine.” She held up her glass.
“Mm-hmm.”
Another moment of silence went by. “You know what? I am passionate about the person I’m with.”
Jenna turned to look at her. Sawyer was gazing off into the distance. “Yeah?”
“Absolutely. I think it’s important to be. I mean, why else be with somebody, right?”
“Agreed.” She sipped her wine. “Were you passionate about Amanda?”
“Of course. In the beginning, I was all in.” Sawyer turned to meet her gaze, held it. “But it’s been a long time since I’ve felt that. For anybody.”
“Ah.” Jenna nodded.
The silence settled back in. Slightly charged, but still comfortable. Jenna had so many questions, so many more things she wanted to know about Sawyer—even about her relationship with Amanda. She’d seen them together, and they…they didn’t fit. Not in Jenna’s mind. Amanda was beautiful, yes, but not in a warm, inviting way. She was beautiful in a cold, untouchable way, like she was used to people admiring her from afar but not with them wanting to be close. Sawyer was the opposite. She was just as beautiful, if not more so, but she was magnetic. She drew people. You wanted to get close to her, to smell her, to touch her…
Jenna cleared her throat. Okay, enough of that line of thinking, yikes. “I really need to go to bed or I’m going to end up falling asleep on you right here.” Sawyer looked at her and grinned, and Jenna said it before she could. “Wouldn’t be the first time. I know.”
Sawyer’s soft laugh seemed to reverberate along Jenna’s limbs until it tingled in the tips of her fingers and toes. “I get it. You’ve had a super-busy night.” She stood up and moved her chair back to her side of the porch, then went back and held out a hand to Jenna.
She took it, and Sawyer hauled her to her feet. “Oh, that’s not better. That’s worse. I want to lie back down.”
“In your bed, champ. You’ll be glad when you wake up in themorning and don’t have the neighbors gawking at you here on the porch.”
“Valid.” She opened the door to let Arnold in, then grabbed the gate and his bed. Halfway through, she turned to meet Sawyer’s gaze. “I’m glad you came tonight.”
“Me too.”
“Good night, Sawyer.”
“ ’Night, Jenna.”
She went inside and closed her door, then stood quietly with her back against it and listened until Sawyer’s closed as well. Her body felt like rubber. Her brain was swirling. She gazed down at Arnold, who sat at her feet, looking up expectantly at her.
“What a weird night, Arnie,” she said with a slow shake of her head. “What a weird, weird night.”
Chapter Eleven
“Sweetie, I adore you, but you are so incredibly boring today, what with all the staring off into space.” Colton stood at Sawyer’s desk, and she flinched in surprise when he spoke. “See? You didn’t even realize I was here. I’m gonna start taking this personally.”
She grinned at him and gave herself a mental shake. “Sorry. Sorry. I’m just…distracted today.”
“Yeah, no kidding. You barely reacted to my story about my date with the fitness instructor.” He folded his arms.
“Oh my God, are you actually pouting?”
“You hurt my feelings.”
