Out of Breath (Breathing, #3)(129)

‘Hi,’ I greeted cautiously. ‘Everything okay?’

She didn’t say anything, only nodding slightly. She stood from the bed and smoothed the short skirt around her. I stood in front of her as she averted her eyes and slid my finger under her chin to redirect her gaze.

‘You can tell me, you know,’ I coaxed gently.

‘I know,’ she murmured. ‘I will. Later, okay? After everyone leaves.’ My eyes tightened, not liking the way she said that.

‘Okay,’ I responded, bending down to kiss her. She received me tenderly, sliding her hands into my hair, pulling me deeper into the give of her lips, but then she pulled away briefly, her eyes flickering with emotion.

I struggled with what I saw for a moment, until she pulled me down onto the bed with her, kissing me like her breath depended on it. My body responded to her touch as she ran her hands along my back, under my shirt. I pushed against her, kissing her soft skin, down her neck and over her shoulder, peeling back the strap.

‘Emma, are you ready yet?!’ Sara shouted from the other side of the door. Breathing heavily, we didn’t move for a moment. ‘Emma?’

She looked up at me in apology. ‘Coming!’

I offered her my hand to assist her to her feet. ‘Later?’ I asked, having a hard time recovering.

Emma’s mouth curled up seductively as she nodded. ‘Later.’ There was still a hint of sadness in her eyes, but her smile seemed genuine.

‘Emma!’ TJ hollered in his overly emphatic way, dumping ice in the bin at the bar.

‘Hey, TJ,’ I responded with a smile. James and Brent were messing with the volleyball net, tightening the lines. Ren and Brent arrived a few minutes later with boxes from the liquor store, and a bucket full of some red drink they’d come up with for the day.

Once the guests started to arrive I realized quickly that I never wanted to throw a party again. I was so busy refilling food, letting people know where the bathrooms were, and bringing the guys at the bar bags of ice, I wasn’t exactly having fun. It didn’t help that Evan had been assigned grilling duty, not giving us more than a passing second.

I caught a glimpse of Evan standing at the grill with Nate and Jared when I brought out another salad to set on the long table. The sun reflected off the light brown strands of his neatly trimmed hair, which was becoming more golden as the summer progressed. His short-sleeved plaid button-down shirt brought out the shades of blue in his eyes. He laughed at something Jared said, revealing his heart-stopping smile.

‘Em?’ Serena beckoned, catching me staring. She grinned when she saw who held my attention. ‘He won’t be at the grill all afternoon.’

‘Emma, can you get the bag of rolls from the kitchen?’ Meg requested.

I sighed, and Serena laughed as I walked into the house.

Evan was on his way in as I was heading out with my hands full of rolls.

‘And I’ll see you when?’

‘I’ll find you,’ he promised, intercepting me with a hand on my waist. Before he could lean over to kiss me, the front door opened and more people came in. He gave me a brief kiss and continued on his mission.

‘Evan, come play volleyball with us,’ Jared hollered from the beach. I had just shut off the grill and was about to find Emma, having lost track of her with the influx of arrivals. I was pretty sure we’d invited about forty people, a number that had been surpassed within the first hour. ‘Evan, come on, we’re one short!’

‘I’ll be right down,’ I called to him, looking around one more time for Emma.

I made my way down to the volleyball net, joining Jared, a few other guys and a girl. I unbuttoned my shirt and tossed it on the sand, prepared to play.

‘Hey, Evan,’ the girl said. It took me a moment to place her, and just as I recalled, she reminded me. ‘Nika. I met you at Nate’s. So this is your place, huh?’

‘Oh. Hey,’ I replied. ‘Yeah. This is the place I was telling you about.’

‘It’s really nice,’ she admired.

Jared called for everyone to take positions and got ready to serve. Nika took a position next to me. Brent was across the net, and he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. I was tempted to switch teams, but with Jared’s serve I was caught up in the game.

‘Just you and Emma staying here?’ she enquired.

‘No,’ I responded, watching TJ run off to get the ball that he’d batted twenty feet out of bounds. ‘There’s another couple here too.’

‘Oh, you’re dating?’

I nodded, glancing at her surprised expression before setting up for the next serve.

I noticed the blue dress on the deck out of the corner of my eye. Emma was watching from against the railing, and next to her was a guy … standing a little too close.

‘Evan!’ Jared hollered, as the ball whipped by me. ‘Focus!’

‘What do you study at Stanford?’ Paul asked, hovering a little too close, despite my blatant lack of interest.

‘Pre-med,’ I told him, keeping my eye on the game and the lines of muscles flexing along Evan’s back as he set the ball up for Jared to spike over the net. They pumped their fists when Brent missed and it landed on the sand. Nika raised her hand for a high-five that Evan delivered. She was talking to him … a lot.

‘That’s pretty intense,’ he noted, having already gone on about his celebrity access as an assistant at a talent agency in LA.