“Yeah. Though she’s picked up on the Mississippi accent more and more over time. Stay here long enough and you’ll pick it up too.”
“Maybe mine will rub off on you.”
“Lisa and I used to pretend we were from New York and see if we could get people to believe us.”
“Did it work?”
She shakes her head. “Not at all. But we were usually drinking when we’d play that game.”
“I was born and raised in Indiana,” I tell her. “Northern Indiana, close to Lake Michigan, to be exact, and not all that far from Chicago, actually.”
“Does it get cold there in the winter?”
“Very. With lots of snow since we’re by the lake.”
“I like snow. It’s so pretty.”
“Has it ever snowed here?”
“A few times,” she says. “It’s never much though. I went to Park City, Utah a few years back for a New Year’s ski trip and party. It was breathtaking.”
“You’ll have to see the piers in Lake Michigan in the winter then. The ice build-up is insane.”
“I’d like that.”
“I’ll take you someday.”
Sierra smiles. “I’m going to hold you to it.”
Chapter 17
Sierra
I rake my fingers through Chase’s hair, and he lets out a soft moan in his sleep. Leaning back into the pillows, I close my eyes as well even though I’m not tired. I know Chase only got a few hours of sleep last night and didn’t nap like he intended to during the day. We have time before the bonfire at Rob’s tonight, so he might as well sleep.
And he has to be exhausted from the sex we just had. Hell, I am, and I wasn’t the one holding me up against the wall the entire time.
We’re in his bed, both still naked. Chase’s head is nestled against my breasts, and he has one arm lazily draped around me. I hook my leg over him, and a foreign feeling of peace falls over me. It’s so pleasant it’s almost startling. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to get on with my life after Jake, let alone find another person who gets me the way that Jake did.
I’m drifting to sleep when Chase’s phone vibrates on the nightstand next to me. Chase jerks awake, eyes wide as he sits up.
“It’s your phone,” I tell him and reach for it, pulling it off the charger. “Is this new? I thought you had a different one.”
“I do,” he says and pushes himself up.
“Whoa, that’s a lot of missed texts,” I blurt when I see the screen. Chase takes the phone before I can get a better look. “Did that say you have thirty-seven texts from someone named Jax?”
“Yeah. This is my phone—my real phone. The one I’ve been using is a temporary, so to speak.”
“What?”
“Dakota, my niece, broke the screen my first day here. I sent it away to be fixed and forgot about it until it came back today.”
“Who’s Jax?” I ask, trying to get another look at the phone. I can be a bit nosey regardless, and right now I really want to know why Chase has so many missed texts and calls.
“A friend.” He sets the phone down and reaches for me.
“Shouldn’t you text him back?”
“Nah, it’s not important.”
“He sent you like forty texts. I think that warrants at least a look.”
Chase shrugs and grabs me by the waist, sliding me to him. “Later. We should probably leave, right?”
“Probably. I don’t know what time it is.” The sun set a while ago, and soft moonlight filters through the window in Chase’s bedroom. He presses the home button on his phone to check the time, and I see that has a slew of missed calls as well as texts. How is he not dying to read them?
“Nine twenty-three,” he tells me.
“Wow. I did not realize it was that late.”
“We’re good at losing track of time.” He grins and moves closer.
“Very. Maybe we can lose track of time again later?”
His lips graze mine as he talks, his deep voice rumbling through me. “Not maybe. Definitely.”
Dark clouds blanket the sky, and the smell of rain sits heavy in the air, mixing with the thick scent of the bonfire. The crackles and pops of the fire fight to drown out the late-night singing of the crickets, and talk and laughter weave between the two, muted by the country music that’s coming from the barn. Humidity clings to the night, blanketing us in sticky heat.
This is summer the way it should be. I’ve spent most of my summers like this, outside with friends, partying in some sense or the other.
“You look lost in thought,” Chase says, handing me a can of beer. I crack the top and take a sip. I’m not a fan of beer. The idea of it sounds nice, refreshing even, but I can’t get past the taste. It’s terrible.
“I am. I was thinking of how these get-togethers have evolved over the years. From innocent slumber parties with my girlfriends to crazy parties in college to this…low-key, more adult fun. I missed that last transition.”
Chase puts his arm around me and kisses my forehead. Sometimes saying nothing is the best thing to hear, and Chase knows how powerful his silence can be.
“Siiieerrraaaa!” Lisa calls from across the yard, throwing her hands up.
“I think she missed the transition too,” Chase jokes and I laugh.
“Lisa will always be in the crazy stage. She’s been in the crazy stage since birth.”
“I told you to be here at nine, hooker,” Lisa bellows as she rushes over, throwing her arms around me. She’s already drunk and the party just started. “It’s like ten…ten…something.”
“It’s ten fifteen. That makes me fashionably late.”
Lisa pouts. “But I had no one to tell me to stop taking shots. Or take shots with. Want one?” She turns before I can answer. “Rob! Bring me those tequila shots.”
“I don’t think Sierra wants one of those,” Chase says, eyes meeting mine. He arches his eyebrows and smiles, and I roll my eyes back at him, knowing he’s referencing that time I almost had a threesome with Mr. and Mrs. Backwoods.
“Why don’t you let Sierra make her own decisions,” Lisa slurs.
I love and hate Drunk Lisa. She lacks a filter most days, and when she’s been drinking, the filter is completely off and locked away in some repressed compartment in her mind that won’t surface again until at least three hours after her hangover wears off.
“I don’t want tequila,” I say, grimacing. “Do you have any wine inside, though?”
“Of course. Come with me. I have to pee anyway.”
I take Chase’s hand and start forward after Lisa.
“No,” she says, turning around. She holds up her hand, squinting at Chase. “Just the girls.”
I shake my head. “Lisa, chill a little.”
“Rob!” she calls, turning away from us. He jogs over a few seconds later.
“What’s up, babe? And hey, guys,” Rob says.
Lisa takes my hand out of Chase’s and loops her arm through mine. “I need to take Sierra into the house for some girl stuff. You talk to Chase. Because if we’re going to stay together and they’re going to be together, then the two of you need to get along.”