All three snort.
“And whose fault is that?” Carson drawls.
My head falls back toward the sky, begging for patience.
“I’m just saying. You can take your slow ass time, or you can get in there and go after what we all know you really want.”
“I don’t know what I want.” That might be a bit of a lie, but I go with it. “I don’t know much about Sarah, and you three need to back off.”
I march toward Ollie in the front yard, having had enough.
“Hey, that’s the wrong way,” Trig yells.
I flip them off behind my back, knowing this is the only way. If something is happening with Sarah, she’s got to be the one to tell me. If she wants to. The only thing these jackasses are right about is that I have to create the opportunity forher to do that.
Chapter 24
SARAH
I stir the mashed potatoes and set the large spoon aside. A cold hand grips my wrist, tugging me away from the counter and through the doorway.
“Hey, what . . .” I follow Roxie, who’s clearly on a mission.
She stops when we are safely out of the kitchen and turns toward me. “That’sSlade?” she whispers, pointing in the direction of the garage where she escaped to rather than helping set food out.
I stare at her, wondering what she’s getting at.
She crosses her arms, her head falling to the side in annoyance. “Tall, tattooed, and brawny. Looks like he should grace the cover ofSexy Uptown Lumberjacks.”
I laugh, and she doesn’t break her miffed state.
“He’sthe guy who fixed your car, drove you to work, and that you’ve been shacking up with?”
I frown, hearing the back door open, and Wind announces the turkey is done. “We are not shacking up together. We stayed here for two nights because I had norunningwater.”
She cuts a hand through the air. “Semantics. You didnottell me that A: He and Ollie are like this.” She crosses her fingers as her eyes bug out. “And B: He’s clearly got it bad for you.”
Laughter tumbles out of my mouth, and I cup a hand over it, hearing the guys enter the kitchen.
“He does not have it bad for me,” I whisper. “We’re friends, and that’s it. I’m pretty sure he only tolerates me because I remind him of his mom, who struggled to raise two kids on her own.”
She rolls her eyes. “Oh, please. Keep telling yourself that, sister.” She leans closer as the noise in the kitchen grows louder. “I saw the way he looked at you earlier, and let’s just be real, he wasnotthinking about his mother.”
My cheeks grow warm, knowing what look she might be referring to, but I don’t think it means what she wants it to. Or maybe I’m not sure if I want it to mean that.
I recall his strong hands and the way they gripped my waist. Yep, that doesn’t help.
“It’s nothing,” I say, needing it to be true. “We’re just. . .friends.”
Her stance and eyes soften. “You know, you can let yourself think about it being more than that if you want it to be, right?”
I glance at the floor. Given my record, I’m not sure it’s a permission I should be in charge of.
“It’s been a long time, Sarah. Way too long. Everything that happened that wasn’t about you. It was about him.” She waits for me to meet her gaze, and she grins. “The best revenge is to let yourself be happy.”
I roll my eyes and smile, grabbing her hand and pulling her back into the kitchen.
We step into the tight quarters, and Slade stands just inside the door with Frankie in one massive arm. She pulls on the bill of his hat, and he tickles her side.
