Sinful Ever After - Vivian Wood Page 0,58

a shake.

Maybe my drunk senses fooled me. Surely if I look back over to Olivia again, I’ll find her… changed, somehow. But when I swing my gaze back to her, she looks every bit as good as ever.

And then she swings her blue gaze my way, taking me in. Seeing right through me, is how it feels. Suddenly she blurs, separating into two figures.

Fuck.

I really need to lie down.

And I really need to do it now, before I make the mistake of trying to chat Olivia up. There is no amount of drunk that can excuse that behavior.

Breaking away from my little dance party, I weave to the stairwell, making it halfway up before I black out.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Olivia

I will think about it.

Aiden’s tossed off response to me offering my virginity to him — something that took a lot of guts for me to mention — bounces around in my head for almost twenty-four hours.

When I’m in bed. When I’m working. When I’m sipping my afternoon glass of iced tea, trying desperately to forget how forthright I was with him.

It bothers me, how frank I was about my desire for him. And for a second, he was so stunned… I thought for sure he was going to say yes.

At least I heard good news from the hospital. Carter called this morning to say that Margaret was up and moving around, showing no deficits at all aside from her bum ankle. So that’s a relief.

Still, there is a ton of embarrassment and repressed longing washing around in my system, threatening to drown me. By the time Megan calls me, I’m a pent-up mess.

“So… I heard that Margaret is feeling way better,” Megan says.

I chew my finger. “Yes. Thank god.”

“And I’m especially glad, because… I have someone I think you should meet.”

Pulling my finger free on my mouth, I frown. “What?”

She chuckles. “Okay, so… I don't even normally hang out with that many straight guys. But I was forced to hang out with this new group of people and they are actually really cool. And hanging out with them made me think of you, for some reason. You guys have the same vibe, I guess.”

“Vibe?” I echo.

“Yeah. Like… nerdy, smart, have their shit together kind of people. I don't know. I was just thinking that you should meet all of them. And it just so happens that one of them is throwing the biggest house party tonight.”

My heart rate starts accelerating. “Oh, I don’t know Megan… I don't really do that well with house parties, typically.”

“Just come for one drink. Then if you hate it, we’ll split.”

I sigh. “Okay. One drink.”

“Yes! You won’t regret it. I’ll text you the address, because it’s just a little past your house. We’ll go early and feel it out. Like… I don’t know, in an hour.”

“Okay,” I say again.

After we hang up, I look up the address she texts me. She’s right about where the party is, because the house is practically close enough for us to be neighbors. As the sun sets, I put on makeup and fix my hair, then try about five different clothing combinations. I end up in a pastel pink high waisted skirt that is the shortest thing I have and a semi-sheer white tank top.

Looking in the mirror, I don't feel like this outfit is really authentically me. But maybe I can still pull it off anyway.

Grabbing my purse, I sling it over my shoulder and head out of the apartment. Walking along the wooded path between my apartment and the main house, of course I run into Aiden. He’s not wearing his handyman clothes. Instead, he wears a clean pair of dark blue jeans and a white tee shirt with the sleeves rolled up. A lollipop stick hangs out of his mouth.

If only I were that lollipop.

Just thinking that makes me blush furiously, though.

He takes one look at me, at the outfit I’m wearing. He pulls the bright red lollipop out of his mouth and squints at me. “Where are you off to?”

I don't know where to look. “A house party.”

“The same one that Carter invited me to?” he asks, frowning.

“Maybe.” I shrug. “I’m just going to the next house over I think.”

He studies me for a second. “Yeah, I’m going there too I guess. Give me a second to grab my phone from my apartment and I’ll walk over there with you.”

My face starts burning. The idea of walking over there with him, of the weighted silence between us,