way longer than a one night stand at this point?
I reach over and brush my fingertips down her sheet-covered side, sighing silently to myself.
The first thing I hear about Eve’s visit is in a text from Nate at Whiskey Bend.
Your sister showed up here looking for you. I told her where you were, although I didn’t explain the circumstances.
I put my phone down for a second, my brain whirring.
Eve is here? She’s coming now?
I can’t help but dread her arrival just a little. Even though I’ll be glad to see her, I’m also kind of dreading it. Eve has always been the good kid, where I have been the coal black sheep. And because Olivia is my dirty little secret, I can’t afford for Eve to find out about her.
To think of the way that my sister will look down her nose at me just makes me freeze up inside. I glance over at Olivia, tracing a finger over her arm. She doesn’t deserve to have any of my shit with my family put on her, but if I don't wake her up and get her out of here soon, Eve is going to find her in my bed.
Actually, it’s better for me if Eve doesn’t even make it back to my apartment. That thought in mind, I look up bars in Port Angeles. Choosing the best rated one, I send Eve the address.
You’re in town, apparently. You can find me here in an hour… The Limelight.
Eve responds pretty quickly. So much for surprising you. That’s right by my hotel… so I’ll see you in an hour.
Great, I text back, but I feel anything but. Just knowing that she is here gives me a sour feeling in the pit of my stomach.
Reaching over, I gently rouse Olivia,
“Hey. My sister is in town,” I whisper.
She cracks open an eye. “She is?”
I nod, hooking my finger in the sheet and pulling it down a few inches. “Mmhm. I’m meeting her at a bar in an hour.”
Olivia sits up halfway, her long dark hair falling behind her like a silken curtain. “Do you want me to go?” she asks, her voice soft.
More than anything, is my first response. But I lick my lips.
“I do,” I hedge. “It’s just… you know, we’ll have to keep the fact that we’re fucking quiet. My sister is… she jumps to judge. She’s kind of a bitch like that.”
She raises a brow, which feels like a shot to the gut. “We have to keep it secret from your sister?”
I wrinkle up my face. “Especially her. Not all siblings have a relationship like you and Grayson.”
She shoots me a look, her eyes narrowing. “Grayson can't know about us either. Or Carter. Or anyone else, apparently.”
She yanks the sheet aside, getting out of bed. I know a moment of pure shame, hanging my head.
“I know,” I say. “It’s my fault. We shouldn’t be together, Olivia. But…” I reach out, catching her wrist and pulling her back toward me. I look up into her eyes. “I don't want to stop. Not yet. Do you want to?”
She pushes a sheaf of her hair behind her ear, her eyes wary. “No.”
I smile briefly, though I feel no amusement. “Good.”
She crosses her arms, pulling her hand from my grip. “You didn’t answer my question. Do you want me to go?”
I sigh. “Yes. I really do.”
She pauses for a second, opens her mouth as if she’s about to say something. But her face is blank. Whatever she’s hiding under the mask she’s put on, I wish that I knew.
She just sighs. “I should go get ready.”
She starts pulling on her clothes, making me wish for the thousandth time that we never had to leave the comfort and safety of my bedroom. I keep feeling that way, the sense of dread only growing as eventually we head to my Jeep. I don't say anything about it, but I do send a heated look over her chosen outfit.
Not that I would say anything about what she chose to wear, but the short denim dress shows off her legs a little more than I would like. I’m especially worried when Olivia spots Carter and invites him along, which sends a shiver of cold jealousy through my gut.
I drive us to the Limelight, that gnawing feeling in my gut threatening to take over as Carter and Olivia chat about the history of Port Angeles. We get in the door of the bar — which is a hotspot, if the