Sean (22 page)

Chapter 1
3

Brynn gave me a light-up-the-world smile when she opened her door and I was instantly floating. I could tell she was going to let go of the beach thing and we were going to be us. I released the breath I’d been holding and handed her the flowers I’d picked out. She closed her eyes and smelled them, like she always did.

“Thank you. They’re beautiful.”

“So are you.” I was in awe. She was wearing tight jeans with
black ankle boots and her shirt looked like a bandana. The front was straight across right above her breasts and came to a V at her belly button. Her back was completely bare except for where her shirt tied opposite her breasts and her skin sparkled overtop of her glowing tan. “You own this outfit.”

“You like it? I wasn’t sure about the bandana for a shirt.”

“I love it.” I kissed her softly as I pressed my hands flat against the small of her bare back.

“Good. That’s all that matters.” She smiled and replaced the flowers in her vase.

“Thank you, Brynn, for giving me a chance tonight. Before we leave, I want to tell you something.”

Her eyes lit up. “Okay,” she said softly.

I took her hands. “I haven’t been in a relationship for a long time. I’ve wanted this, what we have, for almost as long. This past summer was the best of my life and that was because of you. Please continue to be patient with me, especially when I screw up, which it seems I’ve been doing a lot lately. I’m so glad we’re going to sit down and talk on Monday. I want this to be the ‘make it’ weekend more than anything.”

“So do I.” She smiled. “It was without a question the best summer of my life also
, and I’d hate to lose you now.” She kissed me and bit my lower lip. I pulled her to me aggressively and held her face firmly. It was a thrill to feel such passion for someone.

***

We met Ethan and Gia at a restaurant in the hotel. They were having a drink at the bar as they waited for us. They looked like the perfect couple as they laughed and flirted like no one was watching. Gia looked as amazing as ever in her distressed denim shorts and cowboy boots. Her shirt was plaid, unbuttoned to her cleavage, and tied at her waist above her belly button. I’d never seen her in a ‘country’ outfit, but I knew she was at this concert because of Hank Jr., so I wasn’t surprised.

They stood as we approached
. I held Gia’s hand up and twirled her with a whistle before I gave her a hug. “Yee-haw,” I said.

Gia and Ethan hugged Brynn and Gia gushed about her sexy bandana shirt, telling her she’d never seen anyone pull it off the way Brynn did. She was right, my girl was looking hot.

Dinner was delicious, although Brynn hardly touched hers, which worried me. She was laughing and having a good time with Gia and Ethan, unlike her usual demeanor when she didn’t eat. She was feeling the alcohol by the time we stood to leave and I was wondering how much she could handle on an empty stomach.

“Are you okay?” I asked her.

“No, I’m fantastic!” she said.
Uh-oh, she’s gonna be a handful tonight.

“Yes, you are fantastic,” I told her. “Don’t you think you might want to pace yourself a little? Why didn’t you eat if you’re going to drink?”

She laughed. “Don’t worry about me. I’m a big girl.”

The hotel limo took us to the concert venue. We had champagne on the way and Brynn was the life of the party. Gia and Ethan
seemed to love it but I was confused, it was so unlike her. I wondered what was on her mind and what had changed since we met the others at the restaurant.

As we exited the limo
, all eyes were on us. Well, all eyes were on Gia and Brynn, really. They were partying like rock stars and looked the part, too. I tried to keep ahold of Brynn, but she was in her own little world, making excuses to distance herself, it seemed. She went to the restroom while I waited in the beer line and then chatted up a group of people on her way back. She seemed the social butterfly I’d never watched her be.

“Having fun?” I asked when she finally returned to me.

“Yes!” Her eyes were big and bright, taking in all of her surroundings. I remembered the fact that she’d never been to a concert before our trip to The Lock and it gave me some ease as to why she was so aggressively lively.

“Good.” I slipped my arm around her waist and the four of us made our way into the arena. The pre-concert music was good and so was the dance that Brynn gave me. It made me feel better that she was ‘with’ me again, but something about it seemed
impersonal. She didn’t touch me or look into my eyes.

I grabbed her around the waist as a slower song started and stared into her wandering eyes. They were sad as she searched for something, someone, I wasn’t sure. She finally looked into mine and I saw hurt
. I took her by the hand and pulled her out of the crowd.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“What?”

“Something is up. What’s wrong? Did I do something?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” she said. “I’m going to make the best of it and have fun. I’d suggest you do the same. Our friends are here and they’re ready to party, so let’s party.” She danced her way back to Ethan and Gia. I followed.

As soon as we got there, before I could wrap my mind around what Brynn had said
, or more importantly, what she’d meant by it, Kid Rock hit the stage. The crowd exploded with screams and applause, making me readjust my focus on the show. Brynn and Gia danced their asses off to the first three songs, which they both knew by heart. I imagined that Brynn probably danced at the club to some of those songs and I wished we were back there, totally into each other, like we were the night before. I smiled as I watched them have a great time.

“Let’s get a round.” Ethan pulled me from my dream.

“Brynn could stand to skip this one,” I told Ethan as he was about to order.

“Did Brynn tell you that?” he asked.

“No, but she didn’t eat much and she’s kind of a lightweight.”

“So, you want me to go back there with a round and tell Brynn you’d decided she needed to skip this one? I don’t think so, man. I think I’ll leave it up to her.” He ordered the four drinks and handed two to me. “Wha
t the hell is wrong with you?” he said as we headed back to the girls.

“I don’t know. I can’t stop screwing shit up.”

“If I were you, I’d make a decision right quick about what it is you want, because I’ll tell you, Sean, if you don’t, then one is going to be made for you,” Ethan warned. I knew he was right but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was, exactly, that I was doing wrong.

We handed the girls their drinks and Gia turned and gave Ethan one hell of a thank you kiss. Brynn
held her drink up to me and clinked mine. I smiled and shook my head, so she leaned in and gave me a peck on the lips. Before she could pull back all the way, I put my hand on the back of her neck and pulled her back to my waiting, wanting mouth. She hesitated at first, but then her arm came around my neck and she gave me what I was after.

As if Kid himself were answering my prayers,
“Blue Jeans and a Rosary”
started and Brynn and I swayed together to the slower tempo. Her arms were on my shoulders, one hand in my hair and the other holding her beer. She searched my eyes and I searched hers. We both wanted this, yet we were both searching for something more. I pulled her to me and she tucked her face into my neck. I felt her breath on my skin and wondered how I could ever want or need anything more than her. She was perfect. I loved her. End of story. I had to get my shit together, like Ethan said, before it was too late.

I kissed the top of her head and ran my hand up and down her bare back. She nuzzled into my neck and twisted a lock of my hair around her finger. I reached up and tilted her chin to look into my eyes again. Hers were softer, more forgiving, and less disappointed. I smiled and she brought her lips to mine. Her kiss was soft and assuring, full of hope and love. I felt it fully and I wanted to tell her I felt the same way
, but I knew she could feel it, too.

The rest of Kid Rock was awesome. Gia and Brynn danced together for most of it while Ethan and I stood back and enjoyed the music and our women. Apparently I was wrong about the amount of alcohol Brynn could handle and I was grateful to Ethan for pointing out that it wasn’t my call to make in the first place. I shuddered at the thought of how that would’ve turned out, had he have let me.

After Kid’s encore, we hit the restrooms and found a spot to sit for a while. Brynn slipped onto my lap sideways and wrapped her arms around my neck. I took a whiff of her vanilla as I licked my way from her collarbone to her neck.

“You’re the sexiest woman here,” I whispered. “And I’m the luckiest man here.”

She pulled back and looked into my eyes like my words surprised her. She was smiling as she put her hands on my face. “Thank you,” she whispered.

I put one arm around her bare back and the other behind her head and leaned her back as I kissed her. She giggled while she kissed me back and held tight with her arms around my neck. I pulled her up and the giggling subsided so I leaned her back again. I loved the sound of her giggling. It was pure, innocent
, and sweet as hell. It made me happy.

“No, thank you,” I told her.

We grabbed a round before we found a spot to watch Hank. Gia was so excited to see him. She was like a fifteen-year-old waiting for One Direction to hit the stage. She said she and her Dad listened to him a lot while she was growing up, and still do, especially when they go fishing. I could tell it meant a lot to her.

The crowd went ballistic as Hank appeared and began one of everyone’s favorites,
“All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight.” He hit us with three more adrenaline pumpers before he slowed it down a bit. Ethan and Brynn headed to the restroom, so I danced with Gia to one of her favorite ballads.

That ballad turned into another
, and when we’d finished dancing, Ethan was walking up to us with a round. Gia took hers and thanked Ethan with a kiss while I took two for Brynn and me. I turned a complete three-sixty, but didn’t see her.

“Where’s Brynn?” I asked Ethan.

He shrugged. “She headed back here when I headed to the bar.”

“She’s right there.” Gia pointed to a couple dancing about twenty feet away.

There was my girl, dancing with some guy. They looked like they’d been dancing together for years. He swung her, flipped her, and tucked her under his arm and back again. She met every move with ease and they had quite an audience. I was jealous and about to head over to them when Ethan grabbed my arm.

“Don’t be stupid,” he said. “It’s harmless. Plus, you were dancing with someone else when she came back.”

I nodded, knowing he was right. So I stood and watched like everyone else. I was surprised when they finished and Brynn grabbed his hand, leading him back toward me.

“Jake, this is my boyfriend, Sean,” she said. Jake reached his hand out and I put both bottles in one of mine so I could shake his with the other.

“Nice to meet you, Sean,” he said. “Your girlfriend is one of the best dancers I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.”

“Jake is in
Grease
,” Brynn explained. She introduced Gia and Ethan. “He’s Danny, of course,” Brynn said sarcastically as she gave him a nudge. My heart skipped a beat, seeing her flirt with him.

“And she
should be
Sandy!” Jake told us. “She really deserved it, still does, but like I told her, just because she didn’t buy her way into the lead, it doesn’t mean she isn’t the best.” He gave her a hug. “Nice to meet you all,” he said before he turned back to Brynn. “See you Monday morning!”

I handed Brynn her beer, feeling a little deflated. Gia and Ethan whooped and hollered at some song that Hank started that they were totally into.

“You okay?” Brynn asked.

“Yeah.”

“Wanna dance?”

“Not really.” I couldn’t stand the thought of how I danced compared to the way Jake did.

Brynn danced alone while I stood next to her, pouting. She even turned toward me a couple of times, trying to get me to join her, but I knew I’d just look like an idiot, so I smiled and shook my head. I watched Ethan and Gia. They couldn’t really dance, not like Brynn and Jake, but they looked great as they moved and laughed together as they sang the lyrics. Someone tapped me on the shoulder, and when I turned, Jake was standing there.

“Hey, Sean, I figured you’d want to dance with your girl, but since you don’t, do you mind?” His face was as excited as Brynn’s was when she turned and saw him with his hand out. She looked at me for an answer. What could I say? She wanted me to dance with her and I wouldn’t. I nodded. She smiled and kissed me on the cheek as she handed me her beer.

He grabbed her hand and led her back to the group he was with. They all danced pretty well, but none as good as those two. They danced until a ballad started and I watched as Brynn told them all good-bye. It seemed like a big group of friends, nothing more, so why was I so jealous?