61
" I was very aware that you were a girl, Ash. I was just scared, because the one person in the world who knew every secret I’d ever had also happened to be the most beautiful girl I’d ever known. My feelings for you were scary as hell.”
I leaned down and kissed the frown between his brows.
“Right now. Right here. I’m yours. Not Sawyer’s. He isn’t who I want. Right now all I want is you.” I chose my words carefully so we’d both understand my meaning.
He took my waist and shifted his body so I was completely on top of him. I lowered my mouth to his and sighed as his hands found the hem of my dress and the warm pressure of his palms ran up my thighs.
Tonight I would give myself to Beau because I wanted to. He was the town’s bad boy and I was the preacher’s daughter. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.
“Ash, I want you. Bad, very, very bad. But you deserve better than this.”
I bent back down over him and kissed him again before pulling back enough to whisper, “It doesn’t get any better than this, Beau.”
His hands cupped my bottom and shifted me so I could feel the pressure of his obvious arousal against the warmth between my thighs.
“Please, Beau,” I cried out, not sure what I was begging for but knowing I needed more. His hands gripped my waist.
“Hold on to me, baby. I’m going to take care of you.” The raspy need in his voice only made me more desperate. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
65
" Now, tell me ’bout this locker business again,” Honey said as she picked up a glass and started drying it along beside me.
“They’re just putting sticky notes and ugly letters on my locker, threatening me and stuff. It’s silly. Other than the time I was shoved into the locker and hit in the head, I haven’t suffered any injuries.”
“And that sorry sonuvabitch ain’t stopping them from treating you this way?”
I shrugged, thinking of Sawyer watching silently from a distance.
“He’s just like his father. Don’t know why that surprises me. Ain’t gonna help none when Beau comes back. When my boy finds out Sawyer let this happen, he’s gonna be spittin’ mad. I was hoping them two’d mend fences once Beau shows back up.”
“I don’t intend to tell Beau about any of this. He won’t know it happened, and once he’s back, it’ll have tapered off. That way he won’t have a reason to be mad at Sawyer.”
Honey snorted and slapped the bar in front of me with her towel.
“Girl, you grew up with Beau. You should know better than that. He ain’t a dummy. Besides, someone’ll tell him, and when they do, all Hell’s gonna break loose. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
67
" So tell me, Ash, is your insistence to drive the drunk guy and his whore girlfriend home because you’re the perpetual good girl who helps everyone? ’Cause I know you don’t like me much, so I’m curious as to why you want to make sure I get home safe.”
“Beau, you’re my friend. Of course I like you. We’ve been friends since we were five. Sure we don’t hang out anymore or go terrorizing the neighborhood together, but I still care about you.”
“Since when?”
“Since when what?”
“Since when do you care about me?”
“That is a stupid question, Beau. You know I’ve always cared about you,” I replied. Even though I knew he wouldn’t let such a vague answer fly. The truth was that I never really talked to him much anymore. Nicole was normally wrapped around one of his body parts. And when he spoke to me, it was always to make some wisecrack.
“You hardly acknowledge my existence,” he replied.
“That’s not true.”
He chuckled. “We sat by each other in history all year, and you hardly ever glanced my way. At lunch you never look at me, and I sit at the same table you do. We’re at the field parties every weekend, and if you ever turn your superior gaze in my direction, it’s normally with a disgusted expression. So I’m a little shocked you still consider me a friend. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
69
" I knew this trailer park well. It was a part of my childhood. I came to a stop in front of Beaus’ trailer. It would be easier to believe that this was the alcohol talking, but I knew it wasn’t. We hadn’t been alone in over four years. Since the moment I became Sawyer’s girlfriend, our relationship had changed.
I took a deep breath, then turned to look at Beau. “I never talk in class. Not to anyone but the teacher. You never talk to me at lunch, so I have no reason to look your way. Attracting your attention leads to you making fun of me. And, at the field, I’m not looking at you with disgust. I’m looking at Nicole with disgust. You could really do much better than her.” I stopped myself before I said anything stupid.
He tilted his head to the side as if studying me. “You don’t like Nicole much, do you? You don’t have to worry about her hang-up with Sawyer. He knows what he’s got, and he isn’t going to mess it up. Nicole can’t compete with you.”
Nicole had a thing for Sawyer? She was normally mauling Beau. I’d never picked up on her liking Sawyer. I knew they’d been an item in seventh grade for, like, a couple of weeks, but that was junior high school. It didn’t really count. Besides, she was with Beau. Why would she be interested in anyone else?
“I didn’t know she liked Sawyer,” I replied, still not sure I believed him. Sawyer was so not her type.
“You sound surprised,” Beau replied.
“Well, I am, actually. I mean, she has you. Why does she want Sawyer?”
A pleased smile touched his lips making his hazel eyes light up. I realized I hadn’t exactly meant to say something that he could misconstrue in the way he was obviously doing.
He reached for the door handle before pausing and glancing back at me.
“I didn’t know my teasing bothered you, Ash. I’ll stop.”
That hadn’t been what I was expecting him to say. Unable to think of a response, I sat there holding his gaze.
“I’ll get your car switched back before your parents see my truck at your house in the morning.” He stepped out of the truck, and I watched him walk toward the door of his trailer with one of the sexiest swaggers known to man. Beau and I had needed to have that talk, even if my imagination was going to go wild for a while, where he was concerned. My secret attraction to the town’s bad boy had to remain a secret.
The next morning, I found my car parked in the driveway, as promised, with a note wedged under the windshield wipers. I reached for it, and a small smile touched my lips.
“Thanks for last night. I’ve missed you.” He had simply sighed it “B. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
71
" I wanted to see Beau’s blood. You both had denied it, but I knew he’d kissed you. Heck, it’s Beau. I knew y’all had probably done a lot more. I hated knowing I’d finally lost you to him. It was something that always scared me. Even when you two didn’t speak much, he’d watch you, and when you thought no one was looking, you’d watch him. I’m not a complete idiot.”
“I never thought you were, Sawyer. I lied about Beau, hoping to save your relationship with him. I fully intended to walk away from both of you.”
Sawyer laughed, but the humor didn’t reach his eyes. “You really think Beau was going to just let you go? Not in this lifetime.”
“He loves you,” I argued.
“I know. The thing is, he loves you more.”
I started to shake my head.
“Ash, Beau wouldn’t have betrayed me if he wasn’t head over heels in love with you. No use in denying it. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
72
" Good morning,” she said, smiling as she slid over beside me and straddled the stick shift. All worries of Sawyer fled my mind.
“Good morning, beautiful,” I replied, and leaned over to kiss her. She immediately sighed and moved closer to me, running her fingers through my hair. It took all my self-control to pull back.
“Don’t you want to get out of here first?” I asked.
She pouted as if I’d just taken away her favorite toy and sat back, crossing her arms over her chest.
“How’re you feeling today?” I asked, pulling out onto the road. Her dimple winked at me. It took extreme willpower to keep driving and not pull over so I could kiss that sweet spot.
“I’m fine…I mean, better than fine. I’m--” She paused, and I glanced down to see her cheeks flush a pretty, bright pink. I couldn’t keep from chuckling at the innocent blush on her face. Reaching down, I gently pulled one of the small hands she was wringing nervously in her lap and threaded my fingers through hers while the first stirrings of possessiveness came over me.
“Are you sore?” I asked. I’d heard virgins were normally sore afterward, but Ashton had been the first virgin I’d ever been with.
She started to shake her head, but then her blush deepened. “Maybe a little.”
“I’m sorry,” I replied, feeling a tug of protectiveness to go with the healthy heaping of possessiveness rearing up inside me. She was turning my insides into a war zone.
She gazed up at me and smiled shyly. “I’m not.”
God, I loved her. She wrapped her arms around mine and laid her head on my shoulder. It was one of the few times I hated my stick shift. I’d prefer to remain just like this without having to move my arm.
“Tell me you put on sunblock,” I said, glancing down at her lightly tanned skin. The sun on the beach was intense for even the best tanner. She giggled and nodded her head. All was right with the world. Once I pulled out onto the highway, heading south, I tucked my hand between her thighs and enjoyed the ride. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
74
" Until that moment, I’d thought you were lost. I realized my Ash was somewhere under all the polish and politeness. After that day, I started watching you and enjoying the moments when I got a glimpse of the real you slipping out while no one else was paying attention. It’s why I said the things to you that I did. I wanted you to react to me. I wanted you to smart off at me. Those moments when you couldn’t take it anymore and snapped…I lived for those moments.”
“You were mean to me because you wanted me to smart off to you?” I asked.
He nodded, then bent down to kiss the tip of my nose.
“You really like my ugly side, don’t you, Beau?”
“Nothing about you is ugly. You’re just as beautiful inside as you are out, but you don’t see it. That’s what kills me. Sawyer’s my cousin and I’d do anything for him. But he’s insane for keeping you up on some damn pedestal. I want the real you. The one that likes shimmying out of a pair of shorts knowing you’re driving me wild. The one who runs through the woods to my truck smiling like nothing else matters.” He cupped my face with his hand. “The real Ashton Gray is perfect, and I’m crazy in love with her.” My gut clenched. I had feelings for Beau. We shared a history together and now we had this summer, but love wasn’t supposed to factor into the equation. There was Sawyer standing between us.
Beau’s lips found mine and everything else fell away. I didn’t care about all the worries and arguments in the back of my head. I just wanted to be me. In his arms I knew I could be. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
77
" So you talked to that boyfriend of yours since he’s been gone, or are you having you some fun times with another fella while he’s away?”
I spewed the tea in my mouth and shook my head as I began to cough. How was it she always knew what was going on when no one else did?
“Well, who is he? He’s made you spit tea all over my lap. I at least want a name and a few details.”
Shaking my head, I turned so I could look her in the eyes. “There is no one. I got strangled on my tea because you asked me such an insane question. Why would I cheat on Sawyer? He’s perfect, Grana.”
She made a hmph sound and reached over to pat my leg.
“Ain’t no man perfect, baby girl. Not a one. Not even your daddy. Although he thinks he is.”
She always joked about Daddy being a pastor. He’d been a “hell-raiser” growing up, according to her. When she told me stories about him as a kid, her eyes would light up. Sometimes I could swear that she missed the person he used to be.
“Sawyer’s as perfect as it gets.”
“Well, I don’t know about that. I drove by the Lowry’s this morning, and his cousin Beau was out cutting their grass.” She paused and shook her head, a big grin on her face. “Girl, there ain’t a boy in this town who can hold a candle to Beau Vincent with his shirt off.”
“Grana!” I swatted her hand, horrified that my grandmother had admired Beau shirtless.
She chuckled. “What? I’m old, Ashton baby, not blind.” I could only imagine how Beau looked shirtless and sweaty. I’d almost had a wreck last week when I’d passed the Green’s and he’d been cutting their grass shirtless. It was hard not to look at him. I’d told myself I had just been examining the tattoo on his ribs, but of course I knew the truth. His well-defined abs were really hard to ignore. It just wasn’t possible. Then something about the ink on them made his abs even sexier.
“I ain’t the only old woman looking. I’m just the only one honest enough to admit it. The others just hire the boy to cut their grass so they can sit at the window and drool. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
79
" Earth to Ashton.” Kayla’s voice broke into my thoughts. I jerked my head up and stared directly at her. She seemed to be waiting on me to reply.
“Um, I didn’t hear you, sorry,” I said, feeling the blush creep up my neck.
She giggled and twirled a long red curl around her finger.
“I asked you if you wanted to be one of the spirit girls. Maybe this year our quarterback will actually accept a spirit girl if he gets to choose you.”
Spirit girls were girls the cheerleaders added to their numbers so every football player would have a girl to make him goodies on game day. Off the record, spirit girls also happened to help their players with their homework, order pizzas to be delivered to the school for their lunches, and do some unofficial things like back massages and other “hands-on” activities. The starters always picked their spirit girl first, then the rest of the players’ names went into a hat and the spirit girls drew them.
“Um, yes, of course,” I replied.
Sawyer chuckled. “Then Ash is mine. "
― Abbi Glines , The Vincent Boys (The Vincent Boys, #1)
