Page 93 of Waiting For Fate

“Hey, Tay. Everything okay?” She lets her eyes rake over me in her brother’s hoodie, my hair a mess and bare from the waist down—though she can only see from a little above my knees down—and she screams.

“Oh my god, and now I’m deaf.” I hold my fingers to my ears as Taylor storms through the front door. Taking in the mess of clothes right inside the threshold.

Oops. Forgot about those.

“I think I’m having a heart attack.” She holds her hand to her chest and tries to take a deep breath. “Oh my god!” Her other hand flies to her eyes and I look behind me to see Sawyer with those delicious looking sweatpants slung low on his hips as he leans against the wall with amusement on his face.

“This is my house, Tot. You’re just lucky we’re as dressed as we are.” I shoot daggers at him, but he winks at me and suddenly I wish we weren’t as dressed as we are.

“Did you need something?” I turn to face her, and both of her hands fall to her hips.

“Um, yes! I need to know why my best friend’s phone is going straight to voicemail, why her car was still in her driveway well after eight o’clock on a Friday morning when she’s never taken a day off work unless she was dying, and why my tree of a brother didn’t answer any of my 911 texts about it.” She looks between the two of us and when I meet Sawyer’s eye again, he’s looking at me like he’s replaying last night, and I can’t help the blush that washes over my cheeks.

“I uh, took the day off work, Uber’d to the game last night, left with Sawyer, then I stayed here last night which is why my car is at home, and I honestly don’t know where my phone is.” I glance around and see it sitting on the floor next to my dress. Likely dead as a doornail.

“And what’s your excuse?” She stares past me at Sawyer.

“My phone is on do not disturb.”

“Why?!” The room is silent for a moment before Sawyer speaks again—but not before he walks over to wrap his arms around me.

“Because I wasn’t to be disturbed last night. Isn’t that right, Dove?”

“I am feeling so many things right now I can’t even begin to land on one emotion,” Taylor says almost robotically.

“Try,” I encourage as she looks between the two of us. Then she narrows her gaze on me.

“Yay for the invasion of Fort Knox!” She claps excitedly, quickly followed by her finger being shoved in my face. “Don’t you ever let your phone die again, I thought you were getting crazy murdered somewhere.” Then she pulls me into a giant bear hug. Going through the five stages of grief in a very shuffled way at lightning speed is kind of Taylor’s specialty.

“Since you’re alive and well, I expect to see both of you tomorrow night on Broadway. If you can manage to get dressed and out of the house long enough to grace us with your presence.” She shimmies her shoulders and winks at me, then stares blankly at Sawyer before closing her eyes.

“Random hockey player, he’s just a random hockey player,” Taylor chants as she shakes her head and walks back out the front door, leaving Sawyer and I staring after her.

“I don’t know why the things she does still surprises me after all these years,” he says after we hear the engine to her car start and the tires begin rolling down the gravel driveway.

“Well, she wouldn’t be Taylor if they didn’t.”

CHAPTER 40

LEAH

“For the love of God can we skip line dancing tonight? If one more person gets into an almost fight, I’m going to have to ban them indefinitely,” Lauren demands as we all congregate on the sidewalk that is bustling with people—per usual.

“If we do not walk into a building soon, I will go the fuck home,” Max says, his eyes never landing one place for long.

“How’s therapy going, buddy?” Sawyer asks from his place behind me. Max growls in response.

“Let’s just go into the saloon here and get a drink and then we can decide where we end up next.” Tucker leads the way as we all file in behind him like kids on a damn field trip.

“Oh my god, I love this song.” Lauren starts swinging her hips as the live band begins to play a Teddy Swims song. When she points to me mid lip-synch and takes a step back, she bumps into someone and turns to apologize.

“I’m so sor—” Her apology falls short, and she tosses her hair behind her shoulder. “I’m so sorry your new prescription doesn’t seem to be working. You should really get that fixed.”

Damn Lauren. Who the hell?—

“Maybe it’s you who needs glasses, then you’d be able to see how many of your clients are falling into my lap every day.”

Oh my god.

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