Page 99 of Play It Sinful

Sean is shaking, and his aggressive stance doesn’t change until Brian gets in his car and drives away. Once he’s gone, I step back from Sean and look away, mortified and angry. My vision goes blurry. Tears are forming now that the adrenaline is leaving my body, but I don’t want to cry in front of him.

“Ash… are you okay?” He touches my shoulder, and I stiffen.

“I’m fine.” I rush into the house, but Sean doesn’t let me get far. He wraps his arms around me and turns me around.

“He didn’t hurt you, did he?” Sean’s blue eyes are wide and worried. I allow myself to get lost in them for a moment and don’t answer him right away.

He touches my face, wiping away a tear that rolled down my cheek. “Ash… talk to me.”

A shiver runs down my spine, but not because I’m cold. Sean is reeling me into his orbit again, and I can’t allow that to happen.

I step back, needing to put distance between us. “I’m fine. Why are you here?”

“I came to check on you. Alex and Noah didn’t get a good vibe from Brian and… fuck, they were right. What a piece of shit.”

I hug myself, rubbing my arms up and down to get warm. I feel ice cold all of a sudden, even though the heater in the house is working fine. “Yes, he wasn’t who I thought he was. Thanks for helping.”

“I’ll always be there for you, Ash. I told you that.”

Like he was there for me at The Heritage when I had the panic attack. “Yes, you’ve appointed yourself my knight in shining armor,” I reply bitterly.

“I’d rather be that than not be in your life at all.”

My heart squeezes so tight, I can’t breathe. Being alone with Sean while I’m reeling from a traumatic experience is playing a number on my feelings.

“If you truly believed that…” I shake my head. “No, I’m not going there with you again. You can leave now.”

I expect him to shut down or make an annoying comment. I’m not prepared for him to pull me into a bear hug and hide his face in the crook of my neck. A zing of electricity spreads through my body, bringing me back to life. I curl my fingers into his jacket, burying my face in his chest. I’m crying again, but not because of what happened with Brian. I’m bawling my eyes out for the happy ending that I’ll never have with Sean.

“I miss you so much, Ash. So fucking much,” he whispers.

My spine goes taut. I pull back, ready to give him a piece of my mind. But he frames my face between his hands and slants his lips over mine. I fight him for a split second before I succumb to the emotions that are coursing through my veins. His kiss is demanding, raw… desperate. My heart is beating at the speed of light, soaring with all the feelings I had to suppress in order to survive.

I dare to hope he’s finally come to his senses, but as soon as I start to believe we can be together again, he jumps back as if anelastic cord yanked him away from me. His face is as white as a sheet of paper, and his eyes are round and frantic.

“No… this can’t happen.” He shakes his head.

The glint of horror and remorse in his eyes is like a punch to my chest. He did itagain. He pulled me in, gave me a glimpse of what we could be, only to take it away. My heart shatters, but I focus on the rage that erupts from the pit of my stomach.

“You’re a fucking asshole!”

“I know.” He swallows hard. “I’ll go.”

“Do whatever you want, Sean.” I stride to the front door, but this time, I grab my coat and purse from the peg by the door before storming out of the house.

“Where are you going?” He follows me.

“None of your business. I don’t ever want to see you or talk to you again. Leave me the fuck alone!”

I get into my car quickly and drive off without looking back. Hot tears are streaming down my face. I don’t have a destination in mind. I just want to put as much distance between myself and Sean as possible. It’s ridiculous that I had to run away from my own house.

There isn’t a soul on the road at this hour, plus it’s snowing heavily again. Visibility is shit. I drive at a snail’s pace until I’m out of the residential neighborhood. But when I’m clear of that area, my foot becomes heavier on the gas pedal.

I don’t notice how fast I’m going until my headlights light up a pair of glowing eyes and I can’t stop the car before I hit the deer crossing in front of me. It happens too fast, and then all I feel is pain everywhere.

CHAPTER 44

SEAN

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