Page 123 of Courtside

“Who’s not your type?” Tommy sauntered up to the group, looking like an absolute tool in a pink button down and pressed khaki pants. He’d done something new to his hair, which was swooped over to one side of his head.

Chuck cast a quick glance over at him. “The comb over isn’t working for you,” he said, reaching out a hand and dislodging the hair from the tight hold of whatever product was holding it in place. “Stop trying to look like Keaton. You look just fine the way you are.”

“Fuck off,” Tommy muttered, trying to flatten his hair back down.

Sighing, Chuck grabbed Tommy by the shoulder. “Alright. Let’s go to the bathroom and get that shit out of your hair. I promise I’ll fix it.”

David shook his head as he watched the two of them walk away.

A soft hand curled around his wrist. “Hi.”

He turned to see Sage grinning up at him. Her eyes seemed greener than usual, maybe due to the sparkling copper on her eyelids or the glow of the string lights that hung from the oak trees above them.

“God, you look stunning.” David leaned forward to press a quick kiss to her forehead, but was redirected by Sage, who used the tight grip of her fist on the front of his shirt to guide his mouth to hers.

His low groan was swallowed as her tongue pressed into his mouth. He met her in kind, and the crowd around them faded into the background as he kissed her. Her lips were perfectly cool against his and her tongue was hot and quick like she was trying to win.

It was the kind of kiss that left him ravenous for her.

When they broke apart, David let out a laugh.

She tilted her head to one side. “What?”

“I just keep thinking about that first night,” David admitted, wrapping his arms around her lower back and pulling her body flush against his. “You were supposed to be my ‘hop back on the bandwagon again’hookup. A way to get out of a dry spell.” He shook his head, feeling a piece of hair flop forward onto his forehead.Time to call Jordan about another haircut.“I’d say that in the end it worked out alright.”

Sage’s smirk widened. “And there I was just trying to find a big man to take me for a ride on his big —”

David’s eyes widened as he smacked a palm over her mouth. “You are a goddamn menace,” he whispered, pulling his hand away just as her tongue darted out to lick him.

He knew her tricks.

“Come say hi to my mom,” Sage said, ducking under his arm and cuddling up against him.

David’s fingers brushed the soft skin of her bare shoulder as he took a long drink from his Corona. “She still scares me,” he admitted, even as Sage started pulling them both over to where Keaton and Ms. Fogerty were locked in what looked like a very intense conversation.

Sage rolled her eyes at him. “Man up, Hughes. She’s a hippy; she doesn’t believe in violence.”

Grumbling, David followed her, steeling himself for another conversation with the mother of the woman he was unconditionally obsessed with.

* * *

At midnight, David Hughes was regretting wearing the formalwear that he’d thought was appropriate for attending his girlfriend’s graduation.

He was sweating in a way that was beyond socially acceptable, a situation that wasn’t at all helped by his girlfriend’s body, which was pressed flush against his as they danced to some alternative song from the nineties that they somehow knew all of the words to.

He tossed his head, fighting a losing battle against his hair. He could reach a hand up to more effectively push it back, but he didn’t want to let go of his grip on Sage’s hips.

He’d stopped after two beers, but he still felt drunk off of her and the music and the sweaty bodies of their friends surrounding them. Other bar patrons also occupied the small dancefloor, but their group had staked claim to the center.

It was the kind of night that left his face sore from laughter and his feet sore from dancing. He’d not only survived his conversation with Cheryl Fogerty, but had even gotten her telling stories about how Sage, as a four year old, had been determined to climb up onto their roof. While he wasn’t sure he’d completely won her over yet, he no longer feared that his life was at risk. Not that he’d blamed her. Sage was a goddamn gift and deserved all of the love and protection in the world.

If he had to jump through hoops to prove that he was worthy of her then he would. No questions asked.

She was worth that and so much more.

CHAPTER33

A REASON TO STAY

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