Page 26 of Sacrifice
Who is he to judge me or question my intentions? He doesn’t know anything about me.
Makenna hands me a bottle of water, knowing me well enough to know I wouldn’t be interested in drinking with Huxton there. I take a step back from the group, my eyes moving to where Huxton’s playing, making a run toward the sprinkler. You could spot his beaming smile from a mile away.
“I’m going to run across the street quick to grab Huxton a towel and a change of clothes.” My eyes do a quick scan around the group. Brit and Layla both smile, reassuring me they’ll keep an eye on him for me.
“I can join you,” Corbin says, slipping past Makenna. “I need to, ah, grab something from my truck quickly anyway.”
Alex mutters, “liar,” in between a cough. He shrugs, his whole face spread into a smile. Not the least bit bothered for being called out.
“We’ll keep Huxton occupied. Don’t hurry back now,” she giggles, flashing me a wink. Corbin takes my water and sets it on the table, leading me toward down the driveway where we first came through.
I glance down at his T-shirt with “Navy Veteran” printed across the front.
“I didn’t know you were in the Navy.” I smile, peering at him from beneath my lashes. “I’m not surprised, though. It makes sense.”
“Why is that?”
“You seem like the type of man who would fight for our country. Loyal, honorable.”
He ducks his head and murmurs, “Thank you.”
“Is that how you met Gage and Alex?”
He shakes his head. “My dad and Brit’s father were good friends with Gage’s dad. Best friends. They still are to this day. Our families are super close. Alex moved to Arbor Creek when we were in second grade. We grew up together and have been friends ever since.”
I nod along with him.
“Listen, I’m sorry about Gage back there. He can be a little gruff sometimes, but he comes from a good place. You’ll see, I promise. He’s just been through some things and, I don’t know, he hasn’t been himself lately.”
Corbin reaches for my hand, tangling his fingers in mine, and gives them a squeeze.
The sun is starting to go down. The sky is turning a mixture of orange, pink, and purple. It’s still warm, but the further the sun disappears, the cooler it will get.
We dash across the street and up my driveway toward my front step.
“You can come inside if you want. I should only be a minute. I just need to grab a few things for Huxton quick.” I pull the keys from my pocket and unlock the door.
Corbin holds the door open and follows me inside, standing near the entryway. He glances around, taking in our home before his eyes fall on mine.
I hold up my finger, signaling I’ll only be a second. It’s not until I’m in Huxton’s room, shoving his things into a bag, that I realize I finally have Corbin alone and all to myself away from anyone else.
As much as I’ve tried to distance myself from him, I can’t help but think about how badly I’ve wanted to kiss him since the day of the photoshoot. When we ran into each other at Oh My Goodies and he walked me to my car, I could’ve sworn he was going to kiss me.
I’ve wanted his lips on mine so damn bad. The day of the photoshoot had only been a taste, but it was enough to drive me wild.
Chapter Ten
Corbin
I stand in the entryway, my eyes scanning over the collage of photos hung on the wall, ranging from when Huxton was first born to his first day of school.
When I was texting with Haelynn earlier this week, she mentioned spending time one night hanging up some pictures she recently had printed. After seeing all of Makenna’s hard work, she started to get inspiration for some of her own photos of her and Huxton.
There’s one of the two of them outside of his school. She’s crouched on the ground next to him, a wide smile on his face, missing his front tooth. She’s glowing with happiness, and I make a mental note to try and keep that smile on her face as often as possible.
She rounds the corner, and I step back from the wall, turning toward her. She has a small blue bag slung over her shoulder. Her eyes bounce from me and over to the photos on the wall.
“He looks just like you.” I gesture to the picture of them I had been studying.
