Page 46 of Break My Heart
He starts to leave, then turns back. ‘Hey, Sawyer, Angie asked if you’d dance with her at the festival this year.’
‘Tell her I’d love to,’ Sawyer says, walking Eric to the door. ‘I might even do two dances if she’s up for it.’
‘Are you serious? Because she would love that.’
‘Yeah, of course. You need help getting her there?’
‘No, my parents will take her in the van. Hey, man, thanks for doing this. It means a lot to her.’
‘I’m happy to do it. See you later.’
‘Yeah, bye.’ He gives me a wave. ‘See ya, Gina!’
‘Bye, Eric.’
When he’s gone, Sawyer returns to the kitchen and starts unloading the sacks. ‘Plates are right behind me if you want to grab some.’
I go to the cupboard and take out two plates, setting them on the counter next to Sawyer. ‘So who’s Angie?’
‘Eric’s little sister. She’s 16. She was in a car accident when she was 12 and was paralyzed from the waist down. She doesn’t get to do a lot of the stuff kids her age do because of the wheelchair, so sometimes Eric and I will take her out on a Friday or Saturday night so she’s not stuck at home, feeling like she’s missing out.’
‘That’s nice of you.’
‘Yeah, except I haven’t been able to do it since opening the brewery,’ he says, putting the food on the plates. ‘Jason offered to take my place. We just need to figure out a time and check with her parents about getting the van.’
‘If she ever wants some girl time, I could take her out.’
‘She’d love that. Would you really do it?’
‘Sure. Aria could come too.’ I smile. ‘She’s more fun than me.’
‘What do you mean? You’re fun.’
‘Not for a teenage girl. I’m not great at girl talk and I don’t really like shopping.’
‘You don’t have to go shopping. Just getting her out of the house would make her day. Take her to a park or out for dessert. She loves sweets.’ Sawyer hands me a business card. ‘That’s the number for therestaurant but it’s the best way to reach Eric. If you really want to do this, call him up and you two can arrange a time for you to meet Angie.’ He gives me my plate. ‘You can go sit down. I’ll be there in a minute.’
I return to the couch but sit next to it on the floor, setting my plate on the coffee table.
‘Gina, I really don’t care if you spill on the couch,’ Sawyer says, standing next to me holding his plate and glass of beer. ‘It’s leather. Anything you spill can be wiped up.’
‘I’m good with the floor.’
He sits beside me. ‘I should probably get a real table.’
I laugh as I watch him try to fold his long legs. ‘Sawyer, you don’t have to sit down here. Let’s just sit on the couch.’
We do, and Sawyer looks way more comfortable, his large body a much better fit on the oversized couch than on the floor.
‘Can we finish what we were talking about?’ he asks.
‘What were we talking about?’
‘When you went to camp.’ He sets his plate down on the table. ‘I feel like shit for treating you the way I did. If I’d known what you were going through I would’ve—’
‘Sawyer, don’t.’ I look over at him. ‘Don’t do this. I don’t want you feeling sorry for me or feeling guilty for how you acted. You were a kid. You acted like a seven-year-old boy should. And I wasn’t upset with you for it. In fact, I kind of liked it.’
‘Liked what? Me accusing you of cheating? Arguing with you? Stealing your ice cream?’
