Page 14 of Loving the Sinner
“Iz, they’re going to love you.” I circle the counter to wrap her in a hug and stroke her hair. “If you want to leave at any point, you just say the word and I’ll fake period cramps or something and we can go, okay?”
“Yeah, okay. Thanks, Els. I’m going to go get ready. We have to leave in half an hour.” She gives me a quick squeeze before she skips off.
Forty-five minutes later we pull up to a house - no - amansionand I have half a mind to call Luke and make sure he’s not playing a prank on us. Izzy wastes no time getting out and bouncing up the front steps, knocking on the door before I can even catch up to her.
Wowza.
The shirtless man who opens the door looks like he belongs on the cover ofGQor some other magazine thatfeatures hot men. Shaggy light brown hair effortlessly falls across his forehead, golden brown eyes, tan skin, muscles for days.
He’s not even flexing and you can see the definition in his biceps.
He’s probably around six feet tall, a bit taller than Wes, and his smile is bright and warm. Bulging arms and shoulders, washboard abs right above a V that dips down into his swim trunks.
“I’d recognize Luke’s girl anywhere. Nice to finally meet you, Izzy. I’m Matt.” He says with a slight southern drawl, extending his hand to Izzy.
Izzy, uncharacteristically speechless, takes his hand like she’s in a trance. “Hi. That’s Elli.” She motions towards me, and I give an awkward half wave.
Luke pulls Izzy inside, leaving me alone on the porch with Matt. He motions for me to follow him inside, and once we’re through the door, he turns to me and I see his eyes do a quick once-over before clearing his throat.
“Elli, I’m sorry about last night. I hope Luke didn’t give you too much trouble. I know how he can be.”
I wave my hand dismissively. “No worries. Wes came along to keep me company. Besides, Izzy’s the troublemaker in that duo.”
He looks a little surprised when I mention Wes, but he quickly covers whatever emotion flashed across his face with a megawatt smile and a charming chuckle. “Luke needs someone to keep him on his toes. C’mon, let me introduce you to the rest of the group.” He places his hand gingerly on the small of my back and leads me through the entryway, through a pristine living room and huge kitchen, and to the back yard.
As Matt leads us outside, I immediately recognize the redheaded girl,Robin,from Wes’s many tagged pictures on Instagram. She’s sitting with a Latin girl with darker skin and curly black hair that goes just past hershoulders, and a white guy with cropped black hair. A man with short brown hair comes and wraps his arms around the curly haired girl’s waist and gives her a quick peck on the cheek before settling in behind her.
Apparently, having the ability to be on the cover of a magazine is a requirement in this friend group.
“Hey guys, this is Elli. Elli, this is Robin, Sean, Savannah, and Drew.” They give a small wave when he says their name. “And over there,” he points over to the pool where Izzy and Luke are, “Jack, Samantha-but don’t call her that, call her Sam or she’ll probably punch you, Ethan, Lexi, and Dallin. Sav is Jack’s sister, Drew is Ethan’s brother, and Sean is Sam’s.”
Izzy is, of course, already in a giggly discussion with Sam and Lexi, and it warms my heart at the same time it makes me jealous. I’ve never been great at making friends-I’m not confident, or outgoing. Growing up, most of my friendships came from being forced into closeness by church or school. Almost like she can sense me watching her, she turns to look at me and gives me a sassy, twinkly fingered wave. I mimic the wave and dramatically blow her a kiss, which she pretends to catch and throw in the pool. The little sisterly interaction helps ease my nerves a little bit, but they quickly come back when my attention is drawn back to the group.
“So, Elli, how was your date with Wes?” Drew asks with a teasing tone and a wiggle of his eyebrows. Savannah slaps his leg and gives him a look that seems to meanshut up.
“It-it wasn’t adate. Not really. He was just keeping me company while I played chaperone.” I raise one shoulder, trying to hide the way my belly flutters thinking about Wes. I can tell that answer isn’t going to be enough for this nosy group of friends. Especially when Matt sits on an empty bench and motions for me tocome sit by him. Robin leans forward, placing her chin in her hands with a wide, expectant smile.
I continue on, trying not to sound like a kid with a crush. “He was a gentleman, very kind. Izzy’s good at imposing things on people so he was sort of forced to help us haul a TV back to my place so we could watch a movie and he didn’t complain. He even helped set it up.” I watch Robin’s face beam with a smile, and she exchanges a look with Sean.
“Well, we’re glad to know Wes has still got game. He hasn’t been on a date in a loooong time. Not since Shelby che- OW.” Drew is cut off by Savannah elbowing him in the ribs. She whispers something to him in Spanish that I don’t understand and he looks apologetically at me.
Robin draws my attention with a chipper “Elli! Do you want me to show you where to change into your swimsuit?”
I nod, following her as she stands and walks inside, even though the prospect of being alone with Wes’s lover, or ex-lover, or whatever she is, makes me want to jump in the pool fully clothed.
Once inside, Robin leans against the counter and just stands there, head tilted, eyes squinted like she’s trying to see through my skull.
Finally, she breaks into a smile. “I’m glad Wes went last night. I know his exterior can sometimes scare people off, and he’s not exactly the most talkative or forthcoming. But I’ll tell you a secret-” she leans in and whispers, “he’s a big ol’ softy on the inside.”
“Oh.” My shoulders relax, I didn’t even realize they were tense to begin with. “I can see how people could find him scary, but-”
“Who’s scary?” Wes’s voice cuts me off and startles Robin and me as he enters the kitchen.
“Holy shit Westley! You can’t just sneak up on people like that!” Robin yells as she swats his arm.
“Oh, toughen up Robs.” He ruffles her hair. “Sorry if I scared you Elli.” He turns and looks at me, his expression playful.
“Why didn’t you tell her to toughen up?” Robin grumbles.
