Page 16 of Loving the Sinner
Wes
Holy curves.
Elli’s body is fucking immaculate. Her ample breasts are nearly spilling out of the top of her swimsuit, and the bottom of her ass is peeking out the bottom. Her hips are wide and look like the perfect place to hold on to. Don’t even get me started on the way her thighs squish together. I can see the cute little pouch of her tummy too.
She’s fucking perfect.
Robin pulls me away from gawking at Elli in that sinfully tight garment to grab the party trays in the kitchen. As soon as we’re alone I ask, “So, what do you think of her?”
“First impression: she’s a sweetheart. Shy, but I think anyone would be in her situation. She’s very pretty.” Robin sighs.
“I know.” I narrow my eyes at her and bump her with my hip. “I saw her first.”
“I don’t think it’s me you have to worry about. Matt seems pretty interested too.”
I try to ignore the pit that forms in my stomach when I think of Matt and Elli together. Matt and I met through Robin. They were in the same ethics class during their sophomore year of college, and started to get along really well. Robin ended up trying to set him up with Savannah, so she made all of us come over for a game night to get to know Matt. Robin didn’t know that Savannah and Drew were already hooking up at the time, so when Matt tried to ask Savannah out, they had to come clean about their relationship-which made things a little awkward. Even though the set up didn’t work, Matt fit in pretty seamlessly with our group so we kept inviting him to stuff. Almost four years later, he and I have become good friends- he’s like a brother to me. He and I used to play wingman for each other when we would go out, and it worked pretty well for us since our taste in women never seemed to overlap.
Apparently, it overlaps now. I don’t think either of us will be playing wingman when it comes to Elli.
In all honesty, Matt is probably better for Elli. He’s the type of guy you take home to your parents. He’s got a trust fund, his master’s degree in business, a 401k, life insurance, and a comfy corporate job. Sure, he lives at his parents’ place, but that’s because they travel most of the time, so he takes care of the house. He’s the kind of guy who you have the white picket fence, a few kids, a minivan, and a dog with- and he’s ready to settle down and have all of that in the next few years.
Me? I’m scraping by on a teacher’s salary while trying to be a musician. I don’t have a 401k, nor could I even begin to tell you what it is. I don’t want kids, or a white picket fence. I’ve got so much baggage I could fill a whole damn airplane.
I’m not the settling down type.
At least, that’s what I’ve been told.
I take the party trays out to the tables outside and I’m immediately swarmed by the teens. In a few minutes of shoving, grabbing, and shouting, they’ve managed to clear off a tray and a half. When the swarm finally dissipates, my attention is drawn to Elli and Matt sharing the patio bench, facing each other.
“Looks like Matty’s tryin’ ta steal your girl, Wes.” Drew taunts as he approaches the table with Sav and Sean in tow.
Elli’s facing Matt completely on the bench, one leg pulled up underneath her, listening intently on whatever Matt’s saying. He apparently says something funny that makes her giggle and shake her head, causing a loose strand of hair to fall in front of her face. Matt wastes no time gently tucking the strand behind her ear, leaving Elli’s face flushed at the contact.
“She’s not my girl,” I mumble.
“Yeah? Then why do you look like you’re trying to make his head explode with your mind?” Sean interjects.
“Sun’s in my eyes.” I grunt as I take a tray over to Matt and Elli. “Snacks?” I offer them with a forced smile.
“Oh, thank you.” Elli takes a strawberry and a cookie with an appreciative smile that makes my jealousy melt just a little.
“Thanks Wes. Glad you could make it.” Matt says as he takes a few grapes.
I don’t reply, instead, I watch in fascination as Elli eats her strawberry-her perfect pink lips wrap around it seductively. When she pulls it away, a bit of juice drips down her chin and she quickly wipes it with her thumb and sucks it off, humming in delight. She notices me- and apparently Matt- watching her as she pulls the thumb from her mouth.
“Do I have something on my face?” She questions timidly.
“No.” Matt and I say in unison, glancing at each other quickly before staring back at Elli.
Elli’s eyes dart between the two of us, confusion evident on her face as she finishes the strawberry.
Robin bounds over “How about a game of volleyball? Will you two go set up the net please?” She gives me a pointed look.
Matt stands and we make our way over to the small shed to grab the net and poles. “So,” Matt clears his throat once we’re out of earshot, “it sounds like you guys had a good time last night.”
“Yeah, Izzy and Elli are really cool.” Do I ask him to back off? I have no right to do that, I can’t saydibs, I saw her firstwhen it could have been Matt that saw her first. If he hadn’t been unavailable, I might have only just met Elli today.
“Yeah, she, I mean, they seem really great. I wanted to-” Matt’s cut off by the sound of squealing as Izzy tackles Elli into the pool. As they resurface, they’re both laughing hysterically and splashing each other. Elli looks so happy it makes my heart swell.
