Page 41 of Between Never and Forever
“Why are you feeling me up like a creep?”
I wipe my face of expression, then raise a brow slowly.
“Just seein’ if you were real.”
He opens his other eye and smiles softly.
“I’m real if you’re real.”
My eyes bounce between his. His face becoming clearer with every minute of the sunrise.
“How are you feeling?” he asks, his voice still rough from sleep. I shrug.
“Fine. Why?”
“You were pretty out of it last night...” He lets the statement trail off, and he studies me, searching my face for I don’t know what. “What do you remember?”
I sift through my brain before speaking, then list everything I know was real.
“A party on the beach. A bonfire. Wading into the ocean. Losing one of my earrings. Dancing with you. Mabes and Crystal got into a fight, then made up, then left together after Jonah told them to stop boning on the beach.”
I giggle and Levi’s lips quirk up. He nods. Mabel was so mad at Jonah, but that’s nothing new. Those two fight like siblings. I’d be worried about how it would affect the band if I wasn’t sure it came from a good place. Jonah is a protector and a planner. Mabel is the opposite, so they butt heads.
When Levi’s smile fades, the back of my neck prickles.
“What?” He doesn’t answer right away, so I press again. “What, Levi?”
“Do you remember anything with Sean?”
I want to fidget under his focused gaze. I want to look away, but I don’t. Instead, I search his eyes as I fumble through my memories of the night before. Torren. The molly. Then Sean...
My head jerks back, and my eyes widen. Levi folds his lips between his teeth and nods slowly. I shake my head back and forth.
“No...” I breathe out. No way. That couldn’t have been real.
“Yeah, and your fucking bassist tried to defend him. Was going to let him do it.”
No. Sean would never. He’s always been flirty, but he flirts with everyone, and Torren would never let anyone hurt me.
“Yeah, Sav,” Levi says slowly. “You were telling him no. You were struggling. If I hadn’t...”
He clamps his eyes shut and his nostrils flare, his jaw so tight it could slice through me.
“And then Torren fucking tried to fight me for pulling that sleazeball off you.”
“He was probably confused,” I say quickly, and Levi’s eyes pop back open. I don’t know why I need to defend Torren, but I do. “He probably didn’t understand what was going on. He was tripping. He was on drugs. He was confused. Sean is Torren’s brother. He didn’t know.”
“Savannah,” Levi says, and his dark tone sends a shiver down my spine. “There is no excuse. None. Definitely not for what Sean did, and not for Torren either.”
I bristle at the authority in his voice, the patronizing attitude behind it. I want to argue with him, to tell him he doesn’t know Torren or Sean. It’s none of his business. He needs to back off.
But then I remember something else.
The careful way Levi buttoned up my shirt and refastened my shorts. How he brought me home and stayed when I asked.Get him out of here before I kill him.The way my heart races...
So, I nod.
“You’re right,” I tell him. “There’s no excuse. I’m going to talk to him. To all of them.”
