Southern Sinner (North Carolina Highlands 3)

Glancing down at my water, I fervently wish it was whiskey.

“Milly, Christ, are you torturin’ sweet Stevie here? I told you to take it easy.”

I look up to see Rhett and almost pass out with gratitude.

“She’s not torturing me,” I say.

Milly smiles. “Yes, I am. Sorry. I just get a little protective when it comes to family.”

“Protective?” Rhett looks at his sister sideways. “I’d go with meaner ’n a snake. But sure, you can call it protective if you want.” He puts an arm around my shoulders and presses a kiss to the top of my head. “How you doin’, girl?”

“Great,” I say. Because I am doing great. I’m having a great time.

But also, part of me is feeling not so amazing.

Fuck me, how did things get so complicated in the past half hour?

“Good. Here, lemme introduce you—” Rhett goes still beside me.

I look up. Look at the girl he’s looking at.

“Shit,” he mutters.

“What?” Milly turns and looks. Turns back to us and nonchalantly sips her champagne. “Huh. I didn’t know Samuel invited Amelia.”

“Who’s Amelia?” I ask, trying to decipher Rhett’s expression.

He shakes his head. “An old friend.”

“It’s the girl he almost knocked up in high school,” Milly says.

I furrow my brow. “Isn’t knocking someone up an either/or scenario? How do you ‘almost’ do it?”

“It was just a scare,” Rhett says. “Everyone has scares when they’re young and dumb.”

“I never did,” Milly says.

“Me neither.”

Rhett shakes his head again and sighs. “Can we at least agree that your first one’ll forever fuck with your head? I’m gonna go say hello. Y’all behave, all right?”

“First what?” I murmur to Milly after Rhett’s gone.

“First love. Rhett had it bad for Amelia all through high school. Asheville was a small town back then—still is in many ways—and their relationship was like a real-life version of Varsity Blues.”

“That movie is so bad but so good.”

“Right? That Dawson’s Creek dude was insanely hot in football pads.” She looks at me. “Be good to Hank, all right? He’s been through hell. I only want to see him happy. If you think you can help him get there, great. If not . . . don’t waste his time.”

I remember what Hank said the night we met. Wasting time is exactly what I’m trying to do. He meant that then.

I think he’s starting to change his mind on that point now.

“Yeah,” I say. “He deserves a happy ending. Definitely.”

Luckily, Annabel comes to the rescue, giving me a quick hug before the three of us head to the bar. Then she and Milly guide me through the room, stopping to introduce me to cousins, aunts, college buddies, and people from town.

I should focus on charming Hank’s family, but instead, I find myself sneaking glances around the room, looking for him.

He’s working the crowd, shaking hands and slapping backs, a genuine smile on his lips. Joy looks good on him. So does that fucking suit.

I’m not the only one bowled over by his handsome charm. The women he talks to laugh a little too loudly. One touches his arm. A few more stare while sipping their cocktails.

I don’t blame them. His charisma is magnetic.

I feel it, an ache in my center that won’t let me be. It’s a total Taylor Swift “gold rush” moment, and it’s equal parts thrilling and . . . painful.

Thrilling: this guy—the one who’s hot and sweet and, yes, famous—is wild for me. Physically speaking, anyway. He’s crazy for what we do naked. I get to go home with him tonight.

Painful: this guy’s going to have a million options to choose from when I leave. A million women who aren’t too damaged or too jaded to do the white picket fence thing with him.

A million women who don’t lie to his family about their intentions.

Chapter Sixteen

Hank

“You think she’s okay with Milly?”

Taking a pull from his water glass, Beau glances across the room. A growing circus of curious relatives surrounds Stevie.

Looks like she’s handling it like a champ. I knew she’d hit it off with my family.

I didn’t anticipate, however, that tug of guilt I keep feeling—because it’s definitely guilt—as I pull one over on them. I’m trying to do the right thing here by making Samuel and Emma happy. I just had no idea things would get so twisted up.

I didn’t anticipate this weird feeling that I may want what Stevie and I have to be real.

Giving the ice in my glass a shake, I make a note that those two lines would make a good, if cheesy, lyric.

My muse burned out around the same time I did. This is the first time I’ve felt a spark of inspiration in years.

“Meh. You know Milly,” I reply. “What’s going on with her, by the way? Something’s up.”

Beau shrugs. “Hell if I know. If I had to guess, I’d say it has something to do with Nate Kingsley. I haven’t heard dick from him since he asked me if he could date Milly, but I get the feeling they’ve been hanging out.”