AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Shawn’s eyes narrowed. “Did something happen with—?”
“No,” I said quickly before Shawn could utter Sam’s name aloud. “And nothing ever will.”
My gaze drifted back to where I’d seen Sam. He was still there, but now he held a beer in his hand. If he’d noticed our little group, he was choosing to ignore us.
I forced my attention back to the conversation before it could move on too far without me again. Freddie was saying something about plans for the future and settling down. It should have been comforting to be sitting here with a guy who was ready to be serious and start a family. After all, that was what I wanted—the husband and babies. But the more I listened to him talk, the more flushed I felt and the harder it was to breathe.
I stood. “Sorry. I need to find a bathroom. I’ll be right back.”
I didn’t know where the bathroom was, and I didn’t really care. I just needed to be in a room that wasn’t occupied by Sam or Freddie or anyone else for that matter.
A minute later, I was pushing through a set of glass doors to a back patio set with couches, chairs, and a metal firepit. I didn’t stop to admire the patio as I ran across it and down a short set of stairs to a second patio beside an in-ground pool.
I dropped to my knees in the middle of the patio as I fought for breath. There was a pressure in my chest, suffocating me and making it impossible to get enough air.
It felt like I was dying.
Thirteen
Samuel
Siren had been gonefor nearly twenty minutes. I’d heard her tell Freddie that she was going to find a bathroom. She’d said she’d be right back. This house was large, but it shouldn’t have taken her that long to find a damn bathroom and get her ass back in here.
She’s not your problem, asshole. She’s not your anything. You shoved her into Mr. Perfect’s arms. You don’t get to throw yourself a pity party now.
I lifted the mildly disgusting beer to my lips. It was cold and contained almost enough alcohol to dull my bad mood. Almost.
I sent a scowl toward where Mr. Perfect sat with Thomas and his new boyfriend. Thomas’s little romance with Piper’s best friend was highly aggravating, but there was fuck I could do about it. I might be an ass, but I didn’t dictate his love life. As long as Thomas didn’t tell Shawn what I was, I didn’t have anything legitimate to complain about. Didn’t mean I was happy about his new lover.
Where the hell was Siren? And why wasn’t Mr. Perfect looking for her yet?
I took another swig of my beer before stalking out of the room in the direction I’d seen her go. The only bathroom on this side of the house was empty. So was the sitting room and office. There was a chance she’d gone upstairs, but that didn’t sound like something Siren would do. She wasn’t the type to go exploring someone else’s home in the middle of a party. She was way more the type to disappear outside.
My feet were carrying me out the back doors before I’d really thought it through. Light spilled over the empty patio from the house windows. I continued straight to the lower patio, the one ringed by a fancy stone railing and scattered with unlit tiki torches.
A panicked feeling lodged in my chest when I saw the tall boots discarded in the middle of the patio along with a purse and the diamond necklace Siren had been wearing. I sprinted down the steps, reaching the patio just as Siren’s head broke the surface on the far end of the pool.
Her back was to me, long brown hair floating around her in the water. The skirt of her dress fanned out from her waist, almost offering a glimpse of what she was hiding underneath.
Any other time, that sight would have made my entire lower half throb for her, but tonight I was a little distracted by the gasping sounds she was making.
“Siren?” I was across the patio and kneeling in front of her in under ten seconds. “Are you okay?”
She lifted her head and glared at me with red-rimmed eyes.
Shit. I was in danger of killing someone tonight. No one got to make her cry.
“What happened?” I growled, reaching for her.
She pushed off the wall of the pool, swimming away from me before I could touch her.
“What are you doing here?” she snapped.
“You didn’t come back.” It sounded dumb even to my own ears. I had no claim on her, no reason to be seeking her out. Except that I couldn’t seem to help myself.
“What do you want from me, Samuel?” she bit out. “You want me to stay away from you and then you don’t. You tell me to go out with Freddie and then you show up here. Would you just make up your fucking mind?”
I stared at her, words catching in my throat. I honestly hadn’t known that word was in her pristine, well-bred vocabulary.
