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Saxon appeared at my other side, holding a mint julep out for me. “Wasn’t sure what else you liked. If you’re tired of this already, I can go get something else. Just tell me what.”
I took the drink. “Thank you, Saxon. This is perfect.”
“Seriously, dude. She’s my friend tonight. Stop making me look bad.”
Saxon rolled his eyes.
“You sure you don’t want one of the Gold Cups? They’re not selling them but I know where I can get one.”
I shook my head. “I would be furious.”
“So, she is a friend?” Xavier asked, looking from Saxon to Trev, then locking in on me. “How exactly does one get in line for this friendship?”
Trev’s hand moved to my waist, gripping me tightly. “You don’t.”
I shifted some, trying to get him to ease up on his hold. It stung. His heated glare dropped to me.
“You’re hurting me,” I said softly.
His expression softened, as did his grip. “Sorry, Lollipop,” he replied, looking truly bothered by the fact that he’d caused me pain.
“Excuse us, Xavier,” Trev said as he moved us toward the bar. “I’ve got to go get a drink since Sax didn’t bring me one.”
Xavier laughed and began talking to Saxon as we walked away from them.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he said, leaning closer to my ear so I could hear him.
“It’s fine,” I assured him.
“No, it’s not. I can kiss it and make it better,” he offered.
A laugh bubbled out of me, and I shook my head. “That won’t be necessary.”
“You sure? I don’t mind. That’s what friends are for.”
I looked up at him. “No, Trev, it isn’t.”
The disappointed look on his face bothered me. He was drunk and acting out of character. When he had been sober, he hadn’t wanted anything to do with me. As much as I liked him being close to me and I enjoyed his attention, it was a disaster waiting to happen.
“Don’t be mean,” he replied.
I reached up and placed a hand on his chest. “If you were sober, we wouldn’t be standing here together. Sober Trev understood how impossible this situation was. I’m not saying that our parents will end up married. Knowing my mom, we could be in Virginia next week. It’s how she is. But if by some miracle your dad manages to change her mind and she stays, they get married, what then?”
He said nothing as he stared down at me. I continued when it was clear he wasn’t going to respond.
“If we are friends, then it’ll be easy. If we are friends, no one gets hurt.”
Trev’s hand fell away then, and he took a step back. It was as if my words had sobered him. The playful glint in his eyes was gone, and I missed it. That wasn’t a fair reaction, but I missed it just the same.
“You’re right,” he finally said.
Then, he glanced over my shoulder before turning to walk into the crowd. I didn’t watch where he was going. Girls would be throwing themselves at him any minute now, and I wasn’t in the frame of mind to watch it.
“You okay?” Saxon asked from behind me.
With a sigh, I turned around to look at him. Saxon would make a good friend. What I felt when I was with him was what I needed to feel when I was with Trev.
“Not really,” I replied honestly.
“It was the right thing to do. He needed that reminder. Most girls wouldn’t have done that.” Saxon’s approval was clear in his voice and his expression.
“Yeah, well, part of it was self-preservation. I’m not ready for anything more than friendship, and neither is my trust. Even if it’s just sex he’s after.”
Saxon held out his arm for me. “Want to leave and go talk about it? Or find a movie to watch? Or sit outside and watch the sunset over Churchill Downs?”
He was giving me an escape. It was tempting.
“What about the party after this one?”
“We can go there later if you want to. Probably should show our faces, but I can be a rebel when needed. If you’d rather go see a movie, I’m in.”
I glanced over to where Mom and Garrett were. People surrounded them. Mom looked like she had been born to do this. Garrett kept staring down at her with an expression that told me he was getting attached to her. The future was about to get complicated. If she married him, I’d be leaving. She’d be safe. It was what I hoped happened, if she wanted that.
“Maybe we should stay around a bit first. Trev would be hurt if we left,” I replied. He’d asked me to be his friend tonight. Running off would be unfair to him.
“Uh, he looks like he might have gotten distracted,” Saxon replied, looking over my shoulder.
I turned my head to see Trev talking to a blonde and a brunette. The blonde was touching his arm, and the smile on his face said he was enjoying the attention. They were beautiful, so I could understand why.
