Blow (TKO #3) (12 page)

Chapter 23

Austin

Tamilyn walks outside to meet her dad and I smile at her. I want to pull her aside and ask about what I saw last night but I don’t want to upset her or anyone else here so I decide to leave it alone, for now. She hasn’t really spoken to me yet, she’s just casually sipping her beer, watching her dad prepare the pit, but she’s so damn close to me.

The door opens and out walks Ruston, Garrett, and Lance. I’m glad they made it. When I invited them, there was no promise they’d come. “Hey, man, I heard you killed it last night. I wish I could have seen it.”

“Thanks, Garrett. It was definitely amazing. I’ve never felt adrenaline like that in my life.” It means a lot to hear him say that. He’s one of the best.

“Austin made a bitch out of Parker,” Lance chimes in. I laugh as Ruston hands me a beer.

My uncle and Tamilyn’s dad laugh at us guys talking. I don’t blame them; we’re quite hilarious.

Tamilyn excuses herself and walks back inside. I want to follow her but I realize that Raegan and Hilary are also inside, so I stay with the guys. Tamilyn emerges a few minutes later with a bowl of jello shots and begins passing them out. Lance’s eyes light up as he grabs one.

“I haven’t had a jello shot in forever. Come on, Garrett, it’ll be like old times.”

Garrett chuckles as he grabs one from the bowl. We all stand in a circle and toast to some bullshit as we toss the shot back. The sweet jello flavor fills my mouth and I swallow it quickly. Damn, these things are smooth. I glance over toward Tamilyn and notice her and Ruston grinning at each other. Envy fills my eyes. I know something is going on with them. I’m not a fucking idiot. I make up my mind that I will confront one, if not both, of them tonight.

“So, have you seen the pictures from last night yet?” Lance asks, pulling me from my jealousy.

“Not yet. I’m hoping to get to see them tonight or tomorrow.” I reach into the bowl for another shot. I have a feeling I’ll need a ton of these tonight.

“Let me know if she shows them tonight. I want to see.”

“Hell yeah, you know it. When’s the Disney trip?”

Garrett rolls his eyes and laughs. “When pigs fly, but according to this dipshit, that’s today.”

“I want to go to Disney, Garrett!” Lance stomps his foot.

“Then go, I’m not stopping you.”

“He’s a killjoy.” Lance laughs, pointing at Garrett.

Garrett rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his beer. “See what I put up with on a daily basis?”

“I can’t help it. I want to meet Goofy.”

“Have you looked in the mirror?” I joke with him.

“Dude, that’s a good one. Fucking epic.” Garrett chuckles as he high-fives me.

“I’m going to talk to my photographer about my next close-up. You guys can suck it.” Lance laughs as he walks up to Tamilyn. Whatever he says has her and Ruston laughing and my envy is back. Ruston steps away, but then he heads toward me.

I drink my beer and reach for another shot. “You having a good time so far?” Ruston asks.

“Yeah.”

“Can you help me grab an empty tray for this meat that’s almost done?”

I nod and follow him inside. The women are all talking, so we hurry and try not to pay them any mind. Ruston looks at me and touches my arm. I stop in my tracks and stare back at him. “Hey, man, you okay? You’ve gotten really quiet.”

“I’m fine. I’m just relaxing. I guess I’m still kinda tired from last night.”

“Okay. I’m just checking on you. More people should be arriving soon, so you’ll have a good time, I promise.”

I fake a grin and walk outside with the tray. Once it’s filled with what’s been cooked so far, I volunteer to carry it back in. Aunt Paula stops me in my tracks and begins telling me how proud she is of me for the changes I’ve made. She gives me a hug and tells me she loves me. I excuse myself after our chat, and go back outside with the men. I expect to see Ruston and Tamilyn together, but instead she’s sitting in a patio chair off to the side, soaking in some sun rays. For the first time today, I walk up to her.

“Hey, Tam. I’m sorry about last night.”

She looks up to see me standing there and gives me a slight grin. “It’s okay. I know you were tired.”

I almost spit out what I saw, but I keep telling myself not to bring it up right now. “Yeah. I feel bad because I wanted to see you after. I’m glad Ruston was able to bring you home.”

She takes a sip of her beer and coughs, almost spewing it everywhere. “Sorry, I swallowed that wrong. Yeah, he dropped me off, then went out.”

Something about her cough seems odd, but I ignore it. I feel like so many warning signs are going off around me. I’m not sure if I’m being paranoid, if what I saw was a fluke, or if something really
is
going on. “He said he went home with someone,” I tell her. “I didn’t see him last night.”

“Oh, really?” she asks, taking another sip of her beer. “Good for him.”

Ruston comes walking over and sours my mood. I want to leave, but I stay put. “You didn’t invite Jess, did you?” he asks Tamilyn.

“Nope, I haven’t talked to her in a while. Why?”

“No reason. I was just asking. I know she’s a terrible drunk, and no one here wants to deal with that tonight.”

Tamilyn laughs and sets her beer down on the table beside her. “You’re right about that. I want to be able to enjoy myself without wondering who she’s trying to sleep with at this party. I swear if I ever caught her with a guy in my old bedroom, I’d kill her.”

The two of them just keep talking as if I’m not here until I clear my throat. “Anyone need a beer?”

Tamilyn grabs her bottle and finishes it off. “I do.”

When I return with the beer, I open it for her and set it on the table before leaning down to kiss her cheek. I hope to hell that Ruston is as envious as I’ve been since we’ve arrived. It would serve him well.

Lance and Garrett migrate toward us and we all sit around and talk. Within a few minutes, the women are all outside and it’s beginning to feel more like a party. The drinks are flowing, the food smells amazing, and the backyard is beginning to fill up with people. I watch as Tamilyn finally begins talking to Hilary and Raegan, and Ruston gets the hint to let them be. I’m glad Garrett and Lance brought their girlfriends. That’s probably my only damn saving grace right now.

“So what’s going on with you and Tamilyn?” Lance asks me.

Ruston coughs and I look up at him. He’s not looking at me. “Nothing much. We’re just friends, I guess.”

“Didn’t seem that way a few weeks ago.”

“Dude, get out of his business.” Garrett slaps his arm.

“No, it’s okay. Things are just moving slow. We’re not rushing anything.”

“Smart man,” Lance tells me.

“I guess. The timing will be right eventually. I’m just patiently waiting. I like her a lot.” This time when I look toward Ruston, his eyes do meet mine. Yes, I’m attempting to lay my claim on her.

“Good things take time,” Garrett chimes in, but he doesn’t look at anyone in particular. I notice he’s taken a liking to Ruston. The two of them seem to converse a lot. I don’t blame him. My cousin is a cool guy.

“Hey, Rus, you think you could flip the meat over?” his dad calls to him.

“Yeah, I got it.” He walks over to the pit and opens it. The smell is making my mouth water. I can’t wait to eat. I look into the backyard and I can barely make out any open spaces now. I walk toward Ruston and watch him.

“There’re so many people here.”

“Yeah.” He laughs. “I told you.”

“I know I’ve told you before but…thank you, man, for everything.” I decide I need to stop acting so envious. It’s premature because I don’t know the full story. I haven’t gotten the guts to ask about what I saw yet, and until I do, I can’t be mad at anyone. This is my family. For all I know, I’m overreacting. I sure hope I’m overreacting.

“We’re family, that’s what we do. I’ve told you that. You’re like a brother to me, Austin. Get ready—we’re going to have a damn good time tonight.”

“That’s what I’m talking about.” I grab two jello shots from the bowl and hand him one. We toast to family and nothing else. Family is all that matters.

Chapter 24

Tamilyn

This day has been nothing like I imagined it would be. Ignoring Austin doesn’t fix things. If anything, it makes me look suspicious. My feelings for Ruston are out of control, growing stronger, and I’m not sure what to do. I watch as Austin and Ruston talk by the grill. Curiosity is attempting to get the best of me, and I want to waltz over there and stick my nose where it probably doesn’t belong, but I stay put.

“Earth to Tamilyn.” Hilary is waving her arm in the air trying her best attempt to catch my attention.

“I’m so sorry. What?” I feel like such an idiot. I should have been listening to her. Raegan laughs and a goofy grin spreads across my face.

“Can you show me where the bathroom is? I’ve really got to pee.” Hilary looks a little embarrassed as she begins to do the dance, the one you do when you’ve
really
got to go.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. Follow me.” I lead her inside the house with Raegan following behind us. I know she wants to check on Lucas, and I laugh when I see that Mom is holding him again. I hope she isn’t getting any kind of grandmother fever. That will have to wait.

Raegan stops to talk with her and I lead Hilary down the next hallway. “This bathroom is a lot easier to get to than the one upstairs.” I flip the light switch on for her and tell her I’ll wait. When she emerges, she appears much more relieved than before. I apologize again to her for not paying attention.

“So, how are things with you and Austin? I’m not trying to pry but it seems a little strained.”

I stop walking and turn to face her. Man, she’s got some kind of radar attached to her. “It’s, uh, good I guess. We’re nothing official. I thought he was going to want to go have a drink after the fight but he said he was going home. Being here now is the first time I’ve seen him since last night.”

“Well, I know Lance is sometimes worn out after a fight, so that’s normal. Something I’ve just learned to live with.”

I nod in understanding and pray she doesn’t bring up Austin anymore. I don’t think I could admit everything to her for fear she may think poorly of me. If I tell her, would she go back and tell Lance who in return would tell Austin?
Welcome to the cluster fuck that has become my life.

I walk back into the kitchen but no one is in there anymore. They’ve all moved outside where the party is happening. Hilary and I walk back out, and I notice Austin and Ruston still talking. At least they’re laughing so I know it isn’t all serious. I grab a couple of jello shots to try to numb my nerves. I look up and Ruston is walking up to me, while Austin is nowhere around. I wonder if I’m being set up to fail. There’re so many people out here, anyone could see the wrong move.

“Where’d you disappear to, Tammy Lou?”

“Oh, Hilary wanted to know where the bathroom was. Where’s Austin?”

“He took my truck to the store real quick.” He looks around. “Follow me.”

He grabs my hand and leads me inside. I take one quick look back but no one notices we’re both disappearing. Lance and Garrett are deep into a conversation and Hilary and Raegan are alongside them. Ruston doesn’t stop until we get upstairs and are standing in front of my bedroom door. He opens it and we step inside. Still holding onto my hand, he shuts the door and then leads us over to my bed. My throat goes dry as he sits. He’s still holding my hand so I know I need to sit too. I shouldn’t be so damn nervous around him but I can’t control myself. He lets go of my hand and brushes my hair behind my ear. My eyes close and a sigh escapes my lips. My God, what he does to me.

“I can’t keep this secret anymore, Tamilyn. I want you to be mine. Only mine, no more Austin. I think we need to come clean tonight.”

Come clean? What the hell is he thinking?
My heart begins racing in my chest. So many things could go wrong if we come clean tonight, and I’m not ready to deal with those consequences. Not with all these people here. “Ruston, we can’t tonight. What if it goes badly?”

“So you’re saying you would come clean and be done with him?” He raises his eyebrow before leaning down to softly kiss my neck. His lips on my skin send volts of electricity through my veins.

I nod. “I can’t stop thinking about you, Ruston. It’s not fair to him. I only want you.”

“Good girl.” He crashes his lips against mine and our hands begin feverishly moving around each other.

He reaches for my shirt first, almost ripping it off. I can feel my breasts rising and falling with each breath I take. “Ruston, what are we doing?” I breathe heavily.

“I’m making love to you. I’ll stop if you want me to but I’m gonna beg you not to do that.” His pleading eyes pierce into me. I wouldn’t be able to tell him no, anyway, I was just asking him a question.

“I won’t ask you to stop.” I bite down on my lip and he removes his shirt as he lays me down on the bed.

This is nothing like the first time we drunkenly had sex. Don’t get me wrong, the first time was amazing, but something about knowing what we’re going to become ignites a fire in me and I’ve never wanted anyone as badly as I want him right now.