Chapter 8: Roxie & Sarah

Sarah’s blush deepened at the attention. A few people turned. Roxie broke away from a couple she’d been talking to near the pool and crossed the yard with effortless speed. She was, objectively, one of the most attractive women I had ever seen in person. Dark hair, blue eyes, the kind of body that made the tiny bikini she was wearing look both deliberate and inevitable. The top barely contained her, the bottoms seemed to be barely there, and the whole thing was held together by strings that looked like they might lose an argument with a strong breeze. She moved like she knew exactly what she looked like and had decided that was everyone else’s problem.

She reached us and went straight for me first. The hug was full-body. Her skin was warm from the sun, her chest pressed against mine, and for a second the only thing I could process was the fact that almost nothing separated us. I caught the start of a look on Sarah’s face—surprise, maybe concern—before Ryan stepped in and slid an arm around Sarah’s shoulders, pulling her in close enough that her side met his bare chest.