It Started with a Crush by Piper James

Chapter Seventeen

Sage

“Why are we meeting at the bar at four-thirty on a Wednesday?” Ember grumped as she slid into her chair. “I didn’t even know The Watering Hole was open at this time of day.”

“Because some of us have to get up and mold young minds early in the morning, and we don’t want to be hungover while doing it,” I said, giving her a pointed look.

Ember owned her own boutique, Glowing Embers, which meant she could go into work whenever she damn-well pleased. She could go out and get shitfaced any night of the week and sleep as long as she wanted the next morning—she had employees to pick up the slack.

“Hey,” Dakota said, plopping down in the chair between me and Belle, who was the first to arrive. “What did I miss?”

“Just Ember’s usual bitching,” Belle said, shoving a hand against the blonde’s shoulder.

The waitress dropped off the round of drinks Belle and I had ordered, and I took a long swig of the coconut rum and orange-pineapple juice concoction I’d requested. I needed the fortification, because I’d called the girls here with the intention of telling Ember and Dakota the truth about Chase.

I knew I’d been adamant that no one should know, but keeping it from my best friends just felt wrong. I knew I could trust them not to tell anyone. My worries about Ember’s big mouth had been a product of my own paranoia. When it came to the important stuff, she could keep a secret. I hoped.

So, I sent out the bat signal, our code for an emergency girl’s night out, and had them meet me at the bar at this ungodly early hour—in part because I did have work tomorrow, but mostly because I knew the place would be empty and no one would be there to eavesdrop on our conversation.

“I have news,” I said, nodding at Belle when her eyebrows shot up into her hairline.

“Is it that you’re messing around with that beefcake, Chase Perry?” Ember asked, her face as deadpan as I’d ever seen it.

“What?’ I barked spewing out some of the cocktail I’d been in the process of swallowing.

“Was it supposed to be a secret?” Dakota laughed, her long, dark hair swaying as she shook her head.

“You guys were practically eye-fucking each other at Belle and Ryder’s party,” Ember said. “We’d have to be blind not to notice, Sage.”

“Yeah, and when you got back from ‘tucking Daniel in,’” Dakota added, curling her fingers into air quotes on that last bit, “your lips were swollen and your eyes were all glassy and unfocused.”

“Why haven’t you said anything?” I asked, my mouth hanging open.

Ember shrugged. “You’ve always been so adamant about not dating the single dads from school, we figured you were trying to keep it under wraps. We knew you’d tell us when you were ready.”

I looked at Belle with wide eyes, and she shook her head with a laugh. “I told you your tells were obvious.”

“You knew, too?” Dakota asked.

“I figured it out that night we were all here together,” Belle replied. “Unlike you guys, I had no problem calling her out on it the next day.”

“Shit,” I muttered. “How am I going to make this work if I can’t fool anyone?”

“You can fool everyone else, just not us,” Ember said. “Now, speak. We can talk about you two keeping secrets from us later. Right now, I want every last, juicy detail.”

I shot her an apologetic look before spilling everything. Our text messages, our kiss at the bar, our next kiss at Belle’s, and the amazing date in Oakley on Monday night. I didn’t leave anything out, and by the end, Ember was fanning herself while Dakota chugged her beer as if her throat was parched.

“You haven’t slept with him yet?” Ember asked, her eyebrows arched high.

“No, of course, not,” I said. “We’ve only been on one date.”

“And he really asks permission every time he kisses you?” Dakota asked, her eyes wide.

“Yes,” I laughed. “I told Chase I had a long talk with Daniel about consent after the playground incident, and I guess he took it to heart.”

“I think it’s sweet,” Belle said, swooning a little.

I thought it was sexy as fuck, but I didn’t say that out loud. Hearing the husky desire in Chase’s voice every time he asked made my stomach flip. There was always a hint of desperation in his words, like he might die if I said no.

“You know he hasn’t told Noah and Ethan? He’s struggling with it, because he never lies to them,” Belle said.

I frowned. Here I was, spilling the beans to my friends while Chase was fighting his natural instincts to keep our secret from the people he was closest to.

“I mean, he said he’s enjoying all the sneaking around,” she continued when I didn’t respond, “but I can tell it’s been hard on him.”

I nodded, making a mental note to talk to Chase about it next time we spoke. He needed to know I was okay with it if he wanted to tell his brothers. The last thing I wanted was for him to be uncomfortable or go against his very nature by keeping this from Noah and Ethan. And I was fairly certain we could trust them not to tell anyone.

“Okay,” Ember said, draining the last of her cocktail. “Now that we have that all out in the open, I think it’s time to discuss Dakota…and Noah.”

“What?” Dakota yelped. “What do you mean? There’s nothing going on between me and that cretin.”

“Cretin, huh?” Ember mused, arching a brow. “Seems like an awfully strong word for someone you have nothing going on with.”

“Yeah, you guys looked pretty cozy on the dance floor last week,” Belle added, sticking out her tongue when Dakota shot her a death glare.

“I was drunk,” Dakota grumped, crossing her arms over her chest. “Nothing more to tell.”

“You weren’t that drunk,” Ember said. “And you were riding his thigh like a fucking cowboy on a bucking bronco.”

“I was not!” Dakota shouted, balling up her napkin and tossing it at Ember’s face.

“It’s true,” Belle said, shooting an apologetic look at Dakota.

We’d all gone to high school together, but Dakota was a year younger than us, so we’d never been close to her like we were with each other. It wasn’t until a few weeks ago that she’d really joined our group, and she fit in like she’d been there all along.

Dakota’s shoulders drooped as she said, “Okay, maybe I was into him for a hot minute, but nothing came of it.”

“Why not?” I asked.

“It became obvious pretty quickly that he’s a player. He was smooth—saying all the right words, making me feel wanted like I was the only girl in the bar. Right up until the point I came out of the bathroom to find him hitting on two women by the bar. I heard the word “threesome” as I walked by. Threesome.”

“Yuck,” Ember said, making a face. “What a dick.”

“Are you sure you heard right?” Belle asked. “I can’t imagine any of Ryder’s brothers being like that. Even Noah.”

“I heard what I heard,” Dakota said, shrugging. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter. It’s not like anything was going to happen between us anyway. We were both drunk and he’s too…much.”

I’d spent very little time around Noah, but he seemed to be a nice enough guy. A little rough around the edges, sure, but nice, just like the other Perry brothers. Of course, the two times I spent time around him, Chase was there, too. Noah could’ve stripped naked and strutted across the room singing Yankee Doodle at the top of his lungs,and I wouldn’t have noticed.

While the girls continued to debate whether or not Noah was a total dick, I dug my phone out of my purse and excused myself to use the restroom. When the bathroom door swung closed behind me, I pulled up my text thread with Chase and tapped out a message.

Me: I’m at the bar with the girls, and they know about us. Apparently, I have a terrible poker face, because they read it all over my face at Belle and Ryder’s party.

The little bubble with three dots in it popped up immediately, and I chewed on my bottom lip as I waited for his response to come through.

Chase: Are you okay with that?

Me: Yeah. I know I can trust them.

Chase: Oh, thank God. I thought you were about to call the whole thing off.

Me: What would you do if I did?

Chase: I’d come down there and kiss you until you forgot you ever mentioned it. After asking permission, of course. ;)

Me: About that…

Chase: What? Please don’t say I can’t kiss you again. I don’t think I could take it.

Me: I’m sure you’d live. But no, that’s not what I was going to say.

Chase: What, then?

Me: As much as I love it when you ask, I think it’s time. You officially have carte blanche permission to kiss me whenever you want to.

Chase: I’ll be there in seven minutes.

A laugh barked out of me as I read the text. He was so charming, I almost forgot why I wanted to text him in the first place. Shaking my head, my thumbs flew over the screen.

Me: Nope. Girl’s night. No boys allowed.

Me: But the reason I snuck into the bathroom to text you was because of something Belle said. Are you having trouble keeping this thing between us from Noah and Ethan? Because you can tell them. I know you guys are all tight, and they won’t tell anyone.

Chase: Well, which is it? Can I kiss you whenever I want, or am I banned from girl’s night? Because I really, really want to kiss you right now, Sage Barlow.

Before I could reply, another message popped up.

Chase: Thank you for being so understanding. I thought it would be fun, sneaking around, but Ethan is too perceptive, by far, and even Noah knows something is up. Apparently, I can’t stop smiling.

Me: Same. And you’ll just have to wait until Friday night to kiss me. I expect my socks to be knocked off.

Chase: You can bet your life on it. Socks off, toes curled. The whole shebang.

Me: I can’t wait.

Chase: I can be there in six minutes.

Me: Goodnight, Chase.

Chase: Goodnight, Sage.

I smiled at the little kissy-face emoji he added to that last message. He was so sweet.

And sexy.

And now I wished he would show up in six minutes just to kiss me.

I shook my head at my reflection and tucked my phone into my pocket. Heading back to my friends, I felt a little thrill of anticipation rush through me. Friday night couldn’t come soon enough.