Distraction (Club Destiny Book 8)

by Nicole Edwards

  “Hey, man,” Alex greeted after kissing Ashleigh and shoving the milk into the refrigerator. “What brings you by?”

  “Daddy!” Riley hollered, racing into the room and running right into Alex’s legs.

  “Hey, short stuff.” Alex smiled, then swept Riley up into his arms and swung her around. Alex’s gaze met his once more.

  “I was out drivin’,” Dylan said. “Ash called, said I should stop by to see Riley.”

  “Goin’ somewhere?”

  His thoughts instantly drifted to Sarah and her impromptu weekend trip. He couldn’t help but think he should’ve put up more of a fight, convinced her not to go with Bill. Hell, he should’ve offered to take her somewhere. Anywhere. Just the two of them. That would’ve been the smart thing to do. Letting her go—before he ever actually had her—didn’t sit well with him, and he didn’t like thinking this could’ve been his last chance. What happened if she went away with Bill and came back engaged?

  The universe couldn’t be that cruel, could it?

  “I’d thought about it,” he told Alex. It wasn’t a complete lie. When he’d been driving around aimlessly, he’d given some thought to where he might go. Obviously he hadn’t come up with a plan.

  But with Sarah gone, he knew he’d do nothing but think about her all weekend if he sat around and twiddled his fucking thumbs. Which was why a trip of his own wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Alex’s question only encouraged him to give it more consideration.

  “Where’re you goin’, Dylan?” Ashleigh asked, suddenly incredibly interested in the conversation. “And when will you be back?”

  “Don’t know. I was thinkin’ Shreveport,” he said simply. It was the first place that came to mind. He could gamble, drink, and ultimately give in to all of his vices.

  Only he couldn’t drink.

  No way was he going to Shreveport.

  “Shreveport? What’s in Shreveport?” she asked, her eyes widening.

  “Nothin’ specific. Just need to get away for a bit.”

  Alex and Ashleigh both stared at him and he could see the concern in their gazes. He’d seen that look so many times over the past few years.

  Her voice lowered when she said, “Dylan, have you been drinking?”

  He huffed a laugh, then held up his tea glass. “Not yet.”

  “Have you been to an AA meeting lately? Since Monday?” Alex propped his hip against the counter.

  “Twice last week,” he confessed.

  “Is it helping?”

  Watching his sister closely, Dylan shrugged. “I’m still sober. I swear.” Even if he wished otherwise, the years of sobriety he’d logged were important to him. Sure, as his sponsor said, it was something he should be proud of, but Dylan was still living one day at a time. It was the only way he could make it through.

  When she didn’t pelt another question at him, Dylan knew his sister was getting worked up. Ashleigh had been worried about him for a long time. Hell, she had even put off her own wedding to deal with him and his bullshit. Granted, Dylan hadn’t been at all happy about that, nor had Alex. The fistfight he and Alex had gotten into would forever be a reminder of how shitty he’d treated the important people in his life.

  “Are you sure you should go? I mean…” Ashleigh paused. “Are you going there to gamble?”

  “Maybe,” he told her. Seriously, if he did go to Shreveport, what else was he going to do? He wasn’t much of a gambler, but then again, these days he wasn’t much of anything. He’d been simply existing for over a decade, and the moment he’d heard about this Bill guy and Sarah, he’d felt the first real spark of life. He just didn’t know how to deal with it. Yet.

  When Ashleigh didn’t say anything, Dylan filled in the silence. “It’s good, Ash. I promise. If I go, it’ll be a quick trip. I’d be back on Sunday. You don’t need to worry about me.”

  “But I do,” she said softly.

  “I know.” It saddened him how much he’d caused her to worry. “I’m not gonna do anything stupid. Trust me.”

  He thought for a moment that his sister was going to cry. He was about to reassure her again, but she turned and fled the room, not looking back when Alex called out to her.

  Dylan waited for Alex’s wrath. Surprisingly, it didn’t come.

  “She’s a little emotional right now,” Alex explained with a heavy sigh.

  It took a moment for Dylan to catch the meaning. “She’s…?”

  A slow smile took over Alex’s face as he glanced at his daughter, still in his arms. “Yeah. We’re gonna have another baby.”

  “Holy shi—” He cut the curse off when he realized Riley was staring at him intently. “That’s awesome, man. I’m happy for you.”

  “Thanks. She’s worried after…”

  Yeah, Dylan understood just what Alex was saying. Ashleigh’s first pregnancy hadn’t been an easy one. She’d been confined to bed rest for quite some time, and he couldn’t help but think he’d been responsible for a lot of her stress.

  “Is there a specific reason you’re goin’ to Shreveport?” Alex inquired.

  “No,” he admitted.

  “What if I had another suggestion for you?”

  “Like?”

  “Luke and Cole are puttin’ on some fancy thing at Devotion tonight. Kicking off the new year and all that. Cole called and tried to convince me to bring Ashleigh. Why don’t you go by, check it out? I know you’ve talked about goin’ to the club since they opened.”

  Surprised by the suggestion, especially considering it would be a temptation Dylan wasn’t sure he could resist, he tossed the idea around for a moment. It was true, Dylan had been talking about going to Devotion, but he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do it. But it didn’t sound like a bad idea. If he couldn’t have Sarah, he could easily find a way to distract himself with someone else. For a little while anyway.

  Right. Like that would ever happen. Even if he convinced himself to pursue another woman, Dylan wasn’t sure he could follow through. He wasn’t completely dead on the inside, but something had stopped him all these years. His hand had been the only action his dick had received and until Sarah, he’d been good with that.

  But he wasn’t a damn saint. His little head would eventually win out.

  “Are y’all goin’?” Dylan asked.

  Alex shook his head. “Not into that scene.”

  Dylan knew that. And since there wasn’t the risk of seeing his sister there—he didn’t even want to think about what they would be doing if they did spend time in a place like Devotion—then he might as well go. After all, it would save him gas money and give him something to do. What did he have to lose?

  “I like that idea,” Dylan finally said.

  “But then there’s the temptation…” Alex began.

  “Of booze? I’m good, man. Swear it.” He had too much invested in his sobriety at this point. Too many people were depending on him not falling apart again. It wouldn’t be easy, but Dylan wasn’t worried. “Just as long as it’s not some crazy theme party,” he tacked on.

  “Optional,” Alex said.

  “Good.”

  Alex smiled. “Now that she doesn’t have to worry about you leavin’ town, maybe you could go in there and talk to her.”

  “Yeah.” Dylan got to his feet. His hand came up to rub the scruffy beard that’d filled in his face. “But then I’ve gotta head home so I can shower.”

  “Good idea,” Alex acknowledged with a smirk. “You’re startin’ to look like a grizzly. And the gray… It’s taking over.”

  “Thanks for pointing that out,” Dylan said as he grinned at Riley. “Tell your daddy he’s an—”

  “Watch it,” Alex interrupted. “Whatever you say, she’s gonna repeat it.”

  Dylan laughed. He remembered those days.

  “Have fun tonight,” Alex called out as Dylan headed toward the door. “And don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

  Dylan peered over his shoulder. “That won’t work. You
’re a fu— prude. I’d be bored to tears if I did nothing.”

  Alex’s booming laugh made Dylan smile. At least he felt a little better.

  And if he could settle Ashleigh’s nerves a little, he’d feel a hell of a lot better.

  chapter SEVEN

  BAD IDEA. BAD IDEA. BAD IDEA.

  It had become her mantra and Sarah couldn’t stop the constant repeat in her head.

  When they had pulled up to the hotel roughly forty-five minutes ago, Sarah hadn’t been sure what she was supposed to say or think. It seemed awfully presumptuous of Bill to assume she would willingly stay at a hotel with him though they’d never been intimate up to this point. Although she was confused, Sarah had kept her initial thoughts to herself when Bill had pulled the minivan around to the front of the monstrous resort hotel, where they were greeted by the hotel’s valet.

  Baffled, Sarah had even allowed Bill to take her hand and lead her inside as a million questions zipped through her head, none of which she could seem to voice. But when they’d approached the check-in desk, she hadn’t been able to hold her tongue any longer. To her absolute shock, before she could tell him that she wouldn’t feel comfortable staying in the same room with him, Bill had smiled over at her, his clear blue eyes flashing, and informed her he’d reserved two rooms, but he was holding out hope that she would end up staying with him.

  Her first thought … he was considerate.

  The second … there was no way in hell she was staying with him.

  But disaster averted.

  Now, as she walked through the lavish resort hotel on her way to meet him, she wasn’t convinced that this was going to go well. And to think, they’d only been there for an hour. The first part of that hour—as well as the forty-five-minute drive—Sarah had nervously tried to come up with a way to let Bill down easy. If she’d learned anything during that time, it was that she was not a spontaneous person and agreeing to this was the worst idea she’d ever had.

  During the drive, she’d listened to Bill ramble on and on about cars, even dropping hints about hot women who came into his dealership and flirted with him. Right. Hot women and cars. Because that was a turn-on. It seemed to her that Bill was trying too hard to impress her, and the only thing he was doing was effectively pushing her further away.

  Clearly cars were his life, and she’d admired his enthusiasm when she’d first met him, but the droning conversation had nearly bored her to tears. While he’d continued to share his wealth of knowledge about the different types of minivans the various carmakers designed and how his were obviously better, Sarah had known that this outing would ultimately be the end of their dating.

  Plus, he was allergic to her cats.

  It was glaringly obvious that they had nothing in common, certainly not chemistry. And without a spark…

  Everyone knew that was the most important thing, and without that spark, there really wasn’t anything to look forward to. Which was why she was grateful that he’d agreed to separate rooms. After they’d decided to get settled in, Sarah had deposited her things in her room, neatly unpacking and placing the items where they belonged, then snuck back down to the lobby and told the woman who’d helped them that she needed to change the credit card on her room. There was no way she would allow Bill to pick up the tab. She wasn’t heartless, after all.

  And now she was supposed to meet him in the hotel bar so that they could have a drink before an early dinner. The place was bigger than any hotel she’d ever been to and she felt a little out of sorts. The lobby wasn’t overly crowded, but there were a lot of people wandering around the atrium, some sitting near the stone fireplace that took up an entire wall near the front desk. After asking someone where the bar was and being pointed in the right direction, Sarah continued on.

  Once she found her destination, she realized that Bill was not one of the few people sitting in the cozy area that had been sectioned off as a bar. Spinning in a circle, she scanned the various seating spots just outside, trying to find him, but to no avail. Figuring he had possibly been delayed in his room, she wandered through the glass-enclosed atrium, admiring the various decorations and lush plants that filled the space.

  Ten minutes later, after taking it all in, she finally spotted Bill. He was sitting at a completely different bar in a different section of the hotel, a huge grin on his thin, pale face while he talked animatedly to a pretty brunette beside him. The woman had her hand on his arm and was smiling and laughing, as though Bill were the most interesting person on the planet.

  Great.

  This was not going well at all.

  What had she ever seen in him? He did have nice taste in clothes even if he had yet to learn that a tailor would benefit him, and he spoke relatively eloquently, although his conversation topics were lacking. Overall, he was …

  Yep there it was again, the same conclusion as last time. Bill was sweet.

  Unfortunately, sweet didn’t turn her on, no matter how much she wished it did.

  Rather than interrupt him (and his blatant attempt at flirting), Sarah decided to tour the rest of the place, hoping he’d be finished with his conversation when she returned. As she strolled through, Sarah noted the different attractions that made the hotel a vacation hot spot. Through a wall of windows, she could see the clear blue water of a huge outdoor pool. At the far corner, which was surrounded by a white stone wall, there was a waterslide as well as what looked to be a lazy river, but she couldn’t be sure. The outdoor area was closed, but she could imagine it being full to bursting with people during the summer months.

  Overall, it was a nice place; she’d give Bill that. She’d never been in a resort such as this, though she’d checked them out on the Internet before. Due to the proximity of the place to her house, she couldn’t justify spending quite so much to stay at a hotel when staying at her own house wouldn’t cost her anything extra. If it were in another state, perhaps she’d splurge. One day.

  Truth was, she’d always been frugal with her money. Ever since her sister, Tara, had decided that being a mother wasn’t something she wanted to do with her life—after she’d had Jake—Sarah had been helping their mother raise Jake, financially and physically. Her mother had always had health issues, so much of the responsibility had fallen on Sarah. Not that she’d minded. Jake had always been a good kid. But her sister’s abandonment had hurt them all.

  That didn’t mean Sarah didn’t think about Tara. She did. All the time. Now that Tara was married to some biker, living up in Oklahoma, Sarah rarely heard from her. The last time Tara had come for a visit had been when Paul died, six years ago.

  Pushing her hand into her pocket, Sarah fingered the plastic key card and considered going back up to her room, packing her things, calling a cab, and then hightailing it out of there before Bill was even aware she was gone.

  “There you are.”

  Too late.

  Sarah sighed, then turned around to see Bill strolling toward her, a huge grin on his face. He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

  “Are you hungry?”

  Was she? She didn’t know.

  “If we go to the steakhouse now, there won’t be a wait.”

  Sarah wasn’t sure why that mattered. Based on her surroundings, she wasn’t sure what else they were going to do there.

  Bill must’ve seen the question in her eyes because he took her hand in his and tugged. “Come on. Let’s eat. Then we can change and we’ll go out.”

  “Out?” she asked, peering up at him.

  Another brilliant smile landed on his lips. “You didn’t think this was all there was, did you?”

  Actually, yes. In fact, she hadn’t brought anything to wear to go out. She had assumed—obviously incorrectly—that whatever event Bill wanted her to accompany him to would’ve been at this hotel.

  Crap.

  Bill chuckled as they approached the hostess stand just outside the steakhouse inside the resort. He rattled off his name, and the hostess graciously grabbed two
menus, then led them through the dimly lit restaurant to a table at the back. The waiter quickly stopped by, informed them of their specials, offered the wine list, and then disappeared as soon as Bill made a selection and told him they needed a few minutes to look at the menu.

  Sarah wasn’t hungry, but she was curious. “Where’re we going?” she asked, unable to keep the question to herself. She knew he’d wanted to surprise her, but honestly, this place was much more than she’d anticipated.

  “You’ll see when we get there. It’s by invitation only, I’ll tell you that much.”

  “Can you give me a hint?” she probed. For some reason, she was beginning to get a weird feeling about all of it. Maybe that was her conscience eating away at her for accepting this invitation in the first place when she had no intention of taking their relationship to the next level.

  “It’s a highly coveted place. Not easy to get an invitation, I assure you. But they know my boss, and I’ve been assured we’ll get the royal treatment. And don’t worry, I know you’ll have a great time.”

  She wasn’t sure how he knew that considering they’d only been out a handful of times. He knew what she’d willingly divulged about herself, and the sad thing was, she hadn’t told him much.

  The waiter returned, and Sarah felt obligated to order something, so she selected a small filet and a salad, hoping that wouldn’t cost too much. Her guilt was eating at her and she wished she’d never agreed to this in the first place.

  But now, it seemed it was far too late to worry about that.

  “STACEY, HONEY,” DYLAN BEGAN AS he stared at his daughter in disbelief and possibly a little horror, “what the hell did you do to your hair?”

  He was pretty sure she hadn’t looked like that the last time he’d seen her, but, shit, he’d been so lost in himself lately Dylan honestly couldn’t have said for sure. Truth was, he hadn’t paid attention to much of anything in his life for years, certainly not the little details.