Almost as if she hadn’t heard a word of the insult, Lisbeth screamed, “Holy shit! I knew it! When did you sleep with Sean?”
“I’m not talking about this with you.”
“So are you guys seeing each other?” Lisbeth blurted out, looking at Sean.
“Something like that.”
Something like that?
Their relationship was only the most important thing that had ever happened to Darcy, and all Sean could do was shrug his shoulders and say something like that?
The conversation took a turn, but Darcy didn’t follow because a slow unease was settling in the bottom of her stomach. She watched Sean as he talked with their friends, completely unfazed by their sex beans being spilled all over their high-top table. Was she really so inconsequential that he’d be that comfortable talking to everyone when they were all sitting there picturing the two of them having sex?
Darcy winced and looked down at her lap. As amazing as he made her feel, she knew it didn’t make sense to anyone else.
Sean was a golden boy. He had the body of an Olympic swimmer with his long, lean muscles and wide shoulders. He was charming and charismatic. He was successful in his work and had a wonderful, loving family.
It was probably hard to imagine how someone like him would end up with someone like Darcy. Short, round, and ineloquent Darcy.
She excused herself before sliding off her stool. Sean stepped around Lisbeth and her date before Darcy could get very far.
“Hey, you okay?” he asked.
Darcy looked up into his bright eyes and was consoled by the concern she saw floating there. “Yeah.” She mustered a smile. “I’m just going to the restroom.”
Sean studied her for a few seconds. “Okay. Hurry back.”
Darcy headed to the corner where the women’s restroom was located. She was reaching for the door handle when she heard, “Hey, wait up!” She turned to see Quinn barreling toward her. Her roommate wasn’t stumbling or swaying yet, but she was maybe a beer away from it.
“I have to pee like a racehorse.”
Darcy laughed. “You Midwesterners have the craziest sayings.”
“It’s actually kinda gross if you think about it. Not that racehorses have to pee any more than regular horses I suppose. It’s just that they’re so tall and—”
“Yeah, yeah. I got it.”
Darcy went to the mirror while Quinn went into a stall. She inspected herself in the mirror, and all her insecurities were there, staring back at her.
How was she ever supposed to make things work with Sean? They lived in two different cities. They weren’t on the same plane of attractiveness. They were together or something like that. Was their relationship all about sex? Was it okay with her that he said one thing to her in private but acted a different way in public? Would it kill him to fucking tell her she looked nice?
“You’re staring awfully hard at yourself in that mirror.”
Darcy blinked and realized Quinn was standing next to her washing her hands. “Sorry. Just tired, I guess.” Darcy fished her lip gloss out of her clutch.
“What’s wrong, Darcy? I know something’s upset you.”
Darcy shook her head. “It’s stupid.”
“What is it?”
“It’s just that we’ve been here for two hours now, and it’s like Sean is sitting at another table. I don’t know what I thought tonight would be like, but I guess I thought it would be different since we’re together now. But it just feels like a normal night out with friends.”
“Maybe Sean doesn’t know how to act either.”
“He’s been out with plenty of women,” Darcy scoffed. “I’ve seen how he acts with them. Touching and flirting. He hasn’t done any of that with me.”
Quinn pulled some towels out of the dispenser and dried her hands. “Maybe he doesn’t feel he has to act that way with you because you’re you. And when you both are among friends, he doesn’t feel pressure to act a certain way. He can just be himself.”
“But I want him to not be able to keep his hands off me. I want him to whisper dirty things into my ear. Just because we’ve been friends forever doesn’t mean he shouldn’t want to do those things, right?”
“Right,” Quinn replied thoughtfully. “But why do you want to be like all those girls he’s dated before? They obviously didn’t do anything for him. Maybe different is a good thing. Different means special.”
“Says the girl whose boyfriend is staring a hole into this bathroom door right now worrying about something happening to her.”
Quinn shrugged. “Who’s to say Sean isn’t doing the same thing?”
It was a nice thought. He had seemed concerned when she’d left the table. Maybe she should worry less about how she didn’t measure up and try to relax.
Darcy took a deep breath and smiled at her roommate. “Fair enough. You ready?”
Quinn nodded and followed Darcy back to their table. Sean and Ewan were the only two there.
“Where did everyone go?” Quinn asked as she hopped up on her stool. Ewan put his arm around her waist to steady her as she wobbled slightly.
“Rory and Erin had to go. They apologized they didn’t get to say good-bye, but they didn’t realize what time it was and needed to get on the road for home,” Sean said. “Lisbeth and her guy left too.”
“You guys want something else to drink?” Ewan asked.
“Yes, please!” Quinn said.
“Sure,” Darcy replied.
“I’m good,” Sean answered as Ewan picked up the glasses. “I’ll wait here to guard our womenfolk.”
Ewan sauntered off toward the bar, his wide frame clearing a path without problem. Quinn’s eyes were glued to his ass, and she sighed loudly enough for Darcy and Sean to hear. Sean started chuckling. He turned to whisper something to Darcy when a tall older gentleman approached and slapped him on the back.
“McKenna! How the hell are you?”
“Justin Ross.” Sean smiled, standing up to do the whole man-hug/back-slap thing. “It’s been a long time. How’s the family?”
“Good, good.” The guy stepped back and nodded to Quinn and Darcy. “Evening, ladies.”
“Shit, where are my manners? Girls, this is Justin Ross. We do a lot of work with his landscaping company here in Boston. Justin, this is Quinn Adler and Darcy Owens. They’re friends of mine.”
Friends. That stung.
“Nice to meet you ladies. Would you mind if I stole him for just a minute? My little brother is over there, and I know he’d love to see Sean again.”
“Jimmy’s here?” Sean laughed.
“Yep. Flew in this morning.”
“I’ll just go say a quick hello if that’s okay?” Sean looked at Darcy in question.
“Go right ahead.”
The two men folded into the crowd and disappeared. Darcy felt like this evening was a complete disappointment. Before they’d left the townhouse, she couldn’t wait to get back so she could crawl into bed with Sean. Now she just felt like going home to Providence.
“I see the wheels turning in your head over there,” Quinn said. “Stop it right now. He didn’t mean anything by saying you were friends.”
Quinn was right. Darcy was jumping to conclusions again. Why was she being such a downer tonight?
“Excuse me, ladies, but are these seats taken?”
Both Quinn and Darcy looked over in time to see two guys hop up on two of the empty seats at their table.
“Actually,” Quinn said, “we’re here with—”
“I’m Eddie.” He extended his hand to her. He was a good-looking guy, longer light brown hair and a row of perfectly straight teeth. If Darcy had to guess, the guy was still in college. His smile was easy, and his eyes sparkled with a confidence that carried the naivety of youth.
“And I’m Phillip,” the other guy said, reaching out to shake Darcy’s hand.
She took it because she didn’t want to be rude. Also young, he was shorter and stockier than his
friend. His thinning black hair fell across his forehead and touched the top of his dark-framed glasses. It wasn’t a surprise to Darcy that the hot guy went straight for Quinn, and the short, balding sidekick got stuck with her.
“Sorry, but those seats are taken,” she told him.
“Boyfriends?” Eddie asked.
“Yeah, and they’ll be back soon,” Quinn mentioned.
“We could keep you company until they get back,” Phillip suggested, smiling at Darcy.
On closer inspection, the man was completely lit. His eyes were glassy with alcohol, and he reeked like a bottle of cheap vodka. Yep, the short, balding drunk sidekick was really hoping he was gonna get laid.
“We’ll pass,” Darcy said before adding, “but thanks anyway.”
“That’s a shame,” Eddie replied. “I said to my buddy there’s no way such attractive girls should be sitting by themselves.”
“We aren’t by ourselves.” Quinn’s face flushed red, and Darcy was surprised to see her best friend was getting angry.
Darcy leaned across the table. “You both seem like nice enough guys, but let me be blunt. If you are in any way emotionally attached to your balls, you’ll leave right now. If her boyfriend catches you breathing the same air as her, he’s gonna lose his shit. And it’s not gonna be pretty for you.”
Eddie nodded his head slowly and grinned. “And I suppose your boyfriend will lose his shit when he sees Phillip here sitting next to you?”
Good question. Not all women liked it when men acted possessive and jealous, but at this point, Darcy would be grateful for any sign that she mattered to Sean. Before she could answer, Ewan and Sean returned to the table.
“You're in my seat,” Ewan growled.
Eddie turned to see Ewan glaring down at him. Darcy had to give the guy credit. He didn’t so much as hesitate or flinch when he said, “Oh, sorry. I was just talking to my new friend here.”
“She’s not your friend. Now get the fuck out of my seat.”
Maybe Eddie had a change of heart, because he slid off the stool without further discussion. He looked back at Quinn and Darcy, winked, and walked away. Phillip moved to go with his friend, but Sean stopped him by slapping him on the shoulder.
“You can stay if you want, friend. I don’t mind standing.”
Phillip looked from Sean to Darcy, his eyes wide with confusion. He quickly shook his head and left before Sean could say anything else.
Sean shrugged with a cocky smile and sat down next to Darcy. She just stared at him, befuddled. She glanced over at Ewan, who looked like he was going to pop a vein in his neck as he glared at the two retreating men.
Sean had just asked the guy who was hitting on her to stay. He’d even offered him his seat.
What the fuck was wrong with him?
Chapter 23
What the fuck was wrong with him?
Sean’s nostrils flared as he pulled his SUV into the narrow spot behind his townhouse. He jerked the gearshift into park a little too hard, and they lurched to a halt.
“Whoops. Sorry about that.”
He wasn’t really sorry. He wanted to break something. But he’d been trying hard to act normal ever since he and Ewan had returned to where the girls were sitting and had seen those motherfuckers in their chairs.
The evening had been a complete disaster, starting when he saw Darcy coming down the stairs looking fuck-tastic and knowing they had to show up at the bar or they’d never hear the end of it from their friends.
Things at the bar had been going okay until Lisbeth had shown up. The sight of her made his skin crawl and his dick shrivel. She’d been a drunken mistake when he was eighteen, a mistake he would never repeat even though she offered herself to him on a fairly regular basis.
He’d never told anyone about Lisbeth. And it had been a total kick to the balls to hear that Darcy knew all about it.
Lisbeth must have told her, which shouldn’t have surprised him. He’d immediately felt as if he should pull Darcy aside and explain to her what had happened, but he wouldn’t even know what to say. Lisbeth had never been a nice person, and he honestly didn’t know what he had been thinking back then. All he could remember was how ashamed he was afterwards.
After Lisbeth left the bar, things had been going swimmingly, even though every time his thigh would rub up against Darcy’s knee, his dick would grow hard.
But then those little shits had sat down at their table when he and Ewan had stepped away…like little fucking piranhas waiting for their chance to bite as soon as the bait hit the water.
As soon as he’d realized their seats had been taken, he’d immediately sized up the asshole sitting next to Darcy. He didn’t give a rat’s ass what the man looked like, what he did for a living, or how much he made. All he’d seen was the way he was looking at his girlfriend and his vision had faded to red. If Ewan hadn’t spoken first to get them to leave, there was no telling what Sean might have done.
And just to fuck with the bastard who was hitting on Darcy, he’d slammed his hand down hard on the guy’s deltoid and dug his fingers in while asking him to join their table. He’d known the pussy wouldn’t accept. But it was some satisfaction to see the whites of the guy’s eyes before his hasty retreat.
Since then, all he could think about was taking Darcy home and fucking her until her eyes crossed. He had this need to possess her. He needed to hear her scream his name. And even though she had nothing to compare him to, he wanted to make sure she knew that there was nothing in the bedroom that he couldn’t give her.
He was thinking like an insecure, selfish son of a bitch.
Sean took a deep breath as he opened his car door, trying to calm the fuck down.
Since when did he act like this? He’d turned into a caveman. He might as well have pissed on Darcy to mark her and then roared at everyone while pounding on his chest.
He’d never in his life experienced the possessive anger that had coursed through him at the bar. Never.
It was kind of like driving a sports car. Someone who bought a sports car expected people to notice their car. Not that a woman was remotely comparable to an inanimate object, but the analogy could still work. The bottom line was it had never bothered him before when he caught some other guy checking out his dates.
But the moment he’d seen that fucker siding up to Darcy, Sean had seen red. Darcy wasn’t like any woman he’d been with before. She wasn’t the showy sports car that he wanted on display for all the world to see.
Darcy was more like a guy’s first car after getting his license. A guy saved and scrounged every cent, working shit part-time jobs after school just to be able to buy it. That first car was all his, and there was no way he was going to let anyone else take it for a drive.
That first car was priceless.
As he walked swiftly up the back stairs to unlock the door, the sole of his shoe caught on the bottom step. “Fuck almighty!” He grabbed the railing to save himself from falling. He was about to let his anger boil over and kick the ever-loving shit out of the wooden stairs when he remembered Darcy was right behind him.
“You okay?” she asked warily. She looked at him like she wasn’t altogether sure she knew him.
Forcing his pulse to slow, he smiled. “Yeah. Just clumsy.” He made it safely to the top of the stairway and unlocked the door for her. “After you.”
She preceded him into the house, and he could hear his roommates in the living room playing video games.
“Who’s there?”
Sean and Darcy walked into the living room to see a mound of empty beer cans, crumpled fast-food bags, and Josh and Colin sitting shirtless and playing Mortal Kombat.
“Oh, it’s just you guys,” Josh said after a quick glance at them. Just then, Colin’s character jumped high, spiraled down, and sliced Josh’s guy in half with a giant sword. “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!”
“Nice try, loser.” Colin burst out laughing as Josh threw his controller on the ground.
“Co
cksucker,” Josh mumbled, trudging past Sean and Darcy into the kitchen. Sean heard the fridge open, slam shut, and the hiss of a beer being opened.
“What were you two kids up to tonight?” Colin asked, turning in his chair toward them.
“Met Ewan and Quinn at a bar. Nothing much,” Sean answered. “I thought you two had plans tonight?”
Sean was counting on it actually. Colin’s girlfriend was supposed to be setting Josh up with one of her friends, and Sean and Darcy should have had the townhouse to themselves.
“Kaylin’s friend bailed. Josh and I decided a Mortal Kombat marathon was in order.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll pretend we don’t hear the two of you going at it upstairs.” Josh chuckled as he took his seat beside Colin. “Just a normal Saturday night. Colin and me downstairs drinking beer and listening to Sean have sex.”
Sean gritted his teeth.
“I’ll never forget that one chick you brought home who screamed like a hyena.” Colin laughed. “What was her name? Corrie?”
Goddamn it. Shut your fucking mouth, Colin!
Sean felt Darcy stiffen beside him and his heart sank. He wanted to ask her if she minded giving him a couple minutes so he could beat the ever-loving shit out of his dick-face roommates.
“Speaking of…” Josh turned to Darcy. “When did you guys start hooking up?”
“Couple weeks ago,” Darcy answered matter-of-factly. Her even voice held no emotion.
Josh stuck his bottom lip out. “I had plans for us, Darcy. You and me… we could have been great.”
Darcy smiled. “You waited too long to make your move.”
Josh nodded solemnly. “Yeah, it was my fault. I could have blown your mind.”
This time, Darcy laughed.
Jesus. Sean knew his roommate was just playing around, but that possessiveness was rearing its ugly head again. What the fuck?
“Piss off, Josh,” Sean snapped. “And keep your ass away from my door tonight, you perv.” He looked at Darcy. “Ready to head upstairs?”
Darcy met his eyes briefly and nodded before exchanging good nights with Josh and Colin. Sean followed her up the stairs, feeling the silence even more than he had in the car.
Not In My Wildest Dreams (McKenna Series Book 2) Page 26