Pull You Through

by Kaylee Ryan

  Austyn pulls her hand back and lets it hang at her side. I didn’t even realize I was still holding onto her, not that she appeared to be complaining. I don’t have a whole lot of experience with this kind of thing. My dating experience is slim to none, but I’m wise enough to know attraction. I can see it in the way her eyes darken, and I can feel it in the crotch of my jeans.

  “What are you doing here?” Savannah asks.

  “Can’t a guy just stop and see his girl?” Combs grins.

  Her eyes light up and her smile grows wider. I chance a glance at Austyn and find her eyes on me. Quickly, she turns away. I don’t. I take her in. She’s about a foot shorter than me, with blonde hair just below her shoulders, and a tight little body if her black pants and T-shirt are any indication. And then there are her eyes. Ice-blue and piercing, as if she can see straight into your soul.

  “Laying it on a little thick there, B.” Austyn busts his chops.

  “I wanted to see you,” he says with a laugh, pulling Savannah into him. “And we were hungry. I also needed to see this one.” He puts an arm around Austyn and tugs her to him as well.

  I envy him, this easygoing banter. It’s not something I’ve experienced. Admittedly, I’m suddenly really glad I agreed to come home with him. When Austyn glances my direction and gives me a shy smile, I know it’s the right decision.

  “We missed you,” Austyn tells him. “This one,” she points to Savannah, “has been a pain in my ass without you here.”

  I can visibly see Combs soften at her words. His shoulders slack, and he gets this dopey smile on his face. He places his lips next to Savannah’s ear. Her face turns a slight shade of pink. Whatever it is he’s saying to her, it’s affecting her. “Love you,” I hear him whisper before pulling away.

  “All right, lovebirds, we have to get back to work. You guys grab a table, and one of us will be over in a minute,” Austyn says, waving her hand around the dining room.

  Combs kisses his girl quickly on the lips and motions for me to follow him. He leads me to the very back of the dining room to a small booth in the corner. “Everything is good here,” he says, handing me a menu.

  “We have a diner similar to this back home. The small mom-and-pop places are always the best.”

  “It doesn’t hurt that the help is easy on the eyes.” He jokes, holding his fist out for me to bump.

  “What can I get ya to drink?” Austyn says, stopping next to our booth. Combs looks over her shoulder, and she laughs. “She’s in the back. She had an order come up. We’re both going to be taking care of y’all,” she explains.

  Combs orders and then she turns those blue eyes to me. “Slade?” The sound of my name from her lips, that soft southern drawl of hers, has my cock twitching in my pants. “I’ll have the same,” I say. I have no idea what Combs ordered, but I’m not a picky eater. The entire time he was ordering, I was watching her. I guess I should have been paying attention. She smiles at me, then turns to put in our orders. I watch her go, unable to take my eyes off her. It’s not until she disappears behind the swinging door that I do.

  “She’s a looker,” Combs comments.

  “She’s a fucking knockout.”

  He nods in agreement. “Austyn is one of the good ones, like Savvy. They’re the kind of girl you take home to meet the folks.”

  I raise my eyebrows, silently questioning him.

  “I just mean, she’s not one to play around. She’s got a good head on her shoulders and is worth more.”

  “What are you saying exactly?”

  He sighs. “Listen, Austyn, Savannah, and I grew up together. She’s not a fling type of girl. I see you watching her, and I don’t blame you; she’s gorgeous. I mean she’s not Savannah.” He smiles. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I don’t want you to use her while we’re here.”

  “That’s not who I am,” I tell him. Of course, we’ve only known each other for thirteen weeks, but he knows me, well, just what I’ve told him. The only information I’ve given him about my dating life is that I’m single.

  “I just wanted you to know. I’m not against you starting something with her, but you need to keep in mind that she’s special. They both are,” he says, just as Savannah stops next to our table and drops off our drinks.

  “Here you go.” She smiles brightly. “Austyn is coming with us tonight. What time do you want to leave and where do you want to meet?” she asks Combs.

  “We’ll pick y’all up. I’m thinking around seven.”

  “That works. That will give us time to take a nap and get ready. I’ll just have Austyn come to my place.”

  “That works, babe,” Combs tells her.

  “Your food should be out soon.” With that, she turns and walks away.

  “I’ve been thinking,” he says, once she’s out of earshot, “I want to ask Savannah to marry me.”

  My eyes widen. “You’re eighteen,” I remind him.

  “Nineteen next week,” he counters with a smirk.

  I laugh. “What are the chances that we have the same fucking birthday?”

  “Right? I thought you were fucking with me until you showed me your paperwork,” he says with a laugh.

  “I know you’re not used to big celebrations, but this year, we’re doing it up big.”

  “Don’t even tell them it’s mine too.” It’s his day and his family’s. I’m not moving in on that.

  “Hell yes, I am. That just makes it even better.”

  “So, proposing?” I change the subject.

  “I know we’re young, but fuck, I love that girl. I hate that I’m going to be gone for five months and then, who knows where we’ll end up. I can’t bring her with me unless we’re married.”

  “Is that what she wants? You said she’s in college, right?”

  “Yeah, but damn, man, I want her as close as I can get her.”

  “You got a ring?” “Not yet.”

  “That might be your first step there, bud.” I smirk.

  “What did we miss?” Savanah asks, placing a plate in front of each of us.

  “Nothing, babe,” Combs says.

  “Uh-huh.” She chuckles. “One of us will be back with some refills.”

  “Slacker.” Austyn hip-checks Savannah while laughing. “Here you go.” She sets a fresh glass of sweet tea in front of us. “Good help is hard to find.” She tilts her head toward Savannah and winks.

  “Hey!” Savannah lightly smacks her arm, causing both girls to laugh.

  I can’t take my eyes off Austyn. Her blue eyes are sparkling with her laughter, her smile lighting up her face. I’m transfixed by her beauty.

  “Let us know if you need anything else,” Savannah says, and just like that, they’re walking away.

  “I think you’re drooling.” Combs snorts.

  I grab my napkin and wipe at my chin, just in case. “Do you blame me?” No point in denying it.

  “Not at all, my man, not at all.”

  We finish up our lunch with a few more visits from the girls to see if we need anything. Savannah brings us our bills, and we both hand her money, telling her to keep the change.

  “We’ll split it.” She smiles. “See you soon.” She blows a kiss to Combs and waves to me.

  I wave back, then seek out Austyn. She’s standing at the counter, talking to an older gentleman as she pours him a cup of coffee. She must sense me staring. Her eyes lift to mine, and she gives me a small wave before focusing her attention back on her customer.

  “You’ll see her tonight.” Combs pulls my attention from the blonde beauty.

  With one more quick glance, I follow him out of the diner.

  WHEN SAVANNAH TOLD ME BRANDON’S friend was hot, I believed her. I did. But I didn’t expect… that. Tall, broad shoulders, dark hair, intense dark eyes, and five o’clock shadow…. That’s every girl’s dream guy, but on Slade, it’s so much more. It’s the intensity in his eyes. The way they follow me, assessing me. It’s hot as hell.

  “
So?” Savannah stands next to me at the counter. I know it’s been killing her that I spent time with Mr. Harris. He stopped in for lunch; it’s not uncommon for him to do so. He’s a lonely old man, and if I have a few extra minutes, I give them to him while he’s here. I feel bad for him.

  “So what?” I play dumb. I can’t look at her while I wipe off the counter. I know she’ll see right through me.

  “Don’t give me that, Austyn.” She lightly smacks my arm.

  “Fine,” I groan, as if it’s an inconvenience to admit. “He’s hot.”

  “Uh-huh, tell me more,” she says sweetly, causing me to laugh.

  “He’s hot. He likes double bacon cheeseburgers, fries, and sweet tea,” I rattle off their order.

  “Okay, if that’s all, I suppose you don’t want to hear that he couldn’t keep his eyes off you,” she goads.

  “Whatever,” I say, knowing it’s true. I could feel his stare. Although, he wasn’t the only one who had a hard time looking away. Thankfully, the diner started to pick up, so I placed all my focus there. It could have been embarrassing.

  “So what are you wearing tonight?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know. I wasn’t worried about it until now, so thanks for that.”

  “You’re welcome,” she sing-songs. “Just fulfilling my duty as best friend.”

  “This is crazy,” I tell her. “He’s leaving in a few days. There’s no point trying to impress him.” Even as I say the words, I know I’m full of it. “Where’s he even from? Somewhere far away from Kentucky, I’m sure.”

  “I didn’t ask, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be your soul mate.”

  “Really, Savvy?” I laugh at her. “I wonder how your brain works sometimes.”

  “Stranger things have happened. Besides, I have this feeling,” she admits.

  “A feeling? Like the time you told me that there was no way your parents would find us sneaking out to go the field party with Brandon? Or how about the time you had a feeling that your parents were going to be gone all night, so you snuck Brandon into the house and up to your room? Like those feelings?” I ask her.

  “This one is different.” That’s what she always says.

  “No more soul-mate talk. He’s a hot guy, who’s here for a short visit. End of. I’m tagging along tonight so that he doesn’t have to be the third wheel with you and B.”

  “What are you wearing?” she asks again.

  “Ugh! Fine. I’m going to wear my skinny jeans, my black Hunter boots, and my gray and black sweater.”

  She nods. “That works. It might be chilly so don’t bring a jacket. Slade will have to keep you warm.” She grins and waggles her eyebrows.

  “I’m not going to do anything that’s going to put him or me in an uncomfortable position. You just focus on your man and getting as much time in with him as you can before he leaves.”

  Her face falls at the mention of him leaving. “Yeah, this small break he has is going to fly by.”

  “I’m sorry,” I say, pulling her into a hug. “I know it’s hard on you, on both of you. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

  “No, it’s fine.” She pulls out of my hug. “We talked about it before he enlisted. This is his dream. I support him. It’s hard to be away from him, but this is the path that we chose, together. No way could I have asked him to stay, to not chase his dream.”

  “Come on, let’s get through the rest of our shift, and then we can go take a quick nap before your big date tonight.”

  “Our big date,” she corrects me, and I roll my eyes. This causes her to break out into a fit of laughter. Customers turn their heads to look at us, but we pay them no attention. Once we get ourselves under control, we return to work. Luckily, we stay steadily busy, and the time flies by.

  “You coming to my house to get ready?”

  “I can. I just need to run home and grab some clothes first. I’ll probably just go ahead and take a quick power nap, try to anyway, then head over.”

  “Sounds like a plan. Brandon said they’ll be at my place at seven.”

  Hitting the button on my phone, I see that’s it’s four now. “I’ll be there around five thirty, if not a little before.”

  “Sounds good.” She turns to walk toward her car, and I head toward mine. On the outside, I’m cool, calm, and collected. On the inside, I’m freaking out just a little. Okay, a lot that I’ll be hanging out with him tonight. “Austyn,” she calls out. Stopping, I turn to look at her. “Make sure you wear some sexy undies.” She winks and turns back around. Shaking my head, I climb into my car and head home. This favor I agreed to is turning out for my benefit after all.

  No matter how hard I try, I can’t sleep. The excitement of tonight is keeping me awake. After thirty minutes, I give up. Sifting through my closet, I pull out the black and gray sweater and my skinny jeans. I pull my black Hunter boots from the rack on the closet floor. I grab a T-shirt and boxers to sleep in, just in case I end up sleeping at Savannah’s, not sure what she and Brandon have planned. They might be extending their night. In the event that doesn’t happen, it’s better to be prepared.

  Tossing my sleep clothes on the bed with the others, I grab a clean bra and underwear for tomorrow, leaving me to decide which set I’ll be wearing tonight. I know no one will see them but me—I push aside Savannah’s words swirling through my head—but they make me feel confident, pretty, maybe even a little sexy. Reaching into the back of my drawer, I pull out my black lace matching bra and panty set from Victoria’s Secret. I have a few sets of these, but I like sticking with the black theme. It’s been a while since I’ve added to my collection. Maybe Savannah and I need to plan a trip to the mall to remedy that situation.

  I also grab my makeup bag. Savannah will have everything else that I need. I pack everything in my Vera Bradley tote and open my bedroom door to find my little brother, Dawson, with his hand raised, ready to knock.

  “Hey, Mom wants to know if you’re going to be here for dinner?” he asks.

  Dawson is eight, ten years younger than my eighteen. “No.” I reach out and run my fingers, through his sandy-blond hair. “Savannah and I are going to the county fair.”

  “I want to go,” he whines.

  “Sorry, bud. How about I take you later this week? Deal?”

  His eyes light up with excitement. “You promise?”

  “I promise.” I hold my hand out for him to shake. He shakes my hand up and down so hard I think my arm might fall off. He giggles when I let my whole body shake as if he’s the one doing it.

  “Thanks, Aust,” he says, letting go of my hand and wrapping his arms around my waist.

  “You’re welcome.” My parents tried for years to have another baby after I was born without luck. They finally gave up, believing it just wasn’t in the cards for them, and a few years later, Dawson surprised us all. I have to admit, being a big sister is pretty cool.

  “Come on,” I say, releasing him. Dawson flies down the stairs, which prompts me, and my mom, yelling for him to slow down before he falls and breaks his neck. “Hey, Mom,” I greet her.

  “Hey, sweetie.” She eyes the bag on my shoulder. “Going to Savannah’s?”

  “Yeah, Brandon’s home so we’re all going to the county fair.”

  “That’s right. How is he?”

  “He’s good. He came to the diner today for lunch with a friend of his he brought home with him from boot camp.”

  “Good. You make sure you tell him to stop by and say hello before he leaves again. How long is he home for?”

  “I think Savannah said ten days. Then he goes back for some other kind of training. I’m not really sure.”

  “So this other guy, is he cute?” Mom asks.

  I can feel my face heat, which is a dead giveaway. “I don’t know if cute covers it,” I tell her honestly.

  “Tell Brandon to bring his friend too,” she says with a laugh.

  “Who’s bringing who where?” Dad asks, coming in from the garage.

/>   “Brandon’s home and he brought a friend with him. How was work?” she asks, turning to face him. He places a kiss on her lips.

  “Good. How is he?” Dad asks me.

  “He seems well. Happy to be home and see Savvy, I’m sure. We’re going to the fair tonight.”

  “You kids be safe. Will you be home tonight?” he asks.

  “Not sure yet. I might stay at Savannah’s. I’ll be sure to call or text and let you know for sure.”

  “Be safe,” Dad says again, rounding the counter and pulling me into a hug. “Love you, Aust.”

  “Love you, too, Dad. I better go. Love you, Mom, Daws,” I say to them. A chorus of “I love you, toos,” follows me out the door.

  When I pull into Savannah’s driveway, she rushes out the front door. “I couldn’t sleep,” she confesses, grabbing my bag from the back seat.

  “Yeah, I gave up. I need a shower,” I tell her.

  “Spare room is all yours. I’m going to hop in too. Have you eaten yet?”

  “No, I just figured we would eat at the fair.”

  “Good. That’s what I was thinking too. Mom and Dad just left to go out to dinner with some friends, but I could throw us a frozen pizza in the oven or something.”

  “I’m okay for now. Just a shower. I need to wash the diner off me.” Pulling my shirt to my nose, I give it a sniff. I smell like coffee. Not necessarily a bad smell if you drink coffee. I, however, do not.

  “Me too.”

  Following Savannah inside, I make my way to the spare bedroom. Savannah is an only child, so this room is for guests, which more often than not is me. I take my time showering, knowing we’re early. I’m just stepping out of the shower when Savvy is banging on the bathroom door.

  “You okay in there?” she yells through the door.

  “Yeah, what’s up?”

  “Will you curl my hair?”

  “Sure, let me get dressed and I’ll be right over.” I make quick work of drying off and getting dressed. Standing back, I take a look in the full-length mirror that’s hanging on the back of the bathroom door. I turn left and right, then all the way around, looking over my shoulder. Savannah says these jeans make my ass look good; it’s why I bought them. I can’t help but wonder what Slade will think. Shaking my head to detour that train of thought, I slip my sweater over my head, which is not an easy feat with my hair still wrapped up in a towel.