The Vincent Boys Collection

by Abbi Glines

  A tear rolled down my face and dropped from my chin. That wasn’t enough.

  This time I needed more.

  Sawyer reached out for my hand and pulled me closer to him.

  I wanted to melt in his arms, but I couldn’t.

  “I love you, Lana. I love you so much. Everything about you. The way your lips curl up slowly when you smile, the freckle right under your perfect little bottom, the way your laughter sends warmth flooding through my veins, how your touch lights me on fire. I love you, and I will spend the rest of my life making sure you know that you are my number one. You will always be my number one.”

  That was it. That was enough. That was all I’d ever need to hear.

  SAWYER

  Lana threw her arms around my neck and let out a loud sob as she buried her face in my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and held her as my heart cracked with each sob that tore from her chest. I didn’t want her to cry. I’d made her cry too much. I wanted to make her happy. I wanted smiles and laughter. I ran my hand down her back and kissed her temple as she clung to me. At least she wasn’t pushing me away. I just wanted the crying to stop. I wanted her to feel wanted. She was my world.

  “I’m so sorry,” I said through the tightness in my throat.

  Lana nodded her head against my chest and her sobbing eased some as she sniffled. I just wanted to wrap her up and protect her from any and all pain. Forever. This was torture. Knowing I’d done this was killing me.

  “I know. Me too.”

  Me too? What the hell was she sorry for?

  “You don’t have anything to be sorry for,” I told her as I kept my mouth pressed to her forehead. I needed to feel her skin under my lips. Just knowing she was here and in my arms again. I was afraid to let go.

  “I should have stayed around and let you explain,” she said through a hiccup.

  “I’d screwed up and hurt you before. You expected it again. It’s all my fault. Everything comes back to me and my stupid mistakes,” I assured her running my hand over her head and down the length of her hair.

  “I love you, too,” she said as she pulled back to look up at me. Grabbing her face, I covered her mouth with mine. Those words weren’t something I expected to hear from her at least not this soon. As much as I wanted to savor the taste of her mouth and the softness of her lips, I was hungry. I needed more of her. Lana opened her mouth willingly and tilted her head back as she slid her tongue into my mouth and flicked it sweetly against mine. Yeah, this was home. This was mine.

  Chapter 24

  LANA

  “Crazy Girl” by the Eli Young Band woke me up from a very good dream. Stretching, I felt Sawyer’s arms tighten around me. “Crazy girl, don’t you know that I love you?” kept playing, and I turned to look up at Sawyer, who was reaching for my phone.

  “Why is my phone turned on, and why is it singing a country song?’ I asked groggily as he looked at the screen and then dropped his gaze to mine.

  “It’s your mom. Talk to her or she’ll worry.”

  I gaped at him. “My mom? But—”

  “I got your phone out of your bag last night and turned it on. Finding you had my adrenaline pumping, so calming down was hard to do. I changed your ringtone to the song that makes me think about you.” He lowered his mouth to mine and sang, “Have I told you lately, I love you like crazy, girl?” along with my ringing phone. I couldn’t get mad at him while he was doing something like that. Early-morning, singing-Sawyer was just too freaking sweet. Even if he’d made it possible for my mom to call me.

  Sighing, I took the phone from him and answered. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Oh, Lana, you’ve turned your phone back on. I’m so glad. Does this mean you’re going to come home? I’m so ready to see you.”

  “No, I’m not coming home. Not yet, anyway.” I met Sawyer’s gaze and wondered what I was going to do. I wasn’t sure I’d be welcomed back at Aunt Sarah’s after I’d run off like that. “I don’t really know what I’m going to do next.”

  “Why are you doing this? Is it still about Sawyer? I can tell you that—”

  “Mom, it isn’t about Sawyer,” I replied, reaching up and running my hand through his messy hair. “He’s perfect. I just don’t really know yet how I’m going to finish my summer.”

  Sawyer frowned, and his arms tightened around me like I was going to vanish into thin air.

  “Wait, did you just say Sawyer was perfect? I thought you were mad at him. I mean, I agree with you he is a lovely young man. We’ve spoken a lot over the past two weeks, and I think he really loves you. The boy has been so upset. He calls me all the time to see if I’ve heard from you, even though every time you called, I called him right away and told him what you said and that you were fine. Oh, no. I didn’t mean to tell you that. Don’t be mad at me, honey. He was just so worried.”

  I smirked at him. “He can be pretty persuasive. I understand.”

  “He’s a very good catch, Lana. Wealthy family and going to Florida for college too. I was so surprised when he told me he had gotten a scholarship there for football. That’s perfect.”

  “No, Mom, it isn’t. Dad isn’t going to be able to help out.” Saying that never got easier.

  “Nonsense. Yes, he is going to help. The alimony he gives me every month will more than pay for it. Besides, I’m selling the house and downsizing. It’s too much house for just me.”

  “Mom, no, you love the house, and I don’t think you understand how much it’ll cost with books and living expenses—”

  “I’m not an idiot, Lana. I checked into all of that while you’ve been gone. You’re still getting mail, and I had to pay a few more fees and get the first semester paid for. I’ve held off buying things for your dorm room until you come home to help me.”

  “Lana, what’s wrong?” Sawyer sat up quickly and pulled me up in his arms.

  “Is that Sawyer? Are you back in Grove?” my mother asked, and I patted Sawyer’s chest to silently calm him down. I’d become teary-eyed listening to my mother, and he’d gone into panic mode.

  “Yes, that’s Sawyer. He, uh, found me last night,” I replied into the phone, while smiling at Sawyer, who was watching me carefully with frown lines between his eyebrows.

  “Found you? Where are you? How did he find you?”

  “I’ve been with Jewel all along. She covered for me, and honestly, I have no idea how he found me, unless . . . ” I paused before I finished that thought. I didn’t want to have to explain this all to my mother, and she would want to know. I was pretty sure who’d ratted me out. Ethan was the only one in Grove who knew where I had gone.

  “Listen, Mom, I’ll call you later. I’ve got to figure some things out today, but I’ll be sure to let you know. Let me talk to Sawyer, okay, and thank you. I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Lana.”

  I disconnected and laid my phone down beside me before crawling on top of Sawyer. “So how’d you get my whereabouts out of Ethan? And is he still alive?”

  Sawyer chuckled and shifted me so I was straddling him. “Yes, he’s still breathing. Actually, I left him completely unharmed. I ran out of there so fast once I had your location, I didn’t even say good-bye.”

  “Good, now tell me how you got it out of him,” I replied, running my hands up his bare chest. I’d missed touching him.

  “He just told me,” he said in a husky whisper. His attention was focused on my hands as I traced circles around his very firm pecs.

  “The guilt got to him, I guess,” I murmured before leaning down to press a kiss to the bruise just over his ribs. “Did those big mean football players hurt you?” I cooed, raining a trail of kisses across his abs and back up his chest.

  “Uh-huh, I can show you a lot of other places they hurt me too.” He sighed, running his hands down my back to cup my butt.

  “Mmkay, just let me finish kissing these booboos, and I’ll get to the other ones next,” I promised.

  “Please, take your time,” he said
with a groan, slipping his hands inside my panties.

  “You still haven’t answered me about how you got my hideout location from Ethan,” I reminded him as I slid down his body so I could kiss just below his belly button.

  “Gaaah, baby.” He arched into me then took a ragged breath. “Who’s Ethan?” he asked in a low deep voice.

  I lifted my eyes to meet his fascinated gaze. “You remember Ethan. Your friend who told on me,” I reminded before I licked gently at the skin right above his boxers.

  “Oh, fuuuuuck,” he moaned, tangling his hands in my hair.

  I decided to let the Ethan thing go. I was having too much fun watching the guy I loved come apart in my arms. Slipping a finger under the top of his boxers, I leaned forward and whispered in his ear. “Any booboos down there I need to pay attention to?”

  “Oh yeah, lots and lots,” he croaked out.

  Pulling them down slowly, I watched his face. He wasn’t breathing. I doubted he even realized it. Once I had his boxers pulled down to his ankles I threw them on the floor and reached for my tank top and pulled it off.

  He made some incoherent sounds and I couldn’t help but laugh as I put a hand on each side of his hips and lowered my mouth. I blew gently over the tip of his erection as my mouth hovered over it.

  “Holy shit,” Sawyer groaned.

  I loved this and I loved him.

  “Did you get booboos down here anywhere?” I asked teasingly as I gazed up at him through my eyelashes.

  “Yeah, right there. You found it.” He breathed raggedly.

  I had him so excited he was panting as my mouth stayed just above his swollen head. Sticking out my tongue I took a swipe across the top of him and he almost came off the bed. His hands were both fisted in the sheets.

  “Please,” he begged.

  Unable to ignore his plea, I opened my mouth and took him inside me, gently sucking as I lowered my mouth over him.

  “Ohfuckbaby,” he moaned, throwing his head back on the headboard and lifting his hips to meet my mouth.

  Smiling, I continued to take him to release in a new way for both of us.

  SAWYER

  Lana had packed her bags back up after we took our shower. That was one memory I would never forget. Lana soaking wet and pressed up against a shower wall was something that would be imprinted on my brain for the rest of my life. She was beautiful. She was perfect. And she was mine.

  I’d loaded her bags into the back of my truck while she fixed us something to eat for breakfast. There were people strewn all over the floor asleep. I had wanted to just leave and take her somewhere to eat. But she was determined to see Jewel before she left. I understood that, although the stench of sour alcohol and body odor was extremely unappetizing. I’d sent Lana fleeing into this disgusting place. Still pissed me off when I thought about it. I hated knowing she had dealt with this lifestyle surrounding her for weeks.

  I stepped over an arm that was thrown out into the small walkway from the door to the kitchen. A chain-link fence was tattooed across it. Jewel’s words from last night through the door about “Fence” saying things to Lana that had her hold him at knife point came back to me. I was glad I had on my boots. I decided not to step over the arm after all.

  A loud “What the fuck, ooow!” came from the owner of the offending arm as I put my full weight on it in my track into the kitchen.

  A pierced and tattoo-covered guy with black hair that was sticking up in every direction sat up from his sprawled-out position on the floor and cradled his arm protectively. His eyes scanned the room until his groggy gaze found me.

  “What the fuck was that, dude? You about broke my arm,” he whined, still holding his arm like a damn baby.

  “That was for whatever the hell it was you said to my girl yesterday. If you’d touched her then it would be broken,” I replied before heading to the kitchen where Lana was standing watching me with her cute little round mouth hanging open.

  “What was that? And how did you know about what he said to me yesterday?

  “I didn’t know she was taken. Shit, man. The two of you need to loosen up,” the guy grumbled from the living room. The rest of the passed-out occupants didn’t even budge from the noise.

  “I was in your room awhile last night,” I started to explain.

  “And he heard me come apologize at the door,” Jewel finished for me as she walked into the kitchen running her hands through her messy bed head. “I had a feeling that was you in there when Lana didn’t respond. I’d seen a shadow enter that window from the pool. I’d thought it was Lana. When she wouldn’t talk back I figured out you’d finally figured out my little hint.”

  Smirking, I slipped my arm around Lana’s waist and pulled her against me. “Actually, I didn’t figure out your hint until Ethan fessed up to bringing Lana here. I was fully convinced you didn’t have a clue where she was.”

  Jewel laughed and slapped the counter with her hand. “Told ya! I’m a freaking brilliant actress. Hollywood needs me! They don’t know what they’re missing.”

  Lana smiled up at me. “She really is very good at it. I was almost convinced she didn’t know where I was when she talked to my mom on the phone. She definitely has a talent when it comes to lying.”

  “I need some ice. This guy is off his fucking rocker. He about crushed my bones with those big ass-boots of his,” the guy from the living room called out.

  Jewel looked over my shoulder at him and then back at me. “Those musician types are easily injured. I hope you didn’t mess his arm up too bad. He’s the drummer. They have a gig tonight and Chain will be furious if his drummer can’t play.”

  “He’ll live,” I assured her.

  Jewel nodded and opened the freezer to get some ice out. “So, I guess this means you’re heading out,” she said, glancing back at Lana.

  “Yeah. Not sure if I’m going home or to Ashton’s. Aunt Sarah may be mad at me for just running off.”

  Like hell. She wasn’t going back to Georgia without me.

  “She’s going back to Grove. She’ll stay with me if she has to.”

  Jewel raised her eyebrows in surprise as she shifted her attention from me to Lana.

  “Hmm . . . and what if Ashton comes running to you again? You gonna drop Lana like a hot cake?”

  Lana tensed up in my arms and I hated that that idea still scared her. I pulled her in front of me and tilted her face up to look at me. This was something I would need to repeat over and over until she could believe me. It was my fault that she had this fear.

  “I will never. Ever. Turn my back on Lana for anyone or anything. She’s my number one. She will always be my number one. I love her so much. So very much.”

  Lana’s eyes welled up with tears and I bent my head to kiss her lips. “I promise. I mean every word,” I whispered against her mouth before covering it with mine.

  “Okay, now I think I’m gonna cry. That was too dang sweet,” Jewel said behind us. I felt the smile on Lana’s lips before she opened her mouth just enough to let me in.

  Chapter 25

  SAWYER

  “Dad,” I called out in way of a greeting as I knocked once on his office door and stepped inside. He was sitting behind the large mahogany desk that he’d had shipped over from somewhere he and Mom had visited. I didn’t remember the details.

  “Sawyer,” he replied, looking up from the paperwork on his desk. “How was practice?”

  “Good. I’m going to learn a lot this year. Being red-shirted was a smart move.”

  Dad nodded in agreement.

  “Beau had a good week too. They’re starting him on the offensive line.” It drove me nuts that he never asked about his other son. The one he ignored. The one he never claimed.

  Dad frowned and looked back down at his paperwork. “That’s good. Your cousin has always excelled as a receiver.”

  “You mean my brother. Beau’s not my cousin. He’s my brother.” I’d never forced my dad to face this. I’d been so angry wi
th Beau about Ashton when this all came out, I’d let this slide. If Beau didn’t want to deal with it then I’d figured why should I? But it wasn’t fair. This farce my dad lived wasn’t fair.

  Clearing his throat, he took off his reading glasses and leaned back in his chair to level his gaze on me. “You want to talk about that? Is that what this is about?”

  “Yeah, it is. I want to talk about that.” I didn’t snap. I kept my tone level. Yelling wouldn’t get me anywhere.

  “Beau is biologically mine, yes. But I didn’t raise him. I didn’t love his mother. Your uncle did. Not me. I do not see Beau as my son. My nephew, yes.”

  “But he is your son. His dad died when he was six years old. He’s needed a dad for twelve years now, and you’ve done nothing. Not once did you check on him. Not once did you tell him you were proud of him. Not once did you make his life easier.” I stopped as my voice got louder and louder.

  “Tell him I was proud of him? For what? Being a loser? Coming to football practice with a hangover? Spending time in bars? What the hell was I supposed to be proud of? Huh? Please tell me that.”

  My hands balled into fists, and I took a deep breath. I was so close to taking a swing at my own dad. “He was stuck with Aunt Honey, who left him at home alone when he was just a kid. If he hadn’t lived in a trailer park where people deal drugs and God knows what else, maybe he would’ve known better. But he didn’t. He made mistakes. He had to learn things the hard way. He had to learn everything the hard way. Because you weren’t there.” I pointed my finger at my dad and snarled. “Beau straightened himself out. He got a football scholarship to the University of Alabama for crying out loud. He found a way to make money so he could buy himself a truck. He loves his mama and takes care of her even though she did nothing to earn his help. Why? Because he loves her. She’s all he has ever had. He made himself, and what he made is one damn fine man. I am so proud to call him my brother I am bursting with it when I see him. And you, you did nothing. Not one damn thing to make him. Nothing,” I finished, and turned to leave his office. I didn’t want to stay here. Not under this roof. Not with him.