6. Sawyer

CHAPTER 6

SAWYER

"Fuck," I murmur, rubbing a hand down my jaw. "Have they been together since Tot's birthday?" Tank chuckles at Taylor's nickname and I turn to face him, making him clear his throat.

"Um, I don't think so. From what I can tell he hasn't been around again until tonight. I mean, from what I know at least."

What kind of fucked up karma do I have that this motherfucker shows up every time I plan on talking to Leah?

Whether they've been together this whole time or not, I'm not letting anything stand in my way when it comes to telling her how I feel about her this time.

How I've felt about her for too damn long.

Then if she wants to blow me off and continue dating the guy who looks like Egon Spengler, then so fucking be it.

"Is it too early in our friendship to ask for a favor?"

"We're friends?" Tank raises a brow at me.

"I'm hoping my desperation sways your answer in my favor."

"Alright but quit hitting on me. I'm happily married." I bark out a laugh and he waves two fingers. "Let's hear it."

When we make it to the bottom of the hill Ruby is quickly tucked beneath Tank's arm again, Shane is linking arms with Lauren and, as always, Taylor is acting like a cruise director.

"Okay, Tucker and I will go first, then Shane and Lauren. Moose, you can go with Tank and Ruby after Leah and Jackson." About the same time, I glare at the back of his head, Jackson turns around and looks up at me. His smug grin wavers as realization hits him.

Ah, so he remembers me.

"Moose?" The snarky tone to his voice makes me want to thunder kick him across the field.

"Only to these four." I glance at the girls and give Leah a wink, causing her eyes to widen in surprise before she shifts on her feet.

"Nah, dude. I'm definitely calling you that from here on out." Tank leans forward and claps my shoulder, making me chuckle.

"Well, hey, I'm glad you could make it." Jackson wraps his arm around Leah pulling her in closer.

Showy little ferret. Stop touching my girl.

I wonder how smug he'll be once I steal my girl back right out from under him.

"Let's go!" Taylor squeals, gripping Tucker's arm so tightly he sucks a sharp breath in through his teeth.

"Claws away til we're home, Darlin'."

Ah, gross.

A second later they disappear behind the cloth covering the entrance.

When it's finally our turn Tank gives me a nod, we walk in, and the strobe lights start just like always. They've extended the entrance and added more jump scares from the looks of it, but the rest is pretty much the same. The nine of us are bunched together so tight I can smell the mixture of body spray and the lack thereof.

There's fake cobwebs, torn tapestry, and costume blood in every inch of the small entrance, but as soon as the same creepy ass clown pops out from the corner, all the girls take off screaming. They're out in a matter of seconds leaving Tank, Tucker, and I lagging behind laughing.

"Why do they come if they're so fucking scared of this shit?" Tucker laughs as Tank grabs a mask off one of the mechanical dummies.

"No clue." Tank subtly hands me the mask before we leave to catch up with the girls.

"Hurry up . We're gonna get murdered out here or something." Taylor waves Tucker over dramatically.

One benefit to coming to this maze every Halloween for five years straight, I've memorized every little detail and pattern of the actors. No matter how many new employees there may have been over the year, the routine is still the same. Every jump scare has the girls shrieking and the more Leah grabs onto Jackson, the more I want to shove him into the corn and hope for a real life Scarecrow moment to occur.

When we get to the area that has been cut to look like a crossroads, the chainsaws start up and several groups cross each other, trying to find the path away from them. Tank shoots me a playful grin before dramatically scrambling our group with fake screams, giving me the opportunity to slide the mask we took from the entrance on. I wait for my chance to snatch Leah from the group and take off running down the empty path behind us.

She's kicking her feet wildly, like she stands a chance at escaping my grasp, and in an effort to keep her from screaming anyone's name but mine, I cover her mouth with my hand. When she bites the inside of my palm it sends a wave of excitement straight to my dick that I try to ignore. When I find an opening big enough, I dip into the corn stalks and spin her around to face me. Her breaths are coming so quickly I think she might be seconds away from passing out. Her eyes grow wide just as I remove the mask and reveal my face.

"Gotcha, Dove."

"Sawyer?! What the hell is wrong with you? You scared me to death!" Her small hands slap at my chest repeatedly and I can't help but smirk at her failed attempt to hurt me.

"Something funny?" She stops her assault on my chest and huffs, glaring up at me.

"No. Nothing at all." I hold my hands up defensively.

"Fantastic. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a date to get back to." She rolls her eyes and turns to walk away from me, but I grab her wrist and pull her back because I did not go through all of that just to let her walk away.

She trips over an unearthed root beneath her feet and falls into me with a gasp. I wrap my free hand around the nape of her neck and let my fingers glide through her soft brown locks as if on instinct. Her eyes bounce between mine and it takes more restraint than I realized it would to not lean in and kiss her. To tell her everything I've never had the chance to say without uttering a single word. I swallow past the urge to do so, pulling my gaze from her lips and smirking.

"You know, the last time we were here you screamed my name similarly to how you did tonight." She visibly swallows and as much as I hope I'll get a smile; she rolls her eyes instead.

"The only difference is I'm pretty sure I was glad to see you the last time we were here," she scoffs, but makes no effort to remove herself from my grip.

"You saying you're not glad to see me, Dove?" I slowly move my hand down around her neck as her eyes frantically search my face.

"Quite the contrary, actually." She's trying to appear unphased and it makes me want to prove that she is that much more. So, I press my luck and lean in closer, bringing my lips to the shell of her ear.

"Then why is your heart beating so fast?" I feel her shudder against me, and if I was a betting man, I'd bet there were goosebumps covering her arms right now. I barely catch her eyes fluttering back open when I pull back before she swats my hand away and stands up straighter.

"Probably because you scared me, you Sasquatch."

"C'mon. You know you're safe with me, you've always known that," I remind her, seeing any hint of desire disappear.

"No. Maybe I used to feel that way. But I don't know anything about you anymore. Come to think of it…maybe I never did." She's careful not to trip again when she takes a step back, and I miss her the second she's out of my reach.

"Leah…" My voice is low as she turns to walk away.

"I have to go, Sawyer. I'm not going to leave my date wondering where I am."

Fuck.

If she meant for that statement to hurt the way I think she did, then mission fucking accomplished.

"Will you ever give me a chance to apologize?" When she turns around this time there's a calmness about her that terrifies me.

"I don't need an apology, Sawyer. I need to move on. Just…let it go."

How the fuck can I let something go that I've never even had to begin with.

I remain silent because what the fuck do I even say to that? She must take my silence as acceptance because she gives me a tight-lipped smile and disappears from in front of me—leaving me simultaneously empty and full of regret. She may think I've quietly agreed to let her go, but she's sorely mistaken. That's the one thing I will never do.

Leah Gates will be mine, and I don't care what bridges I have to burn to make it happen.