Filed to story: Swallow Me Whole (Sadie & Ashton) Book Free
I want to stuff a dirty sock into his mouth to quiet that superior tone of his. Then I want to land a fist into his equally smug face. Fucking chump in a high-priced monkey suit. I can’t for the life of me see what Sadie ever saw in this self-important prick.
“She broke up with you,” I point out.
“That was a misunderstanding. We’re working through it.” He pauses a beat. “I want to make myself clear. You’re just a friend. I’m the man her father approves of.”
I can’t fucking help it. A grin twitches at the corners of my mouth. “Let me make myself clear. You’re just the asshole who cheated on her. I’m the guy she comes to for mind-blowing orgasms.” I stuff my hands into my pockets and finger her panties. “She’s quite insatiable, if I do say so myself.” I imitate his smug expression and give a mental fist-pump when the superiority melts from his face. “Nice catching up with you, Jack,” I say, purposefully using the wrong name. “I should probably mingle.” I turn on my heel before he can reply.
If I were wearing a tie, I’d have it removed by now. This place is suffocating enough all on its own. Caterers move around, preparing for the elaborate meal in the dining room, and this portion of the evening must be happy hour, Joseph Sawyer style, since guests are situated in small groups, nursing cocktails and beers as they talk about their importance in the grand scheme of things.
Jesus. I want out of here.
And I want to drill Sadie about every aspect of her relationship with that asshole. How far did she go with him? Suddenly, I want to know every detail. The thought of him touching her paints my vision with nothing but red.
I’m jealous as hell, and that doesn’t happen often.
A waiter passes by, and I grab a drink off the tray, unmindful of what it is I’m about to guzzle like a lifeline. But damn, a guy needs a drink to get through something like this. I settle against the wall in one corner of the room and down half the bubbly.
Definitely not my usual poison, but it’ll do.
Jake has reinserted himself into the crowd as the center of attention. But he’s not immune to me any more than I’m immune to him. Between sips of his drink, and gruff laughter interspersed with serious discussions of God-knows-what, he keeps shooting me death glares from across the room.
The hard lines on his pretty-boy face say it all.
I’m about as welcome here as the underbelly of this city.
A few minutes pass before Sadie returns on the heels of her father, and as she follows him like a sheep across the room to fucking “JJ,” I don’t miss the apologetic look she aims in my direction.
She didn’t stand up to her father.
I don’t have to ask to know it’s true. The guilt is written all over her beautiful face, her porcelain skin marred by self-disappointment.
Her father picks up a flute of champagne from a passing tray. “Attention, everyone!”
The room falls silent, and in that moment, I understand Sadie a little better because Joe Sawyer’s commanding presence is unshakable.
“I’d like to congratulate JJ on all the hard work he’s put in at Sawyer and Bennett these past five years. He’s the youngest to make junior partner in the firm’s history, and we’re all proud of him. To JJ,” he says, raising his glass, and everyone else follows suit, their voices a collective echo of Joseph Sawyer’s toast.
“Thank you, Joe. It’s an honor to have learned from the best.” The suck-up sidles up to Sadie and wraps an arm around her shoulders. “I have an announcement of my own to make. As most of you know, Sadie and I have been dating for the past couple of months, and though this might seem hasty, Joe has given me permission to ask for this extraordinary woman’s hand in marriage.”
People’s lips move. Glasses clink together. I hear none of it, and I suspect Sadie doesn’t either. She’s too busy staring right at me with that look I hate so much, her body rigid at Jake’s side.
There my girl is again, caught in the headlights.
Unable to stomach any more of this twisted game of elitist charades, I set my half-empty drink down and exit the room.
Because if I stay in there for another second, I’m going to lose my shit.
Sadie
Jake’s announcement winds around my throat like a boa constrictor. I sneak a glance at my father and feel like throwing up because he looks too damn thrilled.
More like ecstatic.
But what slices me to the soul is Ash. I watch, frozen in this twilight zone of a reality, as he leaves the room with a look of disgust and anger tainting his handsome face.
I want to call out to him. I want to tell my father and Jake they can shove this absurd marriage idea up where the sun don’t shine. I want to do something.
I need to do something.
Instead, I do nothing.
My heart is beating too fast, threatening a panic attack. Voices swirl around me. More congratulations, followed by intrusive questions.
Have we set the wedding date yet?
Are we going to have a traditional church wedding, or something less extravagant?
Will the ceremony be intimate, or something more newsworthy?
The whole time, I refrain from arching incredulous brows. But on the inside I’m screaming are you fucking kidding me? I never even said yes. Fuck, he never even asked.
Unable to take any more, I break away from Jake, ignoring his protests and the disapproving eye of my father, and go after Ashton. I leave the din of voices behind and enter the hall to find him leaning against the wall, arms crossed and head down. I spare a glance behind me, but my father and Jake are both distracted by the praise and attention of the guests. So is my mom. She’s got the hostess persona down to a science, and her face is glowing as people congratulate her on her daughter snagging such a good catch.
I might barf after all.
Drawing in a deep breath, I move toward Ashton. “Please don’t be mad,” I say, coming to a stop in front of him. “You know how my father is.”
He lifts his head, and I’m taken aback by the fervor in his ice-blue eyes. “You just let them walk all over you, Sawyer. I don’t understand it.”
Cheeks flaming, I dip my head. “Bad habits die hard, I guess. But there’s no way I’m getting engaged to Jake. It’s not happening.”
He points in the direction from which I just came. “Then go tell them that.”
“Not now, Ash.”
“When? On your way down the goddamn aisle?”
His caustic tone makes me flinch. “Of course not.”
“Come here, Sadie.” His heated gaze pins me to the spot, and my lungs work extra hard to pull air in. He raises a hand and crooks a finger. “Now.” The undeniable command in his tone has my feet eating up the space between us. He takes me by the chin and whirls us until my back is against the wall.
“What are you doing?” My voice trembles too much in his presence lately and now is no exception.
“I’m debating.”
“Should I be scared to ask about what?”
“Yeah, I think it’s fair to say you should be scared.” He reaches to the right of us and turns the doorknob to one of the guest bathrooms on the main floor. A small push later, and it swings open. “I’m going to make you come right here in your parents’ fucking house, with your new fianc? just a few feet down the hall.”
I clamp my lips shut. Arguing with him is futile, considering how his words just soaked my core. I press my thighs together to keep from dripping down my legs.