“Thatta boy,” Patel said to Sam, reaching for the bottle to pour him more.
“So, Sam,” Delilah purred, leaning toward him with her elbows on her knees and her face propped on her hands, “it’s been so long since I last saw you. You’re like a big, juicy piece of man now. Tell me all about this girlfriend of yours.” Sam looked at me in confusion, but I had no idea where she was going with this.
“No girlfriend,” he said, tipping back more of his drink.
“That’s hard to believe,” Delilah went on. “You know,” she said, looking at Patel and Mason, “Sam can be a real heartbreaker. He can play very hard to get.” I gave her a warning look, but she just smiled and shook her head slightly. “He once flat-out refused to kiss Percy in a game of truth or dare.” Thank god.
“That’s harsh, man,” Patel said while Mason pulled me back against his chest.
“Poor baby.” He wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed his lips to the side of my neck. “I’ll make it up to you tonight.” I automatically looked to Sam, who was staring at us with a clenched jaw and dark eyes. He was bouncing his knee.
“Anyone want a snack?” I jumped off Mason’s lap and headed to the kitchen.
“I’ll help,” Sam offered and followed me while Patel and Mason reminisced over a particularly memorable childhood game of seven minutes in heaven.
I was on my tiptoes reaching for a serving bowl when Sam came up behind me.
“I can get that,” he said, grazing his fingers over mine.
“You smell nice,” he whispered as he brought the bowl down to the counter. A chill ran through me at the feel of his breath on my ear, and I shivered.
“The wonders of soap,” I replied. “I almost didn’t recognize you in this snazzy ensemble.”
“Snazzy?” His eyes glinted.
“Very snazzy.” I grinned.
“You two coming back with the snacks already?” Delilah hollered from the couch. I dumped a bag of chips into the bowl and placed it on the coffee table, perching on the arm of Mason’s chair. He and Patel had moved on to an impassioned hockey-related argument.
“Don’t mind them,” Delilah told Sam. “They’re slightly obsessed. But we’ve got better things to discuss, like our dear Persephone.” She poked him on the leg. “I hear that you are her very favorite reader. She won’t shut up about how great your feedback is.”
Sam’s face cracked into a wide grin. “Is that so?” he said, looking at me.
I rolled my eyes. “His ego is healthy enough as it is, D.”
“I disagree,” said Sam. “Tell me more about how smart I am, Delilah.”
“I’d find you a lot more intelligent if you told her to up the sex and romance content,” she said, laughing.
“What are you all giggling about?” Mason piped up.
“Percy’s stories. What do you think of them?” Sam asked, and my stomach dropped. I still hadn’t shown Mason my writing.
“She’s never let me read one,” he said, eyes narrowing at Sam.
“No? She’s incredibly talented,” Sam told him, eyes sparkling. “She asks me for feedback on them all the time, but she really doesn’t need it. She’s a natural writer.”
“Is she?”
Sam went on like he hadn’t heard him. “You should read ‘Young Blood.’ She wrote it a couple of years ago, but it’s still my favorite. God, remember how late we’d stay up talking about character names, Percy?”
Sam was marking his territory, and all I could do was murmur in agreement.
“I didn’t realize how close you two were,” Mason said, eyeing me now. “It’s so nice Percy has a friend up here to keep her company.”
He pulled me down onto his lap, turning me at the same time, so that I was straddling him.
“What are you doing?” I whispered.
“You don’t mind, do you, guys?” He tilted his head to look around me. “I haven’t seen my girl in ages.” He took my face in his hands and brought my mouth down to his, kissing me sloppily. When he let me come up for air, Sam was already halfway to the door.
“I should head out if I want to run tomorrow,” he said, not looking at me. And then he was gone.
Sam kept his distance for the the rest of the weekend, and I was itchy for everyone to leave so I could see him. The summer was already half gone, and I was resentful that Mason’s behavior meant I lost time with Sam. He had been particularly handsy the entire visit, like he was trying to lay claim to my body. It made me anxious. Even his goodbye kiss was a groping, tongue-filled affair.