Page 26 of Good Directions

Finishing up, she receives a standing ovation from the other two performers. I’m still too shocked to move. To do anything. Buttoned-up, know-it-all Sawyer likes karaoke. And she’s good at it.

Swapping places with the redhead, Sawyer looks like she’s just won a gold medal at the Olympics, a mile-wide smile taking over her face. Fuck me. That smile is doing things to me too. My pulse somehow picks up and stops simultaneously as my stomach ties itself in knots. You’d think she was the first pretty girl I’d ever laid eyes on.

What she is, however, is irresistible. Whatever I thought I saw in her when she first pulled over to ask directions is amplified now. Almost enough to make me forget that she’s borderline annoying. And abrasive. And bossy as fuck.

Despite all that, there’s no staying away.

“You know, if you wanted to get me alone, all you had to do was ask.”

Sawyer jumps, the muscles in her shoulders rippling under the thin straps of her tank top. I bite back a laugh, wondering what it would be like to kiss her there—in the little slope where her shoulder becomes her neck—and if her skin is as sweet as I bet it is. Spinning around, her expression goes from surprised to horrified in no time flat when she sees it’s me.

“Wh-what are you doing here?”

“Needed to get out of the house.” I shrug. “Figured the Giddy Up might provide some good entertainment. And let me tell you, that last performance didn’t disappoint.”

I gesture toward the stage with my head, the redhead stepping up and punching in a number. Sawyer’s eyes grow wider, her horrified look turning to sheer terror.

“You saw that?”

“Sure did. You’re good.”

“What’s it going to take to make you forget that you saw this?” she asks, turning serious, crossing her arms.

Alright, add that to the list. Annoying, abrasive, bossy, and can’t take a compliment.

“I can’t be bribed, Sawyer Brown.”

“Doubt that.”

“I am, however, more than willing to be your duet partner.”

I wink, instantly wishing I could take it back, the double entendre occurring to me way too late. Normally, that’s exactly the kind of comment I’d strive for. On any given day, that one would be solid gold. In this moment, with this woman…I think I might have just slid into creep territory.

“Ugh…” Sawyer rolls her eyes, dismissing my comment easily.

Thank God. Not that I want her thinking I’m some dumb dude bro, but dude bro is better than creep any day of the week.

“Don’t think for one second that I don’t know what you’re trying to do. And it’s not going to work. I’m not going to let you get under my skin.”

“Are you going to let me get under you in other ways?”

Shit. Seriously, I need to sew my mouth shut.

“No.”

Her answer is so emphatic it almost knocks me over. She tries to finish the job, pushing past me as she heads toward the door. Fuck. Now I’ve really pissed her off. That was the last thing I was going for.

“Sawyer, wait!” I holler, spinning on my heel and chasing after her. Thankfully she’s not very fast in those boots of hers, and it only takes me a few steps to cut her off just outside the karaoke room. “I’m sorry. I speak before I think. A lot.”

“I’ve noticed.”

I shrug. There’s no real arguing with it. It’s my fatal flaw. If I were a character in one of those epic fantasy stories, my mouth would absolutely be what got me killed. Probably pretty quickly too.

“I wasn’t trying to be a smart-ass⁠—”

“Seriously?” she cuts me off, crossing her arms again, jutting one hip out to the side.

Another couple comes up the stairs, and I move her out of the way so they can pass. Electricity sizzles in my fingertips as they graze her bare skin, her deep brown eyes lighting up for a split second, letting me know that she feels it too. Might not admit it, but it was there, and it was mutual.