I found my phone–it'd been tucked in between my boobs the night before–and was surprised to see Gabby hadn't texted me. Not wanting to risk waking West, I inched out of the guestroom and down the stairs to the front door. My other clothes were still in the pool house but there was no way I was going all the way back there to get them.
The house looked surprisingly clean considering how many people had been partying just a few hours ago. The staff must've already cleaned up because I remembered seeing cups, bottles, and various other pieces of trash when we came through last night.
As I walked through the foyer to make my escape, a door to the right opened and a disheveled Everett appeared in the doorway. His styled blonde hair was tousled and his shirt was unbuttoned and untucked from his pants.
"Hey." He rubbed his eyes and straightened his shirt, which looked to be missing a few buttons. "Do you need a ride?"
"You're not...still drunk, are you?"
"Naw, I only had a few beers. Just didn't get much sleep last night, ya know." He winked and eased the door shut behind him, careful to not wake up whoever was in the room he'd emerged from. "From the looks of it, I'd say you didn't either."
I shrugged. "I slept okay. A ride would be great, but you don't have to drive me all the way home. I live on the south side."
"It's not a problem Ashtyn," he said as he dug in his pocket for his keys and led me to his Jeep.
I didn't let strangers know where I lived, but I made an exception considering I was running on no money and didn't have any other options besides walking. I sent Gabby a text to let her know I was leaving with Everett, and that he drove a red Jeep Wrangler. I also snapped a picture of his license plate and sent it with the message.
"Do you treat all your past hookups like this?" Everett smirked as we hopped in the Jeep.
"Nope," I said, popping the p. "Just you."
"I didn't mean to make things uncomfortable earlier," he said, his tone turning serious.
"Is that why you announced to everyone that we fucked before? Most of the people at that party have screwed someone else at that party. I didn't see the point."
"I was surprised to see you, is all. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."
"It's fine Everett. Really, don't worry about it."
He continued to drive through town, a silence blanketing us. "Would a coffee make you less mad at me?"
"It's a good possibility," I smiled. Coffee was the way to my heart.
We stopped at a café and grabbed lattes before heading to my house. Everett continued to apologize for mentioning our hookup in front of everyone, and I continued to tell him it wasn't a big deal. I truly didn't care who knew about it, but it was awkward to see him again in front of West. And to find out they were friends. And that Everett worked for West's dad at the gym.
“So, you and West, huh?” Everett forced a smile.
“Does it matter? We aren’t anything, Everett.”
“I was just gonna say that he’s a good guy. If you’re seeing him or whatever, I’m happy for you.”
“Thanks, but I’m not seeing anyone.” I was being a bitch, but my brain was a clusterfuck disaster and I didn’t have time to discuss my current situation with a guy I hooked up with one time.
“Does he know that? Because from what I could tell at the party, you’re his, Ashtyn.”
His.Hilarious.
West didn’t want me in that way–although he did make me say that when he was balls deep a few hours ago. He might be possessive of his toys, but it wasn’t because he wantedmespecifically. He just didn’t like to share.
Nothing like blurring that line by begging him to rail the hell out of me last night.
“Thanks for the ride, Everett. Maybe I’ll text you so you can have my real number. But not for anything other than to talk,” I said as I hopped down from his Jeep.
“Of course. If you need anything at all, just give me a ring,” he smiled before taking off.
Once he was gone, I realized I hadn't been home since I caught Mom and Pete together and they propositioned me to sell my body. The memory made my stomach churn, however seeing my driveway empty–aside from my piece of shit Explorer–gave me a little hope. I could grab my books and head to the coffee shop for the day. I needed to catch up on my schoolwork.
Since no one was home, I decided to take a quick shower before packing up and going to the coffee shop in town. I still hadn't heard from Gabby and it worried me a little bit. I didn't even know what she ended up doing at the party. The last I saw, she and Cade were slow dancing together, looking very friendly and cozy. I pulled my phone out and checked the time. It was almost eight o'clock. If she didn't respond by nine, I'd start psycho calling her.