Quinn throws her head back and laughs. "Oh, my God. You totally did, you hussy."
My cheeks flame harder. "Shut up."
She turns on her chair to face me, propping her chin with her hands. "Well? I need details. Did you guys finally go all the way? Was he any good?"
Her questions make me groan out loud. Why did I ever tell her that Parker and I hadn't had sex yet?
"Tell me," she demands.
I glare at her. "We didn't get that far, okay?"
"You mean you haven't let him pop your cherry yet?" Quinn shudders right after saying that. "I just heard myself. Please don't ever let me say those words again."
"Whatever, crazy," I laugh, shaking my head. "And to answer your question—no, we haven't had sex yet." I make sure to lower my voice at the word.
"What are you waiting for?" She shoots me an incredulous look. "Ugh. Don't say you're going to be all prude again and make him wait like you did with Liam."
"Of course not," I argue. "And who said I was being prude with Liam?"
"Sawyer, you've been with the guy for two years."
"So? It still doesn't prove anything." Quinn is about to say something so I quickly add, "I swear it wasn't the case at all. It just felt like something was holding me back, you know?"
Her brows pull together in a frown. "Maybe subconsciously you knew that he'd been cheating on you with Peyton?"
I'd like to echo that sentiment, but I was completely in the dark about what had been going on with Liam and Peyton. I had no idea at all. So I doubt that was the case.
Maybe the truth was, my feelings for Liam didn't run as deep as I thought. Maybe that was the reason why I hadn't been inclined to take that next step.
Or maybe, just maybe, deep down I knew he wasn't the right guy for me.
Instead of voicing out my thoughts, I simply shrug my shoulders.
"What about Parker?"
"What about him?"
"Is something holding you back with him, too?"
My lips break out in a grin. "Not at all. If anything, I can't wait to finally do it with him."
"Then what's keeping you from jumping his bones?"
It's not me that's the problem. "I think he wants to wait."
Quinn blinks and stares at me for a long moment that I almost think she didn't hear me. But then she lets out a shriek of laughter. She laughs until she's practically tearing up and clutching her sides.
I scowl. "Are you done?"
Wiping the tears in her eyes, she chokes out. "Parker Holloway is making you wait? Oh my God, this is amazing."
"There's nothing amazing about it at all," I grumble under my breath, Parker's words from last night still fresh in my mind. His rejection still stings.
Things have been tense between us after that. I was no longer in the mood to go back to the party so I just asked him to take me home. He didn't even refuse, let alone convince me to stay a little longer. In fact, he looked a little relieved and more than happy to end the night early. We didn't even talk during the drive home and barely said our goodbyes when I climbed out of his car.
What was supposed to be a perfect night ended up being a big disappointment. All because I wanted us to finally have sex. Any other guy would jump at the chance of sleeping with his girlfriend. But not Parker. Instead of saying yes, he refused and acted distant.
Why does it feel like he's holding back and keeping me at arm's length? Is it because of what happened with Peyton? He's scared that I'll do the same to him? That's never going to happen. I've gone through the same with Liam. Hell, I was right there with him. So how could he possibly think that?
It's not lost on me that I'm making unfounded assumptions. The thing is I've been asking myself these questions since last night. It's mainly the reason why I came over to Quinn's. I wanted to stop obsessing about them.
And you're doing a good job of that, so far.
With a sigh, I shove those thoughts to the back of my head, deciding to talk them out with Parker as soon as I see him. It's too much of an issue for me to simply bottle it up.
I just don't know how to bring it up, especially because I haven't heard from him since he drove me home. What, is he waiting for me to reach out first?
Not for the first time today, frustration wells inside me at the thought.
Growling inwardly, I shove it down and focus my attention back to Quinn. "Enough about me. Anything interesting happened to you and Brayden at the party?"
"Not with me," she says but the slight blush on her face and the way she's not meeting my eyes don't escape me. But before I can grill her, she quickly adds. "But I think Brayden is hooking up with Kyle Hawthorne."
"Kyle Hawthorne?" I repeat, remembering the guy I saw him with at Parker's party. Are they one and the same? "Tell me about it."
Quinn proceeds to give me the details and for a while I forget about Parker. Well, almost.
CHAPTER 31
Sawyer
I slow to a stop when I notice Parker standing at my locker on Monday morning. His eyes are downcast, his hands stuffed into his pockets. And he looks like he'd rather be anywhere else than there.
My lips thin in annoyance. I didn't ask him to do such a thing, so why does he look like he was forced into it? The annoyance spikes when I remember how he practically gave me radio silence over the weekend—no calls, no texts, not even a lame "hey" through any of the social channels we're
