Sinner (Shelter Harbor #1)(33)

“Eva!”

The door slams shut behind her, and I swear into the stillness of my apartment.

Fuck.





Chapter Fifteen





Evangeline




My head’s swimming.

My pulse pounds in my chest, my vision swims, and chills tease up my back. And it’s not the alcohol, because it’s been a whole day since I was up in Rowan’s apartment.

I had all that last night, after fleeing his place like a complete psycho, and running — running all the way to his father’s church, where I promptly drank a quarter of a pot of stale, cold coffee that was sitting in the pot while I made hymnal copies, because I’d remembered reading somewhere that coffee made you not drunk anymore.

I know now that’s a lie. It doesn’t make you sober, drinking coffee just makes you wired while still drunk.

Okay, so I wasn’t drunk, but I was feeling something I’d never felt from the one beer I had before, or the plum wine I’d drank at dinner with my host family in Korea.

After the church, I’d run all the way home. I’d made up some excuse about feeling tired and sick as I’d brushed past my parents, and headed to bed.

Bed, where I’d promptly gone over the events of the night on repeat for the next eight hours since I couldn’t sleep after the coffee.

I can’t believe I did that.

I can’t believe I did that.

I’ve said it about a million times since leaving his apartment, but it’s still rattling around in my head. Ugh. I mean what did I think was going to happen with me going over to that man’s place like that?

And drinking?

Well, the drinking was to get up the courage to ask him questions.

It’s a lame excuse, and I know it. I know deep down, going over there and everything that happened after I stepped through the door is everything I wanted.

And it’s a terrible thought, because it’s true.

I can try and lie to myself on the outside, but deep down, I know the truth. Deep down, I know damn well that I wanted Rowan to kiss me.

Lord what is happening to me?

Chastity’s right. Maybe something is wrong with me since I got back. Maybe I caught something — a brain fungus or something that’s making me do insane things.

Something that’s making me forget who I am and who I’m supposed to be.

But at the current moment, I have to push those thoughts aside. Because at the moment, I’m about to step through the front door of Jacob and Irene Hammond’s house to have dinner.

All of us.

My entire family, Chastity, his entire family.

And him.

I’ve got wicked, sinful, and confusing thoughts and the memory of that kiss still burning through my head, and I’m about to sit down for a dinner with him and everyone we know.

Wonderful.

I take a shaky breath as my father raises a hand to knock.

“Eva?”

I glance over at my mom.

“The casserole?”

“Right, sorry.” I turn and skip down the porch steps back to the car to get the food she insisted on making and bringing.

“It’s the least we can do, they’re putting us up.”

I turn and head back to the door, hanging back as my father knocks.

The door swings open.

“Hi!”

She’s gorgeous, and young — my age, maybe. But the most immediate thing I notice is that she looks exactly like Rowan.

“Hi, Sierra,” she says warmly, extending a hand. “Rowan and Ivy’s sister. Well, one of them.”

“Pleasure.” My father stiffly takes her hand. My mother only nods and smiles her weird, pinched smile at her.

“Come on in!”

We crowd through the doorway, and she spots the Pyrex dish in my hand. “Oh, I can grab that for you.”

“Hi, Eva.”

She smiles as I pass her the dish. “Sierra, nice to meet you!”

She smiles warmly again as she looks over her shoulder. “Dad! They’re here!”

Jacob and Irene step from the kitchen, both of them beaming and covered in flour, looking adorable.

“Hey, there they are!” Jacob grins. “Irene’s got me helping with the quiche. I’m mostly just making a mess though.” He chuckles. “Here, come on in.”

The only time we’ve ever had guests at my parents’ house is Bible study. Well, and my mother’s very short-lived stint as a makeup salesperson before my father put a stop to that.

“Can I get you guys a drink?”

I can see my father bristle at Sierra’s question. “No, thank you.”

“No,” Chastity says quickly, her voice sharp.

Sierra nods. “Okay, cool.”

“Hey Eva!”

Ivy, Rowan’s blonde sister from our last dinner here, pokes her head around the corner and smiles when she sees us. “You met another Hammond, I see.”