Free Sea Breeze 01 - Breathe by Abbi Glines

and sank down onto the large leather chair that sat in the corner of my room. “You might be a rock star with the world bowing at your feet, but our mother doesn’t care. She won’t shut up for you.”
    He was right. But I could throw out enough threats to keep her quiet for short spans of time. “Never underestimate my power,” I replied, grinning. I was glad he was here. Jason was the only friend I had. If it hadn’t been for him keeping me levelheaded, I’d probably be one of those teen rock stars strung out on crack. Jason never let me forget who I was.
    “Getting to your head, big brother. Tone it down, would ya? Me and that big ego of yours can’t fit in this room at the same time.”
    I laughed and glanced back out the window just in time to see Marcus approach Sadie. He made her laugh. It bugged me. Jerking my gaze back toward my brother, I pushed all thoughts of Sadie away. I needed something else to focus on. “Hey, you want to have a party?” I asked Jason.
    “Always,” he replied.
    SADIE
    Three days had passed since my trip to the grocery store with Jax. I hated that I caught myself searching for glimpses of him. Somewhere, deep down, I really thought he would seek me out again. However, after three days of not laying eyes on him, I knew our night at the grocery store apparently meant much more to me than him. Yes, he’d taken me shopping and then home, but only because of his promise to Marcus. Sure, he’d held my hand for a few minutes, but who was I kidding? Jax Stone probably held hands with a different girl every day. I needed to find the humor in my stupidity for assuming it meant more to him, or I would curl up in a ball and cry. He had said I fascinated him, but he really should have clarified to me that I was just the fascination of the day. I hated to think badly of him for not seeking me out again, because I couldn’t forget the way he’d treated the little girl, and I knew he wasn’t a shallow teen idol. After all, to Jax Stone I was just another girl.
    He hadn’t promised his undying love to me, or even told me he would see me again. We’d said our good-byes at my house with no promises. Nothing he’d said told me he would seek me out again. Sure, he’d said he liked spending time with me, but it didn’t appear as if he was going to make good on his words. Thinking about it made me crazy. I needed to focus on other things. I’d turned down Marcus’s invitation to go boating with him and his friends on Sunday. I was skipping out on time with my friend because I chose to sulk over Jax. I needed to move on and let it go. My night with Jax would be a really good memory I’d never forget, just like it was for the little girl.
    When I arrived at the Stone mansion, Ms. Mary met me at the door. “Sadie, we’re entertaining tonight. Master Jax is having some friends over, and there is gonna be dancing and an open bar as well as lots of food! Now, I need all my younger employees to serve all night. We got some special uniforms for this. Marcus will be here shortly with William, and they are bringing a few friends who will also be helpin’ out. Don’t worry about changing just yet.”
    She turned and grabbed a large bucket of something very unappetizing. “Have you ever peeled and deveined shrimp before?” Words failed me, and apparently my face showed my horror because she laughed out loud. “Of course not. You’re a Tennessee gal. Come here and I’ll teach you how. We have ourselves twenty pounds of fresh shrimp we need to peel and devein for different appetizers.”
    I nodded and prayed I would have the stomach of steel I knew I would need for this horrible task. Ms. Mary directed me to a wash sink, pulled out an empty bucket, and placed it inside. She brought over a large stainless steel bowl and put it on the other side of the sink.
    “Here.” She handed me a shrimp, which I did not like to see or touch battered and fried, much less uncooked. “First you peel ’em, just