Chapter 31: Twenty-Eight — Summary and Study Guide

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

The chapter opens with the group returning home from the game. Everyone moves to the balcony for drinks, and Sage brings out snacks. When she starts collecting empty bottles, Aiden stops her and takes over, telling her to relax. With no seats available, Owen offers his chair, but Elias commands Sage to sit on his lap instead. She obeys, and Elias holds her close, drawing patterns on her thigh. Lulled by his touch and the conversation, Sage falls asleep on him.

When she wakes, she is mortified to realize she has been drooling and that Elias never woke her. He admits he could not get up anyway because she gave him a hard-on. The team begins to leave, and a drunk Owen corners Sage in the kitchen. He asks if she hates him, claims he wants to grow together, and begs her to dance for him one last time. Elias intervenes, telling Owen to go home. Aiden and Summer leave, with Summer giving Sage a pointed look that suggests she is giving them privacy.

Alone with Elias, Sage tries to talk, but Elias confronts her. He reveals he learned in the locker room before the game that Owen is her ex-boyfriend of years. He is hurt that she did not tell him, and he is clearly jealous. Sage explains that Owen knows only the old version of her and that their relationship was comfortable but meaningless. When she realizes Elias is jealous, she teases him, and he kisses her.

The kiss escalates quickly. They fall onto the couch, and Sage grinds against Elias's thigh until she orgasms. Elias carries her to bed, tucks her in, and says he will sleep on the couch. As he leaves, he tells her,