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“Yeah, but it’s fun to check out the eye candy now.” Rae’s gaze slipped over to the small group of men walking up to the tiki bar that was just off to the side of the patio. They all had a similar look to them—white, blond, in their thirties. They looked like they could be brothers. “What about the one in the pink shorts?”
None of her friends were discreet as they all looked over at the four men, but fortunately, the men didn’t notice. Or if they did, they didn’t react. Maybe they were used to being ogled. They were all pretty good-looking.
“He looks douche-y,” Domi said, wrinkling her nose.
“Douche-y doesn’t matter to me right now unless it’s coming out of me.” Rae sighed.
Silence fell around the table, and she blinked as she realized what she had just said. The frozen fruity drinks were hitting her harder than she’d thought… but it was still true.
She cleared her throat and pointed to herself.
“Drunk.”
Iris pointed at herself.
“Horrified.”
They all cracked up.
“Shh, shh, they’re looking at us,” Avery whispered, waving her hand even as she kept giggling. Unfortunately, her whispered request just made them all laugh harder.
They were saved by the food showing up at their table. Thank goodness. Rae apparently needed something in her stomach to soak up the alcohol before she even thought about attempting approaching pink shorts.
Brian
“Take that!” Mitch jumped into the air, spiking the ball down right between Zach and Kincaid, who both dove for it and missed. Mitch, Brian, and Law all jumped in the air, whooping. That had been the final point to win in the closest match they’d had all morning. They’d all agreed that this was going to be the final game, which meant winners took all.
“Dammit!” Zach pounded his fist against the sand and sighed, falling back. Laying on the sand next to him, Kincaid reached out to pat his shoulder consolingly while Nick stood over both of them, shaking his head in amusement.
“We almost had it,” Nick said reassuringly, chuckling. Unlike Zach and Kincaid, he didn’t seem to be taking their loss that hard. They really had been close; it had all come down to the final point.
Still, everyone liked winning better than losing, and Zach and Kincaid could be more competitive than some. Definitely more than Nick, who was taking their loss with a lot more grace than the other two.
“Almost doesn’t count.” Kincaid made a face, pushing himself up and turning to grab Zach’s hand so they could pull each other to their feet in a practiced move. Something simmered in the air between them before they turned away from each other, Zach clearing his throat as he stretched.
“Who’s ready for lunch?” Mitch asked, which pretty much guaranteed that everyone was going to say yes. No one wanted to tell the groom no during his bachelor party after all, even though he was hardly pushy about it.
“Lunch sounds good.” Law ducked under the net, rubbing his hand over his bald head. “I could use a break from the sun.”
“You could use some sunscreen,” Brian countered, holding out the tube. Law eyed it disdainfully, and Brian rolled his eyes. He was pretty sure Law had put some on before coming out, but he seemed to find it a point of pride not to reapply. “When was the last time you were actually in the Philippines, dealing with the sun there?”
Huffing, Law took the bottle and muttered a gruff ‘thanks,’ which made Mitch snicker.
“You’ll be thankful later when you don’t have to have Iris rubbing aloe onto your head,” Brian said.
“Maybe we should get you a hat,” Mitch added, grinning when Law scowled at him.
“Maybe we should get you a hat.”
“Now, now, boys, no fighting, no biting,” Brian said mildly, taking the tube back from Law and passing it over to Mitch.
“Yes, Daddy,” Mitch and Law chorused, causing everyone except Brian to crack up.
Even he couldn’t keep the slight smile from his face, despite not wanting to encourage them. Being called that also made his chest tighten because it was another reminder of Rae. He’d managed to go all morning without thinking about her, and it didn’t make sense that she’d pop into his head over a title that she refused to call him by, but that’s what happened.
Pushing her back out of his thoughts—where she didn’t belong—he gave Law a stern look. The formerly grouchy Dom would have never made that joke a year ago.
“Iris has been a bad influence on you.” Brian shook his head sadly. Truthfully, she’d been a fantastic influence, but he wasn’t going to say that right now.
