Page 62 of The Choices I've Made
I was in awe of her confidence, her swagger. She rose with no hesitation, the sexy green halter dress making her stand out like some exotic creature out in the wild. Her hair, pulled into a loose side braid, blew in the breeze, tossing tiny pieces of blonde hair around her face. The messy look somehow only enhanced her beauty. No doubt she was the envy of every girl in a ten-mile radius.
I listened in as she approached the men. Their faces lit up the second she appeared, like they’d suddenly stumbled upon an angel. She leaned over, annoying the crap out of me as she flaunted her assets—one in particular. The men stared up at her in wonder, laughing, as she casually asked them where they were from. Her North Carolina drawl, something she usually watered down since moving to Florida, was out in plain sight.
“New Jersey,” one replied. “Out for a bachelors’ weekend.”
“Oh, and which of you handsome gentlemen is getting married?”
The three of them pointed to the fourth, a gangly sort of guy who reminded me of a kid I had gone to school with. He was the nicest guy in the world, but when it came to anything outside of a textbook, he was horribly awkward. The same could be said for the groom-to-be. He smiled up at her with a sheepish sort of grin, but held back when his friends were all but drooling by now.
“Sounds like you are in for some fun. Can we join you? Or vice versa?” she asked, adding a little Southern twang for effect.
It worked because, instantly, the three single guys were grabbing chairs and making room for us.
“Oh Lord, here we go,” I muttered to myself as she waved me over.
Following directions, I grabbed my beer and did my best sashay toward the other side of the patio. Not nearly making the impression my sister had, I still managed to get a few grins.
Not bad for a girl seriously out of practice with the art of flirting. And, in all honesty, I’d never really mastered the skill anyhow.
My sister, on the other hand? Total pro.
It was a wonder we were related.
I took a seat between two of the guys—the sexy surfer and his preppy-looking friend. My sister was already cozying up to the self-proclaimed leader of the pack.
“Jesse,” he said, holding out his hand to mine.
I politely took it, ignoring the territorial glances from my sister.
“You two local?” he asked.
The sexy surfer known as Gabe flagged down the waiter. I tried to hide my face as a guy I knew from high school sauntered over. Hitting on tourists was an offense likely to land me in the local gossip mill.
And as the butt of about a hundred different jokes.
Thankfully, Millie had this situation handled and took charge. “Hey, Billy. These are our friends from out of state. Think you could do us a favor and start a tab?”
Billy gave us a wry look, shaking his head with a smirk across his face. My sister wasn’t nearly as convincing as she believed.
“Sure thing, Millie. Good to see you,” he said, starting with one end of the table and working his way down.
“You, too,” she replied.
I ordered another beer as a cool breeze worked its way through the open patio. At anytime of the year, this place was packed. Even in the dead of summer when the air felt so heavy you could scoop it, tourists and locals alike would flood this place for the view alone.
It helped that they had amazing food, too.
“So, are you two twins?” Gabe asked, his eyes set on me.
“No,” I replied, “but I’ll take that as a compliment. I’m the oldest, by a few years.”
“Must be good genes because I can barely tell you two apart.”
“Well then, I guess we’ll just have to stick around, so you can stare a bit longer.”
I nearly choked on my beer bottle. Looking up at my baby sister, I gave her a hard stare.
She smiled innocently and mouthed the words,Loosen up.
