Page 30 of Griffin

“I can’t see them. What are they like?”

“Mmm, one is a little older.” Shelby makes a sound of approval, hoisting me up from my seat. “The other is pretty handsome. You can have him.”

“Wait!” I laugh, knocking back my drink before allowing her to cart me across the bar.

I’m aware of the eyes on us, especially from the locals. Of course, it isn’t like we do this regularly, but if tourists are in town and they’re hot, it makes sense to let them scratch any itch we have.

I’m twenty-one; if I can’t do it now, when can I?

My mind drifts to Shelby’s mom, Pauline, who is in her forties and living her best life. She’s also gorgeous, an older version of Shelby, and the two are often mistaken for sisters.

I’ve tried unsuccessfully to matchmake Pauline with my dad, but he wasn’t interested.

He never is.

Poor dad. He deserves to meet someone.

The two men watch us approach them, their eyes drinking us in.

“Hey, boys,” Shelby says breezily. “Can we join you?”

“Sure you can,” the one to my left says, his eyes running over my body appreciatively. “I’m Guy, and that’s Layton.”

I smile at them both before returning my attention to Guy, pleased to see he’s handsome, a little older than me, but he’s well built and dresses well.

Yum.

He’s not as hot as Griffin, though.

“I’m Ivy.” I bump my hip against his leg, so he shifts along the booth, and Shelby does the same across from me. “And this is Shelby.”

Nervous excitement runs through my veins as Guy smiles at me, revealing pure white teeth,

Are they whitened?

“So, where are you from?” Shelby asks.

The two guys exchange a look.

“How do you know we’re not from here?” Layton laughs, cocking his head at Shelby.

I snort with laughter and Guy looks puzzled.

“Because everyone here knows everyone. You’re not from here.” I cross my arms and lean back into the seat as Layton jumps up.

“I’ll get you ladies a drink; what would you like?”

Shelby snorts, rising to her feet as Layton openly checks her out.

“I’ll come with you. I like to make sure my drink is given to me the way the bartender intended.”

Layton roars with laughter, pressing his fingers into his chest.

“Are you insinuating that I’m gonna spike your drink?”

Shelby meets my eye before shrugging.

“I don’t know, so I err on the side of caution. We’ll be right back.” Shelby winks at me before the two of them make their way to the bar, clearly in an animated conversation.

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