Page 70 of That First Night
“I take offense to that, Otis,” she says defensively. “I’m a good fucking time.”
His eyebrows pinch together as he brings the whiskey to his lips. “I bet you are,” he says before taking a sip and looking at her over the brim of the glass.
Peyton interrupts their bickering when she rolls her eyes and looks in my direction and says, “Thank you for dinner, Thomas. We really appreciate it.” A delicate smile is spread across her lips. What I would give to lean over this table right now and kiss those lips and taste the tequila that’s coated on them.
“No need to thank me.” I smile at her. I can feel the smile in my eyes as I look at her. “We all have to eat, right?”
A soft chuckle comes from her. “I guess you’re right.”
“I’m actually glad all three of you are here.” I clear my throat, directing my words to all three girls. “I wanted to ask you ladies something.”
“Oh boy,” Avery says leaning back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest, and assessing my next move.
“Next weekend, we’re taking a trip to my shore house. I know you have the weekends off and I’m not sure what you ladies do on the weekends,” I say, waving my finger between the two of them. “But I want to invite all three of you to come down with us.”
Peyton’s eyes widen and I can tell she’s shocked by my question. Kali and Avery both turn their heads to look at Peyton whose eyes don’t waver from mine. The corner of her lips tip up in a small smile, “I-I,” she starts to say.
“That sounds so fun, Peyton,” Kali answers for her.
She turns her head to look at Kali. “I’m not sure Kali.” She tips her head down. “I’m not sure I can be far from Gigi right now,” she admits.
“Why don’t we bring her with us?” I ask.
“Y-you…” she pauses, and shock is plastered on her face as her eyes find mine again. “I…” She can’t find the words.
“Peyton.” I stop her stuttering thoughts. “I think Gigi would love a trip down to the shore.”
Nobody knows this, but I have been sending Gigi groceries weekly to make sure she is taking in the right nutrition. Not that Peyton hasn’t been taking care of her, but I wanted to help take a little of the burden from her. My driver delivers them to her door, and I have him make sure that she answers the door so he can get an update for me.
After doing some research when I found out about her grandmother being sick, I learned that while there is no diet to cure her type of cancer, there are certain foods that can help a person cope. This includes plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. I even saw some information about smoothies to make. I made sure that Eddy included some of those in the grocery bags printed out. I also had a top loading water dispenser delivered to her house last week to ensure she has safe water and drinks plenty of it.
Her grandmother and friends are the most important people in her life, so in an effort to make sure Peyton knows I care for her, I want to show the ones in her life that I care as well.
“Is there enough room for all of us?” Peyton finally asks.
“Yes,” I say confidently. “The house is right on the ocean on Long Beach Island. There are twelve bedrooms that each have their own balcony and fifteen bathrooms. There is a private beach entrance, and we have a chef coming in for the weekend.”
“Wow,” Peyton says in amazement. “That sounds like a dream.”
“Say yes, Peyton.”
“Despite not wanting to spend any more time with Marcus than necessary,” Avery teases. “I’m fucking in. Providing this one is in.”
“I’m in too.” Kali nods. “I’m free the whole weekend.”
“Fuck yeah,” Marc adds with a punch in the air. “Peyton, it will be so fun.”
After a brief pause, Peyton finally says, “Fine, I’m in.”
With that, this trip just got a whole lot better.
* * *
The last few days have been some of the busiest in the office. I feel like I have barely gotten a chance to see Peyton this week. I’ve been working later than usual every day as meetings kept running longer than planned. Most of the days, I walked in the door after her and James were both in bed. I appreciate all she’s done for me this week.
I want to make a stop at the florist and grab a bouquet of roses for Peyton before we pack and get ready for the shore. My phone rings in my pocket and when I pull it out, I see my mom's name flash on the screen. She must be back from her hiatus in Europe.
“Hey, Mom.”
