Page 50 of Rules of Engagement
"Maybe I'm more exhausted than I thought, because I'm not saying this right. I'm offering you a bed, Eliza. No strings. You can sleep in the house in my spare bedroom or… sleep on the boat if you like."
"We can sleep on the boat?" Marsali asked, sliding deftly into the conversation with a smile and a raised eyebrow at Eliza.
"Yeah. Of course."
Eliza faltered. "Uh—"
"Don't you normally get a hotel room when events end this late?" Carter asked.
Yeah, she did but Carolina Cove wasn'tthatbig, so she'd figured she'd just drive the ten minutes it would take to get home. "I don't live far from here," she reminded him.
"Come on, Lizzie, it'll be like all of those sleepovers we had as teenagers. Please? Stay!"
Eliza stared at Marsali. "You do mean sleep, though, right? I hate to sound old but it's been a long day."
Marsali laughed, the sound a little high-pitched.
"Of course. We can girl chat until we fall asleep."
Which, given Marsali's energy at the moment, could take a while.
Mac joined them, a bottle of water in his hand rather than the scotch he'd been drinking earlier.
"What's going on here?" he asked.
"The ladies are going to sleep over on the boat so no one has to drive home."
Eliza watched as Mac lifted a thick, inquisitive eyebrow, just like his sister had done seconds ago.
"You're welcome at my place, Eliza. I have more than enough spares," Mac said.
Eliza split her attention between the men, sensing the tension exchanged in the look they shared. She knew Mac took it upon himself to watch out for as he always had Marsali, but after that awkward kiss… "Thanks, but—"
"Boat, boat, boat, boat, boat," Marsali said, hands clasped in a pleading gesture.
Eliza laughed. "And how much have we had to drink tonight?"
"Hey, do you know how rarely I get invited to weddings? People want to hire the matchmaker but rarely will they admit using my excellent skills when things work out."
Having heard Marsali issue the same complaint several times before, Eliza sighed. "Fine. We'll stay on the boat."
"Yes!" Marsali cried, hands shooting up in triumph.
Eliza laughed at her friend's champagne-induced antics, but truthfully, she could use a little girl time. She could always sleep later. Especially with it being an otherwise wedding-free weekend. Besides, she needed a scoop on the latest with Marsali and her secret crush, because Eliza had watched Marsali and Oliver talk and dance the entire evening before he'd taken his leave due to him being scheduled to film first thing in the morning.
"So what's left to do?" Carter asked. "How can we help?"
She looked around to survey the area and shrugged. "I think it's done."
Marsali clapped softly and cheered. "Let's go swimming!"
An hour later, Marsali had finally lost her buzz and now floated in the pool hugging Piper's unicorn blowup.
Her friend had left extra clothing in Mac's spare bedroom for convenience, including bathing suits, and while she and Marsali varied in height, thankfully they wore about the same size.
Carter had changed clothes and checked on Piper, who was spending the night with her college-age aunt at Lincoln's. Lincoln and Amelia had changed out of their wedding finery and left to board the private jet—a gift from one of Amelia's Hollywood contacts—carrying them to Aruba for their honeymoon.
Now the group had made themselves at home in Lincoln's pool, and Eliza had to admit the swim had woken up her tired body and refreshed her.
