the bar. Keith had walked up to her and asked her to dance.
She said she was attracted to him right away and accepted. They had been together ever since.
I was looking at the clock on my nightstand as she sat there telling her story. I was anxious to meet up with Jesse—the feelings he had stirred in me earlier had me missing him and made me anxious to have more experiences like that. Finally, I couldn’t stand there and fidget any longer.
“OK, ladies, we all look fabulous. Let’s go; it’s five forty-five,” I said, grabbing my purse. This time I hooked Shelly’s arm as we headed up the stairs and walked around the deck to the dining room. When we opened the door, all three of the guys were waiting there. Jesse’s and Keith’s backs were to the door. Scott looked up, and his mouth fell open, which made Keith and Jesse turn around to see what he was gawking at. The lights went on in Jesse’s eyes, and his dimpled smile appeared.
“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Jesse said, walking toward me, his eyes sparkling in the light. He walked right past Shelly and Liza like they didn’t exist and pulled me into his chest for a big hug.
“I’ve missed you,” he whispered.
“I missed you too,” I confessed.
Here we go again, and I haven’t even had any wine yet
. But it was the truth.
“Bailey, you take my breath away,” he said, spinning me around.
“Hi,” I said, smiling at him.
“Let’s get a table,” he said, taking my hand to lead me into the room. John was already at a long table overlooking the ocean. Wetook our seats and had drinks while we waited for our dinner, laughing at Scott’s antics. He had us all rolling in our chairs with his comedy. Shelly, of course, was all over him, hanging on his every word. I had never seen her so totally enraptured by a guy before; this was a new experience. They were cute, smiling at each other as Scott entertained practically everyone in the room. He was cute and quirky and charming. I could see people sitting at tables around us chuckling at him and his animated gestures. He was quite endearing.
I realized I really enjoyed hanging out with these guys. They all seemed to get along extremely well, teasing each other back and forth, nobody taking offense as they teased each other. It was obvious they all cared for one another.
Dinner, of course, was delicious. We joked as we ate, getting to know each other better. John laughed along with us, giving me this smile that reached his eyes every time I looked his way. I had caught him watching Jesse and me a lot the last couple days. I wondered if Jesse confided in him. Somehow I got the feeling he and Jesse were close; they seemed to have conversations without ever saying a word to one another. One would look at the other and nod, and they’d go back to whatever they were doing.
Suddenly John stood up, looking at his watch. “Time to go,” he said, giving the guys the signal like he was their boss. It was weird; that was the third time he’d done that.
“Meet me in the Green Room at eight o’clock, OK?” Jesse asked, kissing my cheek. I was confused, not understanding why he was asking me to meet him. “Please, Bailey, trust me,” he said, kissing my hand.
“But where are you going?” I asked as I watched all four of them get up from the table. I was beginning to wonder what the hell was going on with these guys—they were surrounded by mystery.
“Just promise me you’ll come. Remember, the Green Room at eight o’clock. I can’t tell you; it’s a surprise,” Jesse said.
“OK,” I said. He walked over to stand beside John and Keith.
Scott planted a big kiss on Shelly’s lips and whispered something in her ear. She nodded as he walked over to join the guys.
That was the second time today they’d left us. I was confused but smiled at Jesse as he turned and blew me a kiss. Scott clapped his hands together, raising his arms up. “Let’s do this,” he said loudly, walking
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