Daisy wraps her arm over my shoulder, soaking the side of my T-shirt, but I don’t push her away. “There’s my girl.”
CHAPTER 12
JJ WOODFORD
After getting dressed in dry clothes, Finn takes us toThe Pearl and Oyster Baralong the seafront. Ivy and Daisy are trailing behind us, speaking in hushed tones. I’ve resisted the urge to glance over my shoulder a thousand times.
Finn steps closer to me and places an arm over my shoulder. “Don’t worry, bud,” he says lightly. “I’ve got you and Daisy.”
Then he drops his eye into a wink. A sleazy one at that.
“What do you mean?”
He scoffs. “What do you mean, ‘what do you mean?’ I’ve seen the way she looks at you, man. She wants you badly. So I’m going to do my hardest to wingman the hell out of you.”
“I barely know the girl,” I mumble under my breath.
Finn shrugs. “Don’t need to know someone to get laid.”
My organs churn a little uncomfortably, and I plummet into flashbacks of that night with his sister. We sat down for hours, getting to know one another, sharing parts of our lives, teasing one another.
I might not haveknown herknown her,but I felt like I did. And the thought of sleeping with someone before trying to know them at least a tiny bit leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
Our night together was fun because of the time we spent endlessly talking. It built the tension, it made me feel like I had known her for years. It was easy to laugh and fall into conversation with her.
And this thing with Daisy feels different.Wrong different.
We stop outside the bar and grab a table. The weather is blistering today, but with the gentle breeze in the air from the nearby storm, it’s about to cool down significantly.
I slide into one of the seats first, Daisy diving over to sit beside me. Finn taps Ivy and pulls her away, dipping his head towards her ear so he can whisper something.
Then he clears his throat. “We’ll go grab the drinks,” he says as Ivy nods, glancing away. “What do you want?”
“I’ll have a Stella, please,” I pipe up.
Daisy’s eyes flash my way. “Me too.”
“Alright.” Finn claps his hands together.
I stare at the back of their heads as they walk into the building. Ivy has barely looked at me today, and it’s driving me insane.
“So.” Daisy clamps a hand on my arm. I blink at the action, focusing on her dark red nails. “I’ve been wondering why you haven’t texted me back since the party?”
My mouth falls open a little as Daisy flutters her long lashes and waits for me to respond. “Sorry,” I exhale after a few moments. “I’ve barely been on my phone since I’ve been here. Just settling in with Finn. I didn’t mean to ignore you.”
Her shoulders relax a couple of inches, and I despise myself for lying, but I don’t want to upset her.
“Oh.” She swipes her long brunette hair over her shoulder. “That’s okay. I was just wondering if you wanted to meet up sometime. Have dinner or something. Nothing too crazy, would be nice to get to know you a little better.”
Heat spikes my neck, and I blame the beaming sun. I stare back into her hopeful eyes, and I take a slow breath. “Yeah,” I rasp awkwardly.
Daisy’s face explodes with happiness.
“Okay, so I was thinking we could go to this really nice restaurant not too far from here,” she begins. “If you like fish, they have?—”
As she rambles on, I glance past her head. My eyes settle on Finn and Ivy at the bar. Our drinks are being made and placed onto the counter. Ivy shoves her hand into the back pocket of her denim shorts and turns to face our table.
For a moment, our eyes meet, and she blinks before looking away quickly. Daisy presses a hand to my forearm and shakes me.
