“I’ll be there at noon. You wanna give me your room number so I can pick you up properly?” Griffin asks.
“Is this a date?” I counter.
“It’s whatever you want it to be, Peyton.” His reply is soft, almost as if he’s uncertain.
“That’s not what I asked you, Griffin.”
“I want it to be,” he admits.
I’m smiling so big I can feel my cheeks stretch. “We’ll meet you in the lobby.”
He chuckles. “I can live with that. I’ll see you soon, Peyton.”
“See you soon.”
“Oh, and Peyton,” he adds quickly, which has me pulling the phone back to my ear.
“Yeah?”
“This is most definitely a date.” With that, the line goes dead.
“You’re blushing,” Karina states the obvious. I can feel the heat in my cheeks.
“He says it’s a date. He wants us to come to his place and swim. The guys will be there.”
“See.” Karina sits up and points at me. “I told you. There is something there. It’s been fun to watch.”
“We spent one day with him and his friends.”
“One day, the entire day, and the connection was instant. We can all see it. Hell, even Oliver sees it.”
“He’s just being a good wingman.” I’m not sure if I’m trying to convince her or myself.
“Come on, Peyton. You know better,” she scolds.
“Fine. I’ll admit there’s a connection, but that’s all it is. He lives here. I live in Tennessee. It could never work.”
“Never say never, my friend.” She tosses off the covers and climbs out of bed. “I’m going to run to my room, check in with the parental units, and shower. I’ll be back here by noon so that we can go to the lobby together.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“Aren’t you glad we went shopping for those new bathing suits you said we didn’t need for this trip?” she asks as she makes her way to the door.
“Thank you for insisting I purchase five new pieces of swimwear,” I reply sarcastically.
“You’re welcome,” she singsongs her way out the door.
Pulling myself out of bed, I pick out my clothes for the day, trying hard not to think about Griffin as I do, and head to the shower.
Thirty minutes later, I’m walking into the living area of the suite to find my sister on the couch, holding her e-reader. “Good morning,” I say, taking a seat next to her.
“Hey, where’s Karina?”
“She left to shower and get ready. We met a few people yesterday, and we’re going to spend the day by the pool with them.”
“People? Are any of them hot?” she asks.
“They all are,” I admit.
“Which one has your eye?”
“Griffin.” I sigh.
“Aw, I like you like this,” she says. “I’ve never seen you let yourself fall. You have stars in your eyes, little sister,” she teases.
“Stop it.” I laugh. “I do not have stars in my eyes. He’s nice and definitely easy on the eyes. He doesn’t know me as a Monroe. He just knows me as Peyton. I don’t get that back home.”
Parker nods. “Yeah, I get that. So, what are your plans today?” she asks.
“Griffin and his friends invited us to hang out at his place at the pool.”
“Be careful, Peyton. You don’t know this guy.”
“I know. My gut tells me that I can trust him.”
“Can you get me an address of where you’re going to be?” she asks. “I’m not trying to be all over-the-top protective big sister, but you’re young and beautiful, and it’s spring break, and I’ve heard horror stories.”
“No, I get it. Let me text him and ask for his address.” Reaching for my phone that I set on the couch cushion beside me, I fire off a text.
Me: Hey, sorry to ask this, but can you send me your address? Or the address of where we’re going to be today?
Griffin: You have nothing to be sorry for. That’s smart on your part.
Me: Well, that all goes to Parker.
Griffin: Middle sister, right?
Me: So he listens.
Griffin: It’s hard not to when it’s you who’s speaking.
His text is followed by another with a picture of his license, and then his actual address that matches his license typed out.
I turn my phone to show it to Parker, and she laughs. “Okay, I admit he’s charming,” she says as my phone alerts me to another message. She snatches my phone and reads it, and nods her approval. She hands it back to me, wearing a smirk.
Griffin: If you’d let me come to your room to pick you up, I could meet her.
“He can come up here,” Parker tells me.
“I didn’t want to risk Holden being here.”
“He’s at training camp all day.”
“I’ll stay here with you. I can cancel.”
“Not a chance. Autumn and I are planning to do some shopping and hit the beach for a little bit of sun.”
“Are you sure?” I ask just as my phone rings. I turn it so she can see that it’s Griffin calling.