She took a long swallow of her margarita, then refilled her glass. “Mmmm. It’s good. Really good. He has great hands. A very talented tongue. And one hell of an awesome cock. His stamina is out of this world. I’m not sure I’m going to know what to do with myself when we’re not together anymore. I was in a sexual drought for so long it’s like I can’t get enough now. I’ve easily fallen into this pattern of sharing the beach house with him, sleeping with him, f**king him.”
Haley rested her chin in her hands and blinked, a dreamy expression on her face. “Sounds nice.”
“Why does it have to end?” Shawnelle asked.
Elizabeth shrugged and lifted her glass. “ ’Cuz. It does. We’re just playing house, you know? It’s not serious.”
“It isn’t? Who says?”
“We do. I do. I don’t know. It just isn’t.”
“It’s serious for you, doll, isn’t it? And it has been for years.”
Elizabeth laughed and took a drink. “Well, yeah, but he doesn’t know that. And he never will.”
Haley wrinkled her nose and lifted her empty glass. Elizabeth tried to focus on filling it, even though there seemed to be two glasses in front of her.
It was entirely possible she was drunk.
“I think you should tell him how you feel about him,” Haley said.
“Oh, no. That would be bad. If I told him how I felt, he’d have power over me. I can’t give him the power.”
“Bullshit.” Shawnelle said, pointing her finger at Elizabeth. “See, this is the problem with men and women and relationshits. Shit. Relasinsips. Dammit. Relationships. There, I got it. Lies and games and positioning. You should try honesty. Communication.” She tilted her head at Haley. “Look how well communication worked for Haley. She’s having great sex now.”
“I’m already having great sex.”
Shawnelle snorted. “You know what I mean, missy. Don’t try to double-talk me. I’m a lawyer.”
“Yeah, but you’re a drunk lawyer.”
“True that.” Shawnelle emptied her glass and refilled it.
Elizabeth signaled the waitress for another pitcher, then pulled out her phone to call Gavin. He answered on the first ring.
“Hey. Having fun?”
“Yup. Really drunk here though. Think you can swing by Bernards and pick up three toasted women and give us all a ride home?”
He laughed. “On my way. Don’t drive.”
She saluted the phone. “Yes, sir.”
“I’m serious. I’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”
“Thanks, Gavin. Love you.”
She closed the phone and lifted her gaze to Shawnelle and Haley. “I called Gavin. He’s going to give us all a ride home. We’re drunk, you know.”
Haley’s eyes widened. “We are?”
Elizabeth nodded. “We totally are.”
Haley covered her mouth with her hands. “That’s so funny.”
“Hey, drunk girl,” Shawnelle said, patting Elizabeth’s hand.
“What?”
“You just told Gavin you loved him on the phone.”
She frowned. “Did not.”
“Yup. You did. I heard you,” Haley said.
“I did?”
Shawnelle nodded. “You so did.”
Elizabeth snorted. “That’s f**king hysterical. I’ll bet he passed out from shock. Good thing the waitress is bringing another pitcher. Our ride might be delayed.”
“You’re not worried?” Haley asked.
“About what?”
“About telling Gavin you loved him.”
She waved her hand. “Honey, I’m drunk. Anything you say when you’re drunk is bullshit and doesn’t mean anything. He won’t think anything of it.”
Shawnelle gave her a sideways look. “Uh-huh.”
Elizabeth grinned when the waitress came, so damn glad she was drunk and she would forget what she said to Gavin. “Oh, look, ladies, it’s margaritas!”
ELEVEN
DRUNK WAS AN UNDERSTATEMENT. GAVIN WAS CERTAIN the manager of Bernards was going to kiss him when he walked out with Elizabeth, Shawnelle, and Haley.
In fact, he heard their voices as soon as he walked in the front door. They were laughing. Loud. They were doing everything in high-pitched voices. Talking. Yelling. Squealing. Cussing.
He wondered if he and his friends were that obnoxious when they were drunk.
Probably.
Elizabeth squealed and flung her arms around him when she saw him, then pressed kisses all over his face.
Definitely drunk. Which probably accounted for the “love you” she’d said on the phone. Drunken declarations of love never counted, so he’d brushed it off as meaningless.
He extricated what seemed to be eight arms from him, poured the women into his car, buckled them in, and drove Shawnelle and Haley home first. He’d already given Tommy and Dedrick a heads up, so they were waiting for him outside when he pulled up at the hotel where they were both staying.
“Woman, you got no sense,” Deed said with a smile and a shake of his head.
“Yeah, but you love me anyway.” Shawnelle laughed as Dedrick pulled her out of the car.
Tommy just scooped Haley up and carried her, since she’d passed out on the ride over.
“Thanks, man,” Dedrick said over his shoulder.
“No problem.”
He climbed back inside and headed to the beach house, forced to listen to Elizabeth’s off-key singing along to the radio the entire way.
He turned the volume down, deciding talk was a better option.
“So you had fun?”
She grinned. “We had a lot of fun. We had a few drinks, you know.”
Yeah, he knew. The tequila smell filled his car. “Really. Just a few?”
She giggled and kicked her shoes off. “Okay, a lot.”
She started singing again, leaned forward to turn the volume up on the radio.
It was a good thing he really liked Elizabeth, because she couldn’t sing for shit.
He pulled into the driveway, but before he could get his seatbelt off, she’d thrown the door open and bounded out, her shoes and purse forgotten. She went around the side of the house and disappeared into the dark.
Good lord. He grabbed her purse and shoes, went in through the front door, dumped her stuff, and headed out back.