To no one's surprise, Michelle drinks too much at the party. She's quite tipsy when I decide I need to cut her off and get her home.

I pull my phone from my back pocket and find Mom in my contacts, tapping her name to call her. "Hey Sunny," she answers sleepily.

"Hey mom, we're ready to come home," I tell her.

"How bad is it?" she asks.

"Michelle's tipsy," I answer truthfully.

"And you?"

"The same," I answer.

"Okay. I'll meet you at the intersection in a few," she says before we say our goodbyes and hang up. I walk back over to join the group, where Michelle is draining her cup of beer.

"Refill?" she asks sweetly, holding the cup out to me.

"We're actually heading out. Mom's coming in a few so we have to go wait for her to pick us up."

"Aww, Sunny, I'm having so much fun!" she whines.

"I know, but you're really close to not being able to have fun tomorrow, so you're done," I tell her as I place a hand on her arm.

She nods. "Okay." She turns to the rest of the Pogues. "I've had such a good time!" she gushes to them.

The girls hug her and John B and Pope pat her on the back. JJ laces his fingers through mine. "I'll walk with you," he says. I wave goodbye to the others as JJ, Michelle, and I take off through the trees to the road.

"You two are so perfect together," Michelle says as we walk along the street. "You're much better than Tyler," she says, pointing at JJ.

He laughs. "You know Tyler?"

"I met him at Thanksgiving. Honestly? Not that impressed," she says. "You'll make gorgeous babies together," she comments.

He laughs again. "We would make cute babies," he says, bumping against me as we walk.

"Maybe in like ten years," I reply.

"No, yeah, not right now. You have to marry me first."

"Oh, you going traditional on me now?" I smirk.

"Only because I know you'd want it that way," he says.

"Ugh, I'm gonna puke," Michelle says, and JJ and I snap our attention to her.

"Did you drink more than I think you did?" I ask, the concern evident in my voice.

"No, not from the beer! From how cute you two are. It's vomit inducing how precious you are," she says. She stumbles slightly on a rock in the road.

"Oh," I say with a laugh. "Thanks, I guess?"

We approach the intersection where mom said she'd pick us up. I lean against the stop sign. "Do you work tomorrow?" I ask JJ as Michelle takes a seat on the curb.

"Yeah, the evening shift."

"We're having dinner at the country club around six tomorrow if you want to come by the dining room and say hello," I tell him, and he nods.

"I'll never pass up a chance to see you," he says sweetly. He tugs at my hand and pulls me in for a kiss. Headlights shine on us, breaking us apart.

"That's my mom. Text me when you make it back to John B's later, okay?"

"I will," he promises. He gives me one more quick kiss. "I love you, Sunny."

"I love you, too, JJ. Bye." With a wave, he walks off back towards the boneyard. Mom pulls up to us as his figure retreats.

"Hey girls," she says through the rolled down window of her SUV. "Hop in."

"Aunt Rose?" Michelle asks from the back seat as we head through the streets of the cut.

"Yes dear?"

"Do you know Sunny's friends? They're the best," she says emphatically.

Mom chuckles. "I know them well."

"Do you know her boyfriend?" she asks.

"I've known JJ since he was a little boy," she answers.

"Him and Sunny are so perfect together. I like him so much better than Tyler. Make sure she brings him to Thanksgiving at Grandma's this fall."

"I'll make sure," she promises, giving me a smile from the drivers seat.

"She's very sweet when she's drunk," I say with a laugh.

"No kidding," mom muses.

When we get back to the house, mom heads to bed and I help Michelle get changed into her pajamas. The car ride made her a little more drunk, but she doesn't seem like she's sick at all. She's just very uncoordinated.

I tuck her into the guest bed with the tv remote and shut her door behind me as I head to my own room to change. I flop down in my bed and turn on my tv. It's barely 1:00, and I'm not quite ready to sleep yet. Around 1:30, my phone dings with a new text message.

JJ🌊
I'm back at JB's. How's your cousin?

Fine. Probably passed out in the
guest room lol.

JJ🌊
Lol. Okay, I'm going to sleep. I love
you. Goodnight 😘

I love you too. Goodnight 😘

********************************************
"Wow, you girls really got some sun today!" Mom exclaims when Michelle and I get home from the beach the next afternoon. "The Outer Banks suits you, Michelle."

"I've had a really great couple of days. Thanks for letting me come to stay," she says sincerely. "And thank you, Sunny, for letting me hang out with your friends."

"Now remember what we talked about. Your mom can never know I took you to a kegger and let you drink."

"Sunny!" Mom says with a laugh.

"Mom, come on. Daisy would have a conniption. She can't know. I already coached Michelle on what to say," I tell her.

"She'd kill us both," mom agrees. "I don't like lying, but I think this might have to be done."

"I'll be vague when she asks what all we did," Michelle promises.

"Why don't you girls go ahead and start getting ready for dinner? We need to leave in a little over an hour," mom says.

The two of us hurry upstairs and go into our respective rooms to shower off the sunscreen and sand and get ready for our evening. We return to the kitchen an hour later to find my parents all spiffed up for our dinner.

"I thought Daisy was coming here?" I say as we join them.

"The ferry was running late so she's going to meet us there. From the club, she can head back to the docks to catch the last ferry back to the mainland," Dad explains.

"Oh. Cool. Well, I'm ready when you are."

"Same," Michelle says.

"Let's rock and roll," Dad says, jiggling his keys.
*********************************************
For a week night, the club restaurant is surprisingly busy. Daisy meets us at the front entrance, dressed to the nines. She holds her arms open to me as we approach.

"Sunflower! You look beautiful!" she says as she hugs me. "I hope you took care of the little one while she was here."

"Yeah, we had a nice time," I tell her. I give Michelle a smile, which she returns.

"So, what did you two do?" she asks as she turns to her daughter.

"Sunny took me to the restaurant she works at for dinner, we hung out with her friends, took a tour of the island, had a beach day. It was really fun," my cousin says.

"Oh. That does sound nice," Daisy replies. "Thanks again for watching her for me while I went to training. It sounds like she had a good time with Sunny," she says as Mom and Dad lead the way to the dining area. A girl I recognize from many parties in the cut seats us at a large table.

"Your server will be right with you. Enjoy!" she says cheerfully after she hands us our menus. I open mine and begin to peruse the selections when the waiter approaches.

"Hi, I'm Bradley. I'll be taking care of you tonight. Could I interest anyone in a glass of the house wine?"

My parents and Daisy discuss getting a bottle of the house wine as I look up at him, ready to ask for a water, and I'm surprised to find the waiter staring at me. I've never seen him before, but he looks to be around my age, maybe a year or two older. His dark hair and eyes contrast against his pale skin, which looks so different from every other sun kissed person I know.

"Sunny, he's staring at you. He's cute!" Michelle whispers to me from behind her menu. "Do you know him?"

"Never seen him before," I mumble back.

My parents and Daisy decide to split a bottle of the house wine, which the waiter writes down. "For you, miss?" he asks Michelle.

"A Coke?" He nods and scribbles on his order pad.

"And for you, beautiful?" he says to me.

I falter for a moment. Did he really just flirt with me in front of my parents? Cringe. "Water with lemon, please," I answer him in a flat tone.

He eyes me for a moment before nodding. "I'll be right back with your drinks. Take your time with the menu." He walks off.

Dad raises his eyebrows at me. "What was that?" he asks.

"No clue," I say.

"He definitely was hitting on you, Sunny," Michelle says. "What will JJ say?"

"Who is JJ?" Daisy asks curiously.

"Her boyfriend!" Michelle answers for me.

Daisy looks confused. "I thought your boyfriend's name was Tyler."

"I had to get a new one. The old one went bad," I joke. My parents laugh, but Daisy still looks confused.

"Speak of the devil," Mom says as she looks over my head. I turn around to see JJ entering the dining room and heading towards our table. He's wearing a golf polo emblazoned with the country club logo, and black pants. Even though he's worked at the country club since he was fifteen, I'm still not used to seeing him in anything besides swimwear, cut off tanks, cargo shorts, and boots. I'd never say it to his face because he'd kill me, but he looks cute dressed for work.

"Hey guys," he says casually as he approaches the table.

"Hey JJ," mom says as she smiles at him. "This is my sister, Daisy."

"Hey, nice to meet you," he says cordially.

"The waiter hit on Sunny," Michelle blurts out.

JJ's eyebrows furrow together. "Who's your waiter?" he asks.

"Bradley?" I say.

"The new guy?"

"I guess. Never seen him around before. Do you know him?" I ask.

"He called her beautiful," Michelle chimes in.

"I don't know him, but he's about to know me," he says, his eyes hardening.

"JJ, don't. Not at work, at least," I say. Out of the corner of my eye I see our waiter heading back to the table with our tray of drinks. "Here he comes."

Just as he gets to the table, JJ leans down and gives me a long kiss on the lips, really playing it up by threading one hand into the hair at the nape of my neck. I'm breathless and blushing when he pulls away. He meets the waiter's eyes for a brief second before looking back down at me. "I'll see you later, Sunny."

I turn and watch JJ retreat as my cheeks burn at his overly public display of affection. When I turn back around to the table, everyone is looking at me. I clear my throat as Bradley places the wine glasses, the bottle of wine, the coke, and the water on the table.

The waiter smiles brightly and poises his pen over his order pad. "Has everyone had time to decide?"

"I think we're ready," Dad says with a nod.

We go around the table rambling off our orders and the waiter retreats to the kitchen. My phone vibrates on the table next to my water glass. I grab it and hide it in my lap, not wanting to seem rude by checking my phone at a dinner with guests. While the others are distracted, I look to see what my notification is — a text from JJ.

JJ🌊
Your waiter has been talking about you in the kitchen

How do you know?

JJ🌊
I went in there to find him and
someone told me

I thought I told you not to confront
him at work!

JJ🌊
I didn't listen

Clearly

JJ🌊
Just keep an eye on him and tell
me if he tries anything

🙄

JJ🌊
Sunny, please

Okay

I discretely put my phone back on the table. The rest of the dinner goes normally. The food is great and Michelle and Daisy gush over it. When Bradley comes back to clear our dishes and hand over the check, he slips me a folded piece of paper. I look down at the paper in my hand, then back up at him. He winks at me as he walks off.

"What is that?" Michelle asks, pointing to the paper in my hand.

I carefully unfold it and see that it's an order ticket. It has his name and phone number written on it. I scoff and show her. "His number," I say in disgust.

"Even after what JJ did?" she says incredulously.

"I can already see this going poorly," I say as I crumple the small piece of paper and throw it in the center of the table.

Dad handles the bill and we head out to our vehicles, saying goodbye to Michelle and Daisy, wishing them a safe trip back to the mainland.

I forget about waiter Bradley and his brazen move at dinner over the next few days. JJ makes no mention of him, so I assume Bradley either figured out to back off, or he saw the crumpled number on the table and took the hint that I wasn't interested.

Sarah invites me over one day to hang out while everyone is working. I happily oblige, driving my Jeep to her house to spend the day with her. When I arrive, she invites me in and leads me to the kitchen.

"Want a margarita?" she asks as I take a seat at the counter.

"Sure," I reply. She starts collecting the ingredients around the kitchen, talking as she moves.

"I got a new neighbor," she says. "And for whatever reason, he became friends with Rafe."

"Poor guy," I say with a laugh.

"Yeah. I thought he seemed nice enough. He just moved here from somewhere up north. Massachusetts I think? Anyway, his dad is a friend of Ward's from college. Owns an accounting firm, wants to open a satellite office here. The wife was 'done with city life'," she says mockingly.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, she couldn't even be thirty yet, but her stepson is a year older than us. Wonder how that marriage came to be?" She gives me a look.

I make a face. "Gold digger," I scoff.

"Salt on the rim?" she asks.

"Nah, I'll take it as is," I tell her. She slides the green drink towards me, ice clinking against the glass. I take an experimental drink. "Do you remember how drunk I got at that party during spring break?"

"Yes," she says with a laugh.

"It was on tequila," I say, taking another sip.

"I'll limit your margs, then," she says with a smile.

We hear the front door open, and boisterous voices fill the house. The voices get louder as Rafe joins us in the kitchen, flanked by Topper and... the waiter from the country club?

"Hey Sunny," Rafe says, eyeing the bottle of margarita mix and tequila still on the counter. "Day drinking?"

Bradley stares at me. "Yeah, a little," I answer Rafe.

"Sunny, this was the new neighbor I was telling you about. This is Bradley. Bradley, Sunny," Sarah says, gesturing back and forth between us.

"We've met," I say, putting on my best 'I'm not interested' face. It's pretty easy since I've had so much practice with Rafe.

"Oh?" She looks perplexed.

"I didn't know you were a friend of the Cameron's," Bradley says, taking the seat next to mine.

"I'm a friend of Sarah's. Didn't think you would be a friend of Rafe's," I tell him.

"Why's that?" he asks.

"Rafe doesn't usually befriend the help."

"Having a job builds character," Bradley says. I roll my eyes.

"So... how do you know each other?" Sarah asks.

"He was my waiter at dinner with my family the other night at the country club," I explain.

"Are all the girls on this island as beautiful as you?" Bradley asks me.

"Just stop, dude. I'm taken. You literally saw my boyfriend kiss me."

"It's cool. I like a challenge," he says, his eyes glittering.

"There's no challenge. I have a boyfriend. It's not happening," I reiterate.

"Come on boys, we've got our own drinking plans to tend to. We'll see you later, Sunny," Rafe says as he motions for Topper and Bradley to follow him.

"Bye beautiful," Bradley calls out as he follows Tafe out back.

"I retract my statement about him seeming nice," Sarah says after she takes another drink. "Disrespectful is more like it."

"Yeah no kidding. JJ kissed me right in front of him and then the guy tries to give me his number forty-five minutes later."

"Yikes." She looks thoughtful. "Wonder how long it'll be before JJ fights him?"

"Fuck. Knowing his temper, not long." I groan in frustration. "We just got past the whole Tyler thing, now this?"

"You could stop being so pretty," she jokes.

"Shut up. Let's go somewhere. I don't want any more run ins with Mr. Doesn't Take a Hint."

****************************************

We manage to avoid the kook boys for the rest of the day, and when the Pogues gather at John B's that evening for a boat ride, Sarah is all too eager to bring up Bradley.

"He's friends with Rafe?" JJ asks.

"Yeah. Of course, right?" I say sarcastically.

"Fuck. And still hitting on you?" he asks.

"He said he likes a challenge. I'd watch your back, JJ," Sarah says teasingly.

"Sarah," I warn. I turn back to JJ. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Not from you. But from this guy? I hate him already." He wraps his arm around me protectively. "Fuck him if he thinks he can take you away from me."

"Can you try not to get into it with him?" I ask as I lay my head on his shoulder.

"No promises. But I'll try, for you."