Slowly shaking her head, Emily laughed. “No…you didn’t let me finish, bitch.” Her head lolled to the side. “I’m trying to—” she hiccupped, “tell you that I’m pretty—” hiccup, “drunk right now.”
“So am I, chick,” she laughed and snorted like a pig.
Emily shook her head again. “No, but I—” hiccup, “am pretty sure that I’m seeing things, too.” She pointed her finger toward the front door as her eyes squinted in its direction. “Look. Those two guys—” hiccup, “that just walked in look like Gavin and Trevor.”
Olivia let out a laugh. “You silly girl, you’re not seeing things. It is Gavin and Trevor.”
Emily looked adorably confused as she peered at the two blurry images headed straight for them. “You’re joking with—” hiccup, “me, right? How would they know—” hiccup, “that we’re at this house?”
Olivia bit her lip. “Since I know that you’re digging Gavin—as a friend, of course,” she quickly added, swaying from side to side. “I decided to call my brother, knowing he was hanging out with Gavin tonight.” She gave Emily an innocent frown. “I told Trevor an itsy, bitsy, teeny, weeny lie to get them to come out here.”
Before Emily could inquire about this little lie, Gavin and Trevor approached them, both of their faces filled with concern.
Gavin placed his hands on Emily’s shoulders. “Are you alright?” His eyes automatically roved over her body as if assessing if she were hurt.
She stared at him silently with a blank expression on her face.
“Well, where the fuck is he?” Trevor asked Olivia, clenching his hands into fists.
“Calm down, brother,” Olivia laughed. “He was tossed out already.”
Trevor’s eyes traveled to Emily. He lifted her chin and moved her head back and forth. “How bad did the guy hurt you?”
Now she had Gavin’s hands on her shoulders and Trevor’s fingers under her chin. Speechlessly glaring at Olivia with a confused what-the-hell-did-you-tell-them stare, Emily…hiccupped.
Olivia grabbed Trevor’s arm away from her. “He didn’t hurt her. She was just getting her dance on with the dude, and he got a little frisky. Like I said, the owner got rid of him.”
Gavin took a step back and dropped his hands from Emily’s shoulders. “Liv, you said the guy smacked her.”
Olivia buried her face in her cup. “Did I say that?” she laughed.
“Yes, Olivia. You made it sound like she got bitch-slapped and tossed to the ground,” Trevor barked.
Fallon stumbled over and interrupted what was about to become a public sibling argument. She studied Gavin for a second. “Hey, you’re the guy from the restaurant that I asked Emily to give my number to.”
He smiled. “Yeah, that would be me, I guess.”
Fallon returned the smile and flicked her eyes in Trevor’s direction. If it were possible, her smile widened even more. “And who might you be?”
“I’m this over-exaggerator’s older brother,” he pointed to Olivia and then returned his attention back to Fallon. “And who might you be?”
“I’m a girl who’s really into cute guys with blonde hair and glasses.”
“Nice…I fit that description,” Trevor smiled. “And I’m a guy who’s into a pretty girl who speaks her mind. Wanna dance?”
Fallon grabbed his hand, threading his fingers with hers, and led him into the living room. Trevor turned back to Gavin, giving him a thumbs-up.
Gavin laughed.
“Soooo,” Olivia drawled, a smirk playing on her face. “I’m just gonna go get a lap dance. I’ll see you two later.” She disappeared into the crowd, her laugh echoing over the music.
Gavin smiled at Emily. He noticed the telltale-glazed sheen in her eyes, denoting that she had a little too much to drink. “Well, you look like you’re feeling pretty good right about now.”
She stepped closer and tilted her head up to look at him. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re very shmexy?”
“Shmexy?” He laughed, expecting an answer and not a question. He certainly didn’t expect that question. “Don’t you mean sexy?”
“Nope, there’s shmexy, and there’s sexy. And you, my friend, are shmexy.”
He cocked a brow, her throaty phone-sex voice arousing him almost instantly. “Mmm, which is better?”
“Shmexy.”
“Well, thank you. You’re pretty shmexy, if I must say so myself.”
She grabbed his hand and started walking toward the kitchen. “Come do a shot with me, Gavin.”
“You haven’t had enough to drink already?”
Coming to an abrupt stop, Gavin’s chest collided against her back. She spun around and stumbled into him as he grabbed her waist to steady her. “Has anyone ever told you that you have the most amazing, gorgeous, and shmexy blue eyes?”
“What’s with all of these questions, pal?” he asked quite amused.
“We’re friends, and friends ask questions.”
He cautiously moved her hair behind her shoulders and smiled. “Yes, I’ve been told that I have nice eyes.”
“No, they’re not just nice,” she hiccupped. “They’re…” She paused, wetting her lips. “They’re bedroom eyes.”
“So I’m shmexy, and I have bedroom eyes, huh?”
Nodding, she laced her hand with his again and dragged him into the kitchen. Standing in front of the spectacular choice of alcohol, she plucked a red plastic cup from the towering stack and handed it to him.