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although it’s not a question it’s a
command.
    I put on my most well mannered smile
before approaching the table where my mother, father, Mr. Chase and
Gregory sit.
    “Mr. Chase, how nice to see you
again,” I say as he stands up. He takes my hand in his and kisses
the back of it.
    “Ashley, my dear, you have blossomed
into the most beautiful young lady.” From the corner of my eye, I
can see this pleases my mother immensely. “Don’t you agree, son?”
Mr. Chase asks Gregory as he sits back down.
    “Absolutely.”
    “Thank you.” I force a smile and try
to hide how uncomfortable I feel with everyone’s eyes on me,
especially Gregory’s, by swirling the ice around in my glass. “If
you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go freshen up my drink,” I say,
hoping to escape spending the rest of the evening stuck at the
table.
    “I’ll join you.” Gregory
stands and places his hand on my lower back making it stiffen. “If
you’ll excuse us .”
    I think my mother’s face might crack
in half she’s smiling so big at the way Gregory emphasized the ‘us’
and I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes.
    “A water with lemon please,” I request
from the bartender then try to turn my body away from Gregory’s
lingering hand near my hip.
    “Greg, buddy,” Andrew says from behind
me, clamping his hand on Gregory’s shoulder and turning him so I’m
free from his touch. Thank you, Andrew. “Long time no see,” he
jokes, considering they likely saw each other less than a week ago
at school. “So, you all ready to hit it?” Andrew asks, tossing his
keys in my direction, which I catch easily. “Let the old folks do
their thing?” He laughs, and it’s clear he’s partaken in a few more
flutes of the bubbly.
    We say a quick goodbye to our parents
who seem pleased enough with our showing then head to the bluffs on
the south end of the island.
    I pull off on one of the quiet country
roads that dead ends here, and already at least a dozen cars are
parked on the edge of the lookout where the red clay cliffs drop
off sharply to the aqua water below.
    Andrew jumps out of the car the second
I put it into park while I sit and observe the growing group,
regretting my choice of clothes. The wind coming off the ocean is
cool and crisp compared to this afternoon’s heat and my thin
cardigan, and strapless sundress are hardly going to keep me
warm.
    “Hey, man,” someone says, gripping the
side of the unrolled driver side window and scaring me half to
death. I let out a yelp before I turn to see which of Andrew’s
friends is to blame when I’m taken aback to see it’s the hot waiter
from lunch this afternoon.
    He looks at me with an equal amount of
surprise on his face before he yanks his hands away from the window
and takes a step back.
    “I’m…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare
you,” he stammers. “I uh…thought this was Andrew’s car.”
    “ No, it is Andrew’s car, I
just drove him here,” I explain. I try to get my heart back to a
normal speed but find it’s more difficult than it should be. I’m
not exactly sure if it’s still pounding from getting scared or from
who just scared me.
    Just then, like he could hear us,
which is impossible unless I screamed louder than I thought, Andrew
looks over from a few cars down.
    “Hey, Lane, you made it.” He jogs over
and gives the guy, apparently named Lane, a fist bump. “I see you
met my little sister.” Andrew nods his head in my direction before
opening the car door for me to get out. I move to step down, but
it’s no easy feat due to the car’s height paired with the cut of my
dress.
    “Here.” Lane’s voice is low and
gravelly as he wraps his warm hand around mine and helps me get
down gracefully. I lift my eyes to meet his, and feel my face flush
from both the unexpected gesture and the smile he’s giving
me.
    “Thank you,” I say once my feet touch
the ground and I find my footing. “I’m Ashley, by the way,” I say,
looking up at