Ethan scored some reservations to the steak house restaurant and when we arrive I’m starving. He’s looking amazing in white pants and a dark blue muscle shirt. I initially feel inadequate in my light green striped dress but the way that I keep catching Ethan staring at me with hungry eyes is making me feel much better.

The restaurant is full and I spot Megan inside at a table with Lucas and his in-laws. I haven’t spent too much time with her but she’s been busy playing hostess to all of her guests. And I’m really happy that I get to have a quiet, romantic dinner with Ethan. Just the two of us.

“Look,” Ethan says as we’re waiting in line. He points in the restaurant and I burst out laughing when I see what he’s looking at. Stephanie is sitting in a booth with Aaron. She is burnt to a crisp. Her arms are stiff and her back straight as she reads the open menu in front of her. Every move of her body makes her grimace in pain.

“I guess mayo doesn’t double as sunblock,” I say, trying unsuccessfully to hold in a laugh.

“Let’s see her slut it up now,” Ethan says, chuckling.

I step on my tippy toes and kiss his chin. “Thank you.”

“This way please,” the pretty hostess with the long legs and nice brown eyes says to us as she grabs two menus. She looks Ethan up and down as we step into the restaurant. He just grabs my hand and pretends not to notice.

She takes us through the restaurant and I curse under my breath as we have to pass Stephanie and Aaron’s booth. There’s a large bull’s head mounted on the wall above them next to a Texas license plate.

“Nice tan, Steph,” Ethan says as she looks up. “Just stay away from the kitchen. The lobsters will get jealous.”

“Shut up!” she snaps back, grimacing in pain as she moves. “I don’t know what happened. I wore my suntan lotion all day and the bottle was ninety dollars.”

Aaron sits up in his seat and eyes Ethan with an evil look.

“Well, it looks great!” I say with a smirk.

Stephanie’s eyes narrow on me. “I just wish I was more like you,” she says. “Four days here and look how pale you are.”

“Oh you’re too sweet,” I say, slapping her shoulder.

She goes stiff as a whine escapes her throat.

Ethan turns to Aaron for the first time. “Be careful with my cousin,” he says. “Her skin might peel off.”

Aaron puffs his chest out and sucks in his gut. “Be careful with my girlfriend,” he says. “She might nag you to death.”

Ethan grits his teeth and glares at him. His arm flexes under mine. “Your girlfriend?”

They lock eyes like two alpha males about to fight over a mate.

I pull his arm but he’s like an immovable statue. “Maybe we should just-”

“You’re friends?” the hostess asks, placing our menus on the table next to them. “You can share table.”

“No,” I say in a panic. “We would like-”

“Great!” she says with a big smile. “Buen provecho!”

All four of us look at each other in panic as the hostess rushes away. Ethan shrugs and sits down next to Aaron.

Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God Oh God, I repeat in my head over and over again as I slide down next to Stephanie. We’re actually doing this.

The four of us look down at the table in silence. “Well, this is awkward,” I say.

Cynthia and Julia walk over with huge, amused smiles on their faces. “What is going on over here?” Julia asks.

“Just a little dinner,” I say. “Want to join us?” I raise my eyebrows and look at them with a pleading expression on my face.

They both take a step back in unison. “Noooooo,” Cynthia says, shaking her head. “It looks like it’s just couples.”

Julia grins. “But we’ll see you for drinks after to hear all about it.”

They walk away, following the hostess to the booth that should have been ours. I give it one more chance. “Are you sure you don’t-”

“They’re already gone, Tanya,” Ethan says.

Shit.

We open our menus and all I see is a jumble of letters. I’m too uncomfortable to read.

“Does anyone smell mayonnaise?” Ethan asks.

“That’s so weird!” Stephanie says. “I’ve been smelling it all day.”

I lift the menu over my face to hide my snickering. When I lower it Stephanie is glaring at me. “Ya know it’s going to be so nice to see my best friend get married in two days,” she says, with her hand on her chest. I notice that she’s not actually touching the painful, bright red skin and that makes me happy. “I feel so honored to be standing next to her as the one girl who she feels is the closest person in her life.”

I nod as listen. “It was so nice of you to pay for her honeymoon in exchange for the position.”

Stephanie’s nostrils flare. “Oh, I’m sure you would have done the same thing if you could afford it. They must not pay very well in the dog food industry.” She tilts her head to the side as she watches me. “There must be some perks, though. Like all you can eat dog food.”

Her laughter stops short when she grimaces in pain from the movement.

I’m tired of playing nice with this chick. It’s time to do what Ethan suggested and fight fire with fire.

“You’d fit in great with all of the dogs in the office,” I say. “There can never be too many bitches around.”

The air between us is as cool as the look she’s giving me. Aaron turns to Ethan with anger in his eyes.

“So Ethan,” he says. “Stephanie tells me you own a bar. I was thinking of opening one but I thought nah. I didn’t want to have to hang out with pathetic low lives all day.”

Ethan turns to him with an amused look on his face. “What do you do Aaron? Tanya hasn’t mentioned it. Actually, your name never even came up.”

Aaron frowns. “I’m an architect.”

“Ha!” I blurt out.

Aaron looks at me and furrows his brow. “I’m a landscape architect,” he corrects.

“Aaron is a wannabe rock star,” I say to Ethan as if Aaron wasn’t even at the table. “He hit his peak in the tenth grade when he played in the garages of three house parties. Now he cuts grass for a living and just hangs out all day smoking weed and playing video games.”

Ethan turns to me, ignoring Aaron. “Cuts grass?” he asks, pretending to be interested. “Like he owns a company or something?”

“No, no,” I say, looking only at Ethan. “He works for a landscaping company part time.”

“Is he a manager?” Ethan asks me, rubbing his jaw and listening intently.

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “But it’s only been six years. So,” I say, crossing my fingers on the table, “who knows?”

Aaron mutters something to himself, looking annoyed.

“Well, let me know if that doesn’t work out for you,” Ethan says to him. “I can always use another dishwasher at the bar.”

Aaron peels back the corner of his menu and frowns. Stephanie looks at him and rolls her eyes.

Aaron glares at me when he finally looks back up. “So, Stephanie, is your maid of honor speech all finished?” Low blow. He knows how much that bothers me.

Stephanie nods slowly with her eyes closed. “It’s going to be so nice to stand up there and let everyone know how much my best friend means to me. I can’t wait.”

I give her my fakest smile. “We all know how much you love being the center of attention.”

She leans back. “I can’t help it if everyone loves looking at me.”

Ethan nods. “Who doesn’t love to look at a car crash?”

I touch his foot with mine under the table. I think I love him.

Stephanie just rolls her eyes and ignores him.

“I love looking at you baby,” Aaron says, grabbing Stephanie’s hand.

“Ow!” she screams, yanking her hand away when he touches her. “I told you to keep your fucking hands off me.”

I bring my hands to my chest and tilt my head as I look at her. “You two make a really nice couple.”

Ethan nods. “You two deserve each other.”

Aaron looks at him and nods. “Thank you.”

Stephanie is a little smarter and glares at me sideways. She can tell a backhanded compliment when she hears one. She practically invented them.

“It must be fun having a fling with my cousin,” she says. “You’re part of a huge club now. A club of thousands of women who wondered why he never called in the morning.”

I glance over at Ethan who is staring at her with a tight jaw. “Really?” I ask.

Ethan doesn’t take his fierce eyes off her. “It’s not like that.”

Stephanie just ignores him. “He really is the best at convincing women that he likes them, fucking them dry and then dumping them on the curb. That’s Ethan for you.”

My stomach rolls and my chest tightens. That is what I was afraid of. I don’t want to be just another one of his girls. I want to be the girl.

Stephanie smiles at me when she sees my face. “Oh,” she says, looking at me like I’m a cute little baby. “Did you think that he actually liked you? That’s so adorable.” She picks up her menu and shakes her head. “Tanya you have a lot to learn about the real world.”

Ethan swallows hard as he glares at his cousin. “I do like her. A lot. I know it must be confusing for you to imagine that a guy could actually like a girl and not just use her for her body, but you have to realize that is your experience. Not all girls are treated like a cum dumpster.”

“No,” she says with a fake smile. “Just the ones that you date.”

An awkward silence hovers over the table as Stephanie smiles in triumph. I look down at the menu wondering if she’s right.

“Good evening,” the waitress says as she arrives at our table with a huge smile. She goes over the night’s menu but I don’t think any of us are listening. She takes our order, collects the menus and then leaves us with a ‘thank you.’

“So Tanya,” Aaron says, glaring at me. “You left that piece of black lingerie in our room. You know the one that I really liked that you wore when we went to Florida?”

Ethan’s teeth are clenched as he turns to Aaron. “Be a good little Aaron-ed boy and go get it will you? I’m going to need it later.”

Aaron flinches away from him and mutters something under his breath.

“What was that?” Ethan asks.

Aaron’s tanned face fades to a pale white. “Nothing,” he mumbles.

The waitress comes back with some dinner rolls and our drinks.

“Tequila sunrise for you,” she says, placing the drink in front of me.

Aaron looks at me funny. “Since when do you drink tequila sunrises?”

“Oh,” I say, sitting back with a big, goofy grin on my face. “Ethan has opened me up to so many things. Who knew that I could bend my legs behind my head?”

“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that,” Stephanie says. “Do you know how many of my high school friends have told me the same thing about Ethan? Hundreds.”

Ethan glares at her. “Actually, you didn’t have any high school friends remember?” He turns and nods at me. “It was hilarious. Steph was a huge nerd in high school. Round, black rimmed glasses like Harry Potter but ten times bigger, head gear, no fashion sense. Remember that big sweater you wore with the cat on it? What did it say? Don't hate me cause I’m…what?”

Stephanie’s look could melt glass. “Purr-fect.”

“Oh that’s right,” he says, slapping the table.

I snort out a laugh.

She doesn’t like that. She whips her head to the side, facing me dead on. “Well, the awkward caterpillar blossomed into the beautiful butterfly that you see now. One day it might happen to you Yawn-ya.”

I nod as I take a sip of my drink. “I can’t wait to follow in your footsteps. I’m so excited to be obnoxiously loud, wear slutty clothes, and sleep with every guy who can stand me for the six minutes it takes to dump his load inside me.”

The waitress interrupts us once again when she comes back with the food. It’s good timing because Stephanie looks like she’s about to throw down in the middle of the restaurant.

Ethan and I both ordered chicken fajitas and they look incredible.

Stephanie leans over the table. “Eat fast,” she whispers to Aaron.

There’s nothing but the sound of chewing in tight, clenched jaws that cuts through the silence. After a few minutes, Ethan breaks it. “So, how about this resort huh?”

I burst out laughing as Stephanie and Aaron roll their eyes and look away.

“Hey, bestie!” Stephanie says really loudly. She looks at me with an evil smile.

“Hey, guys!” Megan says when she gets to the table. “Are you having fun?”

“Great time,” I say.

Ethan nods. “The best.”

“Amazing!” Megan says, clapping her hands. “So tomorrow is the rehearsal dinner. Can you guys all make it?”

“Can the four of us sit together?” Ethan asks. “Because this has been a blast.”

Stephanie just glares at him.

“Actually,” Megan says, grimacing at Ethan. “It’s only for the wedding party. But you can come join us after.”

Aaron looks relieved.

“But you three can sure sit together.” Megan looks so happy that Stephanie and I are finally getting along. If she only knew. “It’s just going to be a small dinner on the beach. We’ll go over the game plan and then play some nineties music and do a little boogie in the sand.” She raises her hands and shakes her hips.

“Did someone say nineties music?” Lucas asks with a big goofy smile on his face. He starts dancing awkwardly beside Megan who joins in. “A little Ice Ice Baby?”

Megan dances like an even dorkier Vanilla Ice and sings. “Do do do dah do doo do.”

The four of us watch with blank stares. They’re such dorks. They belong together and I couldn’t be happier for them.

“It’s so great to have you guys here,” Lucas says when the dancing, thankfully, stops. He looks like he had a little too much wine. “My cousin,” he says, hitting Ethan’s shoulder, “my sister, Tanya and one of my best friends Aaron.” He looks down at us with his hands on his hips and a heartfelt smile on his lips. “I feel so blessed. Isn’t this just the best?”

Ethan nods. “It’s just like pulling teeth.”

“I know right?” Lucas says, pointing at him.

Lucas is a dentist in training and he has a different view of pulling teeth. He actually likes it. It’s easier to enjoy when you’re on the other side of the pulling.

Megan wraps her arm around Lucas. “We’ll let you guys eat but tomorrow we’re all going swimming with dolphins. Are you guys coming?”

“Yeah Megs, that sounds great!” I say. I feel like we’ve haven’t spent enough time together this week.

“I’ll be there,” Aaron says.

Awesome.

“I love dolphins,” Stephanie says. “They’re so beautiful.”

“Just don’t try to fuck any of them,” Ethan says to her. “That’s frowned upon.”

Stephanie rolls her eyes. “You should talk Ethan. Keep your dick away from their blow holes.”

Ethan looks at her funny. “You’re my cousin. Please don’t talk about my dick.”

“Oooookay,” Megan says, looking around the table in confusion. “That took a right turn real fast.” She takes a deep breath and looks at me. “So I’ll sign all four of you guys up for tomorrow. And we’re meeting for drinks after at the Discoteca.”

“So get your dancing shoes on,” Lucas says, shaking his hips stiffly, “or I should say, dancing flip flops.”

Megan laughs and they dance away, doing awkward moves through the restaurant, looking like two giraffes having seizures.

Stephanie turns to me and tosses her napkin on her plate. “Well, I lost my appetite.”

“Well,” I say with a fake smile, “at least you won’t have to go throw up your dinner later.”

She hisses a breath and then turns to Aaron. “Let’s go.”

We step out of the booth and let them both pass. Stephanie leaves without saying a word but Aaron glances at Ethan and then leans into my ear. “I need to talk to you,” he whispers.

I raise an eyebrow. “That’s not going to happen.”

“It’s important,” he says. “I think you’ll like what I’m going to say.”

I cross my arms. “I won’t.”

“But-”

“She said no, architect,” Ethan says, stepping closer. “It’s time to go.”

Aaron wants to say something to him but Ethan is a foot taller and is as intimidating as fuck with the look he’s giving him. He drops his eyes to the floor and walks off.

“Well, that was fun,” Ethan says as we sit back down in the booth. He takes a French fry off Aaron’s plate and eats it.

“Man, your cousin is special,” I say, taking a deep breath.

“Don’t worry,” he says with a laugh, “she won’t be coming to our wedding.”

“Our wedding?”

He looks at me in surprised. “Oh, did I forget to ask you?”

I lift up my left hand and look at my empty ring finger. “Yeah I guess so.”

He grabs another fry. “It’s coming,” he says. “Don’t worry about that.”

I take a long gulp of my drink and steel my nerves. “So it’s not true what Stephanie said? About pretending to like me and then dumping me on the curb?”

“You know she just said that to get under your skin, right?”

I nod. “I know. Maybe it worked a little.”

He takes my hand and stares into my eyes. “I really, really like you,” he says, sounding genuine. “And as long as we can still see other people I want to be with you.”

“Shut up.” I laugh as I yank my hand away. “Asshole.”

He grins. “Please don’t listen to her.”

“So it’s not true?” I ask. “About all of the other girls?” I have to know.

He exhales long and hard. Never a good sign. “That didn’t bring me any happiness, Tanya. Being with you does. I want to see where this goes. I’m excited to see where this goes.”

I feel better already. “Me too.”

We finish our dinner and then head over to the bar. The music is pumping and the drinks are flowing. Megan and Lucas are shaking on the dance floor with Megan’s parents and some other people from her group. Cynthia and Julia are talking to two guys at the bar.

Megan runs over when she sees me, grabs my wrist and pulls me to the dance floor. I give Ethan a look like he better follow me and he does. Madonna’s Holiday comes on and Megan freaks out. It’s one of her favorite songs. Lucas is at the DJ booth smiling. He knows his girl. Good man.

I dance next to Megan’s dad who’s shaking his hips to the beat. I’m always shocked at how good he can dance. Ethan moves his shoulders and takes Mrs. Carson’s hand, spinning her around. She blushes and giggles as he takes her in his arms.

“Wooo!” Megan cheers. “Go Mom!”

Stephanie, always the upstager, climbs up on the bar and starts dancing. Two teenage boys casually walk over and look up her skirt. I seriously hope she has underwear on under there.

After a few more songs, and after Stephanie gets kicked off the bar, I head outside to the bathroom of the lobby. The one toilet in the bar is disgusting and I could use some cool, fresh air after dancing on the hot dance floor so I decide to take the three-minute walk across the resort.

“Hey, Tanya,” a voice that sends chills crawling down my back says. I pick up my pace but Aaron still catches up to me. “What are you doing with that guy, Tanya? He’s no good for you.”

I cross my arms. “And you are?”

“Look,” he says, taking a deep breath. “I’ve been thinking a lot and I think you should come back to our room.”

“Oh really?” I say unable to contain my laughter. “Am I just supposed to forget that you fucked Stephanie?”

He looks at me accusingly. “You fucked that meat head.”

“After you cheated on me and we broke up. That’s kind of a crucial part of the narrative.”

He huffs out a breath. “Stephanie doesn’t mean anything to me,” he says. “She’s always talking about fashion and celebrities. Come on T. Seeing you together is driving me nuts. I want you back.”

“Please!” I say, chuckling. “You only want me back because you can’t have me.” I stop and stare at him to make sure this next part sinks in. “And Aaron, you can’t have me. We’re never going to get back together. We’re never even going to be friends.”

He grabs my hand. “I love you.”

“Fuck you,” I say, yanking it away.

I’m done being with boys. It’s time to be with a real man.

My man.

Ethan.