Mike slapped my chest. “There they are.”
I lifted my eyes and heat shot up my spine. What the fuck was Rae doing with a group of guys? I saw Ally standing next to her, clinging tightly to her arm as Rae laughed. Her head fell back and I saw those boys eyeing her. One of them was standing much too close. I saw those three other girls gathered around them. All of them, huddled around the edge of the pool.
“Cannonball!”
Some asshole ran off the diving board and curled up his legs. He splashed everyone standing at the edge of the pool and it made Rae roar with laughter. Her face lit up as she looked over at Ally, who was laughing her ass off, too.
It’s nothing, Clint. Just your girl having a good time with her best friend.
But I felt a stir of jealousy erupt in my gut.
Even though I tried stuffing it down, it sat there. Churning. Blending. Igniting a fire in my chest. That was the old Clint. Not the new Clint. I wouldn’t smother Rae tonight. She was enjoying herself, and after all the shit she had to put up with, she deserved a chance to unwind. A chance to let loose. A chance to be free.
But, at the expense of her getting arrested?
“Wait a second. Is that--?”
I looked over and saw Mike narrowing his eyes.
“What is it?” I asked.
He snickered. “Allison’s holding a red cup.”
My head whipped back over. “What now?”
One of the guys moved out of the way and I saw it. Ally, with one arm wrapped around Rae’s, and her free hand holding a fucking red Solo cup. My jaw dropped open. I watched Mike lunge, headed straight for the two of them. I saw his nostrils flaring. I reached for his arm and held him back. I stood in front of him, holding my hands against his chest.
“What the fuck is she doing? She’s never had a damn drink in her life!”
I leveled my eyes with his. “It could just be water, dude. You don’t know what’s in that cup.”
“Clint, have you seen one drop of water around this shithole?”
I sighed. “Okay, but we go up there calmly. We aren’t here to police them. Just keep them safe.”
“Yeah, and my girl--who hasn’t ever had alcohol--is drinking some fucking cinnamon concoction from hell. Get out of my way.”
“Mike!”
He shoved me out of the way and stormed up to the girls with me right behind him. The guys in the group turned around with grins on their faces as their gazes ran up and down our bodies. My stare found Rae and her smile dropped. Ally looked at Mike and her jaw fell open. He walked up to her and peered into her cup as I went to stand beside Rae. And when a look of shock dripped over Mike’s eyes, I sighed.
Ally shook her head. “It’s just a bit of wine. It really isn’t anything. I tried a sip of Mom’s once.”
Mike took her glass. “How many have you had?”
Ally balked. “What? That’s my first one. I’m not some lush.”
Rae slipped in between them. “What the hell’s wrong? She’s just having a drink.”
Mike snickered. “Yeah. And you’ve had one too many. Come on. We’re going to the hotel.”
Ally shook her head. “I want to stay, though. We made some new friends. See?”
I looked over at the girls, who seemed to be grinning. They had these ‘I told you so’ faces on and their arms were crossed over their chests.
What the hell had they been talking about over here?
“Clint, do something.”