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next to my brother. “Dude! You remember this song? Tell me you remember this song!” Then, he bursts out singing. “ You’re my shawwwtttyyy !”
     
    My brother starts bobbing his head just as a few of the other guys make their way over to us, jiving and shaking and acting like fools. They grab Daniel by the shoulders pushing him into the crowd, chanting and hooting as they go.
     
    Well, I guess that marks the end of our conversation.
     
    I’m pouting harder than ever as I slink back over to my table where Gracie has now joined Faith and Isla. They appear to be on a fresh pitcher of sangria and Gracie is venting about Daniel. I don’t need any convincing. After what my brother just did to me, I’m on board with any form of punishment she has planned for him.
     
    I look over to where he and his friends are vividly reliving their high school glory days over by the bar. ‘Master Kee’ is the center of attention and his loyal disciples circle around him, looking absolutely awestruck as he speaks. He animatedly pretends to catch an invisible football before shooting it over to Daniel. All the guys roar with laughter, bumping fists and slapping each other on the back.
     
    “He’s hot !” Faith’s voice catches me off guard and I nearly jump out of my skin. When I look over to my left, I see her leaning in to my ear as she gazes dreamily at Keeland.
     
    “Who?” I say coolly as I sit back in my chair and attempt to appear unaffected.
     
    “Keeland, silly,” she breathes wistfully, her attention still peeled to his every movement.
     
    I huff. “Didn’t notice.” I fold my arms angrily across my chest.
     
    She slaps me on the shoulder. “ Please …you’ve been staring at him every time he walks by and you’re an absolute bitch to him every time he utters a word to you…I think you’ve noticed that he’s hot.”
     
    Isla pipes in. “Sammie, grow the hell up! You’ve been putting on this unconvincing, I-don’t-want-Keeland act since we were in high school. Just admit it. You think he’s hot.” My best friend isn’t helping my case at all.
     
    I grit my teeth. "He looks like he could use a shave,” I say sulkily.
     
    Gracie throws back her head and laughs. “A little bit of stubble goes a long way behind closed doors. Trust me, girlie.” She winks at me. Isla and Faith giggle along.
     
    My stomach roils. “Firstly, ew. Just, ew. That’s my brother you’re talking about. Secondly, I thought you hated Daniel right now.”
     
    “I do hate him…but I love him.” She shrugs. “That’s marriage, I guess.”
     
    “Should we be worried?” Faith asks. “You looked like you were about to scratch his eyes out a little while ago.”
     
    Gracie gives us a weak smile. “Let’s put it this way – after the way he’s been acting lately, it’ll be a while before he gets to put his stubble to use, if you know what I mean.”
     
    I groan. “Could you not be so descriptive when you talk about your sex life with my brother?”
     
    Laughing, she opens her mouth to respond but her phone interrupts her, vibrating on the table in front of her. She picks it up and answers on the first ring. She slips a palm over her ear to drown out the noise of the bar, her frown deepening with each word. When she hangs up, she looks panicked. “That was the sitter. She thinks Sebastian’s got a fever.” She’s already sliding her arms into the sleeves of her jacket.
     
    “Crap, is he gonna be okay?” Faith asks, worry crinkling her forehead.
     
    Gracie shrugs anxiously. “I don’t know. He’s probably just fine. Our sitter is 18 and she has a tendency to overreact and panic over the slightest thing. But my philosophy is ‘better safe than sorry’.” She peers over at the bar as she rises to her feet. “Now all I have to do is pry my husband away from his gang of fist-pumping, back-slapping hooligans.”
     
    “Good night, Gracie,” we call after her as she ventures off into the