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WHEN AVA GOT TO THE Hyatt, Reba was sober-ish enough to meet her downstairs so she could organize a separate room key for her and get Cherisse a new one because her tipsy ass had already forgotten not to put her phone near her keycard. She’d only realized the thing had demagnetized when she’d tried to duck back into her room to grab the forgotten sunscreen.

At that point, Cherisse had said fuck it and not bothered, returning to the pool area, which was on their floor anyway. She wasn’t exactly steady enough to traipse downstairs for another card, and none of the others wanted to either.

Ava met them in the water with cocktail in hand, bright yellow bikini nearly blinding them as the sun glinted off her.

“Happy birthdaaaaaay!” She kissed Remi and Cherisse on their cheeks, and they toasted with their drinks.

Cherisse couldn’t recall what number cocktail she was on, only that it was delicious, and she was all buzzy, which was the perfect mix for bad decisions. She’d been itching to check her phone to see if a certain somebody had sent any more messages. Thankfully, her phone was on the lounge chair all the way over there, and they were in the water.

“We’re gonna need a nap before we go out tonight.” Remi yawned.

“I’m about that nap life,” Reba agreed. “Don’t listen to anyone who says naps are for babies and senior citizens. How do they think I keep going all night long?”

Cherisse raised a brow. “We still talking about dancing?”

“Yes, boss lady. Get your mind out the gutter! Although I do got that stamina.”

Everyone cackled at that. Remi swished her hand through the water as she slurped her drink. Cherisse had no idea what Remi’s drink was at this point, only that the glass was tall, the drink blue, and the garnish was a mix of pineapples and cherries.

“Oh, hey! I totally forgot!” Reba giggled. “I brought food and margarita cupcakes and rum punch! Surprise!” She clapped her hand over her mouth, looking around before whispering, “I hope no staff heard that.”

The bartender had been steadily supplying their drinks since Reba excitedly informed him about the double birthdays, but either he was too busy to have heard her loud outburst, or he really didn’t care. He didn’t even look up from the bar. By five o’clock, they all agreed it was time to at least sober up a bit then nap to reenergize for tonight. They were toasty and tipsy. The four of them weaved their way back to Reba and Ava’s room. Ava was the most sober, having opted to leave her drinking for tonight.

While Reba dished out what looked like an entire meal her mother would cook on a Sunday—Spanish rice, baked chicken, and pigeon peas with some fresh salad on the side—Cherisse caught up on her notifications, snapping some of the spread to post. She sent one to Keiran before she could stop herself.