Page 104 of The Locksmith's Promise

“You’re quiet, tonight,” Maggie murmured as she walked beside me, kicking up the leaves in her path.

Under the cover of night, with her heavy coat and a thick scarf wrapped around her neck, I could barely see her face.

I grinned and wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “Moose Lake was never much for streetlights.”

“Now, now,” she teased. “We have two on Main Street now as well as another in front of the station. And,” she added, holding a finger up in the air, “The Loose Moose never turns off its outside light.”

“I’m pretty sure Miller, Maxine, and the guys are already there,” I mused.

She shivered.

“Are you nervous?”

“A bit?” She dipped her chin. “What happened, you not knowing about Corwin, that makes me look really bad.”

“They all know it was me, Maggie. Nobody blames you.” I squeezed her closer. “We’re going to have fun tonight. Have you met John and Eric’s wives?”

“Julie is a teacher at the school. I haven’t met John’s wife Vera yet, but Maxine says she’s great.”

I pulled open the heavy door to The Loose Moose and ushered Maggie in ahead of me as a cheer rose from the table closest to the bar.

Maggie laughed, looking up at me with bright eyes as she unwound her scarf and plucked at the buttons on her coat.

Smirking, I shook my head. “I love them but they’re like kids.”

“Maybe they’re doing it right,” she mused.

A curvaceous blond rose and bustled around the table to offer Maggie a hug. “I’m Vera. I’ve heard so much about you!”

Maggie laughed lightly, taking half a step back to take her in before looking to John. “How did your grumpy butt land this ray of sunshine?”

He grinned. “Do you really want to know?”

“John,” Vera snapped, her cheeks blooming. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to Maggie and whispered, “I mean, he’s not wrong.”

“I heard that,” he crowed.

Maggie laughed and slid into a chair beside Vera. Maxine made John and Eric move so she and Julie could squish in beside them.

I drew in a shaky breath.

I used to dream of this. Maggie and me, our friends, our town.

Conversation flowed while the beer and wings kept coming until the table was near overflowing with bottles and glasses and napkins.

I flagged down the waitress, a woman I didn’t recognize. “Can we please get some of this cleared away?”

“Absolutely,” she nodded, jerking her chin toward the kitchen before flouncing off. “The kitchen’s that way.”

Incredulous, I turned to look at Miller, John, and Eric to find them clutching their guts.

I raised my hands to the sides. “What the fuck?”

“You haven’t earned Gertie’s respect yet,” Miller advised me.

John wagged his eyebrows. “I suggest you start clearing the table.”

Just then, Eric caught sight of someone across the restaurant and whistled sharply, jerking his chin up and gesturing for them to come over.

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