Page 15 of Wolves' Midlife Reunion
Chris looked momentarily conflicted. “This isn’t the end of this, Dexter. I might not be able to do it here, but I will find you and we will have a rematch.” He took off, strutting like a rooster as he headed over to Heidi.
“Are you all right?” Tina asked as Dexter sat back down.
He ran a hand through his hair and let out a long breath. “Actually, yeah. I knew that was probably going to happen, and I’m glad it’s over with. Chris can say whatever he wants to, but I’m not fighting him. Still, I knew I shouldn’t have come.”
“We don’t have to stay,” Tina said, hardly believing that she was daring to make the suggestion. “We could go to the diner, just like old days.”
“Yeah.” He smiled and nodded, looking as though some of the tension from his encounter with Chris was slipping away. “Let’s get out of here.”
6
“Debbie.”Dex tapped his sister’s shoulder.
“Hey, look who I ran into!” she said as she turned around. “It’s Nick Turlington.”
“Hi, Nick.” Dex shook his hand too quickly, ready to get out of there. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Yeah, you too.”
Dex extracted himself, pulling his sister aside. “I just wanted to tell you that I’m heading out.”
“What? Where are you going? Is this about Chris?” She sighed and shook her head. “I saw his little dog-and-pony show, but that just proves he’s still the same old pompous prick. Don’t let him ruin your night, okay?”
“It’s not that. I, um, I ran into Tina.” He hadn’t told Debbie about seeing Tina at her crystal shop, knowing his twin would give him the third degree if she knew. Dex gestured slightly with his head toward the table where Tina was waiting for him.
“Well, now.” Debbie’s mouth curled into a mischievous smile. “That’s awholedifferent matter, isn’t it?”
“Don’t make a big deal out of it,” he told her. “We’re just going to the old diner for a bit.”
“Sure.” She waggled her eyebrows. “Don’t worry. The rest of us won’t wait up for you.”
“Knock it off, Debbie. We’re just catching up.”
“Hey, I’m just doing my job as a little sister and giving you a hard time,” she defended.
“A little sister who’s only two minutes younger than me,” he retorted with a smile. “I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving.”
“Have fun!” she called after him.
He threaded his way back through the crowd to Tina. They got in her car and made the short drive to Peggy Sue’s.
“I can’t believe this place is still here,” Dex said, squinting in the bright lights. He took in the chrome-edged counter and matching barstools sitting atop a checkered floor. “It looks the same, too.”
“They made some updates,” Tina pointed out as they passed the jukebox. “Looks like they finally went digital.”
“Just in time for vinyl to come back,” he joked, leading the way to a booth near the back with a framed Andy Warhol print hanging over it. He sank into the seat, noticing how soothing it felt to have her sitting across from him.
“All the best things come back around, right?” she asked, glancing down at the menu.
His wolf surged, wishing a table wasn’t separating them. “Absolutely.”
“I always felt like I was in an old Archie comic when I came here,” she said, pulling up her shoulders a little and absorbing the atmosphere. “I know all the midcentury stuff gets highly romanticized, and I could bore you to pieces with that. But it felt like this was how things were supposed to be.”
“This was a way better suggestion than the reunion, that’s for sure.” If she kept talking about good things coming back around and what was meant to be, Dex wasn’t sure how much longer hecould keep his wolf in check. Even his human side was a little too excited.
“It was a bit selfish,” she said, scrunching her nose. “I’ve been craving a burger from Peggy Sue’s for about a week, but I’ve been trying to be good.”
“It doesn’t look like you’ve got anything to worry about.” His eyes skimmed down to her dress and then quickly back up again. “I mean, you look great.”
