Page 106 of Dream Girl
Yet, I had this feeling that Brennan would be the dad that would spoil them and let them get away witheverything.
Grace and I left the park and turned onto a street. Lights decorated the trees and hung across the streets. Couples danced on the sidewalk as musicians played. Kids rode by on bikes. The aroma of delicious foods from all corners of the world tickled our noses. Eastside was a working-class neighborhood, the feel was very different from the area Brennan had moved us to after Caroline, or the fancy townhouse where we’d lived before.
At first, I didn't like it here after my dad, Lexi, and I moved here. My friends weren’t there. I missed the pack, not understanding why we’d had to leave them. This city was big. Busy. Different. But somewhere along the way, it had becomehome.I missed this area a lot.
We stopped at a busy, cozy brick restaurant on the corner. People ate both inside and out on the heated garden patio.
“Pizza. You have pizza.” Grace gave a happy sigh.
Relief filled me. I’d made a good choice.
“The best pizza in the city.” I led her inside, where a familiar woman played host. “Hi Gina, I have a reservation for two underWes.”
She laughed, which made her giant earrings jingle. “Reservations? What are we, a steakhouse? Nah nah, I got you.” Gina gave Grace a once-over. “Hey, Hon, if he doesn't treat you right, you let me know. I can be a better boyfriend than him.” She flashed me a giant grin.
I grinned back. “Table, Gina.”
“You know each other?” Grace laughed.
“Went to middle school together,” I replied as Gina led us to a corner patio table. It was her family’s restaurant.
“It was like that where I grew up. Couldn’t go anywhere without seeing someone you knew–or being seen and having them tell your mom.” She rolled her eyes.
We ordered a pizza and enjoyed a pleasant night. Evan was with Brennan, so he was fine. Jett was refereeing fight night at his boxing gym. Spencer had to do stuff for work.
“Do you take Evan here?” She sipped her beer.
The restaurant was busy, mostly with families and groups of teens.
“He doesn’t like pizza. Usually, I meet my dad here. He likes to sit inside by the front window.” I tried to see my dad a couple of times a month. Lexi was over at his place all the time.
Grace gasped. “Evan doesn’t like pizza? Here I thought I might be in love with him.”
“If I can find it in my heart to forgive him for that, I think you can, too,” I told her. We both laughed.
I paid the bill, and we took a walk, ducking into shops and getting some ice cream. Sure, it had gotten cold while we ate, but I knew how much she liked it.
“Tonight has been perfect.” She gave her cone another lick. “I… I don’t think I have many friends. Not ones I regularly do things with or talk to. I think I do things with some of my colleagues, but…” She sighed. “From what I remember, everything I went through in high school lost me a lot of the friends that I’d had all my life. Missing high school cheerleading competitions because your parents pulled you out of school to send you to a church-runwilderness campfor yourbad behaviordoesn’t help your social credibility. That made me put my guard up.”
That church-run wilderness camp was where the terrible stuff happened.
“I understand. When we moved here, a lot of the friends I’d grown up with didn’t stay in touch. When I made friends and then went to a fancy private high school across town instead of the local one, it made things hard sometimes. Leaving university to join the military. It can be tough.”
She nodded and put her arm around me.
“You’ll make friends here. I have a couple of people in mind to introduce you to at work,” I told her. “If you spend any time at the Omega Center, you’re going to end up taking a dance class, joining a book club, or finding a group of friends for spa days.”
“The Center has some interesting offerings. You know, I wouldn’t mind joining a book club.” She finished her cone and threw away her trash.
“My sister and her pack, they’re nice people and their omega makes moon cars or something. Go be friends with them. Annoy Brennan and hold wine night inourhot tub.” I grinned. We loved the ‘sister pack.’
“They seem fun.”
The moon hung heavy in the sky as someone played a romantic song on the trumpet. Taking her in my arms, I swayed back and forth.
“Wes,” she giggled, “what are you doing.”
I took her hand and spun her. “Dancing.”
