Page 37 of The Pucker and the Princess
How long ago did these people have to deal with her? And if she was so awful, why was Dozer with her?
I’m almost tempted to ask, but think better of it.
“What movie are you watching?”
Her whole face lights up at my question. “Monsters, Inc!” Then she deflates a little. “But Noah’s scared of Randall.”
Noah nods solemnly. “Wandall’s sca-wy.”
I nod, too. “That makes sense. It’s his job, after all.”
“He’s mean,” Noah adds.
“True. And no one likes mean people, do they?”
Both kids shake their heads.
“Do you want me to fast forward a little bit so you don’t have to watch Randall being scary?” Nick asks from the kitchen.
“No!” Shelby protests while Noah nods and cries, “Yes!”
“Last time you watchedMonsters, Inc, we didn’t fast forward at all,” Nick reminds Shelby in a patient voice. “I think it’s Noah’s turn to decide this time.”
Crossing her arms, Shelby slumps into the couch with a pout on her face. Nick scoops her up and tosses her over his shoulder, making her squeal in a combination of outrage and delight, then he scoops Noah up one handed, settling him over the other shoulder. The little boy kicks and giggles, clearly delighted with this treatment.
“Your kids are adorable,” I say to Tina once they’ve left the room.
She smiles, looking relieved. “Thank you. I think they’re pretty great.”
“How old are they?”
She fills me in on their ages—five and three—and tells me about the plans for Shelby’s upcoming birthday party and all thedrama that goes into planning and executing a kids’ birthday party.
As we talk, Dozer’s hand glances across my shoulder, the gesture almost intimate, but when I glance his way, he just smiles at me. “Thank you,” he mouths.
I give him a quizzical look, but he waves me off and quietly says, “I’ll explain later.”
“This was so fun,” I tell Dozer as he drives us back to our condo building. “Thank you for inviting me.”
He glances my way, his face lit by the glow from his dashboard and passing streetlights. The sun went down a while ago. Dozer and Nick’s teammate Jack Bouchard came shortly before we sat down to eat, bringing a small flower arrangement for Tina that Shelby absolutely loved. He stayed for quite a while afterward, joining in as we all talked and laughed and played games—a few rounds of Hi Ho Cherry-O and Uno and then a family-friendly version of Cards Against Humanity in deference to the little ears present. The kids were less interested in the last game, though they wouldn’t admit it at first. Eventually Tina declared that Shelby was on her team and Noah was on his dad’s, which was met with voluminous protests until the kids switched so Shelby was with her dad and Noah was with Tina. After that, they were up and down and running around more than playing, but they’d pop up from time to time to give their input on which card their parent should play despite the fact that they couldn’t read them at all.
Well, Shelby could a little. She’s in kindergarten and learning to read this year.
“I’m glad you could come. This is one of the best Thanksgivings I can remember.”
I grin at him. “Oh, yeah? Even the part where the kids were telling me about your last lady friend and how mean she was?”
He bares his teeth and hunches his shoulders. “Yeah … She was”—he tilts his head to one side, seeming to search for the best words—“not a very good friend.” He glances at me again. “I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned her to you before. Jenny? The last woman I dated? I brought her with me on the vacation we all went on in June.”
“Ohhh. Right. Yeah. I think I remember something about that. You mentioned taking her along was a bad choice and that she tried to break into your condo after you broke up with her. But I didn’t realize she was mean to little kids too.”
“Honestly, I didn’t really realize it either,” he admits. His expression turns pained. “I don’t think I was all that nice to them, either,” he confesses quietly.
I let the silence stretch between us for a moment before sucking in a breath. “Well, they seem to have forgiven you. The kids were excited to see you, and I didn’t see you be mean to them once.”
He flashes me a tiny smile. “Yeah. They’re fun kids. Jenny wanted to go out drinking and stay up late and sleep in while we were on vacation. That’s what vacation is for, she said, and I couldn’t really argue with that logic. I just wanted her to be happy because I thought that’s what I was supposed to do.” He presses his lips together and shakes his head. “That’s why I decided to take a break from dating.”
I practically hold my breath, waiting to see if he’ll add more. While he mentioned weeks ago that he wasn’t dating at all right now, he never really elaborated as to why.
