“Hey, Rayne,” he says. “Got distracted and forgot my manners.”
“I don’t mind. I’m living vicariously.”
Dice looks at me with a half amused, half suspicious smirk as if to sayWhat have you told her?
I ignore him and scoop up Queenie. She hisses at him.
“Stop that,” I scold. “She’s just playing hard to get. Been looking all over for you.”
“Oh yeah? How about you?”
“I am hard to get. No playing about it.”
“Ain’t that the truth?” He laughs. “Want help distracting the queen so you can slip out?”
“She’s coming.”
“To dinner?”
“She was throwing a fit. Lexie and C said it was fine.”
“You do know she’s performing, right?”
“She has separation anxiety.”
“She has get-my-own-way-itis.”
“I know that’s right.” Rayne chuckles, giving Dice a high five. “Only Lot would have a cat with this much attitude.”
“That’s why they’re perfect together,” he agrees.
“Are you two done?” I tap my foot, side-eye locked and loaded.
Dice pecks my pout and grabs Queenie’s travel bag from the floor, addressing her like royalty. “Your chariot awaits, Your Highness.”
She growls with minor annoyance, just being dramatic.
“Bye.” Rayne waves. “Tell Lexie and C I said hi.” Then she leans in for my ears only. “Man is cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs over you.”
Dice could charm a nun out of her habit, but that doesn’t stop my stupid heart from skipping a tiny beat. Cool as ever, though, I step out into the mild Sunday dusk. Dice holds open the car door and I slide in with Queenie on my lap. He gets behind the wheel, throwing me a crooked grin.
“Ready, my queens?”
“You’re so extra.” But damn if my heart doesn’t start acting up again.
C’s place is the kind of home people build with intention. Warm, inviting, made with love. He’d created it for Sophia, and now he andLexie were building on that foundation, turning it into something that’s theirs.
Throughout the evening, they’re coupley. Affectionate smiles, casual kisses, the kind of genuine connection that can’t be faked. I’m not jealous. Just… aware. This is the first time Dice and I are doing this. Dinner with another couple. Double date territory. If Dice feels any type of way about it, he doesn’t let it show.
The meal’s amazing, a whole event. C made Cochinita Pibil. Pork marinated in citrus and spices, wrapped in banana leaves. He served it with corn tortillas, poblano-cilantro rice, refried beans, and pickled onions. A full spread. Lexie plated it like it belonged on the cover ofBon Appetit. Bright, grounded, and effortlessly elegant. Just like her.
For dessert, we have Flan de cajeta, silky custard with a kiss of cinnamon and sea salt, paired with mezcal that goes down like smoke and velvet.
We eat. We reminisce. We laugh.
I’ve always been crazy about C. Met him through Dice. I didn’t have many friends growing up. Rayne was it. She got my quirks, got that I was social on my own terms. Dice and C didn’t seem to mind that either. They let me tag along, bonded by our creativity: C writing music, Dice mixing beats, me sketching. But it was Dice who secretly had my heart.
After Lexie pops open the bottle of wine we brought, C racks the pool balls.
