Paul looked at me like I was an idiot.
Ryan mimed hitting his forehead and said, in a voice reserved for someone stupid beyond belief, “Our sister.”
Now that he said it, I could see the resemblance: the fair complexions, the hair, the shape of their mouths, even the hint of freckles (although those were hard to make out in the gloom).
“All right,” Deputy Bobby said.“You guys are done here, and I don’t want you coming back for a week.”
“A week?”Paul objected.
“You want to make it a month?”
“This is your fault!”Ryan shouted, stabbing a finger at Paul.“You messed everything up!”
“You can’t run right up to someone and shoot them!”Paul screamed back.
“I’m going to kill you for real!”
“I will rip your teeth out!”
Deputy Bobby caught each brother by the arm, and then he gave me a look like somehow this was all my fault.“That’s it,” he said.“Let’s all take a ride down to the station.”
5
After the excitement at the laser tag hippodrome—I mean, therehadto be a word for it—the day settled down, and surprise, surprise, there was even time for the promised shift meal.We went to Rock Top Brewing because Deputy Bobby couldn’t believe I’d never been.In my defense, when we went out as a group, we always went to the Otter Slide, and I only had so much free time available for drinking (something no writer has ever said before).
Rock Top was built on the beach—a gabled roof, cedar shake siding, and a covered patio that was the perfect place to sit and eat (and drink) and watch the water on a day like today.The sign showed the rock that Hastings Rock was famous for, and although a rock doesn’t sound very exciting for a sign or a logo or what have you, it was actually pretty cute.
Inside, they’d gone with an industrial chic look: a high ceiling with exposed ductwork and girders, all painted black; brushed-nickel pendant lights; accent panels of distressed metal; and floor-to-ceiling windows.Part of that was to take advantage of the spectacular view, but some of the windows looked in on the brewery itself, with stacks of stainless-steel tanks on display.
Our waitress had long, dark hair, almond-shaped eyes, and skin just a hair lighter than Deputy Bobby’s.She smiled as she came toward us.
“Where’ve you been, stranger?”She kissed his cheek, and I had the rare and exquisite pleasure of seeing Deputy Bobby blush.“Mom and Dad are going to be so mad they missed you.”
“Hi, Ella.”Deputy Bobby actually fussed with his silverware; it was adorable.“This is Dash.”
Ella gave me a smile.“Deputy Mai told us all about you.”
“He did?”
“It’s nice to meet you!Is this a dine-and-dash, or are you off-duty?”
“Still on the clock,” Deputy Bobby said.
“All right.What’ll you have?”
Deputy Bobby ordered a salad, and after watching me waffle between the burger that had onion rings on it, the french fries that had bacon on them, and the buffalo chicken wrap that could, according to the menu, melt your mouth off your face, he took my menu away and said, “He’ll have the meat-lovers pizza.”
Ella left with another smile and a promise to bring us our drinks—no beer, not while Deputy Bobby and his loyal companion, Junior Deputy Dash, were on duty.
I said, “Rude.”
Deputy Bobby looked at me.
“What if I don’t like pizza?”
Somehow, he made the look even more pointed.
It was hard not to laugh, but I managed to say, “And meat-lovers?Someone could take that the wrong way.That could be an offensive joke about my sexual orientation.”
