“Ha!” I faced him. “Some things never change! You should have heard how she grilled me after each one of my dates growing up. Heaven help me if I didn’t call her with a full report within fifteen minutes of returning home.”
Lauren cleared her throat and tapped her Louboutin-clad foot for emphasis. “This is not time for a trip down memory lane. I’m waiting for answers.”
I shrugged. “Sorry to break it to you, but there is not much to share.”
“I’ll be the judge.”
“Pete works in the town where I live. I’ve seen him around a few times recently.”
“Tell me the truth, missy,” she demanded.
“Fine.” I frowned. “He’s the cop.”
Her mouth hung open. Then she narrowed her eyes. “The cop. You’re telling me he’s Officer Jerk Face?”
I nodded.
“Thank god Gary is an optometrist because you need your eyes examined, stat!”
I glanced around the room and tried to locate him, unsuccessfully. I had a desperate urge to try to make things right, but I didn’t have a clue as to what I could say to help erase the past. At a loss, I did what I always did when times felt too tough for me to process. I pushed away my feelings, masked my face, and pretended everything was okay. Before she could bombard me with another batch of questions, I stood up and took the glass of wine out of Lauren’s hands and placed it on the table. “Come on, let’s dance!”
I didn’t need to twist her arm. In an instant, we were in the center of the dance floor. Old friends and former flames gravitated toward us. The music transported me back to a simpler time, and the movement distracted me enough to block some of the regrets from my mind. Before I knew it, I was sweaty and laughing, feeling lighter than I had in a long time. I had even stopped searching for Pete in the crowd.
The song changed to a faster one, and Lauren’s moves became more animated. I tried my best to keep up with her and was doing pretty well until I caught sight of Pete. He sat alone by the bar, staring into space. He looked somber, lost—exactly the way he did all those years ago when he’d linger silently on the sidelines waiting for someone to pick him to be on their dodgeball team. He was always the last kid selected.
All the feelings I had tried to dance away rose to the surface at the exact moment Lauren grabbed my hand and began to spin me in a circle.
Caught off guard, Lauren pulled my body in one direction, but my right foot remained firmly in place. I lost my balance, and my ankle twisted. Adding insult to injury, my high heel shoe slipped off my foot and skated across the dance floor just as I landed with a thud.
“Waverly!” Lauren screamed, drawing more attention to the spectacle I had made of myself.
“I’m fine,” I hissed.
Several other people gasped. The words “is she okay?” echoed around the room. I felt my face flush, and I wished the ground would swallow me whole.
“Here.” Lauren extended her hand to me.
I reached for it and pulled myself up. When I did, I realized I couldn’t put weight on my right foot. Wonderful.
Lauren saw me flinch. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” I said through gritted teeth as I kicked off my other shoe. I contemplated swinging my hips to the music, but I didn’t have the wherewithal to keep up the charade.
“Liar.” She bent down and picked up my pumps. Then she slid her arm around my waist. “Lean on me.”
Lauren ran interference from concerned former classmates; Gary met us on the dance floor and guided us to the closest chair. I plopped down. She looked panic-stricken. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay. You were always much better at following than leading.”
“It’s not my fault your white girl moves can’t keep up.” She smiled half-heartedly.
I massaged the tender spot and groaned. “Look, it’s swelling already.”
“Do you want me to send Gary to get you some ice?”
I was about to say “yes” when someone behind me said, “No need. I have some.”
I turned slowly and was shocked to see Pete holding a plastic bag. He walked around to face me.
