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Sometime later, Wren and Dylan reappeared and returned to their seats at the table.
Morgan squeezed my shoulder. “Let’s go over there and chat.”
“I think I’ll stay here and enjoy my beer, if you don’t mind. It’s been a long day.”
“You don’t want to be rude. Have you said hello to Dylan yet?”
I sighed. “Actually, I haven’t.”
She tilted her head toward their table. “Come on.”
I got up and followed her to where they were sitting, hoping it wouldn’t make Wren uncomfortable.
“Hey, you guys,” Morgan said.
“Hey.” Dylan smiled and turned to me. “Great party, Dax. I can’t believe Rafe won the whole damn championship.”
“Yeah. The kid’s pretty amazing.”
He turned to Wren. “You must be so proud of your brother.”
“I am.” She smiled. “So proud.”
Though Wren wouldn’t make eye contact with me, I tried to make conversation with her. “Shannon was talking your ear off there for a while earlier, huh?”
“Yeah.” She breathed out. “We had a lot of catching up to do.”
“I would imagine,” I said, certain I must have come up a few times.
“Wren was telling me the amazing story of how you used a private investigator to find her,” Dylan said. “Talk about a gift to Rafe.”
“Yeah,” I said. “I got lucky. It was definitely…fate.”
My eyes locked with Wren’s for a moment, and I knew what she was thinking: that fate was pretty fucked up sometimes. I really wished I had a moment to speak to her privately.
An hour later, Dylan announced that he had to leave for a family event, and Wren walked him to his car.
I still hadn’t had a chance to talk to her alone since Morgan had been glued to my side. The sun was going down, and many of the teenagers who had converged upon my house were starting to leave.
When Morgan disappeared into the house. I went to see if I could find Wren—to at least say goodbye. I wasn’t even sure whether she was still here. Holding my beer, I walked around to the front of the house where a few boys were getting into cars and taking off. I spotted Wren talking to Rafe on the front lawn.
I walked over to them. “Did you have a good time, Rafe?”
“Yeah. Thanks again. It was really awesome.”
“You’re welcome.” I patted his shoulder. “You deserved it.”
Rafe looked between us, and as if he could read my mind, he turned and walked off without saying anything else. It was a little odd, but I was grateful for the moment to be alone with Wren.
“I haven’t had a single chance to speak to you all day,” I said.
Her smile seemed strained. “Did you need to speak to me about something?”
My heart clenched. “No, Wren. Nothing specific.”
“You did a fabulous job with this party. Truly.”
I nodded. “So…you likely figured out that Morgan invited Dylan here because of you.”
“Yes. That didn’t take rocket science.”
“I had nothing to do with that.” I felt the need to clarify.
“I didn’t think you did.”
“He’s a…really good guy.” I looked down into my beer bottle a moment. “I just wanted you to know that if you wanna see him…it won’t bother me.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I didn’t realize I needed your permission.”
My eyes widened. She’d taken my comment the wrong way. “You don’t.”
“Well, that’s good. Because you certainly didn’t ask my permission before subjecting me to watching another woman all over you today.”
Shit. This was not going the way I’d hoped. I opened my mouth to respond, but she spoke before I could get the words out.
“But this is the new normal, right?” Wren looked up at the sky and shook her head, seeming to catch herself. “God. I’m sorry. You don’t deserve my attitude. Today was just…a lot.”
“Fuck. I know, Wren,” I whispered. “Believe me, I know. There’s no need to—”
“There you are!”
We turned to find Morgan strutting toward us.
Wren pulled her shoulders back and forced a smile. “Hey! I was just telling Dax what an amazing party this was.”
“Yeah. We got lucky with the weather not being too bad.” Morgan smirked. “Can I be nosy, Wren?”
Wren blinked uncomfortably. “Sure.”
“I saw you and Dylan exchange numbers before he left. What did you think of him?”
Wren glanced at me for a millisecond and nodded. “He’s a nice guy. We might grab a drink sometime.”
And there it was. The answer to my burning question.
“Handsome, too, right?” Morgan winked.
“Very.” Wren smiled.
The beer turned in my stomach.
“Well, then my job is done.” Morgan beamed.
“Thank you for thinking of me,” Wren said.
“Of course. You’re Rafe’s sister. You’re family.”
I took a long sip.
“Yeah.” Wren glared at me. “This one’s basically my daddy.”
I nearly choked on my beer.
Morgan laughed, but she had no idea how sick that joke was.
Wren’s face turned red. “Kidding, of course.”
I swallowed.
“Well…” Wren said. “I have to get going.” She turned to Morgan. “Thank you both for a wonderful time.”
