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“Good to see you two working things out,” Ezra said in a much quieter voice this time, giving them a respectful nod before sliding the ticket to the kitchen staff.
“Now,we need to find a movie.”
Ellie
We were still debating movies by the time Ezra was sliding three to go boxes our way. He wrapped them in a plastic bag so we didn’t have to carry them separately.
“This one’s on the house. Diner’s open for another two hours. I’ll text you when I’m done here.”
“Thanks, Ezra, I can’t wait,” I told him as I took the bag and hopped off the stool. I led the way outside but then realized we’d forgotten one important thing.
“What’s wrong?” Dean asked, stopping and glancing down at me. It was nice that he didn’t say it with annoyance. The bar wasn’t exactly high after my past experiences but these guys were constantly blowing me away with their genuine kindness.
“We invited Ezra and both of you are here, which leaves…”
“One more alpha,” Atlas finished for me. “I’ll text Collin now so he can come over if he’s free.”
“Perfect,” I said. Though I glanced at Dean, realizing we’d hijacked the date to be a group date. “Are you okay with this? Our date kind of got derailed.”
“A pack date is overdue. We’ll find more solo time,” he promised, pulling me close and pressing his lips to mine. I deepened it just a little but ended it the moment warmth slammed into me again.
I might have to bring this up to the guys sooner rather than later.
They laughed as I fanned myself. “Is it hot out here or is that just me?” I joked. Dean laughed and tucked me into his side as Atlas texted the rest of the pack.
Dean lived in the only apartment complex in town. It was only three stories and much smaller than the fifteen-story I’d lived in before I moved.
The building itself was in a horseshoe shape. The front door sat in the middle of the cute courtyard. Someone took good care of their property.
“My apartments in the city had nothing on this. Our keycode lock was broken on the front door and the stairs were a safety hazard,” I said as I took it all in.
Inside, it was even better. The lobby was clean and new. Community mailboxes and a memo board lined the far wall and a small, little sitting area sat just inside the door.
What I hadn’t expected was Dean’s apartment to be so militaristic clean. Everything was some neutral color of gray or white. The kitchen was stainless steel and shined to perfection. Not a single thing sat on the counters outside of a coffee maker and a toaster.
The living room had no art on the walls but the furniture was well taken care of. It seemed like he’d just moved in but I had a feeling it was months ago and he was just too depressed about the breakup and loss of his twin to make it a home.
“I know it’s pretty empty but I just never took the time to make it home,” Dean said as he echoed my thoughts.
“I’m so sorry,” Atlas said. His head was hanging low and there was obvious shame in his voice. “This is all my fault. Look at how you’re living, Dean.” He held up his hands to gesture at the blank walls. Before Dean could protest, he continued. “I don’t mean it in a bad way, this just isn’t you. Where’s the nerdy shit?”
“Do you guys need a minute? I can step away,” I offered. They both shook their heads no.
“You can’t blame yourself either. I was a dick, too.”
“Yeah, but I told you togrowup,” Atlas said. “That’s what made you Dean, though.”
Atlas was fighting his emotions so badly that he went to the window and crossed his arms, breathing hard. Dean walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.
“I forgive you. I’m sorry again for my part in all this. I should have said something sooner. We should have never let her get between us. I questioned it but I didn’t know how to come back, the divide seemed too big.”
“We were both idiots,” Atlas said eventually.
They stood for a few moments in silence. There were a lot of harsh feelings to clear between them, so I stepped away to give them the opportunity.
The kitchen wasn’t far but laying out the snacks was the only thing I could think to do. After a few minutes, I grabbed our dinner and started laying it out on the table.
The twins came back to life at the sound of me moving around the kitchen. Dean started making drinks while Atlas grabbed plates. I would have been happy to just eat out of the to-go boxes but I wasn’t going to stop them when they were on a mission.
