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The phone rings a few times before an out-of-breath Devrie answers, “Hello?”
“Hi, Dev. It’s Alec.”
“Oh hey, my brother told me you’d be calling.” Her breathing still sounds erratic.
“Where are you? Running a marathon?”
She chuckles. “I’m at the gym.”
Her laugh is as sweet as I remember. “I was calling to see if you wanted to get some dinner tonight.”
“That’s really sweet, but,” she starts to say but pauses, and I hear the click of a water bottle snapping shut. “But you don’t have to do this.”
“Do what?”
“Pretend that you want to catch up with me.”
“I’m not pretending.”
“Alec, we haven’t seen each other in years. I’m sure you’ve better things to do than be Denny’s watchdog. I’m not a little kid. I haven’t been for a long time.”
I chuckle, remembering how sweet Devrie is to everyone, but her sass is always simmering under the surface, ready to go when she needs it.
“If I’m being honest with you. Having you agree to catch up with me tonight would save me from forcing myself to work late again.”
I wasn’t planning on spilling that sad fact about me so soon, but it’s true. My life is filled with work, the gym, sleeping, and more work. On the rare occasion, I’ll go out for a beer with a few buddies from the office, but we end up talking about work the whole time, so it doesn’t count.
“Come on, Dev. Save me from another night of crappy takeout food and staring at my laptop. I’m doing this because I want to see you, not just because Denny asked me.”
Her breathing starts to even out as the hum of the machine she’s working out on starts to fade. “You really want to catch up?”
“Of course.” I hold my breath waiting for her reply. I’m actually a little nervous she’ll say no.
“Okay, then. I’m heading out to ‘Karaoke in the Park’ with some co-workers later. I’ll meet you there by the pavilion just inside the west entrance.”
Inwardly I groan, but not missing the way her voice sounds like she’s smiling. I hate karaoke—and she knows this. She’s testing me.
“Great,” I say with a fake smile on my face. “I’ll meet you there then.”
“You will?” Her surprise amuses me, and I get confirmation that she was trying to mess with me, but I passed her little test. She really did believe I didn’t want to spend time with her, but I do.
“Yes, but I’ve got some things to finish up here before I can head out.”
“Okay, I’ll be there at seven.”
We say our goodbyes and hang up.
“What did I get myself into?” I say out loud to myself.
My brain is telling me that I’m only doing what my best friend asked me to do, but other parts of me are excited at the idea of spending time with her. Even just over the phone, I can tell that Devrie is no longer the shy girl she used to be. She’s got a confidence about her that I find so sexy.
I’m about to walk into dangerous territory, but somehow I don’t care.
* * *
The west entrance to the park is already pretty packed with people by the time I arrive. There are signs hanging everywhere with arrows pointing to where the karaoke is held, but the singing is the biggest indicator of where to go. I follow a line of people walking in and down the path to the makeshift stage. Everyone is out enjoying the last few weeks of the warm summer night weather before fall shows its face.
Looking around, I wonder for a moment if Devrie just set me up to see if I’d show before I finally catch her at a reserved table—and she’s talking to a guy. She throws her head back and laughs at something the guy says, and the guy’s smile is broad as he watches her.
