Page 70 of Grave Beginnings

“Oh,” Nikki said. “First one wear you out already?”

I set up my phone to record. “As if. Ready?”

She hit the button. We danced. I messed up at least twice, but we both laughed, breathing hard and taking a break to eat more cookies. I ended the recording and spent a few seconds editing the video to cut out the extra before sending it to Angel with a text that said:

Sometimes I’m clumsy.

“Want to try?” I asked Ivan.

He stood off to the side, munching on cookies. “I don’t know how.”

“We’ll pick an easy one for you,” Nikki said.

“There are a few instruction videos,” I added, scrolling through to one of the beginner ones. “The whole reason my living room is set up this way is because we used to do this all the time.”

“Yeah, I missed doing this,” Nikki said.

“Sorry,” I told her. “I’ll try not to bury myself in work like that again.”

“Not all of us can be superheroes,” Nikki said. “Might as well be you saving the world.”

Nikki tugged Ivan into a spot near the front. He looked really uncertain, but she had a way of lightening the mood that I had always adored and really hoped would work on my skittish little brother.

Not bad.

Do you dance?

Maybe. We’ll have to save that for our second or third date.

We are having lots of dates now?

I couldn’t help but smile at the idea.

Yes.

I like a man who plans ahead.

Then you’re going to love me.

“Jude, come on, join us,” Nikki said.

Gotta dance.

I put the phone down to join my brother and my best friend. All the frustration of the past few days faded as I moved my body to the music, laughing over fails and cheering over wins as we ate cookies and danced until we were all sweating and exhausted. I only thought about the SED case once, and Angel a dozen times, but my brother’s tentative smile was the best part of the whole evening.

23

Nikki left shortly after nine.The three of us demolished half the cookies, though I packed up a bag to take to the office as a peace offering tomorrow. Ivan zonked out on the couch, a picture of him in cat form, drawn by Nikki, sitting on the floor next to his head where he’d set it down.

I turned off all the lights and checked the door lock, then grabbed my e-reader off the charger and headed to bed. Peanut Butter took up a spot on the opposite pillow.

“I need a boyfriend as reliable as you,” I told the cat. He rolled over to present his belly for scratches as I got into bed, and I couldn’t help but chuckle as I obliged. “Belly scratches are good.” The unprompted mini dance party had helped my mood more than I’d expected.

The e-book I was reading was about a guy transported to another world, and all the guys in that world fell madly in love with him. He was up to five lovers in this book. “If only,” I said. “One to cook, one to clean, five to fuck me silly.” Only, the last made me think of dark brown eyes.

I tried to focus on reading as my eyes grew heavy. PeanutButter snuffled up next to me, purring his sweet little rumble as I set the e-reader down and closed my eyes, succumbing to sleep.

“Jude,” someone called. “We’ve been waiting for you. Let’s play.”