Chapter 30
DEXTER
CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT
Icome home late, tired, helmet in hand. I’m barely in the hallway, when her door opens. “Hey, Holly.”
“Hey, Dexter!” She’s standing there barefoot in her white robe like she’s been waiting, eyes bright, smiling. “So the fancy theater downtown is doing this whole ‘Legendary Love Stories’ series. Titanic’s coming up. I figured I’d see if you’re man enough to handle it.”
“I’m not.”
“Oh, come on.”
“Hard no. Besides, how many times have you watched that ridiculous movie?”
“Oh, here we go. It’s a classic.”
“It’s three hours of pure cheese before the ship even hits the damn iceberg.”
Holly drops her voice an octave. “I’m Dexter Thorne. I don’t do romance. I do contracts and icebergs.”
I narrow my eyes. “I don’t sound like that.”
She grins. “Oh, you do. Exactly like that. Anyway, pure cheese? Jack’s words to Rose were pure gold.”
“You’ve got them memorized, don’t you?”
“Obviously. Duh-uh. His lines are worth every swoon. You should be taking notes.”
I shake my head, reaching for my keys. “The day I start quoting Titanic is the day you’ll know I’ve completely lost my mind.”
“Noted. Don’t strain yourself.”
“Wasn’t planning to.” I unlock my door. “Strain is your department.”
“Well, lucky for you! Otherwise, you’d be bored stiff. Spontaneity, Dexter. Risk. Adventure. Epic moments. Just like Jack.”
I turn back around to face her. She leans against her door, grinning. “Must I remind you the ‘epic moments’ didn’t exactly end with a happily-ever-after on dry land? It ended with him frozen stiff while she hogged the raft.”
She gasps. “That’s not the point here, Thorne.”
“How’s that not the point, Rose? Doesn’t matter how epic it looks if you don’t both make it to the other side. That’s the whole point, the ‘make or break the universe’ point.”
She blinks, as if she’s trying to wrap her head around an absurd concept. “You’re such a control freak.”
“And you’re chaos on legs,” I say, opening my door.
Holly shrugs, backing into her apartment. “Guess we balance out.” She lingers for a second before her door clicks shut.
“Guess so.” I shut mine. Or a collision waiting to happen.