Dex ground his teeth. If her questions were anything to go by, she still was.
Actually, it sounds like Brads done really well for himself, she said in the offhand tone that people used to pretend they dont care. But Julie mentioned nobodys sure how. Sounds like a mystery. Anybody have a clue?
She asked the question with the enthusiasm and verve thatd always inspired him to crazy acts. Like TPing the science hall, letting the air out of the tires of the entire track teams vehicles and rigging the microphones so everybody on the debate team had sounded like Donald Duck.
I hear it was the stock market. He pulled out just before Wall Street tanked last year, one of the redheads said.
Are you sure? the one who looked just like her asked. I heard hes doing something creative with his degree in computer science. Writing or something like that.
No, no, no, interrupted the third woman. He inherited a pile of money from his great-granddad.
The three women compared gossip sources while Zoe watched, transfixed, as if the answer to Brads success meant world peace and calorie-free chocolate.
Dex shoved his fists in his pockets and kicked at the pillar. After all these years, all the crap the guy had done to her, she still wanted to see Brad? Didnt she ever learn?
Hell, didnt he? When his mom had told him Zoes class was holding its reunion at the hotel, hed been intrigued. When shed mentioned Zoe had booked a room, he hadnt been able to resist a trip home. Even if it meant facing his dads nagging that, instead of starting his own business, he invest all his savings in the Drake, and his moms lamenting that he was ruining his life by quitting his well-paying job as a video-game designer and going out on his own. Using one of his hard-learned lessons from high school, hed dealt with their negativity by throwing money toward a fancy vacation for them and sending them packing with the assurance that hed take care of the hotel while they were away.
Anything for a chance to hang out with his best friend again. And yeah, he admitted to himself, a chance to nurture that tiny hope that he and Zoe might be a little more than friends this time. He imagined the two of them, cuddled up in the tree house back behind the inn property where theyd planned so many teenage escapades. In his imagination, Zoes sweet body was naked as she poised over him calling him big boy and urging him to new heights of pleasure.
Who said you couldnt go back in time? Dex grinned. Five minutes in her presence and he was already fantasizing like a seventeen-year-old again.
I was surprised that careers and bios werent listed in the reunion program, Zoe said, pulling his attention back to the giggling group. I mean, isnt everyone here to catch up on what everyone else has done? Id think Brads success would be the talk of the reunion.
His hopeamong other thingsshriveled at her words.
Im on the reunion committee, the blond lady said importantly. We wanted to make this fun, involve everyone in a game or two. You know, like guess the careers. Thats why we decided to kick things off tonight with the costume party. Its all a part of the theme. Didnt you read your welcome package? Youre supposed to give hints, but keep your actual career a secret. On Wednesday, well play the match game and everyone can share then.
Lovely, Zoe said tonelessly, her smile strained. Was that supposed to tie in somehow to our costume? The whole career angle?
Well, yeah, blondie said with a roll of her eyes. But its supposed to be, you know, like a riddle. Not a giveaway.
From Zoes infinitesimal grimace, her riddle was going to be figuring out how to turn whatever costume she had into a tie-in to her job. Dex couldnt wait to find out what shed ended up doing. Hed tried checking up on her a few times over the years, but hed never had much luck. She didnt even have a Facebook page. It baffled the mind.
Ill bet Candy Love is coming as some kind of super-woman. Shes just so perfect, isnt she? I cant wait to hear what shes been up to, said one of the redheads.
The look on Zoes face was priceless. If he remembered correctly, and when it came to Zoe he usually did, shed hated Candice. With good reason. Like Brad and him, the two girls had gone head to head in all things academic, with Zoe walking away with the lions share of the winnings.
I guess Ill see you all later, was all she said though. It was a long flight and Im a little tired. I might just skip the costume party and catch up with everyone tomorrow.
Oh, no, chorused the ex-cheerleaders in perfect harmony. They all giggled, then one of the redheads said, You have to come to the welcome bash. After all, Brad will be there.
Zoes drooping shoulders straightened at that and she tapped her hip as though she was weighing her choices. Then she shrugged and said, Sure. Ill see you all there. She shifted her purse and prepared to leave, then hesitated and said, If you see Brad, tell him Id like to talk to him, okay?
She headed across the lobby away from the pillar Dex was hiding behind. Frowning, he watched the sway of her hips as she departed, not bothering to follow her.
Brad Young. Again.
Dex shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans with a silent growl. Hed be damned if hed waste his last week of vacation watching the woman hed come across the country to see fall all over some other guy. Especially not his old nemesis. Damned if he was going to spend the week taking a backseat in Zoes attention to that jerk the way he had all through school.
Not that he figured he had a claim on Zoe. Hell, itd been ten years and he knew shed never seen him as anything but a buddy. Sure, hed had a few fantasies of changing her viewpoint, but they didnt even know each other anymore. And the last thing he needed at this juncture of his life was to hook himself into a relationship. So no, no matter what his analytical brain tried to label it, this was not jealousy.
Brad Young was a dick. A class-A jerk whod always been out for himself. Oh, sure, hed always made it look like he was Mr. Friendly. Despite their scholastic competitions, hed gone out of his way to make friends with Dex, had invited him to hang out. Only the hanging out was always at the Drakes rec room and Dex was always the one footing the bill. When Dex had wised up and called him on it, Brad had denied that was why hed kept him around. But when Dexs wallet had closed, the invites had ended.
What really pissed Dex off, though, was that Brad had used Zoe. Things like getting her to write his papers, pretending to be her friend while mocking her behind her back. Hed even tagged her with the lousy moniker of longest-living virgin or something like that. All because hed lost a bet with his football pals about getting down her pants at the drive-in.
Dex didnt figure an asshole like that changed much over time. So it was up to him to protect his old friend. For all her tough shell, Zoe was sensitive. Hed have to make sure she wasnt used or hurt this week.
Yeah. That was it. It was for her own good that hed be doing his damndest to monopolize her time and keep her away from Brad. Definitely nothing to do with jealousy.
As he settled that lie in his head, the twins sauntered past, hips swaying as they whispered together. One of them caught sight of him and stopped, lifted a brow and gave him a long, slow once-over.
As he settled that lie in his head, the twins sauntered past, hips swaying as they whispered together. One of them caught sight of him and stopped, lifted a brow and gave him a long, slow once-over.
Well, hello. Are you here for the reunion? she asked in a throaty purr.
Nah, Dex said, a little unnerved to realize what the phrase eat him up with her eyes actually felt like. It made him want to put protective hands over his privates. Wrong year.
Too bad. Maybe we can talk about new times instead of old, then, she murmured before letting her sister tug her away.
Call him a wimp, but it was all he could do not to run.
Dexter.
And there was a voice that never inspired the urge to escape. With a reluctant grin, he turned to face the elderly woman.
Nana, I thought you were fleecing Vegas of its riches, he said as he bent in half to hug his tiny grandmother. The frailty under his hands was an illusion, he knew. Essie Drake was the strongest woman in the world.
Vegas was rigged, she said with a sniff. Still in her travel weara tracksuit of some fuzzy red fabricher white hair in curls and her gold-rimmed bifocals, she should have looked like Mrs. Claus. Except she was too small, skinny and if Dex were honest, naughty, to be that sainted lady. Instead, Nana looked like a mischievous elf whod put saltpeter in Santas cocoa and graffiti the sleigh.
She was his favorite person. His absolute champion. And the biggest pain in his butt. But any irritation was worth having her in his corner.
His parents had never understood his fascination with video games. Theyd always figured it was a bad habit hed outgrow. Theyd been thrilled that hed gone to college. Although his father said hed only ponied up the funds for Dexs college expenses so that his son could earn big money and support the family business after graduation. That those expenses had been trivial considering Dex had a full-ride scholarship didnt negate the expectation in the slightest. No surprise that when, eight years ago, hed decided to drop out of college and pursue his passion, his parents had thrown a fit.
But Nana? Shed cheered and urged him to strike out on his own. Her faith and encouragement supporting him, hed combined graphic-design skills hed learned in school, his computer obsession and the vivid imagination hed always hidden for fear of being teased. The results, a highly successful career as a video-game designer. As a nod to his fathers worriesand his own self-consciousness at sharing his creative sideDex had designed under a pseudonym, since his first game had featuredand mockedthe small Idaho town that his fathers ancestors had founded. Because of his discretion, and his Nanas unwavering championship, his parents had eventually tolerated his career choice enough to let him come home for the holidays. The buckets of money hed made hadnt hurt either. Funny how money had a way of paving the way with people. All his life, the impression of money had opened doors. Friends, invitations, opportunities to hang with the in crowd.
Only Zoe hadnt cared about what he had. Shed simply accepted him for himself, not for what she could get out of him. Which brought the number of people who did to a grand total of two. Zoe and Nana.
Is your sweetie here yet? his grandmother asked, looking around the lobby. Did I miss her?
Is that why youre back early? Another matchmaking game? Look, Nana, I dont have a sweetie. Im just here to help out Mom and Dad before I get too busy.
Nana shook her head, a look of censure in her bright-blue eyes. Dexter, I have the sight. I see you and your sweetheart hooking up soon.
Dexs jaw dropped. Hooking up? Where do you come up with these things?
He skipped right over the sight comment. Nana thought she was psychic. She claimed to have precognitive dreams and carried around a tarot deck. Much to his parents chagrin, she liked to set up a table in the hotel lobby and offer readings to gullible guests. Recently Nana had taken her dreams on the road, attempting to supplement her retirement income by hitting the jackpot. So far, shed had three trips to Vegas and five to Reno, and the most shed won was a huge stuffed monkey dressed like Liberace.
Admit it, youre here to find your one true love, his grandmother nagged, tucking her hand around his arm so he could lead her out the back door toward her cottage in the private grounds.
Zoes image popped into his mind. But it wasnt love his imagination was interested in, given that she was naked and spread out over his bed.
No true love, Nana. I dont have time. Or more to the point, love didnt have time for him. Dex had tried to fall in love, hed really wanted to believe in the sweet myth of unconditional emotions. But love, like his childhood, had always come with a price: money, favors, connections.
Nana sniffed and stuck out her narrow chin. Love doesnt happen on a schedule, you know. Youd do well to find her this week, before you risk everything in this crazy scheme of yours.
I thought you liked gambling, was all he said. Hed heard all the reasons his family didnt want him to go through with his plans. Four generations of Drakes had run this hotel and it was now on his shoulders to keep it in the family. His parents would tolerate him not directly working in the building, but family tradition demanded that he help keep the business afloat in these hard economic times. Blah blah blah.
But when this vacation ended next Monday, hed make the biggest change of his adult life. He was leaving his well-paying job at Leeton Games and putting all his resources toward starting his own company. Years of dreaming, months of planning, and it was time to make his move. A familiar mantle of nerves settled on his shoulders and Dex tried to shrug it off. After all, the money didnt worry him much. Nor did the risk, even though it was a huge one given that the guy whod drawn up his business plan and who was supposed to sign on as his manager had backed out, citing worries over having to start a company without being able to use Dexs main claim to fame. His pseudonym.
But Dex had an agreement with Leeton Games. When hed started there, the pseudonym had been his idea, but the notoriety it had built over the years had garnered the company a lot of accolades. In return for relinquishing all claims to the name and keeping silent for three years, theyd pay him enough money to give him a healthy cushion for a year to get his business going.
Dex had enough faith in his skills, his talents, to know that the computer-graphics company would take off.
But it was a damned shame his alter ego, Gandalf, had to be thrown on to the sacrificial pyre in the name of insurance.
DID YOU FIND Gandalf yet? Meghan asked over the speaker-phone. Her words were impatient, her tone the equivalent of an irritated shove in the small of Zoes back.
Zoe paused in the act of unpacking to shake her head at the phone. Ive been here an hour, Meg. Its not like the guy is going to be wearing a sign or anything. The biggest companies in video gaming have tried to find his identity for years now and failed. But you think all I have to do is saunter into the hotel and poof, there hell be? Im good, but not quite that good.
If anyone can do it, you can, Meghan insisted. But you have to talk to people. You know that, right? Did you ask around or did you register then beeline to your room to hide?