However, he stopped us there, somewhat close to Dawn’s desk.
With a bright smile pinned on her lips, she looked up at him. “Anything you need, Ren?”
“We’re goin’ across the hall to check out Ally’s space.”
“Right,” she chirped.
“And one more thing,” he started, and she tipped her head to the side, eyes avoiding mine but glued to Ren, all ears.
Bitch.
“I’m livin’ with Ally, so obviously I will not take kindly to you bein’ rude to the woman who shares my home,” Ren stated. Her face froze and my body jerked in surprise. His hand tightened in mine and he kept going. “But just to say, no matter who walks through those doors, rudeness will not be tolerated. You can take that as a verbal warning. Next time, it’ll be written. Do you understand me?”
Her face was getting red, from embarrassment or anger, I had no clue.
I also didn’t care.
Inside my head, I was doing cartwheels while outside I was struggling with gloating.
Her voice sounded strangled when she replied, “Of course, Ren.” Her eyes came to me and she tried to cover by stating, “I’m sorry if something I said was misconstrued as rude, Ally.”
Misconstrued.
Hardly.
“Apology accepted, Dawn,” I replied magnanimously.
Ren was done and I knew this when he tugged me to the door.
But I was me. Ally. So I went with him.
But I also turned back and gave Dawn a huge smile. I lifted my coffee to my lips then out, making a smoochy face in a modified blowing of a kiss.
Dawn glared.
I grinned.
Ren pulled me through the door.
It closed behind us and he walked me to the door across the hall while muttering, “Was that necessary?”
“Totally,” I answered.
His eyes on the door, his lips quirked again then they stopped doing that and he whispered, “What the f**k?”
He pushed down the handle as I heard why he was asking that question.
There were voices coming from inside.
He opened the door, pulled us through and we both stopped and took in the activity.
Daisy was on hands and knees on the floor, arranging big carpet sample squares.
Shirleen was at a wall, taping up paint chips; or more accurately, taping up more paint chips to the dozens already taped there.
And then there were Buddy and Ralphie who’d joined our tribe during Sadie’s Rock Chick Ride. They were a g*y couple who clicked right in like they’d been there years. Ralphie was male-model gorgeous (but better groomed). Buddy was bald, African American and a nurse at Swedish Medical Center. They had a tape measure and they were measuring the floor.
“How’d you get in?” Ren asked instead of saying hello, and all eyes came to us.