Page 23 of The Wilderwomen

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“There must be a ton of fun things to do in”—Finn read the address at the bottom of the menu—“Filbert, Texas.”

Zadie looked skeptical. “Yeah, okay.”

“Oh, come on. Live a little.” Finn vigorously shimmied her shoulders.

“That’s weird. Don’t do that.” Zadie looked around the diner to see if anyone was watching, but all the other patrons were focused on their breakfasts. If there was one thing that hadn’t changed about her sister, it was her willingness to embarrass herself in public.

“Youdoremember how to have fun, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I have fun all the time,” Zadie said, although the uncertainty in her tone belied her words.

“Okay, if you say so.” Finn leaned back, casually draping her arms over the back of the booth.

“I do.”

“I believe you,” Finn said, humoring her, then examined a hangnail on her left ring finger.

“Fine. You want to know what I do for fun?” Zadie stood up, wincing as the vinyl upholstery nearly ripped the skin off her bare thighs. She spotted a Wurlitzer-style jukebox pushed up against the far wall and headed toward it. Finn swiveled around to watch her, hiding a grin behind the back of the booth. Zadie slid a quarter into the jukebox, punched a button or two, and returned to her seat.

A second later, the opening bars of “Baba O’Riley” started playing. Zadie first looked around to make sure no one was watching. Then as the drums kicked in, she started air drumming along withthem. After she’d banged out the first verse, Finn said, “So that’s how you have fun? Pretend drumming while making awkward eye contact with people?”

“No. Most of the time it’s with my cat. Well, Dustin’s cat, I guess. It’s actually really cute. Once he didn’t break eye contact with me for the entirety of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’”

“Okay, so just to recap, you like air drumming…”

Zadie nodded.

“And staring contests with cats.”

“If the mood strikes.”

“Anything else?”

Zadie thought for a moment, then reached into her bag and pulled out her copy ofThe Fisherman’s Desire.“And this.”

“You’re still reading that stuff?”

“Thatstuff?” Zadie playfully raised her eyebrows.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Finn corrected, but the trouble with backpedaling is that you can’t see where you’re going. “I just meant—”

“It’s okay,” Zadie said. “Romance novels aren’t for everyone.”

Finn sat forward and leaned her elbows on the table. “What do you like about them?”

Zadie hadn’t thought much about it, so she took her time answering. “Because I like the idea that two people can have all the odds stacked against them, but they figure out a way to make it work, because their love for each other is more important than all the other bullshit.” Then she added, “I’m not stupid. I know that’s not how real relationships work, but that doesn’t make it any less satisfying.”

Finn picked up the book and started flipping through the pages. “Can I borrow this?”

“Sure. I’m done with it, anyway.” It felt good to chat like this with her sister. She was reminded of the nights she used to read to Finn when she was young. Finn would nod off to sleep mid-story, and soon it was just Zadie readingThe House at Pooh Cornerto the owls.

“If you like it, I have a whole stack of others,” Zadie said.

Finn held upThe Fisherman’s Desireand waggled her eyebrows. “Are they all as hunky as this guy?”

“Hunkier.”

The girls paid the bill and left the tip on the table. “Goodbye, Luanne,” Finn said, patting the armadillo on the head on their way out. As she stepped out into the parking lot, shielding her eyes from the desert sun, her phone buzzed in her back pocket; eight missed calls and three voice mails, all from Kathy. “Hey, I need to make a call.”


Tags: Ruth Emmie Lang Fantasy