“Pops was right. I haven’t been paying attention lately. Bugger . . .” Alex noticed me. “And you, I was rude to you. Mom M was right to call me on it. I’m sorry, Sam. I feel like I keep doing that to you. I’m not such a jerk all the time, I promise.”
“It’s no big deal.”
“It’s just that they talk about you all the time. I feel I know you . . . That doesn’t excuse it, I’m just trying to explain it.”
The car grew warm.
Alex continued, “They love me, the Muirs, and that makes me protective of them and anything important to them—now that includes you. But I shouldn’t tease or criticize you. I don’t know you that well.”
“I’m not offended, Alex.” And I wasn’t. I was dwelling onThey talk about you all the time.I took a deep breath. “What do they say about me?” I didn’t think the Muirs would break my confidence, but I wondered.
“It’s what they don’t say. They drop your name in conversation like you’re a member of the family, and you light up Pops’s eyes. You can see that?” Alex smiled at me. His face was so transparent that I believed him. That’s all he knew.
“No.”
Alex looked at me a moment longer, letting me absorb the compliment. “You should look harder.” He continued, “They’ve also said that you work hard, you’re amazingly smart, you come for dinner weekly, you like the kids you live near, and you’ve got some quirky friends, namely a girl named Ashley. Hence, I feel I know and adore you too.” Now he was teasing me.
“ ‘Accept my thanks for the compliment.’ ” I donned Lizzy in all her glory and hoped we could pass to a new topic.
“So I don’t need to ‘use my breath to cool my porridge’,” he replied.
“Ugh . . . How could I have forgotten that about you? Do you know every book written?”
Part of me laughed and another part panicked. I like Alex. Heck, on some level I probably have a crush on him, or some residual hero worship—either way, he disconcerts me. I can’t rely on my characters; he knows them all. And the real me? He’s Alex Powell, for goodness’ sake. Who am I kidding that any of this matters to him?
He chatted a bit more on the drive to Conleys’ and kept it light and easy. Maybe he sensed I needed space. I got out of the car without many more words.
But of course he had the last ones. “I know what you’re thinking, Sam. ‘Teazing, teazing man! I will think no more about him.’ I hope you won’t stick to that.”
This time I laughed. “Good night, Alex. ‘I know my own strength and will never be embarrassed byyouagain.’”
He smiled softly at me. “You make a better Lizzy, Sam. Jane Bennet is too quiet for you.” And he left me standing in the driveway still smiling as he drove away.
He’s infuriating, Mr. Knightley, but he’s also a really nice man.
Now back to studying. It’s been a crazy few days, but finals are next week so it’s going to get worse. Then spring break starts, and Debbie and I have been invited to Ashley’s house in Naples, Florida. Can you imagine the blunders I can commit there?
Sincerely,
Sam
P.S. I can’t sleep. Josh dropped by.
“You’re home. I’ve been calling for hours.”
No hello?“I went to the Muirs’ for dinner. I left my phone here. What’s up?” I let him in the door.
“I wanted to see you. You’ve been so busy that I haven’t had a chance to congratulate you. I’m so excited, hon—the article, the interview.”
He pulled me into his arms and kissed me. Then he said, “I got you something. Come here.” He crossed the room to the couch and patted the seat next to him. I followed, and he put a small, light blue box tied with a white ribbon into my hands. “Go on, open it.”
I pulled off the ribbon feeling slightly detached. I remembered a similar moment, long ago, with Dan and hoped my reaction would be warmer now, more sincere. But I didn’t feel it. I still don’t.
Inside I found a beautiful silver necklace—a thin chain with a star pendant. And in the star’s center rested a sapphire. It was extraordinary. Josh took my silence for awe. Perhaps it was.
He reached for it. “Let me put it on you. You’re my star, you know.” I lifted my hair as he reached around to clasp it at the back of my neck. He pressed a kiss there before I lowered my hair.
“There. It’s perfect. Go look in the mirror.”
