Eli glared at her.
“I told him he was tying the lanterns too low, and do you know what he said?” Elsie grinned. “‘Eli’s taller.’”
He froze. Aileen cackled.
“I’ll just—go help,” Eli mumbled, his cheeks burning. He walked down Main Street, his heart thudding with every step.
And then he saw him.
Noah stood on a ladder outside Pruitt’s Bookshop, one gloved hand gripping the rung, the other tying a lantern string to a hook. He wore a red knit beanie that was slightly crooked. His cheeks were flushed from the cold, his breath visible in white plumes.
As if he sensed Eli’s approach, he turned, then stilled. “Hi.”
“Hi,” Eli echoed, the breath catching in his chest.
Noah climbed down the ladder, his boots crunching on packed snow. The space between them crackled.
Eli hadn’t felt awkward that morning, but now the weight of everything that had passed the previous night finally settled.
“I wasn’t sure if you’d be here,” Noah said quietly.
“You asked for helpers, didn’t you?”
A little smile tugged at Noah’s mouth, shy and sweet and devastating.
“So what do you want me to do?”
Noah crooked his finger. “Come here.” He stepped aside, gesturing to the ladder.
Eli chuckled. “You’re sending me up ladders again? I thought I’d done my stint.”
Their hands brushed as Eli walked by, only a whisper of contact, but it sent a warm zing straight through him. He climbed, his fingers trembling as he tied the lantern ribbon.Noah steadied the ladder, his hands braced near Eli’s ankles. Eli looked down once and instantly regretted it.
Noah wasn’t looking at the lantern—he was looking at Eli.
Eli’s grip slipped for half a second.
“You okay?”
“Fine,” Eli muttered.
Don’t fall. He’s already caught you once.
He finished tying the lantern and climbed down. The moment his boots hit the ground, Noah was there, close enough that Eli could feel the warmth under his coat, could smell cedar and cold air on his skin.
Noah shifted his weight from one foot to the other, hands in his pockets. “About tonight.”
Eli’s pulse tripped. “Tonight?”
“Do you still want to come over?”
Eli managed a half smile. “I’ve thought about nothing else since you walked me to the bakery this morning.”
Noah’s breathing hitched.
“Are you two dating yet, or should we start a petition?” A voice cut through the quiet.
Eli turned his head. Mrs. Donnelly stood a few feet away with her pug in her arms, her eyebrows raised high enough to launch a satellite. The pug wore a red knitted coat adorned with bones.
