“I think Ezra’s offer is very generous. Anytime you don’t have to deal with the trains is a good day. Thank you.” I acknowledged him and saw my mother’s smile before she dipped her head to cover it.
“It’ll be here in a minute,” Ezra said, consulting his phone. He peered down the block, the sun in his eyes, and he squinted. Lines fanned out on the sides of his face and from his eyes. We were both older now, no longer smooth-skinned and bright-eyed. Time and memories had shaped us to this moment. I’d lived with the crazy notion that the years had stood still for Ezra while I’d grown older, but this was a man in front of me, not a boy. I wanted to know who he was.
A black car stopped and honked. Ezra checked the plates and nodded.
“That’s it. Your ride awaits.” He opened the door, his smile gleaming in the sunlight.
“Thank you.” She kissed my cheek. “I hope it works out for you.”
“It’s lunch.”
Her raised brow indicated she no more believed that than when I used to promise I’d go to bed instead of reading late into the night. The door slammed behind her, and she was off. Ezra and I stood, watching the car grow smaller as it moved down the block.
“Where would you like to go for lunch?” His hands were jammed into his pockets, and the wind ruffled his hair. The tip of his nose was red, as were his cheeks.
I considered the question. “I’m not sure, but I’m cold, so let’s decide quickly.”
Before I could think, Ezra unwound the black-and-white scarf from his neck and placed it around mine. “Better?”
It smelled of him, his aftershave and his skin, and my stomach did a little loop the loop before I could catch my breath and speak. “Uh, yes. So, how about a burger? Or were you looking for something different?”
“I haven’t been eating too well, but suddenly I’m starved.” A smile crept over his face. “And you know what I’d really like?”
I had no idea. “What?”
“A good pastrami sandwich.”
And suddenly I was starving for that too. “Let’s go.”
* * *
The line to get into Katz’s wasn’t too bad, and Ezra crowded near. “For body heat,” he said, laughing at me.
“That didn’t work when we were kids, you know.” I was always the cold one, and Ezra would keep me warm, wrapping himself around me whenever we were alone.
He nudged me as we crossed the entrance and walked inside. “Yeah, but back then, you were into it as much as I was.”
I shook my head, confused by the riptide of emotions pulling me further and further away from my anger. I followed him to the counter, where the mouthwatering smell of the beef had me inhaling deeply.
“Damn, I haven’t been here in forever.” I watched the men slice the meat so quickly, I wondered how they managed to keep their fingers intact.
“Whatcha want?” the counterman barked at me. “You better not take forever to order.”
Ezra snickered. “Called out, Roe. Move it or lose it.”
I sniffed. “You act like I’m a tourist. I’ll have a pastrami on rye with mustard and half-sours. And a Dr. Brown’s black-cherry soda.”
“Same,” Ezra said. “And fries, but not if they’ve been sitting around. Right out of the fryer.”
The counterman raised his brows. “Oh, a wise guy. You think we don’t got fresh food?” As we spoke, his hands flew over the huge slab of meat in front of him on the butcher block, and within a minute we had two sandwiches piled high, along with a saucer of assorted pickles. Two sodas, the fries, and coleslaw waited on a separate tray.
“I’m just saying. I like mine extra crispy.” They glared at each other until Ezra started to laugh. “You win, Jerry.”
“I know, Ezra. I always do. Now here’s your food and go siddown.”
Bemused at what just happened, I took my tray and followed a still-laughing Ezra to a table in the corner. The din of voices was to be expected, and I hated to admit I was a little disappointed we weren’t going to be able to have a quieter, more private conversation.
“Jerry’s daughter is a model out in LA. She works with our agency.” Ezra scooped some coleslaw onto his plate and gave me the dish.
