Yes. Yes, it was.
We walked outside, into the glaringly bright day. In unison, we put on our sunglasses. It was hot, but not horrifically so, just blazingly bright, sun reflecting off every surface. “Want to get ice creamfirst?” Noah said. “We have some time before meeting the rabbi.”
“Let’s.”
We made our way toward Jack and Charlie’s on Straight Wharf, a gray-slated creamery with a white fence enclosing their redbrick patio. Seagulls hopped about, seducing crumbs from weak-willed tourists. Noah ordered watermelon sorbet, and I ordered a S’mores Brownie Batter sundae, because you only live once.
“That wasn’t blandishment, was it?” I asked as we settled at the small wooden table we’d managed to snag from a family moving out. You had to be a like a vulture to get a seat sometimes. “You didn’t have some secret motive for liking my earrings?”
God, what was wrong with me? Why couldn’t I let a nice thing be a nice thing?
“Blandishment?”
“Oh.”Ergh.Sometimes I swallowed uncommon words before they tripped off my tongue (unnecessary, adults had told me,just be yourself—but easy for them to say and less easy for me to believe). Still, I’d never felt the need to censor myself around Noah. “It means—”
“I know what it means. I was impressed. Great SAT word.”
“Thanks.” Now I beamed at him. “I got an 800 on the reading comp portion.”
He snorted a laugh. “You worked your score in very subtly.”
“You should feel lucky I’m comfortable enough with you not to pretend false modesty.”
“False modesty would have been if your score came up and you pretended to be humble. This was straight-up bragging.”
“True.” I grinned and crafted a perfectly proportioned spoonful of ice cream, hot fudge, and whipped cream. “Itisimpressive though, isn’t it?”
“Not as impressive as my ability to tie a cherry’s stem into a knot.”
I licked some stubborn fudge from my spoon. “That’s still just hearsay.”
“Oh.Shots fired.” He got up and headed to the ice cream counter. When he returned, he dangled a bright red cherry from its stem. “Prepare to be blown away.” He popped the whole thing in his mouth, and I watched in stunned fascination as his cheeks moved.
Oh my god. I was straight-up staring at his mouth. Just focusing on his lips. His very nice lips.
He popped the cherry back out, a knot threaded in the center.
I started laughing and couldn’t stop. “Oh my god.Where did you even learn that?”
His lips tilted up the tiniest bit. “I’m very good with my tongue.”
“Noah!”
“What?” His eyes danced. “Just stating facts.”
“Sure.”
“I can’t help it if you have a dirty mind.”
“I don’t have a dirty mind.”
He raised his brows. “No? What’s in your mind right now, then?”
I buried my head in my hands, blushing furiously.“Noah.”
He laughed.
“Ugh!” I scooped up some more ice cream to drown my woes in.
