“Did you want to make him jealous?”
Did I?
“What’s the deal between the two of you?” I asked. “Did you seduce his cousin or something?”
He smiled, a smaller, realer one than most of the others I’d seen so far. “Read a little too much Jane Austen?”
“I’m genuinely impressed you made a Wickham reference.” I paused. “Or Willoughby, I guess.”
“Don’t be too impressed. I only read them to help me pick up girls.” He flashed a smile, and I couldn’t tell if he meant it or not.
“I see.”
“And I didn’tseduceShira, but yeah, she had a crush on me. Which went nowhere, because she’s a kid.” He squinted upward. “Imighthave flirted with Barbanel’s girlfriend last summer. But only when it was obvious they were on the outs.”
Noah’s girlfriend. “This is the one who broke up with him because she was going to college and didn’t want a boyfriend?”
He smirked. “Is that what he told you?”
I blinked, confused. “What?”
“Hebroke up withher. She said there was some bull about her being free to date whoever she wanted to in college, but really he didn’t want to do long-distance.”
Huh. Okay.I nodded slowly, taking in this change of information. So Noah hadn’t wanted to do long-distance. And maybe it hadn’t been bull—maybe he really did think people should be single their freshman year of college. MaybeNoahwanted to be single next year.
“You wanna go down to the beach or something?”
I returned my attention to Tyler. “Is that a coded invite for making out?”
He barked a laugh. “Wow.”
“I know. I’d be embarrassed, but turns out I’m really not.”
“Cool. Well. Yeah, it was. I’m cool with you being hung up on Noah. Feel free to use me as a distraction.”
I laughed, then threw back my head and laughed again. “I like you. You’re refreshing.”
He looked hopeful. “Refreshing enough to hook up with?”
“Nope. I’m going to head home, but thanks.”
“Hey, you miss one hundred percent of the shots you don’t take.” He pointed a finger gun at me like he’d walked out of a bad nineties movie. “Good advice for you, too, Schoenberg.”
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
During my Zoom call with my mom the next day, I said: “You don’t think it’s possible O’ma and Edward Barbanel were in contact later in their lives?”
“She never mentioned anything.”
“No, I mean... Okay, you have to promise not to laugh.”
She raised her brows. “I promise.”
“It’s not my fault,” I warned. “Jane had this really weird theory. What. If.” My words slowed down, then tumbled together in my embarrassed attempt to get them out quick as possible. “They hooked up later in life and it resulted in you, theirsecret love child?”
Mom burst into uncontrollable laughter.
“Mom! You promised not to laugh!”
