Tyler coughed, whacking his chest as he cleared his throat. “Really.”
“Yep,” Iris said. “Then she chops off his head.”
Tyler let out a loud, startled laugh. “Got it.”
“You guys should go talk to Lisa Walsh,” I told the triplets, deciding no more talk about Isaac was necessary. “She owns the boutique on Chestnut. Go tell her how much you like it.”
The triplets bobbed their heads and began wending their way toward Ms. Walsh.
“They do your bidding.” Tyler sounded amused.
“For now,” I said. “I live in fear of the day they rebel.”
“If it makes you feel better,” Ethan said, “Uncle Arnold called them a beautiful bouquet earlier and I thought they were gonna murder him.” He clapped Tyler on the back. “I’m gonna get another drink. You kids have fun.”
Tyler waited until Ethan was gone, then lounged against the wall behind him. “So you seduce Isaac. How very topical.”
“Art mimics life,” I said. “Or something along those lines.”
He smiled briefly, opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again. “Don’t get mad.”
I braced myself. “Okay, so I’m getting ready to get mad.”
“Why are you here with me instead of hanging out with Isaac?”
I hesitated. “I had to introduce you to my uncle.”
“Shira.” He made my name sound likeCome on.
“What?” I said defensively, a slow discomfort starting to build inside me.
“Look, it’s just... You seem like you’re actively avoiding him. You don’t seem very comfortable with him. How can you say you want to date him?”
I felt like he’d driven over me in a bulldozer. “Why do you even have an opinion on this? You’ve never even been in a relationship. How would you know what makes a person want to be in one?”
“I know a good relationship should be based on being able to talk. Onlikingeach other. Not getting drunk or hooking up.”
“Wow, thank you, I really needed your advice on my life. And we didn’t ‘get drunk’ and ‘hook up.’ ”
“You’ve literally spent a week asking for my advice.”
My face was hot enough to boil eggs. “Yeah, because Iwantto get better at talking and opening up. Because I’m not content to keep everyone at a distance and give people fake smiles and a fake persona.”
He reared back as though slapped, his skin paling. A tight, long silence stretched between us. “Got it,” he said, but his voice came out whispery and soft, a trail of smoke about to dissolve.
I felt suddenly very small. “Tyler—I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that—”
“You know what, Shira?” he said. “I’m not the fake one. You’re the one fooling yourself, telling yourself you want Isaac justbecause he looks good on paper, because he’d be easy to be with. Just like Shoshana went for her father’s apprentice instead of her sailor, just like your grandfather married your grandmother—”
“Leave my grandparents out of this,” I whispered harshly. “And leave Shoshana out, too.”
“You wouldn’t have asked me to teach you to kiss if you were really into Isaac. You’re just too scared to go after what you really want.”
My jaw dropped open. “And what do I really want, then?”
“You tell me. If you’re brave enough to say it.”
But I couldn’t say anything at all.
