He nodded. “I really enjoyed the one about the cleanliness of women’s locker rooms across New York’s public universities.”
“Oh my God,” she groaned, letting her face fall into her hands.
“And your op-ed from high school where you called your principal a puritanical hypocrite over a proposed book ban.”
She laughed and lifted her gaze back to his. “But… why did you read them?”
“Because they matter,” he added truthfully.
Silence stretched out between them then. She looked stunned, and suddenly it felt like there was an impending weight above them, that if they stayed here any longer, more would be said and he didn’t want to press his luck.
“We should head back,” he murmured.
“Oh,” she replied. “Sure.”
Will opened the door. Without thinking, he placed his hand against the small of Lizzy’s back as he let her pass in front of him, feeling the soft leather of her jacket against his palm. It was an innocent gesture, but heat still flooded his veins, and once she found her footing on the grass outside, he removed it, turning off the light, then clenching his hand in a fist at his side to keep from reaching for her again as they walked back to the house.
“Oh! You’re back!” Emma exclaimed when they entered the hall from the side porch off the living room. She was standing by the front door, a few overnight bags at her feet.
Will stopped. “Are you leaving?”
“First thing tomorrow morning,” she replied brightly. “I have to get back. Work emergency.”
“An art advisor emergency?” Will asked, suspicious.
“Yup! Right, Knightley?”
George was coming down the stairs, a bag over one shoulder and a scowl on his face.
“No comment,” he murmured, throwing his leather duffel into the pile, then headed back toward the living room.
Emma seemed unfazed. “But you’re staying for a few days, right, Will?” she asked. Her gaze darted to Lizzy, then back to him, as if working to psychically communicate her meaning.
He didn’t reply. Emma and Charlie clearly went to the same school of subtlety.
Thankfully, Lizzy just looked amused.
“I should really get going, too,” she said.
“You sure?” Will asked.
“It’s getting late.” She was already moving toward the front door. “It was nice meeting you, Emma. Tell George I said goodbye.”
Will gave Emma a look, then opened the front door for Lizzy. “I’ll walk you out.”
Lizzy fished her keys from her pocket as they walked down the front steps, then followed Will to her pickup truck parked in the driveway.
“Are you going to be all right getting home?” Will asked. “I could drive you, or—”
“I’m fine,” she said, stopping beside the driver’s side of her truck. “A girl can only be escorted home so many times in one day.”
He nodded. The atmosphere suddenly felt charged, like when they were leaving the shed, and it made it hard for him to think clearly.
“Elizabeth… Lizzy,” he said quietly.
She paused with her hand on the driver’s-side door.
“The waves will be good tomorrow,” he offered. “You can park here and use the stairs down to the beach. Less crowded than in town.”
