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“No, I don’t really like cherries.”
“But you told me to make a cherry chocolate cake?”
“Yeah, because my mom likes cherries.”
“Oh. Well, what do you like?”
“I like pistachio flavored things.” He nods at the server. “Screw it. Make it two scoops of pistachio.”
I giggle, saving that information for later.
I get in first to pay for the ice-creams, and we take our cups outside to eat on the deck under the hanging twinkle lights.
“Mmm, so good,” I purr after the mixture of flavors hit my tongue.
“That’s a very weird combination you put together.”
“I know,” I reply. “In my brain, I’m so aware of these things not working together. But there’s just something about it that lights me up. Call it childhood nostalgia.”
“I get that,” he says. “It’s like when you get unlimited refills at a diner and start mixing all the different soda flavors together. Somehow, it still tastes awesome.”
“Until it inevitably doesn’t when you take it too far,” I reply with a chuckle. “Tessa and I used to do it all the time on road trips.”
Parker points at my selections with his small plastic spoon. “If you’re into the combination, it must work. You know your sweets.”
I lift the cup toward him. “Wanna try?”
He lifts his cup. “Trade?”
“Sure?”
We swap cups and I take a spoonful of pistachio. It melts on my tongue with a satisfying nutty flavor. “Mmm. Good choice.”
We switch cups again after Parker tries both ice-creams. “The butter pecan rules, but I don’t love the mint choc chip. I would pair it with cookies and cream instead.”
“Fair enough,” I say, digging my spoon back into my selections. “If anyone at French patisserie school found out I put these flavors together, they’d kick me out. It’s definitely a selection that stays in my hometown.”
“You think you’ll go to Paris for school?”
“Maybe. I can’t imagine being that far away from my family. But, surely, the experience would be worth it.”
Parker chews his lip and I notice a pinkish hue highlights his cheeks. He gestures between us with his spoon. “Has this experience been worth it?”
“I’ve done a lot of things over this week I never would’ve dreamed of doing,” I reply. “But, getting to know you, Parker, has been more than worth it.”
He looks at me with surprise. “Really?”
“Truly. I never thought of you as someone I’d want to hang out with. Now I can’t imagine not spending a day with you.”
He nudges me. “Ditto.”
I giggle, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear. “Who knew Parker Kelly wasn’t just a skater boy who backflips off cliffs? He’s actually a down to earth human being.”
“Shocking, I know,” he jokes.
“The amount of layers to you is surprising. I had such a hard time working out why you were so cagey about your home life,” I say. “If I never went to your house, I would’ve thought you were confident twenty-four-seven.”
“I guess I’ve hidden things pretty well.”
