There’s a smile in his voice when he answers. “Okay. Good to know. And mine is still green.”
“Great.”
We hang up a few minutes later. As I change my clothes, Mom knocks on my door before entering. When she takes me in, her face sours. “Meeting Ezra Davis?”
I laugh. “You don’t have to say his name like he’s a plague.”
“Heis.Anyone who hurts my baby girl is a plague.”
As dramatic as she can be, I feel an intense burst of gratitude for my mom. “Thanks for always having my back. But don’t forget God wants us to forgive our enemies.”
She blinks before donning an innocent expression. “No one said anything about enemies. He’s not my enemy…is he yours?”
I laugh. “Mom.”
“I’m just saying.”
“He does seem pretty sorry for what happened,” I tell her.
She narrows her eyes at me. “And you like him.”
“What? No.”
“You do.” She points a finger at my face. “You’re excited to see him. It’s written all over your face.”
“I’m excited to seeMeredith.And it’s time for me to go.”
She whips a nail file out of her back pocket, raising a whole new slew of questions within me. “Go on ahead. You can eventake my car. But you can’t run from the truth, sweetie. And mommy always knows.”
It’s bizarre to be sitting across the table from Meredith and Carlton with Ezra beside me.
The tiny Boston seafood place smells like buttery lobster, toasted bread, and lemon slices. Meredith looks radiant in her white sweater, hair blown out perfectly. Carlton looks nervous, which is fair, since last time the four of us were together at Dot’s party, everything kind of blew up.
Ezra sits so close to me, our knees touch under the table. It’s way too casual, too natural. I have a hard time looking at Ezra, so my gaze naturally falls onto Meredith and Carlton instead.
Meredith narrows her eyes, her expression practically flashing,convince me you’re not secretly in love with my boyfriend.
I lean into Ezra, letting my shoulder rest against his arm. “You smell good. Is that a new cologne?”
Ezra blinks like he’s caught off guard. I almost kick him under the table, but he catches on quickly and smirks, draping his arm over the back of my chair. “No, but thanks. You smell really good, too.” Ezra matches my energy with so much charm I nearly choke on air. He nuzzles his face into my cheek and presses a quick kiss to it.
“Wow. You two are, like, really cute,” says Meredith.
Carlton clears his throat. “So, uh, how did you two officially get together again?”
I want to fling myself into the harbor because these questions still make me nervous. But Ezra launches into a ridiculous story about me falling off the bleachers at his practice and himcatching me. None of it makes any sense, but Meredith actually giggles.
When our meal ends, we all walk to Boston Public Garden. Ezra’s hand brushes mine, and I don’t pull away, even though I should for my own sake. Meredith and Carlton are ahead of us, so they’re not technically watching. But this is still supposed to be a double date, so I let Ezra thread his fingers through mine and soften a little when he rocks on his heels for half a second while waiting at the crosswalk, the same way he used to when we were kids. It’s such an old, familiar habit that something in me loosens before I can stop it.
For one stupid second, he feels less like the boy who hurt me and more like the one who used to sit beside me in class and make me laugh.
The park has always looked to me like something out of a painting. The famous suspension bridge arches over the water like an image on a postcard, casting its rippled reflection across the thawed water. Weeping willows sway their long branches, brushing the surface like fingers trailing across a silk blanket. There have been times Boston is slammed with blizzards this time of year, but we’ve hardly gotten any snow, and the bits we have keep melting, refusing to stick around.
When we reach the entrance to the swan boats, the operator waves us forward. “Two in each row, please. Keep the seating balanced, please.”
Ezra’s hand settles lightly on my back. “Front row?”
I look over at Meredith, who is totally still watching us. It’s almost like she still has doubts that Ezra and I are a real couple. So, I’ll just have to show her she’s wrong.
