He nods. “Sure. Whatever works for you.”
As I study him, I chew my lip. “I feel kinda bad, Ez. It seems like there’s nothing in this for you.”
“What do you mean?” The corner of his mouth lifts. “Helping you is what’s in it for me. I messed up when I didn’t hold up for you. You know, back then. So, if doing this means you’ll forgive me…” He leaves the rest of his sentence unfinished.
I lean across the table to level my gaze at him. “It does.”
We both fall quiet for a moment, the sounds of the café filling the space between us—soft indie music, milk being steamed, a barista humming as she wipes the counter. The sun filters in through the window beside us, casting golden light across the table and making the condensation on our drinks sparkle.
“So,” Ezra says after a beat. “Should we take some photos today?”
“Photos?”
“Yeah. You know…you post one. I post one.”
I giggle. The thought of putting his face on my feed makes my stomach flip. Since Meredith took those pictures of us on the swan boat, I’ve examined the collection of them every night.Seeing the way mine and Ezra’s eyes were locked makes me blush every time. But there’s no way I have the guts to post any of them because the vulnerability of that moment with him is way too visible.
“Maybe later,” I say. “I think just being seen together as much as we have is enough for now. Baby steps.”
He nods and takes another sip of his matcha and lets the silence settle again. This time, it’s not so uncomfortable.
I glance over at him. “Another thing.”
“Lay it on me.”
“We need to limit PDA as much as possible.”
He grins, his dimples deepening. “That’s gonna be tough. As you might have already noticed, I’m a very handsy boyfriend.”
“I have noticed, actually.”
He laughs. The sound mixes with the café’s background chatter, but a few people at nearby tables glance over. “We’ve already kissed, Rue.”
My cheeks burn like they just got set on fire. “Yeah, and thatcannot happen again.Not ever.”
Ezra appears to be fighting a smile. “But we kissed right in front of your friend. Surely, she’ll expect us to do it again.”
“Fine.” I cover my face.
“What about holding hands?”
“Sure. I guess so, Ezra.”
He smirks. “Okay. And I vote that we don’t talk to others in a romantic way, or date anyone else. Even if we’re only pretending to date, it doesn’t seem right to me.”
“Ezra.” I hiss, glancing around to make sure no one heard. “No talking about it being pretend. Toanyone.”
He chuckles and holds up his hands. “Fine. Got it. I’ve only told Olivia, but I won’t tell anyone else.”
“What? You told your sister?” I cover my face. “This is already a disaster, and we still have three more months together.”
“Nah.” He nudges his foot against mine under the table. “This is gonna be fun.”
I peek through my fingers. “You’re enjoying this too much.”
“I’ve had worse days.”
I lower my hands and sit back, taking another sip of my latte. “Let’s just get through this without straying from the plan.”
