I laugh and then take an enormous bite of my s’more. It’s delicious, and I moan at the smoky, sweet taste. It’s also messy, so I do my best to eat neatly. He catches me and then grins.
“Don’t even try,” he quips. “No one looks good eating one of these. Not even a celebrity like you.”
I kick him lightly with my bare foot as I suck chocolate off my thumb.
He’s still laughing a little as he bites into his, and I think he’s wrong. Because somehow, hedoeslook good doing it.
When I finish my square, I dust off my hands and exhale. “Ihaven’t had one of those in ages. I forgot how perfect they are. I picked up the supplies for my kids, but we haven’t gotten to it yet.”
I pop a raw marshmallow in my mouth as Jesse leans over to reach for another graham cracker. He’s close enough to me that I can smell the way the smoke and sugar have settled on his skin. I move toward him just a few inches, trying to breathe it in, savoring the smells of summer. Just as I do, he sits up, his shoulder rocketing up into my jaw.
“Shit! Are you—” He sets down the box of crackers and, without hesitating, puts one hand on the back of my head and the other under my chin.
I stare at him with wide eyes for a moment, more stunned by the sudden, gentle physical contact than the painful one.
“Is your mouth okay?” he asks, examining my puffed-out lips.
I nod, pointing up to my face as I explain, “Moshmow.”
He smiles with relief, understanding that I have a marshmallow in my mouth.
I start to say it’s a good thing I did, or I might have chipped a tooth, but it comes out like, “Ers a guhfung I duhd—”
I try to chew and swallow, but it seems only to make the puff expand in my mouth. It makes me laugh, which then makes him laugh.
“No, no, take your time,” he says, fully amused. “You were saying something about amoshmow?”
I make another attempt, which makes us both crack up, tears of laughter now filling my eyes. I feel like a naughty teenager in a way I haven’t in—well, maybe I never have.
Finally, I manage to swallow, and then I gasp out, “Okay, only the mini ones from now on.”
“Ah, but that was so fun to watch.”
Our eyes lock and my breath catches. Warmth rises in my cheeks, and I drop my gaze and shift back from the fire, suddenly unable to handle the heat of either. I clear my throat, desperate to shake off the abrupt tension and get us back on track.
“I just can’t believe what a coincidence this is.” Tilting my head to the side, I give him an appraising once-over. “It is a coincidence, right? I was joking earlier about the stalker thing.”
The corner of Jesse’s mouth tilts upward. “I promise, it’s a coincidence. Shelby does our bookings, and I didn’t pay much attention to the address. But when we pulled up, I recognized the house.”
My brain tingles as a memory struggles to form. There are disjointed, grainy images but I can’t get the full picture. Like an old television set with a bad signal.
“I came back to visit once,” I say quietly. “But not in the summer. That summer you and I hung out was my last one here.”
“I know. But I had my autograph book ready, just in case.” He’s looking at me carefully, like he’s expecting me to decode an unspoken subtext.
And then the missing puzzle piece slides into place. A long-repressed memory comes flashing back in full Technicolor. The prickle of damp earth caked to my bare legs. The lingering scent of sunscreen. And a boy, holding me close, telling me that everything would be okay.
I stare up at Jesse now and understanding passes between us. The unspoken acknowledgment of a shared childhood memory.
“Thank you,” I say hoarsely. “For that day. I haven’t thought about it in ages. I was… devastated. But you made me feel better.”
He swallows as he turns back to the fire. There’s something more there, something he isn’t saying.
Another more recent memory forces its way to the front of my mind. Toby’s words as he ribbed his brother at the café.You never missed an episode…
“Wait.” A slow grin spreads across my face. “You watchedLittle LLC. You told me you would before I left and… you did.”
Jesse’s gaze is still fixed on the fire, but I can see a scarlet flush is creeping up his neck. I suspect it’s not only from the heat of the flames.
