"That depends."
"When did the Obama thing fade?"
He laughs again, cutting a sideways glance at the road before it slides back to me. "My dad ran his mouth again, I see." He doesn't answer the question.
"Stop avoiding it and tell me about your crush on THE Barack Obama."
Callahan stares at the road. A little flush creeps into his cheeks, visible even in the dark.
"Cut me some slack." His shoulders lift. "I was eleven."
"You cried during the inauguration."
"It was a historic moment. A lot of people cried."
I turn in my seat to face him fully. "So when did it fade, huh?"
He's quiet for a second, nodding like he's genuinelyturning it over. Then that smile deepens and he meets my eyes, straight and unhurried.
"It didn't." Simple as that. "That man is the single most beautiful man to ever exist and the best president this country ever had and he will forever be my first love. I'm not taking that back."
I feel a flutter in my belly. I turn toward him a little more.
"Callahan Holt."
"What, Lily Moreland?" he mimics.
"That might be the most attractive thing you've ever said."
The flush on his neck deepens. I sit in the passenger seat and know, with complete certainty, that I am in so much trouble.
The town is quiet around us, the car sliding through Harbor Hill like a ship through still water.
"So. Four things." I break the silence.
"What?"
"You said you can make four things. Pasta, and breakfast, although that is not a dish. What are the other two?"
"Steak. And grilled cheese."
"Grilled cheese is not a meal."
"Again, it's a thing I can make. So yes it is."
"It's bread and cheese. That's assembly, not cooking."
"The bread is buttered and there is timing. There's technique."
"Technique." I shift in my seat, turning toward him as much as the seatbelt allows, knee angled in his direction. "So you're telling me your entire culinary repertoire is pasta, steak, grilled cheese, and the vague concept of breakfast."
"Yes," he says without shame.
"And you've survived on this for how long?"
"Twenty-nine years and counting."
"Your poor body." I click my tongue.
