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‘Well, I don’t have gossip as such,’ Abe said. ‘Just a headache developing in the Middle East. One that I don’t want my brother to know about just yet.’
‘My lips are sealed.’
He wished they weren’t.
As he looked down at them, Abe rather wished he was prising them open with his tongue, and possibly she was thinking the same thing because she pressed them together in response to the sudden scrutiny.
‘So,’ Abe said, rather than do something very un-Abe-like and kiss her in the middle of the street, ‘I’ve got a clear day, so if you want company...’
‘I’d love it.’
And he was wonderful, wonderful company.
Naomi did her share of sightseeing on her days off, wherever she went, but always alone.
On this cold, cold day, she was embraced by his company as they first took in the breath-taking Christmas window displays filled with enchanting scenes.
Abe didn’t hover at the back or subtly nudge in, he moved straight to the front and took her with him. Every window told a story. There were fairies waving their wands and trains made of candy and the sounds of delighted children’s laughter and music playing brought tears to her eyes.
For the first time it was starting to feel like Christmas should, Naomi thought.
She could gaze at the displays for ever but it seemed they had a schedule to adhere to! ‘Ready?’ Abe said.
‘For what?’
The Empire State Building was what!
And, because it was December, they didn’t have to line up and soon they were on the top of the world, or rather, Naomi corrected herself, the top of New York City. ‘But it feels like the top of the world.’
‘Actually, my office is higher.’
‘I don’t believe you.’ Naomi smiled, stamping her feet against the cold and digging her hands into the pockets of her coat. She had never felt so cold, or so exhilarated and happy, all at the same time.
He pointed out landmarks and the bridges and the snow had thinned enough that she could see the Statue of Liberty.
‘I’m going to do one of the river cruises on my day off,’ Naomi said.
‘You’ll freeze.’
‘I don’t care.’ Naomi laughed.
From up high she did her best to get her bearings in a snow-blanketed city. ‘So, you live that way?’ She pointed.
‘No,’ Abe corrected, ‘my father lives there and...’ he guided her by the elbow to the other side ‘...I live there at Greenwich Village. See the green?’ She followed to where he pointed. ‘That’s Washington Square Park and the view from my bedroom window.’
‘Oh, I’d love to see it...’ Naomi said, but it came out wrong. ‘I meant Greenwich Village is on my to-do list...’Notthe view from his bedroom window.
‘I know what you meant.’
He gave her a smile and it felt as if the snow stopped and even the wind eased as he corrected her little faux pas. Except it didn’t feel like one, it felt more like a Freudian slip.
From the giddy heights of the Empire State Building they moved on to the Rockefeller Center and the gigantic tree, and, yes, he took her photo in front of it. As he finished, a German tourist asked if they’d like one together, and would he mind taking theirs,bitte?
It was easier to just say yes, orja, than to explain to a stranger that they weren’t, in fact, a couple.
And as they stood side by side, and the German tourist waved them to move closer and he put an arm around her, Naomi found her smile a touch stilted for the very first time that day.
It was all just so amazing, so wonderful that Naomi knew, just knew, she’d be looking at this photo for a very long time to come.
