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I cracked a smile. “I don’t know. Motivational speeches are always saying things like that—a sentence and then the opposite of it and then it’s supposed to be inspiring. Do you feel suitably encouraged now?”
He blinked at me. “To eat my sandwich?”
“Yeah.” I took a drink of my water.
“Oh, completely. I think I’ll order a second one for later.”
I laughed, and water came out of my nose. “Ow.”
He laughed. “I made you snort laugh.”
I blotted my face with my napkin. “You made me snort-water laugh, which is even worse. Now I really want to see you eat two of those things.”
He shook his head but picked up his knife and fork again, allowing them to hover just above the monster sandwich. “Unfortunately, it’ll have to be a better man than I am to eat two.”
“I can’t imagine a better man than you.” I gazed up at him from under lowered lashes and smiled.
His eyes sparkled at me. “If that’s the case, I think you must be hallucinating from hunger. Hurry up and eat your Reuben.”
I giggled and dug in. He did too.
Chapter Thirteen
Twenty-five minutes later, Tanner and I were back across the street, standing in front of Bainbridge’s where I was due to meet Janet and Isla. Our sandwiches had weighed us down considerably. I felt much, much heavier. My wallet, however, felt much lighter. Tanner had forgotten his, and the meal had been my treat again.
“I have to go back to work, but would you like to meet here later this afternoon for a quick round of ice skating?”
My heart leaped. “Yes! Yes, I would. Please. In Rockefeller Center? Yes!” I’d always wanted to ice skate in Rockefeller Center. It was a dream of mine. Tanner was a mind reader.
He laughed. “Okay, I think that’s really a yes.” We made arrangements to meet back at the store later. “Until then,” he said. He put his arms around me and kissed my forehead, which was not the quality of kiss I actually wanted. I leaned closer and lifted up on my toes. He chuckled, lowering his head and tipping my chin up with a gentle touch until our lips met in a meltingly sweet kiss.
“Oh my word, she’s kissing a mannequin!” My sister’s voice rang out behind me. Tanner and I jumped apart, and I whipped around.
Lindsay was on the sidewalk, staring at us with an open mouth and wide eyes.
Fury rose within me, and a torrent of hot indignation on Tanner’s behalf tightened my jaw. I spoke through clenched teeth. “You don’t have to be judgmental about his job, Lindsay. Tanner’s a very successfulmodel.”
She threw a hand in Tanner’s direction. “He’s a freaking mannequin!”
I shook my head and slammed my eyelids shut with frustration. I enunciated my words clearly. “Yes, I know. From ten until noon every day until Christmas. But he’s more than that. Would you please lay off him?”
Lindsay continued to stare, her eyes wide and unblinking. I couldn’t have named the emotion that seeped into them. It was something I hadn’t seen on her before. She took a deep breath. “Mom said you’d been under a lot of stress. With your job. With your life. Does he”—she nodded toward Tanner—“make you feel better?”
“Enormously.” I beamed at him, and he took my hand and beamed right back at me.
She swallowed, and I wondered if she was reining in her jealousy. “That’s okay, I guess.”
Coming from Lindsay, that was almost tooth-achingly sweet. “Thank you,” I told her. “I appreciate that. We both do. What are you doing here?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m here to pick up Janet. She called me about twenty times when you were at lunch. She said she couldn’t handle Isla anymore and to come pick her up or she’d talk Troy into dumping me.”
My jaw dropped. “Did you think that would work?”
“Not really. But then I thought I’d better not tempt fate.” Lindsay had always been superstitious.
“Why didn’t Janet just wait for me to meet back up with her? I mean, you’re just getting here now so it’s not like you were faster.”
She shrugged. “She enjoys messing with me. Ordering me around. Making me do things under threat of telling Troy bad stuff about me. For some weird reason, he really does have a soft spot for her. Also I think she was afraid meeting up with you would mean prolonged exposure to Isla.”
