Page 74 of The Summer Show

“Did you just make a joke?”

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

The more time I spent with Nick, the more difficult it was becoming to look at him. At first he was just a random hot guy on a plane. Attractive men weren’t thick on the ground, but we weren’t in a drought, either, so I’d enjoyed the tingle of appreciation and moved on. Things had changed. Now I knew him, and he knew me. I had opened up my compartments and let him rummage around inside. He’d given me piggyback rides. He’d hugged me, and my bones had nearly liquified in his arms from the intensity of the fire he caused inside me.

So staring at his face to see if he was joking was a big ask. I chose to sidestep the looking and answering.

“Okay, fine. They think we’re romantically involved. That’s why they had me meet with them.”

He laughed and rubbed his hand across the stubble sprouting along his jaw. Laughing? I got that I wasn’t Nick’s type—I’d never put glitter on my boobs or collect dollar bills with my butt cheeks—but I wasn’t exactly Quasimodo. Real live men had held my hand and been proud to do so. Not lately, but that was a me thing. I was busy, and to me a hot date was August first.

I stepped around him, intending to go drown my sorrows, and hopefully my feelings for Nick, in a bucket of Greek lemonade. He caught me by the arm and spun me around so that we were facing each other.

“Sorry,” he said. “Ever since … I’m not laughing at you, okay? Or the idea of us together. I guess I’m just shocked by their audacity. Which is stupid because I should have expected it. That’s what these shows do. They warp reality and try to control it. Anything for ratings and advertising bucks.”

My hackles settled back down. “That’s pretty much the crux of it. At first they weren’t happy about the idea of us together, but now they want to exploit whatever they think is going on. They said it would be good for my career.”

He busted out laughing. “You’re a school librarian.”

“Exactly! They thought I was an aspiring actress. I’d rather rehome my first edition copy of Terry Pratchett’s The Color of Magic.”

“That your favorite book?”

“No, and it’s not even close to my favorite Pratchett book, but that’s not the point. It’s still precious to me. That’s how much I would never consider acting. The closest I’m willing to get is when I dress up and act out the Elephant and Piggie books, with masks. My kindergarten kids love it.”

“I would pay to see that.”

“If you ask Marti nicely, she might let you watch.”

He dug his phone out of his pocket and tapped on the screen. I averted my eyes in case he was lining up a booty call, which he would probably need as a palate cleanser after this conversation. Curiosity got the best of me, though.

“What are you doing?”

“Making a note to ask Marti if I can come watch you do … What were they?”

“Elephant and Piggie.”

“Elephant and Piggie. I have to see this. It’s on my bucket list now.”

Although his face said he was serious, I didn’t believe him. As soon as the show was over, as soon as I left Greece to fly back to Oregon, I would never hear from Nick Merrick again, unless Ana was back for a visit and Lina was throwing a party for her. Nice that he acted interested, though. Other men I had dated thought I was a loon for the lengths I went to for Bush Lake’s students.

Why be a librarian for kids if you’re not going to get a little crazy, that’s what I say.

“So what did you tell them?” Nick said, jerking his head in the hotel’s direction.

I froze. First because I couldn’t recall how that conversation ended, and then because I did. At the time I thought I would be making a real stand by telling Mairi and the others that if I had sex with Nick it would be for me—and for him. I never stopped to consider that I might have to recount the conversation to the very person we were speaking about.

Honestly, as much fiction as I consumed you would think I’d be able to come up with something, but here I was with a whole lot of nothing to say.

“I don’t remember,” I said.

What gave me away, I didn’t know. Maybe it was the way my eyes cut to the ground and the toe of my sandal twisted on the ground like I was trying to squash the world’s smallest rebel alliance. Maybe it was the utter lack of conviction in my voice. Maybe Nick smelled the burning pants of a liar. Whatever the reason, he raised his eyebrows good and high and gave me The Look. You know the one. The “I don’t believe you” look.

“You may as well just tell me,” he said. “Whatever you told them is going to leak to the gossip sites anyway, now that they’re scheming.”

He was right, and I knew it.

“Fine, okay.” I took a deep breath and let it out easy. “I told them if I had sex with you it would be for me and not for their ratings. And for you, obviously, seeing as how you’d be there, too. This would be a volunteer situation, not a voluntold thing.”

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