“D’artagnan,” I said, stressing the word to draw his attention back to what was most important—imminent romance, “is the only guide who really helps her through all the light and dark moments, because no one else believes in her. Partly because she’s female. Except Elody and D’artagnan hate each other from the beginning, and she doesn’t know if she can trust him.”
“That sounds bleak.”
“I know!” I squealed. “I love it. It’s called the enemies-to-lovers plotline, and it’s my favorite. There’s drama and tension built in. I mean, you can’t ask for any better challenge than dragging two people who hate each other into the depths of love, right?”
“Disagree.”
“Then what’s your favorite challenge?”
“Free-climbing El Capitan.”
I laughed as the movie started. “Fair enough.”
“You know they get together in the end, though,” he whispered as the lights dimmed. He’d leaned in closer, the sweet and salty smell of kettle corn on his breath. “How can you really enjoy it if you already know the ending?”
“It’s precisely why I love it. I know it’ll happen, but I don’t know how. I don’t know what moments will bring them together. What tension will build? It’s really all about how they connect, not if they connect. The enjoyment is in the imagining.”
He made a noise in his throat as the camera panned over a view of a castle, and I silenced another internal squeal. I’d been waiting forever to watch this movie. Having him, of all people, right next to me couldn’t have been any better.
Or so I hoped.
If he tried to ruin this for me, I’d throw popcorn on him and take the Zombie Mobile so he could hitchhike home.
Thankfully, he fell into it as quickly as I did. The biggest challenge was focusing on the screen, and not on the way his arm pressed against mine because neither of us lifted the armrest. Or on the occasional hint of forest that lingered in the air when he shifted. Halfway through the movie, an old man behind us coughed.
I leaned closer to JJ. “We should invite him to sit with us.”
He sent me a confused look.
“He’s all by himself,” I whispered.
“Yeah, probably because he wants to be.”
“Maybe not?”
“It’ll distract from the movie.”
I’d mostly been teasing, so I sent him a rueful smile and turned my attention back to the screen, but he remained leaning closer to me than ever. I almost missed the epic first-kiss scene inside a waterfall.
“It’s so Last of the Mohicans,” I whispered in delight. “Well done, screenwriter.”
JJ outright laughed.
When the movie ended and I blinked back tears from an utterly perfect proposal, JJ let out a long breath. The lights slowly brightened, flooding the room. Behind us, the old man trundled to the end of his row to quietly head down the stairs. I didn’t want to leave.
“Well?” I asked. “You had so little to say.”
“Surprisingly.” JJ blinked. “It’s . . . interesting. I see why you like it.”
Then why did he look so confused?
I’d already given up hope that JJ would see romance the way I did. Now, I just wanted his acknowledgment that romance was real. I better earn a point of concession out of this date, I thought.
“Rate it out of ten,” I said. “With one being you hated it and will never give romance another chance and ten being it’s the best movie you’ve ever seen.”
“A five.”
“Respectable!” I cried. “And far better than I thought.”
He offered a relaxed grin. His gaze had softened through the movie, losing its edge of intensity. My heart beat like a drum under my rib cage when he reached back, pulled his hair out of its bun, and let it fall to his shoulders. He normally wore it up, but now it rested around his face and cast shadows on the hollows of his cheeks. I could only stare at his sculpted face as something warm ignited in my belly.
His arms flexed as he ran his fingers through his hair, then pulled it back out of his face and turned to me again. When he looked at me, his expression had reverted to his usual careful amusement.
I swallowed hard.
But I thought that he, too, had some sort of uncertainty in his gaze. An uncertainty that, like mine, could mean he had some feelings for me. That my obsession wasn’t totally one-sided.
Maybe.
“Thank you for coming with me,” I whispered instead of shouting, Holy palm trees, kiss me right now! “I’ve been waiting for the movie to come out so I could rent it and watch with Bethie.”
His gaze dropped to my lips for half a second before they returned to mine. “Was this better?” he asked.
“Definitely.”
“My pleasure.” He smiled softly. “Really. Are you interested in some lunch before we head back?”
“Yes, please.”
He held out his hand. It was warm as it clasped mine, tugging me to my feet. It was no first kiss.
But his hand in mine sure felt good.
22 JJ
I imagined what one of Lizbeth’s romance books might say about our impromptu date. I’d only read five of them so far—all of them different romance subgenres—but they all seemed somewhat the same.
For a date like this, I could imagine the books describing a rush of giddiness with butterflies. Or a feeling of some caution from one of us, likely her. Instead, she appeared to be an open book. Made eye contact. Smiled. Revealed no wariness or uncertainty.
Meanwhile, I felt a slice of euphoria and a deep sense of finally as I stared at her across the table. And I had no idea why.
“I suck at this, Lizbeth,” I said, just to make my thoughts clear. “I haven’t been on a date in a long time.”
Her head tilted to the side. “Why don’t you go on dates?”
“What does the gossip around town say?”
A sly smile twitched on her lips. “That’s for me to know. Let’s face it, Mark is too in love with his career to date and—”
“He wants to.”
“Really?”
I
