Page 35 of Between Now and Forever

“Yeah, I read her biography in fifth grade and fell in love.” I shrug, even though as I say it, I realize I’ve never told anyone that.

She cocks her head and gives me an indulgent smile. “What about her got you so hot and bothered? She was hardly known for her beauty.”

“She was something much more attractive to me than merely beautiful.” The reverence in my voice isn’t feigned.

“What’s more attractive to men than beauty?” There’s levity in her voice, but there’s also a thread of anticipation, like my answer is important to her.

I drop my glib demeanor and answer honestly.

“She decided to be more than what she was born to be.”

“Uh--she was the daughter of a king. Queen is exactly what she was born to be.”

“But it’s not all she was. She had a conniving, blindly ambitious mother. Her father was a ruthless, psychotic glutton. Sheshouldhave been a feckless, reckless and easily persuaded ruler. Instead, she learned the lessons her parents failed to. And she went on to become one of the greatest leaders in world history. I mean, I don’t even know what she really looked like, but all that is pretty fucking hot,” I finish.

“Wow… so is this like a secret or something?”

“Hell no. When I was in high school, my friends had boners for Beyonce and Giselle Bündchen.Bethwas my girl. I had a poster of her above my bed. Well, Cate Blanchette as her.”

“Beth?” she asks softly.

“Yeah, that’s what the men who loved her called her.”

“I like that…” Her smile changes, and it’s clear to me that she’s smiling to herself. But, I want to know what she’s thinking.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

She looks surprised, but then smiles and taps her chin ponderously.

“I was thinking that this ice pack is melting and I don’t want to drip on your mother’s floor.”

A bark of laughter escapes me.

“That’s what you were thinking?” I ask skeptically.

She lifts one delicate shoulder in a devil may care gesture that’s rougish and sexy without meaning to be. I need to find out how old she is.

“You get what you pay for. You only offered a penny, so you got one I could afford to throw away.” She smirks and I grin.

“Touché’,” I concede. “What if I upped that to ten dollars?”

“Whoa…that’s a big jump,” she says as if she’s scandalized, but the gleam in her eyes says she’s enjoying this exchange as much as I am.

“Well…what does it get me?”

Her expression clears, and even though her lips are still curved up in a smile, her eyes are solemn.

“I was thinking that I like that you’re so unapologetic about being different. And that I wish I was as comfortable in my skin as you are.”

It’s so simple, but the most genuine compliment I think I’ve ever received.

“Wow, talk about bang for your buck,” I say with a flippancy I don’t feel.

She laughs and just like everything else about her, it’s clear and beautiful and distinct.

“I like your laugh,” I tell her.

She stops laughing abruptly. She eyes me with the same suspicion I saw in her expression by the lake. “My dad says I sound like a horse when I laugh.”

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