Page 66 of Summer Reading

“Me neither,” I said. It wasn’t a lie given that I hadn’t actually tried yet.

“I always read myself to sleep, but I didn’t want to read ahead without you,” he said.

“That would be an unforgivable offense.”

“I thought so, too,” he said. I could hear the rustle of pages in the background. “Where were we?”

“Kissing on top of the Eiffel Tower,” I said.

“Ah, yes.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Ready?”

I settled back against my pillows and put the phone on speaker. “Yes.”

Ben resumed the story right where we’d left off. And just like that I was in Paris again and it was beautiful.

•••

Tyler and I arrived at the library bright and early. This was no small feat given that I had stayed up until the wee hours of the morning listening to Ben read. When we both started yawning, we called it a night but it was with much reluctance.

As Tyler trotted off to robotics, I looked for Em. She was standing in front of a book display, arranging the books in what I assumed was an attempt to grab the attention of readers. I glanced at the sign above the shelf. It readTravel Books. The font was surprisingly easy to read, and the banner included pictures of famous places from all over the world. Perfect for summer.

“Nice display,” I said. I saw a book with a picture of the Eiffel Tower on it, and my mind flitted back to the novel Ben was reading to me. After some relationshipturmoil, our heroine had left Paris and was en route to Italy. I couldn’t wait to hear more.

“Thanks,” Em said. “Is the sign okay?” She pointed to it and I nodded. She gave me a shy glance and said, “I’ve been reading up on how to make things easier for people with dyslexia to read. It said to use sans serif fonts and inter-letter and character spacing of thirty-five percent.”

I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t. Suddenly, my throat had closed up and my eyes burned.

“Are you all right?” Em asked. “I didn’t offend you, did I?”

“No,” I said. My voice came out wobbly. I glanced at the ceiling. “I just have something in my eye.”

She caught on then that I was having a moment. She walked to the reference desk and came back and handed me a tissue.

“Thanks,” I said. I dabbed my eyes and blew my nose. “And thanks for that, too.” I gestured to the display. “It means a lot.”

She looked pleased. Her hair was in a messy bun and she was wearing her favorite cardigan over a pale yellow dress. The bandage on her neck had been replaced by a smaller adhesive bandage.

“Have you heard anything?” I asked.

Her smile slipped away and she put her hand over the bandage. “Not yet.”

“I’m sure it’s going to be all right,” I said.

She nodded quickly, too quickly, and I knew she wasworried. She shook her head and then glanced around the room to see who was about. The reference area was empty—not that I was looking for Ben, but I absolutely was.

“Enough about that,” she said. “How was the date? Did he pick you up on his motorcycle?”

I laughed. That would have been something in the red dress. I’d have had to ride sideways.

“No,” I said. “He had a car.”

“Where did you go? What did you do? Come on, tell me everything,” she said. “I have to live through you since I haven’t had a date in forever.”

“We need to fix that,” I said. “You’re too awesome to sit on the shelf.”

“Can you stay on island after the summer?” she asked. “You’re very good for my self-esteem.”

“Likewise,” I said. I then gave her the highlight reel about the date, not sharing the personal information that Ben had told me since I didn’t feel it was my place. She did get a solid belly laugh out of Tyler busting us for making out on the porch.

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