Page 57 of Pomegranates and Olive

"Thatisembarrassingly true."

"Favourite Shakespearean work? A-a-n-n-d-d... GO!"

I yell Romeo and Juliet and Deniz yells MacBeth. We both scowl at each other's choices.

"MacBeth had daddy issues."

"Juliet was a spoilt brat. If she was alive today she would be —" He flicks fake hair over his shoulder and bats his eyelashes at me. "— but mummy, I'll just die if I don't get the new iPhone! Like, literally, DIE!"

I laugh at Deniz's dramatics as he mocks her.

"She was seriously tragic. I would've stab her myself."

"Ugh." I scowl and scrunch up my nose in disgust. "You're the one that's tragic!"

He chuckles and stretches his arm along the back of the sofa. "Is that how you really feel about me?"

“You want me to lie?”

I shrug and try not to think about the closeness of him, his calf against mine, his scent that fills my senses, and the butterflies that fill my stomach when his arm relaxes over my shoulder and his finger starts to trace a circle on my skin.

He wets his lip and moves minutely closer to me.

Is he going to kiss me again?

God, I hope so! Actually, I hope he does more than kiss me.

His hand stops moving and we’re both staring at it before our eyes meet and we’re staring at each other. I hold my breath while I try to decide what to do next.

“No, but I am curious.”

“Well I do think there’s more to you than meets the eye.”

“Imagine that!”

“Stop it.” I poke him lightly in the stomach. “I mean you’re clearly smart. And I guess you’re good-looking.”

“Guess? NoaskimI’m extremely good-looking.”

I throw my hands up in the air. “And now you go and ruin all your progress by being a dickhead!”

“But my mother says so!” Deniz chuckles and jumps off the sofa before I can poke him a second time. "Do you want another coffee?Limonata?"

"Yes please."

"Preference?"

"I don't mind."

He cuts up some watermelon before pouring us both a glass oflimonata, adding some crushed mint leaves to alleviate the tart taste. We move to the courtyard to enjoy the cool breeze that's coming up over the ridge and fall easily back into conversation. I tell him about my job as a librarian, and he talks about his time in Italy where he restored a villa near Lake Garda. I mention my family's connection to that area and my dream to ride a Vespa to Giulietta's balcony. His eyes light up. "Hold on, so you're telling me you're actuallyrelatedto Juliet Capulet?"

"Distantly, which means you've just offended my great, great, great... probably great... aunt... or something."

He moans into his hands. "Oh, I am fortune's fool."

"Nah, just a regular fool, I think."

"Are you going to visit Verona when you leave here?"

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