Page 81 of Let's Talk About Love

“No fever, so I’m not contagious. And I think if you were going to catch my cold, you would have by now.”

“Speaking of continuous cohabitation—”

“Never said that.”

“Can I come over tonight?”

He smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners. “Wherever I am, you are always welcome.”

***

“ARE YOU GOINGto make something?” Takumi asked.

Alice peeked around his refrigerator door. “Okay, so you’re not expecting me to cook regularly, right? That’s your thing. Ilikethat that’s your thing.”

“I’m still sick.” He made a feeble cough. “Help?”

“That’s pathetic,” she said, closing the door, “but how are you feeling?”

“Functional.” He tugged her ear gently when she stood in front of him. “Thanks to you.”

She raised her hand and placed it on his forehead. His bangs tickled the back of her hand.

“And you’ve been taking your medicine every four hours?”

“Yes, Nurse Alice. You could have warned me about the alarms you set. I was in a meeting when the first one went off.”

She touched his cheeks. A little warm, like he was flushed. It could have been the black turtleneck and red sweater he wore. It had been ungodly hot outside all day, but he worried the library’s air-conditioning would send him back to bed. “They didn’t appreciate the musical stylings of theBob’s Burgerscast?”

“Not really. No.”

“I’m sure you smiled your way out of any awkwardness,” she said. “Just don’t go looking into any ponds.”

“You wound me, madam.” He clutched his chest, wincing. “Especially since it’s your fault. It’s hard not to have an ego when you’ve told me you love my beautiful face.”

“Shut it.”

“How beautiful are we talking here? What’s my code?”

She groaned. “Not this again.”

He caught her at the waist, spinning her back around when she tried to walk away. “Tell me and I’ll bake you cookies when I’m not sick.”

“What kind of cookies?” she asked, leaning back into his arms. “And you have to use real flour. None of that ultra-buckwheat high-fiber stuff.”

“Oatmeal chocolate chip?”

“Deal.” She stared at the ceiling. “Black. I’d like two dozen cookies, please.”

“Black? I thought the Cutie Code was Green to Red.”

“It is. Was.” The gears and wheels turning inside Alice’s head locked into place as realization sank in. Meeting Takumi had challenged everything she thought she knew about herself, made her work to find out who she was on a fundamental level. He challenged her in the best way possible, wholly unaware of the effect he had on her, pushing her so far out of her comfort zone she had to question everything. She had discovered, no, was still discovering, who she was now, who she wanted to be, what she could and could not handle. He had given her a reason to reconnect with herself.

Feenie had been right—this, he, would always be someone she would want to remember.

“You exceeded my Cutie Code,” she said. “You’re the reason why I retired it. I don’t need it anymore.”

“I’ll make you three dozen cookies.” He grinned. “You must be feeling better, yes?”