Page 140 of The Publicity Stunt

But a distant rumble pierces the sound of our shallow breathing, and exactly three seconds later, it starts to pour. It starts to pour like the world is ending. And at the exact second the first few drops tap against the concrete sidewalk. I press my lips to the top of her head, breathing her in. “Can I show you something?”

“What?”

The rain picks up and I run my hand over her hair, fiddling with the wet strands clinging to her neck. “I missed playing with your hair.”

She curls up her nose and the dorkiest smile spreads across her face. “What do you want to show me?”

I pause for a second, then step aside, pointing to the silver oval-shaped table getting drenched in the rain about ten feet away from us.

Her eyes squint in a frown.

I smile and grip her hand, pulling her toward it. “You deserve your very own grand gesture.” I step behind her and kiss the back of her head.

She turns her head back slightly but I tighten my grip on her shoulders and force her to face the table.

“Look underneath.”

“Why?”

“Just do it. Please?”

Very hesitantly, as if she’s about to getPunk’d, April bends down and peeks underneath it. “What I’m supposed to be looking for?” I hear her say, the pattering of the rain drowning out most of her voice. “Why am I underneath a table in the middle of a sidewalk right now?”

I bend down to level with her and point to the rusted edge underneath the metallic surface. And our initials carved on it. “That’s why.“

Her hushed, “Oh, my God” makes itself audible over the violent pattering of the rain. Instantly turning to look at me, she bangs her head on the side of the table. “Ow, shit.”

I laugh softly, bringing my palm to the side of her face, and she instinctively leans into it. “A grand gesture is only grand if no one understands it, right?” I say and tears rush back to her eyes with full force. “I’m pretty sure this makes sense to no one but you and me.”

She scrambles to find the words and I pull her up with me. “This is—you stole our table from Susie’s?”

“I didn’t steal it.”

“How did you? You went back for two whole weeks for this? I can’t believe you did this.”

I draw her into a hug and her voice gets snuffed out, weak protests vibrating into my chest. She leans back with my arms draped around her waist and looks up, her eyes filled to the brim with tears. Only this time it makes me smile. “This is so over the top,” she says and I burst out laughing.

“I think that’s the point of a grand gesture?”

“What about Dog?” she asks.

“What about him?”

“Did you take him with you?”

I frown. “No, why would I do that?”

“So, he’s just alone?” The palpable and genuine concern she has for my cat makes me want to push her up against a wall and kiss her till she forgets her own name.

“He’s with Theo,” I tell her. Her confusion doesn’t waver. “Theo the doctor friend? He’s cat-sitting.”

April’s eyes bulge. “Cat-sitting?”

I take a step back and offer her my hand. “Will you dance with me?”

She looks at my hand, then back at me. “What?”

I grab her hand and pull her against me regardless. “You need to spruce up your vocabulary, Chere. That word is getting repetitive.”