Then he went to the cooler — the cooler I carried — and brought her an ice-cold seltzer.
When he came back to our spot, I kept my voice very low.
“I thought you felt sick.”
His smile went away instantly.
“Don’t embarrass me. She’s my boss.”
“So you were too sick to touch my back. But you’re perfectly fine rubbing hers.”
What He Said Out Loud
Ryan rolled his eyes.
And then he said it — not quietly, not under his breath. At a normal volume, on a beach, in front of his coworkers.
“This is exactly why I hate bringing you to work things! Stop being jealous. You are always overreacting.”
My face burned hotter than my uncovered shoulders.
All around us, conversations stumbled for a second and then started back up with a sort of deliberate cheerfulness.
Lauren had put her sunglasses back on. But I noticed her head was tilted slightly toward us.
