Martin glanced toward the lantern above them.
"That was a long pause."
"I'm thinking."
"You're trying to find an answer that doesn't make you sound hopeless."
"That too."
She waited, giving him no chance to escape.
"Eventually," Martin said.
Alexandra laughed once. "Coward."
"It's the truth."
"How long would 'eventually' have taken?"
"Long enough for you to lose patience."
"I had already lost patience."
"I noticed."
"No, you didn't."
"I noticed after you kissed me."
Leaning farther across the table, she narrowed the space between them.
"What changed afterward?"
Martin rubbed his thumb along the side of his cup while he considered the answer.
"The kiss didn't make me want you. I already did."
Alexandra stopped smiling.
"It made it impossible to keep pretending I didn't understand what was going on," he continued. "You weren't joking anymore, and neither was I. After that, acting like we were only teammates who flirted too much felt stupid."
