“Can I hug you?” I asked. “If you feel like you have to.” He opened his arms wide. “Make it quick.” I snorted and rolled my eyes, but I also walked right into him, giving his middle a tight squeeze. “This is one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me, Elliot.” “That’s too bad. On the scale of nice things, this is pretty low.” He slid his palm up and down my spine. “After all, I did this for purely selfish reasons.”
