Blandine observed the fish for a moment, her striking face blank. “Got a—got a bouquet for you.” I could feel my heart in my brain and my blood in my eyes. And then something miraculous happened: she laughed. Laughed. Laughed and laughed, doubled over, crossed her arms over her stomach and squeezed her eyes shut until tears slipped out the creases, and when she finally caught her breath, she put her real hand on my real chest—the first time she’d touched me since the love hit—and I finally understood the phrase time stopped. “Oh God,” she gasped. “That’s a good one.”
