Love Him Free (On the Market #1) - E.M. Lindsey Page 0,82
down at the words printed in block letters Simon had colored in with red sharpie.
Learn A Sign, Get A Cookie
‘What is this?’ Rocco asked.
Simon jutted his chin toward the plastic bin near the front table that was full of small butter cookies. ‘I made those, and I thought we could give them out for free to anyone who learns a sign. We could…I don’t know. Teach them the basics? Hi, how are you, please, thank you, favorite animals.’ Simon couldn’t read Rocco’s expression, and he started to feel panicked. The poster board lowered in his one hand while the other signed. ‘Sorry, it was a dumb idea…’
Rocco was on him then, backing him up against the flimsy tent walls, mouth devouring his. “Perfect. Precious. You.” The words rose to Rocco’s lips, spoken against Simon’s as he kissed him.
Simon flushed and allowed it for a moment, but with all the people around, he felt his anxiety spike and he gently eased Rocco away. ‘It’s okay?’
Rocco brushed a thumb over Simon’s kiss-swollen lips. ‘Perfect. Thank you, and sorry if I made you uncomfortable.’
Simon’s flush was heavy enough to make him dizzy, but he shook his head and gave Rocco’s hand a squeeze before letting go. ‘We can take turns manning the sign booth.’
Rocco nodded eagerly, and set it up on the far side of the tent, propping up the sign with tape against the wall facing the main walkway, then he took the cookies from Simon and laid the bins out in neat rows.
It was messy—nowhere near as put together as Chametz—but for the first time, the mess didn’t bother him. It felt like something he’d created, and not like a thing that had been dropped on his shoulders with crushing weight.
The sun dipped even lower into the horizon, and the traffic started to pick up. Somewhere in the direction of the fire station, Simon heard music start up, and just above that the bleating of Collin’s goats. His first customer arrived—a woman and a child he didn’t recognize. They eyed the breads, and the little girl’s hand tapped on the little plastic bin holding the chocolate filled sufganiyot.
“Are they like normal doughnuts?” the woman asked.
Simon bristled at the word normal, but he offered a smile just the same. “They’re an old Jewish recipe, so I like to think they taste better than what you find in the supermarket…but they’re similar.”
Her mouth quirked as she read the signs. “Okay, one chocolate and one of the Blue Moon.”
Simon felt a small surge of vindication. He’d reduced the beer to a syrup and used it to infuse the custard, and he had a feeling it would go over well. He had a feeling Levi would be a mixture of proud and annoyed when he finally saw it.
“What’s that over there?” the woman asked as she handed over a twenty.
Simon made the change, then followed her gaze to where Rocco was leaning against the table and teaching three teenagers how to sign something. The angle wasn’t enough for him to see, but by the grins on their faces he didn’t think it was a favorite color.
“My Market partner is Deaf, so he’s teaching everyone signs for free cookies,” Simon explained.
The woman frowned, but the little girl jumped on the balls of her feet. “I learned that at school! I can…I can say this!” She widened her stance like she needed the balance, then signed on her small little hands, ‘My name Melody.’ She spelled her name with the careful, slow fumble of a new learner.
Simon waved his hands in applause. “Very good,” he said, then signed it. “Do you want to go learn something else? My friend Rocco is really nice.”
The mom looked dubious, but the girl was too excited and took off ahead of her. “Does he live here?” the mom asked, inching toward the end of the table.
Simon’s heart sank a little, but he shook his head. “No. He lives and works in Malibu, but he’s taking the summer off.” Though, in truth, he didn’t really know how long Rocco planned to stick around. He glanced over to see that Melody had gotten Rocco’s attention, and she was showing him the handful of signs she knew—her name, age, a couple of the colors.
Rocco beamed, then squeezed his body through the gap in the tables and knelt down in front of her to teach her something else. ‘My favorite animal horse,’ he signed very slowly, murmuring the words along with his hands.