The bakery van rattled noisily over the straight, I-5 highway bisecting the center of California like a ribbon. The Rolling Stones crackled from the old speakers, and dry wind from the endless stretches of farmland blew through the open windows. Isabelle opened a bag of Chocolate Crunchies from the stash of candy Evan had brought along.
She passed the bag to him in the driver’s seat. He took a few and popped them into his mouth, his gaze on the highway in front of them.
“Tingo,” he said.
“The sound made by striking a bell with a metal spoon.”
“Nice.” He shot her a look of approval. “But no. It’s Pascuense for stealing a person’s belongings gradually by borrowing but not returning them. Pochemuchka.”
“A cute little woodland creature.”
“Russian for ‘a person who asks too many questions.’”
“Really?” Isabelle asked. “Russia has a word for that? Why? Where did it come from?”
He grinned. “Gattara.”
“A special guitar made in a tiny Italian coastal town.”
“A woman who devotes herself to stray cats. Basically a crazy cat lady.”
“I have one,” Isabelle said. “Fika.”
“Swedish for a coffee break.”
“Sahnehäubchen.”
He slanted her a sideways glance. “Look it up.”
“Huh.” Disgruntled that he still wouldn’t just tell her, she reached for a bottle of water from the cooler. “Okay, what about great English words? I’ve always liked the word kerfuffle. It sounds like what it is, and it’s fun to say.”
“Like hullaballoo.”
“Exactly. Gobbledygook.”
“Brouhaha,” Evan said.
“Gibberish.”
“Lollygag.”
“Serendipity.”
“Epiphany.” Evan unwrapped a Sparkle Pop and nodded toward the bag of candy. “Try one. You’ll have an epiphany about sugar.”
“When you lived in Copenhagen, did you try and convert all the Danes into sugar addicts?” Isabelle took a Chocolate Crunchie and popped it into her mouth.
“Actually they converted me.” He stuck the lollipop in his mouth, rolling it across his tongue. “I became a huge fan of ebelskiver. Ever had them?”
“Those little round pancakes, right?”
“Fried and topped with jam and sugar. Couldn’t get enough of them with a cup of coffee, some fruit and cheese.” He made a deep noise of appreciation that settled in Isabelle's core.
“Did you live with a family while you were there?”
“No, I was in the dorm at the University of Copenhagen, but I spend a lot of weekends and holidays with friends’ families. You ever been there?”
YOU ARE READING
Sweet Distraction ✔︎
Romance𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆. 𝑯𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚. *Book 2 of the 'Sweet' series. Can be read as a standalone* Isabelle Lockhart travels the world and blogs about love. At least she used to before she promised to look after her sister's...
