This couldn't be happening.
How could she have missed that it was Josh? Then again, he had changed in four years' time. Nobody aged seventeen should even be allowed to look that grown-up. She had a freaking heart rate of one-hundred-and-sixty beats a minute, just because she had to talk to a guy who'd innocently helped her catch frogs with a small fishing net at this very spot only four years ago. Ben's younger, scrawny Navajo side-kick was most definitely a thing of the past.
All of a sudden, she was painfully aware of the creases in her T-shirt, her poor excuse for a hairdo and the bags under her eyes. On top of that, there was sheer panic. Panic because all those trivial things apparently acutely mattered to her so much. She had to get a grip. He was seventeen and she was twenty-three. She was miles above all this.
Oh shoot, she was still holding her breath. Hannah forced herself to let it out, releasing her death grip on the table at the same time. Still turned around in her seat, she shouted to Ben: "Your beer is getting warm! Hurry up." Then her eyes darted to Josh, who was now coming up to the table.
"Oh - hey," she managed to say in a surprised tone of voice. Again, the same line. Sure, why not? Since it worked so well the first time around.
"Hey." He sat down on the chair next to her. "Again."
"So… I already met you this afternoon." Hannah tried to give him a casual smile, quickly reaching out to shake Josh's hand. He grabbed hers and she felt the water on his skin. He'd just been swimming in the lake. Drops of water still clung to his broad shoulders, and his hair was wet at the tips.
"Yep." His grin suddenly made him look cheeky and young, but incredibly irresistible. "I must say, it was a touching reunion."
Hannah laughed nervously. "So, you recognized me?"
"Of course. But I guess you didn't see it was me."
Hannah bit her lip. "No."
"I see," he said softly. "Is that why you blushed when I said hi?"
Hannah froze, praying to the heavens she wouldn't blush yet again. Alas, the heavens weren't smiling down upon her today. "Um, yes. I was a bit surprised, I guess." She slowly pulled her hand from his - he was still holding it - and quickly grabbed her glass to busy herself.