“Well, I think traditionally, a prince would come and rescue her.”

“And you had a princess, didn’t you? But instead of rescuing you, she’s going to marry a cabdriver from the Bronx.”

“She is indeed.”

Chapter Eleven

Things were much less fraught back in the room. They ordered room service. The McMuffins had been delicious, but Max was still hungry. Apparently too much truth telling worked up an appetite. As Dani divided the steak they’d ordered to share, he perused her Netflix account on the hotel TV.

“What shall we watch? Probably Dirty Dancing, yes?” He squinted at the diverse array of films on her list. “First in your queue is Love Actually.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s always there. I love that movie—I’ve seen it dozens of times—but it’s a Christmas movie, so we can’t watch it.”

“Incorrect. We can do whatever we want.”

“Yeah, but Christmas only runs from December 11 to January 6, remember?”

“Ah, yes. I see the dilemma.” He read the synopsis. “I’ve never seen it.”

“Really? Oh, it’s so good. And so bad. It’s complicated.”

“It stars Emma Thompson? Sold.”

“But—”

“You don’t have to watch it.” He pressed play. “I’m going to, though. You can do your own thing.”

He wasn’t sure what was more enjoyable, the movie itself or Dani’s running commentary on it. “I think the problem,” she pronounced when they were about two-thirds through, “is that everyone thinks this is a romantic comedy and judges it accordingly. But it’s not a rom-com. If anything, it’s a romantic tragedy. I mean, some of the stories turn out, but even among those, there are some that are hella problematic. Like, I don’t want to spoil anything, but there’s one in particular that seems all sweet, but when you think about it, you’re like, ‘How is that going to work out?’ You’ll see.”

“Is this movie actually controversial?” It was reading as benign enough to him. Charming in parts, sad in others, populated with a lot of well-liked English actors.

“In certain circles.” She nodded at the TV. “Like this part coming up. Everyone I know says it’s creepy and stalkerish. And I guess if you explain what’s literally happening—this guy has been in love with his best friend’s girlfriend all this time and now he’s about to tell her when there’s no way it will end well—yeah, it’s creepy.” Max watched as the character in question knocked on Keira Knightley’s door and, when she answered, silently flipped through a series of placards proclaiming his love for her.