Page 71 of Winter’s Teeth

“Not really.”

“I hate roses, but I love tulips. White tulips. Tulips are the new roses.”

“Duly noted.”

The corner of my mouth lifted a skosh. “So, what stuff do you like? What does Fox Winter do in his free time when he’s not working on local construction crews and giving girls heart attacks?”

“I dunno, I guess...” He trailed off, letting his thoughts diverge to something harmless. Something that wasn’t life or death. He probably knew what I was up to, but he didn’t fight it as he said, “I like to read.”

My lips split into a grin. “Really? Like fantasy books or thrillers?”

“Neither. Have you ever heard of manga?”

Fox Winter. A reader of comics and manga.

I was flabbergasted.

“I know, it’s weird,” he grumbled, turning his head to the side so I couldn’t see his expression.

“No! No, no, no. It’s not weird at all. I just... You surprise me. In a good way. What else? Keep going.”

He lifted an arm, stretching it across his chest to rub his bicep on the other side. “I like movies.”

“Everyone likes movies. Be more specific. Favorite genre?”

“I don’t really have a favorite genre. I’ve seen pretty much every movie out there.”

“Seriously? Prove it.”

Fox turned his head back, brows furrowed. A little cut on the side of his face gleamed red in the dim moonlight, but it had stopped bleeding a while ago. “Prove it how?”

I rolled onto my side, my face a foot away from his. “Gone With the Wind,” I spouted.

“The 1930s one, right?”

My jaw dropped. A second later, I snapped it shut and quizzed him again. “Romeo and Juliet.”

“Rae. There’s like thirty different versions of it.”

“Have you seen them all?”

“Maybe...”

I grinned, absolutely delighted to learn this fun fact about him. “Alright. Let’s try more obscure films. Gattaca.”

He smirked. “I actually got Corbin to watch that one with me. We laughed the whole way through it. People have no clue what our genes are really capable of.”

“That Thing You Do.”

“With the love interest who was the elf in Lord of the Rings, right?”

“Sound of Music.”

“Parts one and two.”

I had to pull out the big guns. “Doctor Zhivago.”

He grunted. “Over three hours of suffering in winter and war. Not a favorite.”