Chapter Six
Brandon and I were seated and sipping coffee when the door opened, and Nick looked around. “He’s been staying home so much, alone. I guess he found someone new,” Brandon noted, and I nodded and stirred the hot liquid. “At least he’s calmed down some with all of the focus on the team.”
“That’s a good thing. You guys need to do everything you can to win that game.” Nick grinned and sat down in the booth beside me, and my hand froze.
“Hey, buddy. Have a good night?” Brandon teased him, as Nick stared at the table before he pressed his leg against mine.
“Excellent. It was nice to be able to sleep in after the couple of weeks that we’ve had. Right?” Brandon nodded and gave him a curious look.
“New girl?” Brandon asked, and Nick shrugged.
“I met someone. She’s a great girl, but you know with the game and all, it’s been casual,” I felt an ache at his words even though I knew it was what he needed to say. Was there even anything more to add?
Nick ordered a coffee and we all ordered our breakfast as we settled back into the seats. It was comfortable here and had a good vibe and on any other typical day, I’d be very comfortable with these two men. Having a crush on Nick was nothing like actually sleeping with him or having secret sex with him. This was much harder. We ate and the guys talked, but I just listened as I took small bites of my omelet that didn’t taste all that good.
Brandon led the way out of the cafe, and I followed with Nick behind me. “See you at home?” he asked Nick, and I turned to look at him. “We have practice tonight.”
“I’m just going to run a quick errand. I’ll be there soon,” Nick told him, and Brandon hugged me tight and told me to stay safe. He always said that, and I flushed a little as I watched him walk to his car.
“Errand?” I asked, as we were finally alone again.
“Let’s go back to bed.” There was something hot about the situation as we drove back to the apartment and stripped on the way back to the bedroom. Nick took me on my knees first, and his hand smacked my ass as he drove himself deep into me. I cried out his name before I asked for more and came with a keening sound as I fought the scream that wanted to get out of my throat. He pulled out and pushed me onto my back before he entered me again and took me hard and fast before he released inside of me. I closed my eyes as my body throbbed everywhere and he dropped on top of me.
“Mel…the condom broke. I think I went too hard,” Nick said as he stood and looked down. I reached for a tissue and handed it to him as I estimated the actual possibility of anything happening from just one time. “Shit. I need you to go to the doctor and get on something. We can’t risk this. I’ll pay.” His eyes pleaded with me. “Please, Melissa. Please do this.”
“Yes, I will. Next week.” There was an office near the college, and a lot of the girls went there. I didn’t want to worry about this either, and I was only twenty-two, not even in a real relationship. I watched as Nick walked to the bathroom and came back with a warm cloth to clean me. He stared into my eyes.
“I’m inside of you, still. I am going to stay there. I wish it were like that sometimes.” His words were soft, and he folded up the washcloth and tossed it into my hamper. We lay in bed for an hour or so before he said that he had to get back home before practice. They drove together, and he didn’t want to make Brandon suspicious. He seemed down when he left and just kissed me softly goodbye before he walked out of the door.
I watched a movie on the couch and felt more alone than before. Having Nick in my house, my bed, left a stain around the house. It gave me a memory to think about. I slept out there in between movies and shows and made some popcorn for dinner as I thought about Nick at the practice. I thought about the messages that I hadn’t read.
I hated myself for feeling so insecure.
As I promised, I went to the clinic and started taking birth control pills. I hid them deep in the drawer of my bathroom, and we were safe for the first couple of weeks that we were supposed to be. Sadly, that amounted to only a few times together in our hotel room. Nick was thrilled when he could go bare, and he fucked me harder than before, making me want him that much more.
Bonnie was seeing her hockey player more, and they were starting to seem serious. I knew that it bothered Nick, but he kept that to himself as he just listened to her gush about her boyfriend. I wondered if she’d be moving to Colorado and my heart broke a little. I had never been without Bonnie in my life, and I didn’t know how to handle the idea. I even started worrying about Nick being traded and leaving me as well, right along with my brother. It was depressing, and I barely managed to get through Christmas.
We played it off as always. I’d been sleeping with Nick for two months by then, and we sat across the room from each other. I wanted nothing more than to sit beside him and hold his hand as we laughed together. I wanted to kiss him and sit in his lap by the brightly lit tree.
Nick gave me a book along with the other presents I was handed at the house in front of everyone. It was a lovely moment, and I hugged him along with everybody else before we went in to start breakfast.
The tradition was always a big breakfast as a family, and that usually included anyone that didn’t have somewhere to go. It was loud and fun and crowded. I loved it. This year, I seemed to miss what I couldn’t have more than I enjoyed it. Nick could see that I was a little bothered about things, and he pulled me down the hall and looked into my eyes when we could get a moment alone. “Babe, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. This is just when we should be able to be affectionate. It’s Christmas,” I told him, and his eyes softened.
“Soon. This is just a day off for us, and we’ll be right back at it tomorrow, Mel.” We heard voices, and he headed back to the bathroom while I walked toward the kitchen without saying another word.
I knew that he didn’t want Brandon to kill him, and that I didn’t want Bonnie to murder him. Not on Christmas, at least.
We managed to get through the meal, and I took a nap in my old room as I always did. This year, it was more out of stress than just being tired from the festivities. I knew that a few more people would be coming by for dinner, and I wanted to be refreshed for that and the annual Christmas lights that we all went to see.
I woke up to someone snuggling against me, and I moved with a moan. “What are you doing in here?”
“Everyone is occupied, and I wanted to spend some time with you,” Nick told me, as he kissed my neck. “Have you ever messed around in here before?”
“No! I would be so embarrassed and with you…I don’t want to see you die,” I teased him as his hand slid up my stomach and cupped my breast. “Nick!”
“I have something else to give you later when we’re alone. I had a great time shopping for you,” Nick told me, and I smiled. I had gotten him a good pair of headphones to work out with. I didn’t have lots of money to spend on the gifts that I got for other people, and they were a good deal. I wanted to do more, but it was something at least. I was too scared to tell him how I felt about him.
He stripped me quietly, and we had sex slow and deep. It was risky, but my parents were visiting friends, and Brandon was sleeping as well. Bonnie was at home talking to her boyfriend, and we had a few minutes to spare. I hated that we had to finish and dress again so quickly. Nick left the room with a quick kiss, and I tried to go back to sleep.
Bonnie came back for dinner and looked at me. “You look different.”
“Different how?” I asked, as we helped in the kitchen with the dinner preparation.
“I don’t know,” she mused before she looked around. “Are you with anyone?”
I flushed and forced a laugh out of my throat. “No, I’d tell you if I was. Do I suddenly look like I’m dating someone in the last few hours?” I laughed and chopped some vegetables for the salad.
Nick was in the living room watching something with Brandon, and I glanced towards the open archway that led to the room. “I heard that Nick has calmed down too,” Bonnie said. “Brandon said that he’s admitted to seeing someone, but she hasn’t been around the house. I wonder who she is.”
I shrugged and smiled. “We may never know.” Bonnie nodded and frowned. “What is it?”
“I just think I’d like to see him settle down with somebody. Nick is a good guy deep down. I think that he’d treat someone pretty well,” Bonnie seemed to be thinking out loud, and I looked at her. Would she support us if we decided to come out with a relationship? “Maybe once this Super Bowl stress is over with, he’ll introduce us.”
“I guess we’ll see,” I replied, as I watched my mama and my aunt start fussing over the turkey and the ham.