How You Know It Won’t Work:
You think about one guy’s abs while cuddling another
Sitting on the hard cement steps of the building’s front porch, illuminated only by the dull light glowing from the one sconce by the door, I waited with bated breaths for Nate to arrive.
Well, okay. Maybe not bated breaths. But it sounded better than erratic hyperventilating.
It was going on eleven o’clock, a time I was usually curled up in warm pajamas, snuggled in bed with a romance book. But becoming the woman I wanted to be meant pushing myself to do more things I wouldn’t normally do.
Like inviting a boy over to put together a barstool I spontaneously bought two hours ago. It was something I easily could have done myself—I’d assembled the two others I already had. But I couldn’t ask him to come over just because I wanted to spend time with him.
So, I went out and bought a third barstool. One that, frankly, I didn’t even need. I barely ate at the breakfast bar, and Tater only curled up on the other stool with the off chance that I did sit there.
Seeing Nate walk down the sidewalk, backpack hanging from one taut shoulder, my heart rate picked up. He wore a pair of tan cargo shorts and a loose white tee and looked freaking delicious. It made my jeans and loose sweatshirt with the words Too Tired to Function across the front feel too casual, but it was way too late to change now.
Standing up and smiling, I said, “Hey.”
He stopped just in front of me, smirk curling his lips. “Hey.”
We stood there for a moment until I forced myself toward the door, unlocking it and gesturing for him to follow. Every step toward my apartment grew heavier, like having him in my space was suddenly a horrible decision.
Truth was, I didn’t know what to expect. He agreed to put together the stool, but what then? Did he stay? Go? Was he thinking something would happen? After all, it was midnight in less than an hour. Nothing good happened after midnight.
Walking into my apartment made me feel a little better. I was in my safe space. I searched for Mashed Potato, who was nowhere to be found. When Nate stepped in, I closed the door behind him and looked around while he did the same.
“Nice place,” he complimented.
I pointed toward his backpack. “You can set that wherever.”
He dropped it in the corner.
Clearing my throat, I crossed my arms on my chest. “The tour won’t be long, because there’s not much to see.”
I took him in my office first, which was more like Mashed Potato’s room since she spent more time laying on the desk and looking out the window than I did actual work in there. One wall was covered in bookshelves that were filled with my most of my novel collection. Fake flowers and cat figurines were placed strategically around them. In the corner was a large L-shaped desk that had my laptop, printer, and a few family pictures resting on it. Next to that was a waffle chair that Tater used to nap on when we lived in a tiny studio apartment three blocks over.
He chuckled when he saw the wall art. “I recognize those.”
Wilkins sold a lot of canvas paintings, which I owned two of. The first was an acrylic cat wearing sunglasses and holding a drink in one hand and a slice of pizza in the other. My cousin Cole had gotten it for me as a house warming present. The other was a water color painting of a pig with a donut in its mouth. I wish I could say that was a present, but I’d bought it on a whim after payday just for the sake of having it.
“I thought they’d look cute in here,” I admitted. They had fit the playful theme I was going for. While the desk and shelves were either dark brown or black, the chair, picture frames, and wall art were all multi-colored to make the room seem more fun.
He glanced at the diploma displayed by the door as we walked out, nodding in appraisal. Not saying anything else, I showed him the living room and kitchen area, bathroom, and the would-be wet bar area that my landlord never came to finish. It was just a little nook with wood-paneled walls and a butcher block counter top hanging in the crevice. Mashed Potato used it as a play area, a hoard of toys stuffed in the corner.
I was hesitant to show him my bedroom, which was nothing special. Just a full-size bed with a black and grey floral comforter, a mismatched dresser and nightstand, and a black full-length mirror hanging on the wall. There were no pictures or personal items.
“It’s no indoor jungle but…” I gave him a tiny smile, remembering that his room had its very own ecosystem.
He chuckled. “You’ve got a really nice set up here.”
He was the first one out of the bedroom, walking toward the unopened box on the floor. “Is this the culprit?”
I nodded. “Everything you need is in the package already.”
He picked it up and set it down on the coffee table, pushing the table back and sitting down on the couch. Grabbing his backpack, he opened it and pulled out an assortment of chocolate chip cookies. “I brought snacks.” His grin was wide.
Sitting next to him, I said, “Snacks are important.”
Except I was too nervous to eat, so I just watched him devour a few cookies and then open the cardboard.
“You wouldn’t believe what I had to go through to get that,” I blurted, hugging my knees to my chest. After buying the first stool I saw on the shelf at Walmart and bringing it home, I realized it wasn’t the same color as the ones I already had. So, I then had to take it back and exchange it for the right shade.
The customer service line had been five-people long when I got there, with only one employee running the register. It wasn’t so much about the wait that had me cringing over the day’s adventure, it was the man with rotting teeth trying to hit on me.
The guy was relentless in his pursuit, and nothing I said—or didn’t say—would get him to leave me alone. Not until it was his turn in line. And even after he got the help he needed, he still gave me a black-toothy smile and told me to reach out to him in the automotive department where he apparently worked.
I was two seconds away from grabbing the old man’s hand behind me and pretending he was my new daddy just to get the creep off my back.
After giving him the low down on the venture, he laughed. “I bet the old guy would have been just fine with you holding his hand.”
Probably true. “I don’t get why the weirdo couldn’t take no for an answer. I mean, I cringed every time he opened his mouth. I should have just told him I had a boyfriend.”
He shifted where he sat, focused on putting together the pieces.
Instead of remarking on the story, he tipped his chin toward the television. “Want to watch something? I like to multitask.”
“Oh. Uh, sure.”
Loading Netflix, I asked if there was anything he had in mind. When he suggested Bob’s Burgers, I was more than happy to oblige. I had a Tina Funko Pop in my office. I’m not sure what it said about my character that I believed Tina Belcher to be my spirit animal, but when I mentioned the snippet to Nathan he cackled.
One episode in, he was done being my handyman and we were side by side on the couch. My leg was against his, his knees splayed out crowding my space. I hid a smile when I realized he could have sat on the other end but instead chose to be closer to me.
We sat in silence watching the show until two am rolled around. He yawned, stretching his arms out and dropped his left one behind me, resting it on the back of the couch. I could feel his body heat through the fabric of my shirt, knowing he was inching his arm closer and closer.
When it dropped over my shoulders, I bit back a smile.
Nathan Reed just made a move.
Leaning toward him, I snuggled into his side. His arm tightened around my shoulder, pulling me closer to him until my cheek was pressed against his chest. It was an odd, uncomfortable angle, so I shifted to avoid getting a kink in my neck. Next thing I knew, we were laying on our sides, Nate moving further up the cushions, so his head was against the pillows and my body curled right into his.
Oh, God.
We were spooning. Spooning!
The smile plastered on my face was permanent, especially when his hand rested on my hip and rubbed circular motions into the fabric of my jeans. His breathing was light, even tempered. His heart not racing like mine was. His hand moved to hook around my stomach, hugging me close to him.
And that was where we stayed.
No kissing. No attempts at taking off clothes.
My nerves vanished as I settled into his hold.
I fell into a blissful sleep in the confine of Nathan’s arms.
Sometime during the night I’d turned over and used Nate’s body like my own personal pillow. If all pillows smelled like Old Spice and man, I’d happily wake up to that scent every morning.
Our legs were tangled together, and our arms were wrapped tightly around each other’s torsos. His soft, slow breathing told me he was still asleep, but he hugged me against him, sliding me so I was half on his body. Still tired, I nuzzled my nose into his neck, and let myself drown in the cadence of his heartbeat and swiftly fell back asleep.
His phone going off was what finally woke us. He haphazardly reached for the device, still keeping me in his hold. I groaned when I saw that it was only 6:30 in the morning.
“Too early to adult,” I whined, burying my face into his chest.
His low chuckle made me smile. “Agreed.”
I shifted to my side, looking up at him through my lashes. He was doing the same, one arm bent behind his head like an extra pillow, examining my sleepy gaze.
My eyes went to his lips. Was he thinking about kissing me as much as I was thinking about kissing him? Drifting my gaze back up to his eyes, I noticed the hike of his lips, smirking like he knew what I was thinking.
I started giggling, nerves building until I face planted back into his chest.
His chest shook through his silent laughter, he probably thought I was crazy.
When I stole a glance at him, his eyes were closed.
Maybe I missed the chance for the first kiss, although I had morning breath. Not sure how romantic that would be.
His arm came down and rubbed my back, my shirt lifting slightly from the movement. My cheek rested on his shoulder, and sleep evaded me. It was hard to go back to sleep knowing his body was under mine. Was I crushing him?
Self-consciously, I slid onto my side, draping an arm around his hard stomach. He had abs. Not as impressive as Caleb’s were, but still abs.
Stop thinking about Caleb’s abs.
We laid like that until my own alarm started squawking, making me jolt up and roll off the couch. Mashed Potato was glaring at me from the corner of the room. Whether it was because I hadn’t gotten up to feed her yet or because I cuddled with Nate instead of her, I didn’t know.
Nate sat up, brushing his hair back. “Sleep okay?”
Honestly, I’d only slept for a few hours because my mind raced knowing there was a man wrapped around me. Plus, he was a restless sleeper. His leg kept shifting and moving between mine, grinding between them and keeping me very much awake.
But that was my little secret.
“Yeah. You?”
“Like a baby.”
We smiled at each other.
His phone pinged with an incoming message. Yawning, he responded to whoever it was and then stood up. As he was stretching, his shirt rose a little to show off a sliver of his defined stomach and that sexy smattering of hair leading to the fun zone.
Dear God, that trail made me metaphorically lick my lips. And…maybe literally.
“I should head out,” he told me.
Disappointment laced through my veins. “Oh. Um, okay.”
He walked over to me, and for a moment I thought he was going to kiss me. Instead, he pulled me into a hug.
“Thanks for putting together the barstool.”
He drew back, grabbing his bag off the floor. “No problem. If you have any other ‘barstools’ you need me to put together, let me know.”
He shot me a wink as he opened the door.
I was mortified but kept my features blank.
As we walked out, I tried to brush his hand, but he moved it forward and pushed open the front door before I made contact. On the porch, he draped his bag over his shoulder and started down the stairs.
Over his shoulder he called, “We should plan that hiking trip soon,” he told me, my hope officially restored. Walking backwards he said, “I know the weather starts to turn when September comes around, so we should do something before then.”
I gave him a genuine smile. “I’d like that.”
We waved goodbye and I waited until he was out of view before going back inside.
Leaning against the back of the door, I smiled like the Cheshire Cat.
A man, with an actual penis, just stayed the night.
Mashed Potato came over and dropped one of the green mouse toys that Caleb had gotten for her right in front of my feet.
“I can’t play right now, boo bear.”
Her tail twitched as she turned to show me her asshole, waltzing away.
My eyes went back to the toy, it was almost like she hadn’t wanted to play with it at all.
I brushed it off and got ready for work.