NATE’S HANDS ARE CLEARLY MAGICAL
27
5 Missed calls from Mom.
1 Missed call from Tham.
PRUDENCE
Have you ever felt like people are all sharing a secret and you’re excluded from it? Because it’s the vibe I’m getting right now.
All throughout our—admittedly lovely—lunch, they all exchanged weird glances. Ikram would look at Evie and she would nod, and he would wink, and she would chuckle. Nuri would mumble something, Jack would kick her under the table, and she would frown at him, making him roll his eyes.
And I’m here, studying all of this without getting it, forcing myself not to think about the bookcase metaphor.
Which is surprisingly easy when Nate’s entire focus is basically on me, no matter how much I try to avoid looking at him. The side of my face is burning from his gaze.
I lean against the back of the chair, crossing my legs under the table as I exhale roughly. The food was amazing and I ate way too much.
“I’m so glad I came,” Nuri says, letting her head fall softly on my shoulder. “I miss you guys so much.”
I sigh and place my head on top of hers. “I hope we can do this more often.”
“We will,” she assures.
I close my eyes, simply enjoying the moment. My best friend, here with my brother and his new boyfriend, my newest friend and…
My eyes snap open and I’m not sure how I manage not to jolt. My eyes clash with Nate’s playful ones as he brings his index finger in front of his lips, asking me to be silent.
His hand is on my calf. What is it doing there ?
Then I feel it slide lower until it reaches my ankle and he places my foot on his thigh, fumbling with the shoelace and slipping the shoe off, while everyone talks and doesn’t pay him any attention. Nate places the shoe on the floor silently, quickly taking off my sock as well.
And then, my eyes nearly roll in the back of my head and it takes everything not to moan as his strong hands start to massage the sides and soles of my hurting foot, pressing and rubbing on the sore spots. It actually feels even better than when the Asian lady at the hotel on my way from Seattle to L.A did it. She obviously had no idea what she was doing. But him? God, I’m not sure if it’s because of his profession or just because he’s naturally good at it, but I can feel myself and all my nerves melting under his simple touch.
It’s no wonder Jack can walk again, Nate’s hands are clearly magical. And I can’t help my train of thought, imagining other places his hands might feel good. Especially—
“Is that okay with you Prue?”
My eyes snap open at the sound of Jack’s voice and this time I jolt, knocking my knee under the table, and lifting my head from Nuri’s.
He might have to rub that too later…
I have no idea how long his hand has been on my foot, but it feels better and I kinda wish he’d do the same on the other one. And my shoulders. And what the hell, why not my back as well? Am I getting addicted because of a five minute or something foot massage? Should I book a spot in rehab?
“Hm?” I ask, trying to pull on my leg to get my senses back, but Nate is not letting go of his hold.
“We were thinking of moving to the beach now that we’re done with the meal? We’ve booked a covered area with four deckchairs. Ikram and I will try to go in the water,” Jack says, and I can’t miss the admiration on Ikram’s face as he looks at him.
“Oh, uhm—Yeah. Sure, it sounds great. Especially the covered part. It’s too hot out there today, and you know how weirdly I tan, right? Like I’ll burn on one arm, but actually just get darker on the other, and… Yeah, anyway, that sounds great.” I nod and smile awkwardly, and they all stare at me like I just ate sand and told them it was the best meal of my life.
Okaaay, then…
I try to pull on my foot again as Jack turns to ask for the check but Nate holds on and I quickly feel my sock being softly pulled back on.
“You can stay under the shades if you want, but I want to soak in the sun for a little bit,” Evie chirps.
“Have I never told you about Melanoma?” Ikram asks seriously.
Evie rolls her eyes, and I hold a giggle as I feel my shoe being put back on. What an interesting way to find out that I’m actually ticklish.
“Have you looked at me? My skin is too dark for this kind of crap.”
Ikram’s frown deepens as Nate starts to tie the shoelaces, and I hold my breath, worried Jack might just turn his head and see my foot on Nate’s lap.
“The sun doesn’t care about the color of your skin, sweetheart. Look at me ! And I worry about Melanoma.”
“I’ll put on sunscreen.”
“What about your back?”
“Prue or Nuri will help me!”
“I’ll do it!” Nuri nods happily. “And you’ll do mine so I can soak in the sun too.”
I feel Nate’s hand going back to my calf and his thumb rubbing in gentle circles. Good thing I had the time to wax a couple of days ago…
“I have SPF 50. I count on you to put a timer and re apply accordingly,” Ikram concedes, looking between them with a serious gaze. “You too, Prudence, even if you stay in the shade.”
“So bossy,” Evie drawls.
He sticks out his tongue at her and Jack hides his smile nuzzling in Ikram’s neck.
“Alright, let’s go!” Nuri says, standing up abruptly, and Nate pushes my leg softly until it lands back on my other knee.
Our eyes meet again then, and I manage to smile shyly through the embarrassment, ignoring how his eyes are making me feel all sorts of inexplicable things.
I really need to learn how to understand what I feel. Because I have no idea how to explain this weird mix of attraction, desire, and annoyance. I mean, as I told him yesterday, he does way too many things that upset me.
I hate that you have reasons to hate me. I hate that my actions caused your insecurities.
Alright, maybe he got to me when he said all of that. Maybe I’m not as annoyed as I used to be. Maybe I even understand a little more why he did what he did. Scaring guys away from me… Probably not as selflessly as I thought, and definitely not only because my brother asked him to. But I think I understand.
I just wish… Actually I’m not sure what I want. That he told me? Back then I don’t know how I would have reacted, because of Jack and the reputation Nate had. I probably wouldn’t have believed him, even if my self esteem was not as bruised at that time. I’d probably have thought that he was trying just what he accused other guys of doing: lie his way to my bed. And Jack being his best friend… No. Past me would not have risked it. Especially with how protective of me Jack was at that time.
But now? Jack’s different. Maybe he really means it when he says he wouldn’t mind. After all, Nate might be pushing his buttons, but Jack might be serious? Am I willing to risk it now?
As Nate and I are sitting at the edge of the deck, we basically already have our feet in the sand. Evie leaves the folded wheelchair in charge of the restaurant manager and Ikram slides his arm under Jack’s shoulder, keeping close to him and helping him walk at the same time.
My feet still hurt—more my left foot than the right, thanks to Nate—but I manage to keep the limping to a minimum.
We stop under a large pergola where four lounge chairs are waiting for us, covered in thick beach mattresses. There are a few other covered areas like this one but all of them are pretty far from each other, giving people the privacy they expect when booking spots in a place like this.
“Alright, everyone out of their clothes, I’m getting the sunscreen from the bag,” Ikram says as Jack sits on one of the lounge chairs.
“How am I supposed to get a tan with sunscreen?” Evie complains.
“You don’t . But at least you’ll be protected from—”
“Melanoma, yeah.” She rolls her eyes as she unbuttons the front of her jumpsuit, letting her bright neon pink bikini top peek through. “Next time I’m going to the beach, I won’t bring you .”
Ikram gasps in fake shock and leans forward to pull on a strand of her hair, making her gasp too in response.
“Oh, no, you don’t! That’s it, I’m bringing Samantha to take your place on Monday.”
Ikram rears back then, placing his hand on his heart, lips parted. “You wouldn’t.”
“I would! Even though I made sure Sasha would get the spot, I can totally change all this.”
“No, no, no… I’m sorry! I take it back! Go bake in the sun and get Melanoma if you want! But not Samantha ,” he squeaks, retreating on himself like he just touched the wet food stuck down the drain of the sink.
She steps out of her jumpsuit, revealing the stark contrast between her dark skin and the bright pink of her bikini, and crosses her arms, her eyes narrowed on him.
“Let me pull your hair and we’re even,” she says.
Ikram’s eyes go wide, his arms lifting to reach for the defined black curls framing his face.
“Please. Not my hair. Come on, you can be reasonable.”
I feel more than hear Nate chuckle behind me, making me aware of how close he’s standing. His chest nearly against my back, his breath brushing the shell of my ear. Like in the shower this morning.
Oh no, not the shower…
“It’s only fair, you pulled on mine!”
I notice then, Nuri and Jack watching the scene, sitting next to each other, holding their own laughs. And shit, am I smiling too?
“It was a—a spur of the moment thing! I didn’t think, I’m sorry. Please, leave my hair out of this,” Ikram pleads, but Evie just shrugs.
“I guess I’ll just call Samantha and ask her—”
“ Fine! Just one strand, and not harder than what I did, which was barely a pull at all!”
I remember them mentioning that same Samantha when I first learned about Ikram’s crush for Jack. They both seemed appalled at the idea that she might be the one to replace him… They didn’t say why, though.
Evie’s smile widens, showing all her perfectly aligned and white teeth. She steps closer and slowly—agonizingly so—she lifts her arm to pinch a curly strand between her fingers. Ikram’s eyes are tightly shut and a tense wince pulls at his features. I’m not sure why, we’re all watching the scene with bated breaths, because it takes her just a second to pull and let go, leaving a frowning Ikram searching his bag for the sunscreen.
I’m strangely confused by how hooked I was.
Ikram proceeds to baby all of us with the sunscreen and I finally take off my dress and shoes, my bare feet burying themselves in the hot sand.
“Your hands, Prue,” he asks, standing in front of me and I lift them palms up in front of me. “There,” he says, squeezing a large— way too large—amount in them. “If there’s too much, put it on someone’s back, they’ll do the same to you.”
And then, he’s gone, straight behind my brother to rub the sunscreen softly on his pale skin.
I wince and start applying on my face, arms, chest, stomach, and legs, but I’m left with still a considerable amount on my hands. I look around for Nuri or Evie and find them both, Nuri applying to her own arms while Evie is taking care of her nape. Nuri went for a one piece. Smart .
I feel someone at my back before I can hear him clear his throat, and the hair on the back of my neck rises.
“Do you mind? He squeezed about half of the bottle in my hands…”
I close my eyes, making sure the long exhale leaving my lips is silent, and nod without turning. The last thing my hormones need right now is to see him shirtless, because I can assure you, my memories are vivid .
His hands land delicately on my shoulders and even though my brain is sending me alert signals, my body is nothing but butter again under his touch. I can’t help but take a look towards Jack, a knot of anxiety forming in my stomach as Nate’s hands are sliding over my shoulder blades then lower along my spine. But Jack’s sole focus is on Ikram’s back as he puts sunscreen on him and they talk in low voices, smiling, their faces close to each other.
I force my anxiety down. There’s no reason for him to look at us. And no reason for him to freak out as we’re all pretty much putting sunscreen on each other, at Ikram’s request.
Nothing’s wrong here
The goosebumps erupting on my skin are clearly due to the small wind. Not Nate’s hands. Definitely not—
Oh. Oh.
They slide slowly from my waist to my hips, and I can feel Nate’s body heat with how close his chest is from my back. Naked chest. Said naked chest that I’ll probably see when he asks me if I can put my leftover sunscreen on his back. Chest that I might feel the need to draw later.
Chest that I definitely need to stop thinking about when his hands are roaming my back and—
“Did you think to apply some on the back of your thighs?” He asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.
I clear my throat. “Um—No. But I’ll stay on my back, I brought my tablet to draw.”
“Hmhm, even if you stay on your back, the sun moves and you might too.”
Before I can even think of saying anything, I feel him shift behind and the next thing I know, his hands are sliding from just below my ass to the back of my knees. Slowly. Too slowly . And I try—I really try—not to think about the fact that he’s probably kneeling behind me, face level with my butt.
And silently I curse Los Angeles and their obsession with tiny-teeny bikinis. Because the one I’m wearing? Even though it was the most covering one I found, it’s quite high waisted, and shows a good part of my ass.
Which is currently right in front of his face.
I want the sand to swallow me whole.
“Alright, you’re all done,” he says, shifting again behind me, and I thank the universe that with all that, he didn’t notice that I haven’t put sunscreen on my uncovered ass. Small victories. “Can you take care of mine?”
“Sure,” I say, starting to turn and bracing myself for the sight of his chest, only to exhale in relief when I notice he’s already showing me his back.
His broad back. Damn, I’m not even sure I have enough leftover sunscreen to cover all of it.
He tilts his head to the sides, probably stretching, and the movement makes the muscles from his shoulders and neck ripple.
I swallow through the dryness of my throat and lift my hands to place them on the surface right in front of me: the spot between his shoulder blades.
His skin is warm. Soft. Damn, it might be only his back, but it does bring up memories… And all those lean muscles moving every time he just shifts slightly?
This’ a hot back.
I let my hands wander lower, making sure to cover every inch of the golden skin, until I reach the dimples above his swimsuit— Oh. My. God. Dimples.
I catch myself the moment both my thumbs slide closer in wonder, and pull my hands back abruptly.
“All done!”
I turn around and almost run the two steps towards the long chair—yes, run , as ridiculous as it sounds to run six feet.
“Okay, we’re going in the water,” Jack says, taking Ikram’s hand to stand up from the low chair. “And before you freak out, don’t worry we won’t go too far, and if the pain becomes too much, we’ll come back and rest,” he adds, giving me a pointed look.
I lift up my hands in surrender. “I didn’t say anything.”
He only narrows his eyes in response before Ikram and him start to walk towards the ocean, just about sixty feet from us. I can’t help but smile in admiration. Even if Ikram is supporting him at the waist, Jack walks almost without leaning into him.
And that small miracle is one we owe to Nate. Nate who’s now standing next to me and watching Jack walk away. Nate who looks like he’s not planning on going in the water nor soaking in the sun.