Chapter 7 - Nick
Nick
NOT AGAIN.
I stumble and bounce off the side of the house, grabbing the wall to steady myself.
We were so close. And now I know we’re near to each other. Why could we not have just had five minutes more? Even hearing her last name would have been enough.
Something catches my eye, and as I look down, I see Noelle’s panties laying on the ground. Kneeling, I pick them up, and for a moment, just stare at them. Such a delicate thing, but more proof that this is real and that somewhere out there Noelle’s waiting for me.
Stuffing them in my pocket, I stand back up and try to get my bearings.
The sky is just a normal sky. It seems darker than when I left and I can hear voices around the corner. I assume the barbecue is in full swing.
My body is shaking. We got so near this time. I try to work out when the next holiday is but my brain is still processing everything that happened.
“Nick, there you are. Where have you been hiding? Did you see our new pool yet? I thought the grotto was a bit much, but got to keep the wife happy, you know.”
Max strolls up to me and pats me on the shoulder.
“Oh, I lost track of the time,” I say, trying to sound convincing. My heart is thumping and my head dizzy, so it shouldn’t be too hard for him to believe I’m a little out of it.
“Well, now that I found you, I want to introduce you to someone. Sarah has a friend.…”
I shake my head and smile at him. He is such a good friend, but there’s no way I want to be meeting someone tonight that I’m going to have no interest in. Noelle is the only woman on my mind, and that’s not going to change anytime soon.
“That’s nice of you, Max, but I’m not really interested. I only just got here and work is going to be demanding.”
He has that grin on his face and I know he’s not going to take no for an answer.
“Nick. You’re here, she’s here, you might as well meet her, anyway.
Just have a drink or two, see if things click.
If you’re not feeling it, I promise I won’t push things.
I’ll even step in and get you out of it.
But she’s a lovely woman and I think you’ll like her.
And you don’t want to upset Sarah after all the work she put in getting her here, do you? ”
God damn it. Max and Sarah have been so kind to me that I can’t really say no. But I need to get my head together.
“OK, Max. Just give me a minute or two. I seem to have left my phone in my room. I’m just going to go grab it, then I’ll meet you out front.”
He seems happy with this and gives me a nod.
“All right. I need to go find Sarah, and then it’s introductions time. You will not regret this.”
He takes off at a jog, going faster than I think I have ever seen him move.
This buys me a little thinking time. I don’t need to get my phone, I need to work things out.
I can go meet this woman, be pleasant, make my excuses and leave. Then I can start working out a way to find Noelle. Next city across. There must be hundreds of Noelles there, but it’s a start. I can try to narrow down my search.
And then we’ll be in each other’s arms again.
I realize I’ve been standing here for the last few minutes, thinking about Noelle and the feel of her kiss. I should get this over with.
I dust myself down, take a deep breath, and step around the corner, just as someone coming the other way walks right into me.