42. You’re Killing Me Here, Miss
You’re Killing Me Here, Miss
Missy
‘This better work,’ I mutter under my breath as I pack up Jonah’s things in the cabin. He and Nick went out to play in the water, and I stayed back to get ready for Cara.
When I hear the rumble of an engine approaching, I head outside to see my best friend and her man park up in his truck. Cara, having not seen me since everything with Bax happened, rushes to wrap me up in the biggest hug while Doug gets Bowie out of the truck, and they head down to Nick and Jonah.
‘How are you?’ Cara asks, holding my biceps and pushing me out to arm’s length to inspect me.
I ignore the question and nod to the cabin. ‘Come inside. I made coffee.’
I pour us two cups, then we head back out to sit on the deck, watching the men and the kids play for a few moments before we talk.
‘So… ’
‘I’m okay. Really.’ I nod and turn to meet her watchful gaze. ‘Cara, I’m really okay. The night it happened, I was in shock, I think, then all this past shit came up…’
‘Past shit you never told your best friends about.’ Her words are soft, filled with nothing but love, so I reach for her hand.
‘I’m sorry. We will talk, I promise.’
She shakes her head with a small, soft smile.
‘What’s with the makeover?’ she asks, and I take a deep inhale.
‘I, well, Nick, cut off my hair because I felt like I could still feel his hands on it. Crazy, I know.’
She shakes her head. ‘Not crazy. Also, Nick did that?’
‘Yeah,’ I laugh, ‘pretty good, right?’
She nods, an impressed smirk on her face.
‘So, you two...’
‘He’s giving me a wide berth. A lot has happened, and I think he doesn’t want me to do something I’ll regret.’
‘Will you regret it?’
‘No,’ I say without hesitation and turn back to look at the man in question. ‘I want this, him, us, more than anything.’
‘We should probably get out of your hair then.’ I turn back to find Cara beaming at me, and I can’t help but return the expression. ‘This is a nice, quiet, private spot.’ I squint my eyes at her, wondering what she’s cooking up. ‘And it’s going to be a warm few days.’
‘Unseasonably warm,’ I add suspiciously.
‘Perfect for a swim.’
‘I don’t have a bathing suit.’
‘Hmm,’ she stands, ‘that is a shame.’ She winks, then steps forward and calls to Doug, who turns and immediately wrangles the kids, and I pick up the bag of Jonah’s things.
‘What’s going on?’ Nick asks as we all group together near Doug’s truck.
‘Doug and Cara are taking the kids camping.’
‘Both of them?’ he questions as Jonah squeals with excitement.
‘Yeah, they thought Jonah would enjoy it.’
I hand over the bag to Doug as Cara passes me the groceries I had asked her to pick up.
‘What are you up to?’ Nick eyes me suspiciously, and I smile, then hand him the bag so I can say bye to Jonah.
‘Have fun, baby.’
‘I will.’
‘And don’t forget your manners, okay?’
‘I won’t. I promise. ’
As Nick and I stand shoulder to shoulder, watching our friends and my son drive away, I take a breath. We’re alone, and I’m not letting this opportunity pass by.
‘So…’
‘Lunch,’ I say brightly, ‘let’s make lunch.’
Inside the cabin, I take out some turkey, the bread, and some salad while Nick puts away the groceries, not questioning the wine, the steaks, or his favorite Merv’s diner cheesecake.
‘Shall we eat on the deck?’ he asks as I finish making our sandwiches and Nick pours us both a glass of juice. I nod, yes and follow him out.
‘I feel like you’re up to something,’ he says, smirking as we sit.
‘Jonah’s never been camping,’ I say by way of an explanation, and Nick arches an eyebrow at me.
‘So that’s why you asked Cara to bring you a very nice bag of groceries?’
I inhale deeply.
‘I wanted to cook dinner for you, and since Jonah wasn’t going to be here, I thought we could have something nice, drink a little wine, and I can thank you for taking care of me, us.’
‘Miss,’ he puts down his sandwich, ‘you have nothing to thank me for.’
I don’t say any more. Instead, I pick up my sandwich and take another bite.
‘I can’t believe how warm it is.’ I change the subject, and he nods.
‘I know. It’s nice.’
‘How cold is the water?’
I feel his eyes on me as he tries to catch up but not overtake my thoughts.
‘Um, it’s chilly but kind of nice with the sun working this hard.’
‘Hmm.’ Putting down my plate, I stand, then head inside and grab a couple of towels. Heading back out, I don’t overthink it as I make my way to the water’s edge, put down the towels, and unbutton my jean shorts.
‘Miss, what are you doing?’
Nick catches up to me, and I smile at his bewilderment.
‘I feel like a swim.’
‘But, I um…’
‘You what, Nick?’ I grin and shimmy my shorts down over my hips and ass until they drop to my ankles, and I step out of them. Nick’s attention follows them — his attention fixing on my legs.
‘Missy…’
‘You comin’?’
I don’t take off my tank. Instead, I reach underneath it to remove my bra.
‘You’re killing me here, Miss.’
Laughing as I drop my bra to my shorts on the ground, I back away toward the water as Nick groans and pulls off his shirt, then drops his shorts and follows me in just his boxers. Goddam, the man is a god.
‘Oh my, fuck ,’ I gasp as we get toe-deep in the water. ‘You said chilly.’
‘It is chilly.’ He laughs.
‘Nick, that’s not… No, no ,’ my protests turn to squeals as he scoops me up into his arms and walks into the water, laughter spilling freely from him between his gasps as the cold water makes its way up his legs. ‘Nicholas Barber, don’t you dare.’ As much as I don’t want to be thrown into the cold water, I also can’t help laughing along with him. ‘ Nick , no!’ I shriek as he launches me into the lake, and for a moment, everything stops.
Bubbles rush past my body, and the cold steals my breath away, but it feels good. It’s like I’m washing it all away, ready to start over, start fresh.
As I surface, pushing back my hair and steadying myself on my feet, I see the concerned look in his eyes — he doesn’t know if I’m going to be mad at him or not .
‘You’re going down, Barber. You know that?’
I use both hands to send a wave of water his way as he dives and starts to swim away, and I chase, both of us laughing. He stops, turning to face me, and I swim close to him.
‘Can you still put your feet down?’ I ask, and he nods yes. I can’t, so I tread water in front of him until his hands come to my waist, and he steadies me, holding me up.
‘Miss, I…’
‘I’m okay, Nick,’ I assure and his eyebrows lower. ‘I am. This is the most okay I’ve ever been, honestly.’
‘But so much…’
‘Sweetie, I thought we might kiss out here, maybe get a little handsy. I want to have this conversation with you, but if we’re just going to talk right now, can we get out? I’m freezing.’
He smiles, then nods, yes and releases me. We swim back to the shore, and he holds my hand as we get out of the water. Then he wraps me up in a towel and rubs my arms to warm me up.
‘Let’s go inside. You should take a shower to warm up.’
He keeps hold of my hand as we walk into the cabin, then into the bathroom, and he turns on the shower.
‘You know, there may not be enough hot water for two separate showers,’ I say playfully, and he smiles but shakes his head and backs away a little.
‘We need to talk first, Miss.’
I swallow hard, and for the first time, I doubt this. Does he not want this anymore? Is all of this taking care of me just him being friendly?
‘Nick, do you not…’
‘Honey, believe me when I say I want this, but I want us to be very, very clear about things before we take a single step in that direction.’ He steps in close and pulls my body against his, and oh, she likes that. My skin heats, my heart rate kicks up, and if my panties weren’t already soaked with lake water, they’d be, well, wet. ‘Get cleaned up, Missy.’
He steps away and closes the door, and I lean back against the basin behind me. He’s right. We need to talk — there’s no rush.