Chapter 7
seven
JAKOB
F or the rest of the week, we don’t discuss what happened. Miss Owens doesn’t either. She doesn’t even bat an eyelash when I tell her that Miss Wilson is escorting Dafni and I to Greece. Instead of having Miss Owens give Nicole the instructions for next weekend, I do it myself.
I find her with Dafni, decorating cookies in the kitchen. My granite counter is covered in flour, colored sugar, icing, and sprinkles. Dafni has smudges of pink icing on her cheeks, but she’s giggling and her smile stretches across her precious angelic face. My chest swells at the vision before me.
Nicole’s back is to me, so I take this opportunity to admire that vision as well. She’s wearing fitted jeans that hug her curves. I remember vividly how unbelievable she felt pressed against me. One time with her—one time would be enough. I don’t have room in my life for unnecessary risks. I have my patients and Dafni, who all depend on me.
But one time with Nicole would be okay, wouldn’t it? If we had a clear understanding. She’s not like the women I’ve dated before. Nicole understands me and what’s at stake. I highly doubt she’d want to tell Noah anyway. She’s so young and carefree; she wouldn’t want a man like me, who’s tied down with a stressful and time-consuming career, a child, and is twelve years her elder. She’s not ready for that phase of her life, and I don’t want to be the one to rush her to get there either. But I’ve seen the look of desire on her beautiful face. I’ve felt her body’s response to me. One time for both of us. We deserve that.
She spins around and the air is knocked from me. Light dances in her honey-colored eyes. Her mouth is stretched in a wide smile mirroring Dafni’s. A tiny dollop of white icing id on the tip of her nose. My long legs cross the room in three steps. It takes all my strength not to lick the icing off her. Instead, I narrow my eyes. She and Dafni both sober up and stare at each other with wide eyes.
I take the spatula that’s covered in a hideous lime green–colored icing and lift it. Nicole clears her throat. “We’re going to clean everything up. ”
Dropping the spatula, I then side step around her and Dafni to stand at the sink. Quietly, I turn it on and begin rinsing my hands. “Allow me to help.”
Before they can react, I grab the sprayer on the sink and begin spraying them. Dafni’s laughter fills the room, and it’s worth all the messes in the world. She dances around with her hands in the air. Nicole shrieks, but then she looks at me with a stunned expression.
After I’ve soaked them, I immediately regret spraying Nicole’s shirt, as it’s glued to her breasts, giving me a perfect outline of her delicate swells. I send Dafni to her room to prepare for a bath while Nicole stares at me.
“What?” I ask.
“You laughed.”
I give a one-shoulder shrug. “I’ve laughed before.”
“No, you’ve scoffed. Given a humorless chuckle. But this was a laugh.”
“Mamá always said, ‘Life’s too hard as it is. You’ve got to laugh some stuff off.’ I try to do that.” If she keeps looking at me with her chest rising and falling like that, I’m going to lose control. I can’t allow that. I’ll have her covered in icing and bent over this island. “I have an itinerary printed out, and I left it on the counter over there. We leave early Friday morning.”
Then I hurry out before I make any impulsive decisions.
I’m having lunch in my office when there’s a knock at my door. “Come in,” I call out.
Noah walks in and looks at me with suspicion. More than likely, Nicole has told her brother about the tension between us, and my less than professional attitude toward her. I’ve behaved inappropriately and that’s unacceptable. There’s no point in being nervous. If he punches me in the jaw now, it’s less than what I deserve.
He greets me with a “Hey, man” and sits in the chair across from my desk.
“Noah.” I place my salad fork down. Calmly, I pick up my napkin and dab my lips before giving him my full attention.
“Nicole is going with you and Dafni to Greece?”
“Yes. It was your idea for her to be Dafni’s nanny.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t tell you to take her out of the country. Shit. She’s never even left the state.”
“What are your concerns, Noah? It’s for one weekend.”
“You’ve been more distant than usual. Nicole hasn’t said much. Now you’re taking her overseas. You’re not being an asshole to my baby sister, are you? I know you can be a cold prick, but this is Nicole. She’s special.”
“Vivian’s daughter’s baptism is this weekend. My parents have already left, and I need help. Dafni adores Nicole. It makes sense. She’s already like family, and this is a family event.”
“Don’t hurt her, Jakob. You’re my best friend, but she’s my sister.”
“Never.”
“You know Vivian is like a sister to me.”
I’m not telling him that Nicole is like a sister to me. There’s nothing sisterly in my mind when I see her. Instead of lying, I say, “I care for Nicole. I won’t hurt her. She’s going to have the time of her life this weekend.”
“Keep me in the loop. I have to get back to work, but let’s plan to catch up when you get back.”
“Of course.”
Guilt slams into me as Noah closes my office door. This is his fault. I did a hell of a job avoiding Nicole. I know my limit, and Nicole Wilson is it. We just have to survive this weekend. After that, she’ll leave, Dafni’s nanny will return, and we’ll go back to only seeing each other when our families get together on the rare occasion. We can survive one more weekend.