Going Long (Waiting on the Sidelines #2)(67)
“I’ll be fine,” she said, convincingly.
I led her around the back of her house, her parents and my dad following. Her dad was explaining what the fire inspectors had told him about the dryer causing the fire. Nolan just surveyed everything, taking it in. She poked her head through the exposed wall and floor, looking at the remains of her room. She reached up to blot her eyes, the scene affecting her more than she thought it would. I was worried about this. I just squeezed her hand tighter and pulled her in for a hug. She snuggled her face into my chest and turned to look up at me.
“I’m fine, I promise. It’s just…a little hard to see, if that makes sense. I know it’s just stuff,” she said, her face a little more dejected now.
“Yeah, it’s just stuff. The important things are all okay,” I said, squeezing her again and kissing the top of her head. She grabbed onto the front of my shirt with her fists, resting her forehead under my chin for a moment while she kicked her feet and stared at the ground.
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing you said coconut,” she laughed.
“Yeah, good thing,” I laughed, too. “Tell me, how ridiculous was that interview?” I led her back to her car so we could all caravan to my dad’s house, our hands still glued to one another. She got into her car and left the door open so we could talk.
“Coconuts? You are coconuts? That’s the best you could come up with?” She teased me, poking at my stomach a little. I just shrugged and raised my hands. I’d won, and that’s all that mattered.
When we got home, Rosie had already set up the guesthouse behind the garage for the Lennoxes. There were two bedrooms, but I hoped like hell Nolan wouldn’t be staying in one of them. Even though she was 20, I still felt like we were kids when her dad was around. I didn’t want to disrespect him, but I also wanted to have Nolan with me at night. Despite my wishes, she slept with her family for the first few nights. I wasn’t around much, splitting my time between Pop’s house and campus for practices, so I didn’t push my luck until I came home for our full practice break on the 23rd.
“So, you’re not planning on welching on that bet, are you?” I asked Nolan, kicking her feet from the barstool in our kitchen while she read the paper and picked at one of Rosie’s famous omelets. She put her fork down and shoved my shoulder playfully and I pretended to be hurt. “Hey, watch the arm, killer.”
She smiled big, her eyes crinkling, while she stuffed a full bite into her mouth. “I don’t welch on bets, Wildcat,” she said with her hot attitude. So goddamned cute. “I’ll pay up. Tonight.”
She didn’t look at me when I walked around her, instead continuing with her breakfast and pretending like none of this affected her. I took advantage of it and leaned in, grazing my lips on her neck, and then whispered in her ear. “Good. You might want to nap. Because we’re not sleeping,” I said, biting at her a bit and then backing away when she turned to look at me, her eyes full of embarrassment and surprise as she looked around to make sure no one else heard. I just winked and walked outside to join my dad on the patio and left her there, breathless.
Night couldn’t come soon enough. Nolan had spent the day with the girls, and I spent the entire afternoon getting everything ready with Sean. We had a lot to catch up on. When I told him that Nolan had lost a baby, it hit him pretty hard. Suddenly so many things were making sense. He was so enthusiastic about helping me set up all of Nolan’s surprises. My dad liked to have everyone open presents on Christmas Eve, and Nolan would be at her grandparents’ house for Christmas while I would be at my mom’s with Jason—something that I was seriously considering skipping for the first time in my life. Tonight was our only chance to have a holiday just for us. And I wanted it to be perfect.
The sun was setting by the time Sarah’s car pulled in the driveway, and Nolan hopped out. I had been waiting in the living room for more than an hour, everything ready for her to arrive. I texted Sarah, and told her not to let Nolan eat dinner so she’d be hungry by the time she got home. She clicked the front door open and stopped in her tracks when she saw the table dressed for two, candles and all.
“Wow, Reed. Did you do this all yourself?” she was surprised.
“I had some help,” I shrugged. She knew Rosie did most of the heavy lifting. “It’s Rosie’s lasagna. I hope you’re hungry.”
She smiled and kicked her shoes off, sliding over to the table. “I’m starving!” she said, pulling out her chair before I could. I was a little disappointed so I grabbed her napkin before she could take that gesture from me as well, only I knocked over the water glass when I reached for it, dumping a full glass on her lap. “Oh man!” she shrieked, standing right away and reaching for the napkin to try to dry her legs. “That’s cold stuff!”
Damn. I was ruining it already. I reached for the other napkin and tried to help her dry her now soaking jeans. “Stupid. I’m so sorry,” I said. She just started giggling, instantly making me feel better.
“It’s okay,” she tossed her now soaking napkin on the table. “I think, though…I’m gonna need some pants.”
“Right,” I said, looking at the giant dark spots on her lap. I pointed to her and signaled that I’d be right back and ran upstairs to grab a pair of my sweatpants. I came back down and gave them to her, and she ducked into the powder room to change. I cleaned the rest of the water from the table before she came back out, my sweats draping on her body but looking so good. I just wanted to lift her in my arms right then, but I was determined to get the evening back on course. I went to reach for her chair again, but she just held up a hand, laughing a bit.