“Why are you cleaning up the mess?”
“It looks like you could use a hand.”
Nate shrugged at me as he leant on the broom with a playful smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. Damn, this guys was sex on legs. I wanted to lick him from head to toe. Damn, I so needed to get laid. And the sooner the better. I was blasting through batteries faster than I’d like to admit. If this continued, I’d be buying shares in Energizer before too long.
Chapter 12
Nate
I have no idea what the hell we’d walked in on earlier, but I’d never seen anything so beautiful as Josie. The bar was trashed. Literally, shit everywhere. The other bartender, the chick who looked like she was supposed to be helping, was cowering and crying in the corner. When Mia received a text, we’d just finished indulging in the most delicious Black Forest cake with extra cherries, and I’d slumped back in the chair, wanting nothing more than to curl up and have a nap. When Mia cooked, she went all out. The moment she’d received Josie’s simple message though, it’d changed our plans for a quiet evening.
After I’d finally escaped school and was free, I’d climbed on my bike and ridden. I rode until my head stopped thinking. Until the frustrations eased. It felt amazing, and by the time I kicked off my boots and stepped through my back door, I was thoroughly relaxed. After a quick shower, I’d grabbed the six pack from my fridge and headed over to Derek’s.
We were all chilled, kicking back, eating too much, and just sharing a laugh right up until Mia’s phone lit up. She squealed and ran around in a circle. If I hadn’t been so worried about what was going on with Josie, it would have been hilarious. Before I had a moment to think about what I was doing, I slipped into the backseat of Derek’s truck and tagged along.
Looking at Josie now, I knew I made the right decision. The surprise on her face as she watched me sweep away the mess was priceless.
An hour later you never would have known the disaster zone it had been. Derek’s appearance worked better than calling fire, and as calmly and as casually as they possibly could, people found themselves heading for the exit. Josie’s ‘helper’ had burst into tears before promptly tossing her apron on the bar and racing out the door as fast as her high heeled boots could carry her.
“That’s it! We’re done!” Josie declared as she poured four beers and set them on the counter before whipping off her apron and tossing it in the direction of the till.
“Cheers!” Derek shouted.
As I poured the beer down my throat, beer I barely tasted, I looked over the rim at Josie. Again. There was something about this chick. Whenever I was in her vicinity, my dick was at half-mast. She didn’t do anything to encourage it, she didn’t have to, it just was what it was. Since that day at the river, I’d had more than one thought about that ass and those magnificent tits that pressed into me as she held onto the back of my bike. That was something I wanted relive again. And now!
The moment she stripped off her polo shirt, revealing the extremely well-fitted thin grey tank, I moaned. Out loud. I couldn’t stop myself if I tried. And everyone heard it. Including the object of my lust.
“You right there?” Josie called me out.
“Fine.” I spat out the word between gritted teeth, finishing my beer in a few huge gulps
When we pulled into the driveway of my decrepit and embarrassing abode, I ducked my head in shame. Derek had already seen the place, hell, he’d been the one to help me fight through the million and one spiders to get inside the laundry, but that didn’t mean I wanted anyone else to see it. Especially not Josie. For some reason, one I couldn’t quite wrap my head around just yet, I wanted her to be impressed, not terrified of catching some deadly disease when she entered. I knew eventually she would enter. I don’t know how I knew, I just did.
“It’s a work in progress,” I heard myself mutter.
“It’s a gorgeous place. I can’t wait to see it once you’ve worked your magic on it,” Mia exclaimed as she bounced in the front seat.
If I was sure Derek wouldn’t beat my ass, I would have clambered over the seat and kissed her. Her excitement was infectious, and it put my very real fears at ease. If Mia could see what it would become, not what it was, then I had a fighting chance.
“Thanks, Mia. And thanks for dinner too. It was delicious!” I said, meaning every word. Somehow, I wasn’t exactly sure how, but I was going to get myself an invite to Mia’s for dinner again. Damn, that girl could cook.
“Any time.”
“Well, thanks for an…interesting night.” I winked at Josie as I jumped from the back of the car. “Derek, I’ll come by in the morning and grab my bike, if that’s cool.”
“Sounds good.”
“Have a good night, Nate. Sorry about interrupting your dinner, and the drama and…”
Unable to stop myself, I reached out and took Josie’s tiny hand in mine. Her fingers were like ice. Cold and clammy, and when I glanced down, they were almost white. Rubbing my thumb back and forth across her palm, I affirmed, “Don’t even give it a second thought. It wasn’t your fault. You were just in a shitty situation and you did the best you could.”
“You don’t have to—”
“Josie! What are you doing tomorrow?”
“N-nothing?”
“Take a ride with me? We can get on the bike and just drive until we find somewhere to eat, have dinner, and come home?”
Shit! Where the hell that came from, I’ll never know. Sure, I’d checked out her ass more than once, and thought about that soft skin against mine one too many times, but I’d never planned to do anything about it. Never planned to ask her out. Never planned to get involved. Seeing the distress in her eyes, and the fear written all over her beautiful face that she’d ruined my night, made me forget everything else. I didn’t care about anything other than putting the smile back on those lips I was dying to taste.
“I-I can’t.” As Josie said the words, she yanked her hand from my grip and her eyes dropped to her lap. It was like she couldn’t bear to look at me a moment longer than absolutely necessary.
“Bullshit!” Derek cut the silence with an affirming boom. “She’ll be ready at five.”
Glancing around the car, I couldn’t help but catch the wide-eyed terror crossing Josie’s face, while Mia just nodded gently and a sly smirk tugged at Derek’s lips. What I wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall the moment Derek’s truck backed out of my driveway.
“Josie?”
Her mouth fell open like a goldfish before snapping shut and repeating. I would have bet money her mind was going a million miles an hour. My intention had never been to make her feel uncomfortable.
“O-Okay.”
“Okay then. See you tomorrow. It’ll be fun, promise.”
With a wink, I slammed the door shut and stepped back, my gaze never once leaving Josie’s stunned face. Part of me was waiting for her to stick her head out of the window and tell me she’d changed her mind. Surely it was only a matter of time before I got the text message apologising. Refusing to stew on it though, I headed inside, full of energy. Ten minutes ago I’d been ready to pass out and not wake up for a week. Now, now I had a date with a beautiful girl and she’d agreed to get on the back of my baby with me. Even though she’d ridden with me before, that didn’t really count. Last time she’d been left with no other choice. This time though, this time she was climbing aboard willingly. I couldn’t wait.
After a quick shower to wash away the stench of stale beer and grease, I climbed into bed with a smile on my face and a to do list, which was getting longer by the minute. As much as I thought I wasn’t invested in this date going well, when I added clean bathroom to the list, I knew I was only lying to myself.
After only a couple of hours of restless sleep, while the sun was still hiding, I got up, munched down a couple of pieces of toast and a bucket full of coffee, and attacked the house with a renewed enthusiasm. Even the dining room, the one room I hadn’t decided what the hell I
was doing to do with, saw some action. After tearing up the carpets, I was pleasantly surprised to find hardwood floors hidden beneath the layer of dirt. Not just a thin layer of dirt either, but a thick, crusted layer of dust, debris, and more than a few thousand dead bugs.
I was hauling the threadbare, mouldy carpet out the door when Derek pulled into the drive dressed in work boots, ripped jeans, and a backwards baseball cap, although it wasn’t his appearance that shocked me the most. Following him across the yard was Logan, a guy I’d only met once a few months ago skiing on the river, and even then we’d only spoken for a total of ten minutes, tops, and Mia. She too looked like she was ready to kick some ass. She looked all kinds of sassy and ready for work.
“Hey?”
“Morning. Thought you could use a hand or two.”
“Always. How’d you know…?”
“You’d be restless and needing to get it out of your system?”
Mia’s words knocked me sideways. Literally. At her words, although seemingly innocuous and simple, I stumbled, bashing my elbow on a post on the veranda as I attempted to descend the steps.
“Th-thanks.” Shocked is pretty much the best description of how I was feeling. I wasn’t expecting help and out of any day they could have offered, today was the day I’d have preferred to be alone. I had too many thoughts all at once. I was scattered enough without having other people watching me and waiting on me to tell them what I wanted them to do or where I wanted them to put something. The problem was, I couldn’t push them away. Not when they’d given up their Saturday to get dirty and help.
“So, where do we start?” Logan asked, looking slightly anxious.
Shit! Now I had to make a decision and since I had many hands I might as well focus on knocking over the one task that, for the past couple of weeks just seemed too big to face. And it was. Too big to face alone anyway. Today though, today I wasn’t alone and now seemed as good of a time as any.
“Well, since you’re here…you keen on helping me knock down the shed?”
“Seriously?”
“Yep. Bloody stupid place for a shed, if you ask me. Right in the middle of the yard. I’ve already cleared some space in the back corner where the new one will go. Gotta organise the slab, then get it ordered.”
“Yeah, you got a point.”
“So…” Mia began as she wrung her hands in front of her, a dazzling smile lighting up her face. “How we doing this?”
“You’re not!”
I was relieved Derek had said it. I wanted to. It was on the tip of my tongue. Thankfully, Derek had done the dirty work, now he was the one getting the death rays from Mia’s cranky ass. I knew someone who wouldn’t be getting any tonight.
“And why not, sweetheart?”
“Shit! I know that tone,” Logan added, backing away, his hand in the air, surrendering.
“Coffee?” I offered. Before I knew it, Logan and I were standing in the kitchen, sipping freshly brewed java while beyond the window, the window which desperately needed cleaning, we watched as Derek attempted to reason with his stubborn fiancée. He was either bullet proof or a complete moron. I mean, this guy arrested criminals and had dealt with some pretty dark shit from what I could gather, but with the firecracker all wound up, I watched curiously as he took more than one retreating step.
“Who you think will win?”
“My money’s on Derek.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. But he’ll be paying the price for it. He might win this battle, but he’ll lose the war. Mia has him pussy whipped, and just between you and me, he wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Taking another long swallow of my coffee, I stared out at the shed. I had no idea how to knock the thing down. I guess we’d just grab some gloves and start taking it apart, rusted tin piece by rusted tin piece.
Seeing Mia stomping in towards the house, I finished my coffee before dropping the dirty mug in the sink. I’d deal with that later.
“Nate!” My name echoed through my still almost empty house. I really needed to get some furniture, or at the very least, some floor coverings just to quieten the whole place down.
“Yes dear?” I replied smartly, stepping from the kitchen to meet the wound up little pixie.
“What do you need? Since I’m too female to help, I have to play errand girl. The sexist pig,” she tacked on under her breath. Yep. No doubt about it. Derek was in the dog house. I hoped he was settled in for the night. From the look on Mia’s face, he wasn’t getting out any time soon. “He’s sending me home to get some crap. Can you think of anything you need?”
I wanted to laugh. Right then. Out loud. As she spoke about Derek, her face scrunched up like she’d just sucked on a lemon, but the moment she offered to get me anything, she returned to her cheery, adorable, normal self. It was taking every bit of restraint I had to hold myself together.
“Maybe if you have some spare gloves and a couple of hammers?” I didn’t want to push my luck but they would be bloody useful.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
With a wink she was gone, and Logan and I were left staring after her, completely speechless. I watched her jump up into Derek’s truck and drive away before I dared to venture outside. “Should we go see if Derek still has his balls attached?”
“I heard that!” Derek yelled, clearly annoyed. “Was that fun for you?”
“Actually…”
“You two took off like a bat out of hell then.”
“Hell man. There was no way I was getting in the middle of that. I like my balls exactly where they are, thank you very much.”
“Yeah, Derek. We’re not completely stupid, unlike someone I know.”
“Shut up, assholes. Now, we going to knock this shed down or what?”
“Yep.”
Derek’s snarky attitude was all for show. He might have pissed Mia off but I’d seen them together enough to know it wouldn’t last. A few murmured apologies, a bit of good old fashioned grovelling, a kiss and some hot sweaty make-up sex, well, at least that’s Derek’s side of the story, and all was good.
“Let’s break some shit!”
Four back breaking hours later the shed was nothing more than a pile of rubble in the middle of my yard. Once we’d ripped the sheets of tin off and knocked down the spider webs, it almost fell apart without much help at all.
I was buggered. Completely and utterly stuffed, really. I wanted nothing more than a cold shower and a beer. Or maybe a cold beer while I was in the shower. Despite the grey gloves that’d cover my hands at all times, I’d managed to rip half a fingernail from its bed and take a healthy sized chunk out of my palm. My knees were stiff from where I’d spent time squatting down, attempting to undo the rusted bolts before Mia had appeared with the grinder, taking them off in seconds. That girl was a freaking marvel. She’d figured out not only the problems we’d hit, but also how to fix them before we could even decide to do it. I got why Derek didn’t want her involved, she was his to keep safe, but hell, she knew her way around.
Lying back on the grass, Logan threw his hands over his eyes, probably blocking out the sun that was bearing down on us. “I’m done. Don’t care anymore. Too old and tired for this shit.”
“Oh, what’s wrong? The poor wittle country doctor afraid of doing an honest day’s work?”
That got his attention. Logan popped up, ready for a fight. Then he caught sight of who taunted him.
With a streak of dirt across her pale cheek and a mischievous sparkle in her eye, Mia teased. “You are a cruel, cruel woman, Mia. Dunno how Derek puts up with you.”
“He loves me.”
“You sure?”
“Yep. Don’t you, Derek?”
Poor guy. Another impossible situation for him to try to win. It was like Mia got some perverted pleasure in watching him squirm. Hell, I wasn’t even engaged to him and I thought it was some funny shit.
“Yes, dear.”
Roughing up his hair with her fingertips
, Derek had leant down to let her. His face was filled with nothing but pure love and adoration. It felt like a punch in the gut. I’d had that. Once. Although I’d sworn off ever again going down that path, watching them taunt and tease each other made me jealous. Part of me wondered if I’d ever get a shot again. I knew in my heart I wouldn’t. I couldn’t. There was no way in hell I’d put everything I had, everything I was, my whole heart in someone else’s hands, just to have it crushed again. Nothing was worth that sort of agony.
“Well, I’m so tired from being right all day, I think you should take me home and put me in the shower, Constable Cartwright.”
Mia waggled her eyebrows at Derek and I swear the guy melted. Not from the sun’s warmth, either. One batting of her lashes and he was putty in her tiny, yet surprisingly effective hands.
“On that note…I’m out.”
Without a word, Derek swept Mia off her feet and tossed her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, heading straight for the car. I couldn’t stop myself. Their relentless flirting all day had sex on my mind. Fuck, who was I kidding? Sex was always on my brain these days. It’d been too long since I’d had a warm, willing woman beneath me. I’d have to do something about that. Hearing the sexy little giggles from Mia wasn’t helping, either.
“Be safe!” I called behind them as Derek opened the driver’s side door and tossed Mia in as if she was a rag doll before flipping me the finger. Beside me, Logan chuckled. “Aren’t they your ride?”
“I’m not getting in the car with those two right now. Did you see them? They’re most likely to go at it on your driveway.”
“Now there’s an idea!” Mia squeaked before Derek put the truck into reverse and took off down the road.
As I looked over at Logan, the moment our gaze locked we both lost our shit. Doubled over from laughing so hard, it didn’t help my already aching, tired body. It took us a few minutes to pull ourselves together before I straightened my spine.
“I’m gonna head too. Thanks for today.”
“Seriously? You’re thanking me? For making you do manual labour? Are you on drugs?”
Believing Again (Finding Your Place Book 3) Page 10
