by Lola Kidd
Ray, Tanner, and Abe were staring at her. She wondered how much Nate had told them. Did they know she was here as more than a co-worker?
“Okay,” Nate said reluctantly. “But only for one drink. Then I’m going home to spend some quality time with my bed.”
Blair smiled. “Sounds good to me.”
Chapter 17
Nate pulled into a parking space next to Blair. They had to park three blocks away from the Bull. There was a small parking lot behind the bar that was usually enough, but tonight there was overflow. One of the bouncers had pointed them to spots down the streets. It was normally illegal to park here after eleven, but the police were making an exception tonight. It was nice to see everyone getting in on the festivities.
Nate hadn’t been up to a bar outing after the match, but he knew it was important to everyone.
Blair grabbed his hand as they walked up the block. “How are you feeling?” she asked him, swinging their hands.
“I’m feeling good,” he replied. “How about you?”
“Pretty good.” She stopped and kissed him on the cheek before they crossed the street. “It’s pretty awesome that I get to be the champion’s date.”
He could feel the pounding beat of music already, even though they were still half a block from the bar. He hadn’t been there for a few months, but he didn’t remember it being this loud.
“I’m not going to be staying long,” he reminded her.
“I know. I was kind of hoping to get some quality time in with your bed tonight too.” She winked at him.
Nate’s tiger rumbled at that. Damn. It was nice knowing he wouldn’t be leaving alone.
He hoped Wyatt wouldn’t mind having a guest for the night. He would have to find him and ask before they left. He didn’t want to surprise him—not that he thought Wy would mind. The gorilla was pretty laid-back and seemed to like having company over.
“He’s here!”
The entire bar turned to greet him when they walked in. Nate lost track of Blair almost immediately as they were swarmed by well-wishers. Someone pressed a beer into his hand, and everyone wanted to shake his hand or tell him how awesome he’d been.
He took a spot at the bar next to Abe and Ray and scanned the crowd for Blair. He spotted her at the back of the room at a table with her friends. There were a couple of guys circling them. He was on beer number three before he got a chance to step away from the people who wanted to talk.
“Hey.” Blair hugged him when he got to the table. “You know my friends?”
The women at the table all waved a hello or raised a drink to him. Nate was sweating and exhausted. He had planned to stay for ten or fifteen minutes, and it had been an hour. It was past midnight and he was ready to go home. All he had to do was tell Blair and warn Wy that he was having a guest for the night.
“Hi.” He pulled Blair close and nuzzled her neck. “Ready to go?”
“Really? We’re just getting started.”
“I said I only wanted to stay for a while.”
There was a tray of half-drunk Jell-O shots on the table. “But it’s Jell-O shot night,” Blair pouted. “He only does this a few times a year. Come on. Just a little longer? Aren’t you having fun?”
It was hard to say no when she was pressed up against him and giving him puppy-dog eyes. He didn’t want to tell her no.
“Just a little longer.”
Her friends whooped and cheered at his answer. One of them pushed two shots his way. “You have to try one. These are so good.”
Blair picked up two. “You have to help us finish these so we can get at least one more tray before closing call.”
Nate resisted the urge to groan. Closing call? That wasn’t for another two hours. And she’d said at least one more tray. This wasn’t going to be the quick night that’d he’d hoped for.
He told himself that he didn’t go out often, and it wouldn’t kill him to spend a few more hours celebrating his victory. It wasn’t like this kind of thing happened to him every week. He didn’t think he’d be competing again, and he was having fun. Plus, at least this time, he’d be leaving with the prettiest girl in the bar.
Chapter 18
Blair parked outside of Nate and Wyatt’s trailer. It had been two weeks since the Memorial Day match, and she was becoming a regular fixture at the trailer. She and Nate were officially dating. It had been so long since she’d had a regular relationship. It felt strange to say “my boyfriend, Nate.”
They had already told Mr. James and Aaron at work. Aaron had been very happy to hear that she had decided to give Nate a chance.
He was right—Nate was a great guy. It was refreshing dating a guy who didn’t play games. Nate just said whatever he was thinking and never hid anything from her. She didn’t know what he had planned for tonight, but the next evening they were going to have dinner with her sister and her husband. Her sister was already a fan of Nate’s, and Blair imagined Nelly’s love of Nate would only grow once she got to know him.
She loved watching him with kids too. He was going to be a great dad one day.
“Hey, guys,” she called, coming into the house. There was a gorilla in the kitchen. “Hey, Wy.”
He shifted back into a man. “Hey. Nate’s in the shower. How was your day?”
It was still difficult for her to have a conversation with Wy like this. She knew that most shifters were very comfortable being naked, but she wasn’t a shifter. It was hard to talk to Wy and keep her eyes above his waistline. He was Nate’s roommate, and there were parts of him she really didn’t need to see. He didn’t have any bad intentions. It was just taking him a while to see that she was uncomfortable.
She averted her eyes. “Good. It’s back to being slow again, now that the sale rush is over.”
“I bet Aaron’s busy as heck. I heard he had to call Leo in.”
“Yup,” Blair said. “He helped get the sales stuff out in a week. They’ve never been so fast before.”
“Sweet deal you got going there,” Wy said, grabbing a pair of sweats from the corner of the kitchen. “You two are so lucky to work together.”
“You could always find someone at work too,” she said, settling in at the kitchen table. “There are a ton of eligible women who work for the city.”
“Been there, done that.” Wy sighed. “None of those women like me.”
“It might be time for you to sign up with LK Brides too,” she suggested. “It’s worked wonders for four of your friends now.”
“You can’t give LK Brides credit for you and Nate,” Wy laughed. “You guys have known each other for years.”
“It was LK Brides that made me see him differently,” Blair insisted.
“And I thank them for it every day.” Nate kissed her lips quickly and sat across from her at the table. “Hey, honey.”
“So, are you guys going to come to the party with me?” Wy asked.
“What party?” Blair asked, perking up.
“I don’t think so,” Nate said at the same time.
“It’s at Tanner’s house,” Wy said. “He’s having a pool party.”
“He has a pool. Cool.” Blair looked at Nate. “Want to make a quick appearance?”
“Not really. I was going to make dinner.”
“He’s having a pig roast,” Wy said. “The food is going to be plentiful. It’s more of a kickback than a full-blown party. Less than twenty people, I think.”
“That sounds pretty intimate,” Blair said. “The weather is perfect for a pool party.”
“We aren’t really invited,” Nate said. “I don’t want to crash a party for friends only.”
“He sent you an invite.” Wy went to the living room and came back with his phone. “Do you ever check your emails? I know I saw your name on this thing.”
Nate squirmed uncomfortably. “I’ve already made plans for us tonight. Thanks, Wy, but maybe another time.”
“But we can make dinner any night,” Blair said. “This is the on
ly time we can help Tanner break in his pool. Come on. It’s only a small get-together. This won’t be a rager like the bar the other night.”
She knew that Nate hadn’t enjoyed staying at the bar for the celebration a few weeks earlier. She hadn’t been able to get him out since that night. This seemed like the perfect way to ease him back into the social scene.
She smiled at him. “Come on. Don’t be a party pooper. I’m already dressed nice, too. Don’t you want to show off your pretty girlfriend?”
“And you won’t have to wash dishes if you go to Tanner’s,” Wy said.
Nate considered. “Oh, all right. What the heck. It’s just one night. I’ll throw on some clothes.”
“Great.” Blair hugged Wy after Nate had left the room. “Thanks. I didn’t even know about this party, but it sounds like fun.”
“It will be. I like it when you come over,” Wy said. “You make Nate more fun. I hope you move in soon.”
She didn’t say anything. She had no plans to live in the trailer, but she wouldn’t mind having Wyatt over all the time at her and Nate’s place. When they had moved in, anyway. She was getting ahead of herself. There was something about Nate that made her so optimistic about the future. She couldn’t stop planning their forever.
Chapter 19
“Happy one-month anniversary.” Blair wrapped her hands around Nate’s neck and kissed him. She tasted like watermelon vodka. Some of her drink sloshed onto his shoes as they kissed.
“Happy one-month,” he whispered in her ear.
They were at a BBQ being thrown by one of her girlfriends. He couldn’t believe it had only been a month since they’d begun dating. It felt so much longer, in a good way. It was like they’d been dating for years.
He did wish they’d been able to do something more intimate for their first milestone. It was only one month, though. For their six-month or one year, he was sure they’d do an intimate dinner with just the two of them. For now, he was happy to spend the night with her friends.
They were all so nice to him, and welcoming. They’d even invited many of the guys he’d started hanging out with. Blair enjoyed going out on the weekends, and they were frequently at the Brazen Bull. Wy went with a few guys regularly, so while Blair and her girlfriends danced, he’d gotten to know Wyatt’s friends better. He and Blair had even done a dinner party with the other LK couples. It was nice to have a solid group of friends that he liked spending time with. Most of the other LK couples had kids too, so it wasn’t always drinking and dancing. He enjoyed the quieter nights more than Blair did, but she seemed happy as long as there were other women to talk with.
He’d met her sister’s family the week before, and it had gone well. They were slowly getting more integrated into each other’s lives. Nate could see himself moving in with Blair sooner rather than later. He didn’t know how he was going to break that news to Wyatt. At least they would still see each other at the bar, and Nate would visit the gorilla shifter often. He was going to try to find Wy a new roommate before he even asked Blair if she’d like to live together.
Nate was thinking even further into the future. He’d gone to the jewelry store one town over. There were so many different ring options. He didn’t know how he was going to choose the perfect one for Blair. Hopefully her sister or one of her friends could help him when the time came. Actually, he wanted to buy them all for her. There were more than a few that he thought would look beautiful on her hand.
His tiger liked the idea of sealing the deal. Nate knew she was his mate. But things had been going so well, he didn’t want to jump the gun and rush her. He was going to do this right. After they had been dating a bit, they could move in together, then a little while after that, he could ask her to marry him. He had a feeling she would prefer a slower progression to a quick marriage.
She seemed to like him very much, but they hadn’t said they loved each other yet. Nate felt it in his heart, but he was waiting for the right time to say it. They spent so much time outside of work in the presence of others, he could never find the right moment. He wanted to tell her in a quiet moment and not while they were in bed. They spent a lot of quality time together at night, but it didn’t seem right to tell her in the afterglow of an amazing lovemaking session. He was worried she wouldn’t take him seriously if he did it after they’d made love.
“You ready to go?” he asked her.
She looked at her full glass. “Once I finish this, we can go.”
“You said that two glasses ago,” he said quietly.
“Did I?” she giggled. “I guess I’m bad at keeping track. Every time my glass is empty, I swear someone hands me new drink.”
“Well, this time I’ll be sure that doesn’t happen. I’m looking forward to spending time with you alone tonight.”
She kissed his neck. “I can’t wait to get you home, either.”
Nate held her close. This was going to be the night. He was going to tell her when they got home.
Chapter 20
Blair had butterflies in the pit of her stomach. Nate had been weird all week. Ever since her friend’s BBQ, he’d been distant and they hadn’t hung out at all. Every time she said she was going to come over or asked him to dinner, he said he was busy. She knew that was a lie. Of course, he needed time alone but this was ridiculous. He was avoiding her and she didn’t know why. She was going to the Brazen Bull with her friends that night and was going to see if he wanted to come along.
Wyatt was going and so were the guys he hung out with after work. It would be a fun night and Nate probably hadn’t left the house all week. If he didn’t want to hang out with her, he might come out for his new friends.
She knocked on the door and Wy opened. “Hey, I’m just heading out to grab a pizza for dinner. Want anything?”
“What kind of pizza?”
“One pineapple and bacon and one BBQ chicken.”
“I can eat that,” Blair said.
“Cool. I’ll see you when I get back. I think Nate’s in his room still.”
Wyatt left and Blair made her way back to Nate’s room. The door was open but she still knocked before going in. “Nate?”
He was in his sweatpants on the bed. He sat up quickly and glared at her. “What are you doing here?”
She recoiled at his hostile tone. “I’m going to the Brazen Bull tonight. I wanted to invite you.”
“No thanks.” He stood up. “Anything else?”
“Wy is coming too,” she said lamely. “All the guys will be there too. It could be fun.”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Are you mad at me?”
“Nope. I’m fine.”
“Why are you being so mean to me then? We haven’t hung out all week.”
He shrugged. “I don’t want to go out and get drunk. I know you don’t do anything else so I’ve been staying in and doing my own thing.”
Blair’s face got hot. “I do more than drink. Sorry that I like going out and having fun. I guess I can go buy some sweatpants and chill here like a hermit. I know you don’t like people or doing fun things after all.”
He laughed harshly. “You couldn’t stay in all weekend unless you were in a coma. You have to be out with a whole crowd of people. Being with me isn’t enough for you.”
“I never said that. I like hanging out with you. You’re the one who won’t hang out with me anymore.”
“I don’t want to go out all the time.”
“I don’t understand why we can’t go out one day and then stay in one day,” she said desperately. By the tone of his voice, it sounded like he wanted to break up with her. That was silly. Nobody broke up over something so trivial. They could compromise.
“I don’t want to go out every single weekend. Why can’t we have one whole weekend with just the two of us?”
“But that would be so boring,” Blair said making a face. “I don’t know how you do it. I would go crazy if I stayed in so much. I’m asking for one day eac
h weekend. That’s it. You only have to be social for a few hours.”
“You can go without me. I’m done going out all the time. It’s draining. I don’t see the point sitting around making small talk with people I don’t even like that much.”
“You don’t like my friends?” Blair asked hurt. She thought he liked her friends. They all like him. They thought Nate was the best boyfriend she’d ever had. They were so nice to him and always included him in all the conversations.
“I don’t hate them but I don’t have a lot in common with them. I don’t always have fun hanging out with them. It isn’t like being with you. And isn’t that the important part? That I like hanging out with you.”
“Sure but my friends and my social life are important to me. Don’t you like having friends? You must like seeing people sometimes.”
“If we went out twice a month, I’d be happy.”
“And what about all the other time?”
“We’d chill together and do other stuff. We can still do things. Just not always partying.”
She leaned back against the wall. “I’m not going to agree to go out only twice a month.”
“Then you go without me like I said earlier.”
“But I don’t want that. I want you to come with me.”
“You’re being unreasonable,” Nate said. “I don’t have to go out with you. Why is it important to you? Why can’t you go alone?”
“Because that’s just what you’re supposed to do. You come to stuff for me and I do stuff for you.” She didn’t think that was something that had to be explained. If he had a family party, she would go to it. When her friends had parties, he would tag along. They were supposed to be a part of each other’s lives. What else did people in a relationship do?
“I don’t want that,” he said quietly.
“So what then?” She asked tears coming to her eyes. “You don’t want me?”
“I don’t know.”
“Great. Fine. Whatever.” She stomped out of his room. “You know but you don’t want to say. So I’ll say it. We’re done.”