by Sara Hess
“We’re the same height right now.” I stated lamely.
He smiled but it looked strained. Was he feeling as uncomfortable as me?
“Would you do me a favor?” He asked.
My eyebrows rose. “Well, that depends on if it’s weird or not.” I responded carefully.
Chuckling Nic’s hand reached up and tugged on my beanie. “Will you take this off while we eat? You have such beautiful hair; it’s a shame to cover it up.”
I blushed at the compliment. I did wear my beanie a lot and recognized that I used it as another way to hide, but since I was taking a step out of my comfort zone… “I think I can do that, but I’m going to have terrible hat head.” I joked.
“Maybe then I’ll have better control over myself.” He muttered.
I gave him a quizzical look, but he just shook his head. “Let’s go, this boy needs nourishment or will become incoherent soon, if not already.” Reaching in he snagged me around the waist lifting me out. All I got out was a small squeak and then my feet were on the ground.
“Neanderthal.” I whispered loudly. I needed to get us back to the friendly dialogue we’d been sharing before everything became confused, and hormonally charged. I might be inexperienced but I knew hormones had been zinging back there. It had been both exhilarating and alarming.
“Uhhgg,” he responded with a grunt. Putting his hand on my back he directed me to the front door guiding me inside the diner.
It was a little after two o’clock so the lunch rush had passed leaving the place only half filled. Nic steered me over to a booth against the wall. It felt like everyone there was watching us, or him. He was so tall and had such striking looks.
“I’m going to run to the restroom real quick. I’ll be right back.” I proclaimed before speed walking toward the back of the restaurant. Pushing through the restroom door I leaned against the sink and took a deep breath to calm myself down. My emotions around Nic were starting to get unpredictable. I’d gone from enjoying his company to panting breathlessly in the truck with him. That had almost felt like a kissing moment back there. I wasn’t ready for that. I merely wanted to make my first foray into friendship.
I needed to get better control of my hormones. I couldn’t let them run willy-nilly.
Looking up in the mirror I saw that my face was still flushed. Taking off my beanie I could see that, yes, I did have hat head. Stuffing the cap in my purse I splashed my face with some cold water and then patted it dry. Unfastening my braid I ran my fingers through it to comb it out and then braided it again, but not as tight. Ice blue eyes stared back at me from the mirror, eyes the same as my…
I averted my gaze swiftly and took a deep breath. Not going to go there. It was in the past.
Leaving the bathroom I walked back to the table, but faltered to a stop because there was a blonde girl leaning against the edge of the table her back to me talking to Nic. I watched in disquiet as the girl bent towards him touching his arm…my gut clenched uncomfortably…but then Nic leaned back almost immediately and the girls hand fell away diffusing the discomfort. I continued to stand there unsure of what to do. Should I interrupt?
Nic’s gaze drifted my way and seeing me he smiled waving me over. I forced my feet to move forward. The girl turned her head to see who he was waving to and I felt an unexpected pinch in my chest at how pretty she was.
I stopped at the edge of the booth uncertain of whether I should slide in or not. The girl was giving me a death glare.
“Sit down, Carrie.” Nic motioned for me to sit down. Clutching my purse and coat to my stomach I slid into the booth. He looked back at the blonde. “Uhm…Missy was it?”
The blonde girl switched her gaze back to Nic, an adoring look upon her face. “Yes.” She leaned forward with her hands on the table and the action pushed her breasts together to where they bunched up over her low cut shirt. My eyes widened at the display and I looked at Nic to see his reaction.
However, he wasn’t looking at her, he was looking at me, and my heart lightened that he wasn’t ogling the girls so obvious charms. “Carrie and I were going to have some lunch so could you please excuse us.”
I couldn’t draw my gaze from Nic’s to see what Missy’s expression was, but her mumbled ‘sure’ sounded despondent as she walked away.
“A friend of yours?” I asked.
“Never met her before.” He answered. His gaze was drifting over my hair. The braided tail had settled over my shoulder and was resting on my chest.
“She just came over and started talking to you?” I asked incredibly. I could never be that bold. Did this happen to him a lot?
“She seems to be a fan of lacrosse.” Leaning forward he picked up my braid tail. His knuckle grazed my upper breast faintly, and I inhaled abruptly at the tingle that shot through me. His gaze snapped up to mine.
“Are you sure it’s just lacrosse that she’s a fan of?” I grinned through my roiling emotions. Nic was very attractive and I doubted that she came over just because she liked the sport of lacrosse.
The corner of his mouth lifted, but it didn’t seem like it was an attempt at a smile. “She’s a groupie. I could have been any player and she would have walked over here.”
Again, I doubted that.
“Your hair is beautiful. It reminds me of a midnight waterfall. When you walked over here the sun caught it and I swear I saw blue highlights shimmering in it.” His green eyes were getting darker again and my breath caught. I looked down and watched his fingers stroke the ends of my hair. “It feels like what silk should feel like, but silk doesn’t even come close.”
My hair had no feeling in it, they were nerveless hair follicles, but each stroke sent a corresponding stroke down my spine. I couldn’t control the shiver that skated through me.
Control yourself girl!
Taking a shaky breath I leaned back and my braid slid through his fingers to land against my sternum. Nic’s eyes followed it and the heat in them made my breasts swell and tingle. I shifted at the sensations gathering inside me. God, I hadn’t realized he was so intense. He’d seemed so casually relaxed and witty.
Landon leaned back as well and his hand dropped under the table. Shifting in his seat his hand did something below the table that had him grimacing. My face heated and I looked away catching onto what he was doing. Some guys weren’t as discreet about the act, adjusting themselves openly so everyone could see.
Thankfully, I saw a waitress coming our way. She was maybe mid-twenties and with shoulder length brown hair. She walked up to the table and smiled at Nic. The look she gave me was a little more circumspect.
“Hey there Nic, what can I get you? Do we want to start with something to drink or are you ready to order?”
“Hey, Tina.” Nic smiled cordially. “I want a large chocolate milk and water. Carrie, what would you like?”
“Can I get an ice tea with lemon?” I gave Tina a smile and her smile turned less cautious.
“Did you want to place your food order also? I know you had practice today so you’re probably starving.” She asked.
“Carrie hasn’t had a chance to look yet.” Nic countered.
“I just want a basic hamburger with no cheese or onions, with fries.” I replied swiftly.
“Well in that case, I’ll take the third pound burger with cheese and bacon, an order of fries, and a bowl of your clam chowder.” Nic leaned toward me. “Have you tried the clam chowder here? If you haven’t you should, it is the best I’ve ever had. Thick and chunky with a hint of a kick to make your lip sweat.”
I grinned at the description. “I’ve never tried clam chowder before, but I couldn’t eat that plus my entrée.”
Nic had a look of incredibility on his face. “Never had clam chowder, it’s like my favorite of all soups. You have to try it. Tina, bring her a cup.” He commanded good-naturedly.
“I’ll tell the kitchen to put a rush on it.” Tina chuckled and walked away.
Nic’s autocratic behavior had me
wanting to mess with him. “You know, I could be allergic to seafood.”
He narrowed his eyes at me as if reading my face. “Nope, no seafood allergy. I’m betting you aren’t allergic to anything.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You would be wrong. I’m allergic to Neosporin.”
He frowned. “Really, Neosporin?”
I shrugged. “Whenever I’ve used it in the past it’s only made the wound worse. But I’m okay using Triple Antibiotic. Go figure?”
Nic leaned forward and grinned mischievously. “So Carrie, you’re a prodigy. Getting into college at the age of sixteen, seventeen?”
I shook my head in amused exasperation. “You guys have been hankering for my age since day one. Don’t you know it’s bad form to ask a woman her age?”
“That’s only if she looks older than twenty-nine. If she looks younger than eighteen than it’s a mandatory question. Some identification is required the way some high school girls are looking these days.”
I raised an inquiring brow at that interesting report.
He shook his head and held up his hands. “Not me, but a friend of mine almost had a close call about a year ago. She was sixteen, looked twenty. Thankfully, her friend let it slip. If he’d taken her up on her offer and it had gotten out he would have been kicked off the team. Not to mention the legal ramifications.”
I winced in sympathy. “Wow. Yeah I can imagine that. Well, I’m eighteen…and a couple months so you’re safe.” I said cheekily. A weird look crossed his face, and I suddenly realized what I might have been offering. I could feel myself turning several shades of red. “Not that I’m implying that you and I…I mean…I like you, you’re really nice, but…” My stuttering trailed off in mortification. I was just making things worse thinking he was interested in that, it was kind of presumptuous.
Nic stared intently at me with an amused twinkle as my rambling sputtered out. “You are too cute.”
I gave him a mystified look at his brief out-of-the-blue observation, but at least he wasn’t looking at me like I was a dork. Mercifully, Tina stepped up to the table interrupting the disturbing moment. She had impeccable timing. “Here are your drinks and your chowders. The burgers should only be another ten minutes. Can I get you anything else right now?”
I shook my head as she distributed the food and drinks.
“Thanks, Tina.” Nic said. She gave a wave as she walked away. “God, this smells good.” He inhaled over his bowl and his stomach growled loudly.
I laughed. “It does that a lot.”
He picked up his spoon with a smirk. “I’m a growing boy,” was all he said before digging in.
Picking up my spoon I took a cautious taste. It was good. I’d eaten some fish and tasted shrimp before, but no other kind of seafood. It was just as Nic described; thick and chunky and with a kick.
“Mmm, you were right; this is the best chowder I’ve ever tasted.” I said after the second bite. “And although it’s the only chowder I’ve ever had I can’t imagine any other tasting better.”
“You’ll be hooked for life now.” He stated with a smirk, taking a big bite. He reached for his chocolate milk and drank half the glass. I couldn’t help my grin at his appetite.
We finished the rest of our soup in silence finishing at the same time even though he had a bowl and I had a cup.
“Well, that took the edge off.” Nic said, setting down his empty milk glass. “So, we need to get the preliminaries out of the way. What’s your major? Mine is Business.”
“Marine Biology.” I rejoined spiritedly, not having had this much fun in months.
His eyes lit with surprise. “Really, that’s interesting. Do you know what you want to do with it?”
“Anything that allows me to be in the water. I would love to work with marine animals or even studying the coral reefs would be great.”
“I didn’t think your eyes could get any brighter, but they did when you talked about water.” Nic said leaning forward. “What do you like so much about the water?”
How could I articulate my feelings about being in a body of water? “Being in the water makes me feel both lighter in body and in mind. It’s almost like a Zen feeling. All my feelings get washed away and everything feels right in the world.”
His eyes studied me silently for a moment. I tried not to twitch.
“I feel a little bit like that when I play lacrosse. Any worries or problems I’m dealing with are pushed away and all think about is the game. But instead of feeling weightless I feel like a warrior taking on the world.”
“To each their own.” I said softly. A warm glow spread through me that he could relate to my reasoning.
A smirk emerged. “Should I feel bad that I made you eat clam chowder? You weren’t like a seaterian or anything, were you?”
I chuckled at his backward analogy. “I’ve eaten fish and shrimp before so I jumped that hurdle a long time ago.” I assured him.
He wiped the back of his hand across his forehead. “Whew, I was worried I’d made some kind of marine biology transgression.”
Tina walked up to the table with our entrees. Nic and I stacked our empty bowls together and helped her with the exchange of plates. She had drink refills for both of us then she was gone again.
We each took a bite of our burgers and moaned at the same time in appreciation. Our eyes met over the buns and we made laughing noises in our throats because our mouths were too full of food. Nic looked like he’d eaten a forth of his burger in that one bite.
“Do you know what you want to do with your business degree?” I asked when I got the first mouthful down.
He finished swallowing and a slight frown appeared between his eyes. “My dad expects me to go into the family business. Ever heard of Stanford tools?”
I wasn’t a big tool girl, but I knew a few top of the line brands. “Yeah.”
“Well, my grandfather founded the company, and now it’s split between my dad, his two brothers, and a sister.”
Wow! No wonder he had such a nice truck. Inadequacy I didn’t want to feel began to creep in. I wasn’t ashamed of being broke, but sitting next to someone who probably came from millions was daunting. It was mighty hard to keep self-esteem issues from rising.
Nic had been watching me and must have read my expression. “Hey, whatever you’re thinking, don’t. I’m the son of someone who has money, but I’m in school to make my own way just as you are. Let’s forget about the rest of it and keep our interactions between us.” He reached out and squeezed my hand.
“Have you been taking philosophy classes along the way?” I slipped my hand away making a show of using it to eat. When he touched me I had a hard time concentrating on other things.
He picked his burger up. “I’m a student of life.” He quipped taking a bite.
I chuckled and teased. “I bet.” My inadequacy didn’t automatically disappear, but what he said made sense. We were all trying to find our way in the world.
After eating a couple more bites I asked him, “You said your dad expects you to go into the family business; is that not what you want to do?”
He slathered a fry in ketchup his face fixed and his eyes introspective. “I’m not sure. I know I want to continue playing lacrosse. It’s not something that I can really make a living at, but I do love it.”
I watched him thoughtfully wondering what was going on in his head. “I hate to say this, but I really don’t know anything about lacrosse except what I learned today.”
His brooding expression disappeared and he grinned. “And what was that?”
God, he was really handsome when he smiled. I had to shake myself out of a hypnotic daze to answer his question. “That you attach a lacrosse head to a shaft. The head has a net that catches a ball. You try to get the ball into a goal net. You wear gloves, arm and chest guards, and a helmet. And you have groupies that come up to you arbitrarily and glare daggers at other girls that you’re with.”
He frowned. “She glared at you
?”
I grinned. “Daggers,” I teased sticking a fry in my mouth.
His frown twitched into a grin. “I’m kind of disappointed. After learning I was a lacrosse player I thought you’d hunt down all my stats, and know one end of the field to other. I think I’m hurt at the disinterest.”
I tapped my lips with a fry. His eyes zinged to the movement instantly and heated. I ate the fry hastily and cleared my throat. “Well, I also learned that you are the team captain, you’ve been MVP for the last two years, and the team has won the championship the last two years. And you have good character. John reeled it off like rote. It was scary impressive, especially when he said he could do it for all the big players on campus.”
“You’re impressed with John’s memory, but I’m not hearing any gushing about me. Again, I’m hurt. MVP…team captain…championships…good character over here. Show some love, woman.” Nic wore a mock affronted expression.
I rotated my hand back and forth. “Eehh,” I commented apathetically.
His head dropped into his hands. “I’m going to need therapy after this.”
I giggled, and thought how glad I was at taking a chance with him.
Chapter Seven
NIC
I was having an amazingly good time. I’d never had feelings like this for a girl before. Carrie was eliciting a multitude of emotions from me. I lusted after her most definitely, but I also enjoyed talking to her. I found myself wanting to know everything about her. And damn, I loved hearing her laugh. It lifted my mood instantly.
We finished our meal with me explaining more about the sport of lacrosse. She said it had nothing to do with me personally, merely that John had told her she needed to gain knowledge of all the sports on campus. The grin on her face as she’d stated this was wider than my truck’s grill or I might indeed have had a complex for life.
She asked relevant questions and caught onto the complexities of the game with no problem. Normally, I hated explaining the game to a girl who I wanted to get with, but I didn’t view Carrie in that way. In truth, I wasn’t certain how I viewed her yet, but she was so damn smart and genuinely interested in what I was saying that it was enjoyable. She made it fun. The girl was quick witted and entertaining. One thing that really caught my attention was that even though she was shy, and blushed habitually; she pushed through speaking her mind.