“I’m doing a lot better. I can’t thank Walker enough; he’s being a saint to keep me company.”
Patty squeezed Walker’s hand. “Walker is sweet that way. He is a sweet, sensitive guy with a big heart. Did he tell you he owns an auto repair shop? He’s getting ready to open another one soon.”
Nicole read what Patty was doing. She’d made the mistake of blabbing how she loved to pair people together and how she was searching for the right mate for her soon to be, brother-in-law. “Actually, we were just getting to know each other when you came in.”
Walker scooted over on the couch so Patty could sit comfortably. “Patty, is everyone gone? Nicole is tired and should go to the hotel to rest for tomorrow. She has another long day ahead of her.”
Patty held Nicole’s hand. “By all means you should rest. I’ll get my purse and drive you to the hotel since your car is parked at my house.”
“No, Patty. Please don’t fuss over me. I will wait and leave when you’re ready to go.”
Walker got up rubbing his hands down the front of his pants. “Everyone who is directly tied to this dinner party stay put! I will take Nicole to the hotel, geez.”
“It’s settled,” Patty said getting to her feet. “Walker will take care of Nicole until I return to the hotel tonight. Your purse is in the other room, Nicole; I’ll get it.”
“I’ll go with you. I want to find the ladies room,” Nicole said skirting out of the room.
*****
Jeremy stepped in front of the door blocking his brother from leaving. “What are you doing, Walker? Did you forget you have a girlfriend?”
“Not anymore.”
“What?”
“Yeah, see, Mary Ellen dumped me this evening. She is moving to Dallas with Gary and the kids.”
Jeremy’s head tilted to the side to look at his brother. “Say what? She is doing what?”
“She and Gary are getting remarried and moving back to Dallas to live happily ever after. So, I don’t have a girlfriend anymore. What I want to know is why you have a problem with me spending time with Nicole? She is Patty’s friend.”
“Who says I have a problem with that? I’m fine with you getting to know Nicole.”
Walker clicked his tongue. “Like hell you are. Look, Jeremy; I know you introduced me to Mary Ellen; she made her choice and it wasn’t me.”
“All right—I accept that but, give yourself space to heal before jumping into another relationship.”
“I’m not jumping into anything. I like talking to Nicole and wouldn’t mind getting to know her better. Seriously, I couldn’t start anything with her since she lives in Columbus, but I wouldn’t mind hang out with her while she is here for the wedding.”
“Walker, she is not the girl for you if you get my drift.”
“Are you saying I’m not good enough for her? Is she bitchy, snotty or supper rich like you?”
“Please, bro. She’s not the kind of woman you are used to hanging around. She is the quiet type; a bit withdrawn if you ask me.”
His throaty laugh filled the room. “I’m not trying to bring her to the wild side. I just want to talk to her. I find her interesting.”
“How is that? You’ve talked all of an hour? I see that look in your eye, man. Don’t mess with this woman’s head because you’re curious.”
“I’m not curious because she’s black. I have dated women of different nationalities including African-Americans. She looked so vulnerable lying on the floor. She could use a good man to look after her while she is in our company.”
“And you are appointing yourself to hold that position?”
His mind wandered to Nicole’s face. Those luscious pouty lips he wanted to taste. Her fair-skinned color reminded him of peeled blanched almonds. When he held her body in his arms, the roundness of her buttocks felt tight and firm. Daydreaming about Nicole already had Mary Ellen fading to a distant memory.
“I’ll hold the position until she departs Cleveland,” he said pushing his brother aside to leave the office.
*****
Nichole washed and dried her hands tossing the paper towel in the wastebasket. Going to the large mirror, she applied fresh lip gloss to her lips. Viewing her appearance in the mirror, she noticed the shallow bags forming under her eyes. She was tired and needed sleep to regroup for the long day of wedding festivities Patty had planned for tomorrow.
Patty was a friend she talked to on the phone occasionally and spent time with whenever she visited Columbus on business. However, she would not refer to her as a best friend. Nicole was caught off-guard when Patty asked her to design the dresses for the wedding party since she couldn’t find any dresses in bridal stores that matched her wedding gown.
Nicole didn’t see a way to refuse with the wedding less than a year away and agreed to make those dresses. With the help of her colleagues and the offer of a hefty compensation for their help, she managed to create a formal dress that all ten bridesmaids agreed on.
Patty’s wedding dress was the most problematic with the hours of hand-stitching of pearls on delicate lace. She personally handled making the wedding gown ensuring the details were done correctly and to Patty’s satisfaction. The last pearl stitched in the dress happened at 5:30am and two hours before her scheduled trip to Cleveland.
It was no wonder she passed out from hunger. For the past seven months, she’d been burning the candle at both ends. She returned to her job as a computer technician for AeroFusion Technologies full-time. Nicole was forced to close her boutique and lay off her staff, due to slow sales and an over-saturated market of new-breed designers. Keeping up with the fast-paced changing fashion world was too much for her to pursue without any revenue generating from the boutique. She had no choice but to surrender her targeting age group consisting of the over twenty-one and under thirty-five, to the successful fashion entrepreneurs.
Patty’s face appeared in the mirror behind her fingering her ginger-colored layer-cut, hair. “I think Walker is smitten with you,” she said with a wide smile.
Nicole continued to primp her own hair in the mirror. “You’re being funny right?”
“No, I’m not being funny. Walker doesn’t have a problem expressing his interest in a woman. That distinct twinkle his left eye gave when I introduced you….said it all.”
She turned to face Patty. “I’m not interested in meeting anyone. I have no room on my schedule for me these days.”
“Is it because he is white?”
Nicole frowned turning her lip upward. “Be real. If I had a problem with that, you and I would not be standing together in this bathroom.”
“Okay, if that isn’t it, is he not handsome enough for you?”
“Patty, he is very handsome. Anyhow, I just met the man and you are asking me if we have a future together.”
“I’m just trying to get a sense of what you think about him?”
Nicole tapped a finger to her chin. “From what I’ve seen so far, he is charming and a bit of a flirt.”
“So you like him?”
“I wouldn’t have a problem liking him if I were looking to get involved. Besides, he saw me faint. What kind of impression did that send to him?”
“It was obviously a big enough one to affect him in a major way. Nicole, we aren’t best girlfriends, and you have no reason to trust me with any man advice.”
Zipping her makeup case and placing it in her purse, Nicole attempted to thwart Patty giving her words of dating wisdom. “Patty, while we’re in here talking, he is waiting to take me to the hotel. It would be rude of me to keep him standing in the hall wondering if I’m ever going to leave the bathroom.”
Patty threw her hands in the air. “I get it; you don’t want to hear what I have to say because you aren’t interested in Walker.”
She released a deep echoing sigh. “That is not true. I personally don’t feel this is the right time to discuss your brother-in-law. He told me his girlfriend dumped him tonight.”
Patt
y’s mouth dropped opened then closed with her teeth biting down on her bottom lip doing a fist pump. Nicole crossed her arms amused with the reaction over news that shouldn’t be taken lightly.
“Um, Patty, am I missing something? You appear to be happy about their breakup.”
“I am freaking ecstatic,” she said dancing around happily. “The witch is gone—the witch is finally gone from our lives. “God, I hated that woman and I think she knew it.”
“Wow, I have never seen two people so happy to have a person ousted from existence.”
“Walker wasn’t devastated when he told you?”
“No, he was calm as a cucumber and seemed relieved. I mean he said the way she did it was tacky, but he didn’t appear broken over it at all.”
“He hides his emotions from people, including family. It probably affected him a little, but he refused to let her know how much.”
“If that is the case, why didn’t he stand up to the ex-husband and declare his love for the woman?”
“He doesn’t love her ass. It was her kids he’d become attached; not her.”
“Oh yeah, he did say they had kids together.”
“Did he say anything else about Mary Ellen and Gary?”
“I shouldn’t be telling his business, Patty.”
“You’re right. He confided in a stranger instead of his brother. Well, I’ll have to wait until he is ready to talk about it, and I won’t pressure him.”
Nicole gave the bathroom counter a once-over making sure nothing was left behind. “I’d be prone to believe you if you’d remove that smirk from your face.”
Patty slapped her cheeks. “Smirk is gone and I will behave. I promise I will not open my mouth because I was a Girl Scout and we don’t renege on promises,” she said holding up two fingers.
Nicole laughed opening the bathroom door. “If I can’t trust a Girl Scout, then whom can I trust?”
Walker was standing across from the ladies’ room holding Nicole’s coat open for her to slip into. “Is everything okay?” He asked adjusting the coat over her shoulders.
“We were talking. You know how it is when two women get together in a bathroom,” Patty answered before Nicole could open her mouth.
“I got worried for a minute then I heard laughter. Ms. McLin if you’re ready to go, my chariot waits in the parking lot.”
Buttoning her coat, she didn’t make eye contact with Walker. “Thank you. It is nice to know not all men believe chivalry is dead.” She hugged Patty. “I’ll make sure he is back in time for dessert.”
Patty winked her eye at Walker. “I will come by your room soon as I’m done here. We’re still having girl’s night in my suite as my bachelorette party.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” Nicole said. A flash of heat prickled her skin as Walker’s hand rested on her lower back as they walked through the lobby of the restaurant. Nicole felt such a touch was allocated for people comfortable in each other’s personal space. They were strangers and she couldn’t imagine she would learn the personal side of Walker during the next forty-eight hours.
*****
The temperature had dropped to near zero when they exited the restaurant. Nicole placed the hood of her coat over her head to block the freezing cold and blowing snow from whipping around her head.
Walker stepped off the curb and stopped. “Stay here while I’ll get the car. The snow is ankle-deep, and your dainty boots are not made for treading through this stuff.”
Nicole stuffed her hands in the pockets of her coat. She had left her gloves on the front seat of the rental car parked at Patty’s house. “I’d prefer to walk with you than stand here and freeze.”
Walker pulled off his thick gloves handing them to her. “Put these on if you’re gonna walk with me.” She didn’t refuse the heavy fur-lined pouches of warmth. “I walk fast,” he said bending his arm at the elbow for her to take hold of. “Give my arm a tug and I’ll slow down for ya.”
She slid her arm through his as they sloshed through the deep snow covering the parking lot. “I walk fast myself and my boots are perfect for this weather.”
He snorted causing the heat of his breath to steam the cold air. “Pardon me for making an unfair assumption about your boots.”
“You are forgiven. It really is nice of you to volunteer to take me my hotel. I feel bad you will miss the dinner.”
“I’m not missing much. I see the majority of those people at every holiday event or funeral. And even then that’s too much for me.”
“Am I to presume you aren’t into large family gatherings?”
“I like to choose which family activities I attend.”
He used the key remote to unlock the pickup truck’s doors and remote start the car. Opening the passenger’s side door to his midnight black Toyota Tundra, he waited for Nicole to get inside. Trotting to the driver’s side, he slid behind the wheel cranking the defroster to high, before exiting the car to clean the windows.
Swishing the soft snow from the windshield, Walker watched Nicole scroll through her cell phone. He wondered if she was looking for calls or text messages from her boyfriend. He didn’t ask if she was involved and Patty didn’t say what her status was either. Jeremy’s remark about her being not the type of women he’d date, offered speculation she probably dated slick-talking tycoons or super intelligent men.
He finished cleaning the window summing up, if he wanted to know about her, he would ask. He didn’t want second-hand information but information straight from the source—her.
He got in the truck blowing and rubbing the chill from his hands. Nicole put her cell phone away looking at her hands drowning in his large gloves. “I have your gloves. I’m so absent-minded at times.” She pulled them off giving them to him. “Warm your hands.”
“Nah, I’ll live. I work in the cold with my bare hands. What hotel are we going to?” He asked driving from the parking lot to the snow-covered street.
“The Beachwood Courtyard Marriott,” she answered. “I never would have pegged your occupation to be a mechanic. Do you possess a love for fast cars?”
“I love cars period. Taking them apart to see how they work has been an interest I’ve held since I got my first Hot Wheel’s garage set when I was tot. How did you get started in fashion?”
“Gosh, the day my nanny let me help her make a dress. Before she worked for my parents, she was a seamstress and made beautiful dresses and suits. As I got older, I discovered I could draw and began designing clothes for my dolls. As an only child, I’d spend a lot of time alone and my imagination would go wild. The clothes I made for Barbie and Ken to wear would be hot numbers at Fredrick’s of Hollywood,” she laughed.
He took his eyes off the road briefly to look at her. “Is that right? Did you design sexy stuff for you to wear?”
She released a mellow but racy internal snigger. “Let’s say I had to keep my drawing pads hidden from my nanny. If I’d gone to my prom, I definitely would have been sent home for indecent exposure.”
Her naughty snicker told him she was not as reserved as Jeremy wanted him to believe. “I’d be interested in seeing those drawings.”
“I still have them. I actually created a line of lingerie that sold out the first day I put them on display in the window of my shop.”
“You own a dress shop?”
“Not anymore. These days I answer complaints from executives and support staff members who can’t find the off button on their computers.”
“Wow, you’re a user support analyst?”
“That is part of my job title at AeroFusion. I’m technically a computer engineer specializing in software development but since AeroFusion has downsized, I offer user support and teach software applications.”
Walker arched a brow and smirked. “A computer geek; I never saw that coming.”
“Yes I am. Well, I tried my hand at my dream and it failed. I had to return to the real world to support my habit.”
“What’s your habit?”
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“Eating and living indoors. Um, Patty doesn’t know I had to give up the shop. She had her heart set on a wedding dress no other woman would ever wear. It’s my fault I didn’t have the heart to tell her I made her dresses in my tiny apartment.”
“Damn, she has a big wedding party. How did you pull it off?”
“I enlisted help from my former employees. We worked around the clock to get the dresses finished.”
He hesitated to ask, but she seemed free with talking about herself. “Why didn’t you to go to family for help?”
Nicole removed her hood and fumbled with the gloves lying on her lap. “I don’t ask my parents for anything.”
“You’re an only kid…you should be spoiled rotten.”
“One would think so,” she replied without explaining.
Walker heard the angst in her voice and decided not to push the envelope. It was apparent she only let people see one side of her. Patty and Jeremy saw a woman living her dream. He was seeing a different side of Nicole McLin. She was definitely strong, a little stubborn, yet vulnerable. But, inside her closet, there were skeletons she did not want released.
Exiting the highway, he pulled into the drive-thru of Burger King. Bringing the truck to a halt before the large menu, he scanned over the choices. “What do you eat from this joint?”
She shook her hands refusing. “I don’t want anything, thanks.”
“A salad you say? And, add grilled chicken for protein?”
“Walker, I ate a boatload of pasta. I’m too full to eat anymore tonight.”
He ignored her and pulled to the speaker to place his order. Ordering a Whopper with the works and a chocolate shake for him, and a grilled chicken salad and diet coke for Nicole, he paid and handed her the cardboard cup carrier with the drinks and the bag of food so he could continue the drive to the hotel.
He detected her stare burning a hole in the side of his head. “Walker,” she said and his name left her lips in a strict tone. “You are hardheaded.”
Yearning for Love Page 3