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Me:Oh.
Nate:Yeah. Oh.
Nate:Night, Lottie.
Me:Night, Nate.
Chapter 18
Charlotte
“You have got to be kidding me?” Nate groans, staring at the pink rollerblades in my hand like they’re about to strike and bite him. “What are we? Eight?”
“Are you scared?” I tease.
“Of being caught wearing those things? You bet I am,” he mumbles, eyeing the other pedestrians who also decided to take advantage of the sunshine before the gloomy Bostonian winter showers arrive.
“My date. My rules.” I laugh, shoving the rollerblades to his chest for him to grab. “It’ll be fun.”
“Yeah, you always say that, but it never is.”
“Nate Wilder, are you honestly going to stand there and lie to my face, saying that you don’t have fun on our dates?” I ask, feigning hurt.
“Okay, maybe I’ve had a little bit of fun.” He smiles shyly.
“You’ve had loads of fun with me. And this afternoon won’t be any different. Now put on your sparkling pink rollerblades, and let’s get a move on.”
“God, you’re bossy,” he grumbles, finally relenting by grabbing the rollerblades and taking a seat to put them on his feet.
But no matter how much he grumbles and moans, I can tell he’s secretly excited about today’s date. Although he tried hard to hide his enthusiasm, his hazel eyes betrayed him as they lit up the minute I told him about my plans of us skating through the Esplanade on this glorious Sunday morning.
The Esplanade stretches for three miles along the Charles River, between the Museum of Science and Boston University, making it a great trail for outdoor activities like cycling or running.
After our lackluster first date, I’ve tried my best to limit our indoor dates and keep our activities outside. Not only does it limit our interactions with other people, but it also makes it harder for the paparazzi to know where to find and hassle Nate since we never stay in the same spot for long.
For the past month, I’ve made Nate my number one priority, taking into account anything that could affect the success of a date, the media and unruly fans playing a big part in what to avoid.
And so far, my efforts seem to be paying off.
I can definitely see an improvement in his dating skills. He’s not so pent-up as he was on our first date, which is saying something. And if I’m being completely honest with myself, I’ve started to look forward to our so-called dates, too. I forgot how much fun they could be in the right company. It’s not like Cooper has gone out of his way to show me a good time lately.
In all honesty, I can’t even remember the last time we went out.
Maybe Nate isn’t the only one who is benefiting from these dates.
Maybe I’m getting something out of them too.
All in all, it’s been nice making a new friend.
And though Nate is an acquired taste, he’s quite charming when he wants to be.
That is when his mouth doesn’t get him into trouble.
And even when it does, for the life of me, I still find him… sweet.
“How do I look?” he asks after getting up from the park bench.
“Like you were born for this. Pink suits you.” I stifle a giggle, taking a mental picture of this six-foot-three, grumpy hockey player in hot pink rollerblades. “How about we make this interesting?”
