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“Thanks again for tonight. I had a nice time,” I said as he pulled into a space in front of my building.
“Yeah, me too. It was fun.” He shifted into park and peered through the windshield. The corner of his eye crinkled. “Unless men typically sit out here waiting for you, I’m assuming that’s the guy?”
“Huh?” I looked away from Travis and followed his gaze. My back straightened away from the seat.
Oh my God.
Nathan was seated on the steps leading to my apartment, hunched forward with his elbows resting on his knees and his hands clasped together. He was staring directly at us.
My breaths grew quicker. What was he doing here? I thought, but immediately wondered if I already knew the answer. In my heart I hoped I did.
“Um, yeah, that’s him,” I said, offering Travis a gentle smile he returned without hesitation.
He knew. I’d shared everything with Travis during the phone call when I accepted his invitation out tonight. It was one thing to take him up on an offer to hang out, but it was another thing entirely to lead him on.
Even though I’d originally wanted to go out with him, my heart wasn’t in dating other people right now. Going out on the actual date hadn’t changed my feelings either. I really did like Travis, but I knew I couldn’t give him anything more. We’d agreed to go out as friends.
“I can still walk you to your door,” he offered.
God, what a great guy. Some lucky woman was going to land herself a freaking catch with this one.
“That’s okay. Thank you though.” I reached out and squeezed his arm. “Good night.”
“Good night, Jenna.”
I opened the car door and stepped out, walking toward my building. My heels clicked against the pavement.
Nathan remained seated on the step, watching Travis’s car as it pulled out of the parking lot. Then he turned his head and looked at me.
His dark eyes were serious and studied me as I approached, but his brows were relaxed. He wasn’t clenching his jaw. His mouth wasn’t tight. His shoulders weren’t tense. I was anticipating one version of Nathan and staring at another. He looked almost embarrassed to be here, and in the same breath, relieved to see me.
I stopped right in front of him.
“I didn’t know if you’d come home or not,” he said.
“How long would you have waited here if I didn’t?”
Nathan sat up a little and shook his head. The corner of his mouth twitched. Maybe he didn’t want me knowing that answer. Maybe he didn’t want to admit it to himself.
I reached for his hand as I climbed the steps. “Come on.”
Nathan pushed to his feet. Our palms slid together, and we held on with equal pressure as we walked side by side up the five flights of stairs.
“How was your date?” he asked while I unlocked the door.
I pushed it open, stepped inside, and secured it behind us. I turned to him after I flicked on the lights and dropped my purse on the small table along the wall.
“Did you really come over here to ask me about my date, Nathan?”
Instead of answering, he slowly trailed his eyes down my body and back up, as if he were just now noticing what I was wearing. The baby-blue dress I’d chosen for tonight cinched at my waist and flared out around my thighs. It was strapless and light. The perfect summer dress.
“You’re taller,” Nathan observed.
I glanced down at my four-inch sandals. “Well, this guy I know likes to joke about how short I am. He even gave me a nickname for it.” I peered up at him. “Because of that, I’m a little self-conscious about my height.”
Nathan’s eyes grew wider behind his glasses. “I hope you’re joking. I never meant any of that as an insult.”
“I know you didn’t. And I am kidding. I like wearing heels.”
“You look beautiful.” His gaze moved all over me. “I thought I’d be prepared for this—Olivia warned me about how you dress up for dates, wear your makeup ‘all fancy,’ I believe were her words. And something about hair accessories…”
I smiled and ran my finger along the jeweled pin beside my temple. “She hooks me up. I’m pretty sure my daughter owns every hair accessory ever invented.”
“All night, sitting out there, I’ve tried to picture this.” Nathan shook his head, as if he were in a daze.
“Is that why you’re here? So you could see what I looked like tonight?”
“I think you know why I’m here.”
“And I think I’m going to need to hear you say it.”
Nathan stood taller. His shoulders lifted as he pulled in a deep breath. “I can’t stop thinking about you.”
I approached him slowly. A difficult task when I wanted to run at him.
“I can’t stop thinking about you either,” I said, stopping when our shoes nearly touched. “I know this whole waiting thing was my idea, but you also said we should stop. You said it was for the best. And then when I told you about this date and wanted you to give me a reason why I shouldn’t go through with it, you said there wasn’t one.”
