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“I went to see him the other day,” Frida said. “My migraines were acting up and Doc was really busy so Janie asked if I wouldn’t mind seeing Dr. Miller instead. He was really nice. Not like Doc nice, but okay nice. It’s funny, after he examined me he asked me if I wanted to talk about anything.”
“Like what?” Shea asked.
“Nothing in particular, I guess. So I told him how we just installed a new oven in The Bistro’s kitchen and he just listened. And then he told me to make sure that I took a few breaks in the day to go outside and get some fresh air, that kind of thing.” She frowned. “Come to think of it, I haven’t had a migraine since I started doing that.”
Lauren tried to hide her smile. He was still taking her “five minute” advice! She couldn’t help but be pleased.
“I think asking Nate to couples Bunco is a great idea,” Kitty said. “Ask him, Lauren. I bet he’ll say yes.”
*~*~*
A week later, Nate (and Hector) showed up on her doorstep again. This time instead of Chinese, he brought Tiny’s pizza—sausage and pepperoni, Lauren’s favorite.
“Oh, boy, I’m going to get fat if you keep this up,” she said. It was a Friday night and barely seven-thirty, but between the shop and all the extra sewing she’d gotten done this week, she was exhausted, so she was already in her pajamas—a very non-sexy pair of oversized flannel bottoms and a camisole top that was probably a bit on the skimpy side. To Nate’s credit, he didn’t stare (or ogle for that matter, either).
“Hold on.” She ran to her bedroom and tossed a T-shirt over her camisole, taking a second on her way back out to the living room to check her reflection in the mirror. No makeup and her short blonde hair was pulled back in a headband. Perfect for the non-romantic atmosphere she hoped to achieve. On the other hand, she kind of wished she looked a little more put together. She sighed. Her brain told her one thing, but her heart told her something else entirely.
He glanced around the quiet house. “Where’s Henry?”
“At his dad’s for the night. I was about to watch a movie.” It was the first time Nate had come by that Henry wasn’t present.
It just hit her. She was about to be alone with Nate Miller again.
He deposited the pizza on her kitchen counter. Hector tried to jump on the living room couch, but as usual his short little legs wouldn’t allow it. Not exactly alone, she realized. Hector was here. Nate wouldn’t try to kiss her in front of his dog, would he? Oh, Lord. What was she doing thinking about kissing?
“He’s really more dachshund, isn’t he?” Lauren said. She picked Hector up and deposited him on the couch, where he quickly buried himself beneath a nest of pillows. “How long have you had him now?”
“Two months,” Nate said. “But you’d think we’d been together two years the way he acts. He practically struts around the office. Pretty soon he’s going to want his own desk.” He picked up the DVD cover from the coffee table. “It’s a Wonderful Life? Isn’t that a Christmas flic?”
“Technically, yes, but it’s my favorite movie, so I watch it whenever I get a little overwhelmed. It helps me de-stress.” It wasn’t a guy film. There were no big action scenes or high intrigue or anything. Tom had tolerated it at the holidays, but it wasn’t his thing. She doubted Nate would like it much, either.
Lauren broke out the plates and they each took a couple of slices of the pizza. She opened a bottle of wine and they settled down on the couch (with Hector between them). Despite offering to watch something else, Nate insisted on It’s a Wonderful Life. “We don’t have to watch it,” she said. “I’ve literally seen it like a hundred times. Maybe even more.”
“Well, I’ve never seen it, so it’ll be—”
“You’ve never seen it? Never ever? Even when you were a little kid?”
He shook his head.
“Mister, you’re in for a treat.”
She hit the play button and was instantly transported back to an old black-and-white pre-World War II Americana. A simpler, and yes, probably hokier time. But she loved it. Every second of it. And then of course, there was Jimmy Stewart and the gorgeous Donna Reed, and all that lovely romantic tension between them. She sighed at their first kiss (even though she’d seen it dozens and dozens of times and had every little movement memorized) and she chewed her pizza and sipped her wine, and every now and then, stole a glance at Nate’s profile. At his straight nose and his strong chin and she wondered what he thought of the film. Did he find it boring? He didn’t looked bored, but then he was probably too polite to act anything other than interested.
About halfway through the movie, he nudged Hector off to the side, and slipped his arm around her. Without thinking (too much!), she cozied up next to him. They sat like that for the rest of the time, side by side with their feet propped up on the coffee table. He’d taken his shoes off and wasn’t wearing socks. It reminded her of that night at the beach when they’d walked barefoot along the sand. She liked his feet, she realized. They were long and lean with just a tiny dusting of dark hair across the toes. She wasn’t wearing socks either, and the urge to tangle her feet with his was overpowering. So much so, in fact, that she hadn’t been paying attention to the movie. When she glanced back at the screen, the ending credits were rolling.
He sat up and stretched his arms over his head.
“What did you think of it?” she asked. Please tell me you like it. It sounded dumb, but she just didn’t think she could be friends with anyone who didn’t get It’s a Wonderful Life.
“It was…good,” he said, and she instantly felt herself relax. If Nate Miller didn’t like the movie, he would tell her so. It was just the way he was wired. “Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you hadn’t been born?” he asked.
She stared at him. “Are you kidding? That’s my favorite game. Okay, here goes: If I hadn’t been born then my mother wouldn’t have anyone to boss around. But more importantly, then Henry wouldn’t have been born, and that would be the world’s greatest tragedy.”
“Agreed.”
She giggled.
“What’s so funny?”
