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BILLIE
Ihadtoadmit,I hadn’t been expecting my spontaneous crush on the pretty librarian to spawn a massive pack-wide crush.
Nicky let us hog her until her Thursday shift. Friday was spent in her own apartment, taking back her little prince for the night so she wouldn’t be too lonely. We got her back for the weekend, though.
I got the guest room in the basement all ready for her so that she had her own space in the pack house, even though she slept in my room on Saturday morning and in Jasper's the next.
When Sunday afternoon rolled around, she had sheepishly asked Jasper and Gabe if they wanted to go to another Marino family dinner. I wasn’t particularly familiar with jealousy, but damn if it didn’t get my knickers in a twist that they got to go instead of me. Hana and Tony had distracted me while the others were out, but the fact that we three were total unknowns to Nicky's family poked at me.
“Give it time,” Tony had said.
Anyone who knew me was fully aware that patience wasnotone of my virtues. But I tried.
Tony and I were back at the library with her that night, the tables filled with students, but we had staked our claim in our corner early. Tony was eyeballs deep in work and had been pouring over financial statements and bylaws in a good portion of his spare hours, leaving very little time for me to get the attention I had come to expect. I curled up most of the night to read in my bean bag, taking breaks to indulge in Nicky's presence whenever she came over to visit.
There was no sign of her assface ex when her shift came to a close. She went home without us. Logically, I knew she couldn’t spendallof her time with us, but it didn’t stop me from wishing for it. It would’ve been silly for her to have her own place and never use it because she was with us. But I wouldn’t be dissuaded from luring her whenever I could.
Billie:
Could I interest you in a painting or pottery date?
Nicky:
You gonna be pretend to be the dude from Ghost if I say yes to pottery?
Billie:
It MIGHT have crossed my mind ;)
Nicky:
XD sign me up
I had everything for pottery in my studio—except for a kiln—which I’d neglected to really show her in full since we’d spent so much time in the common areas or bedrooms, but it was my special space in the home, and I wanted to share it with her.
Monday night melted into Tuesday morning, and thankfully, I had sleep to keep me occupied until the afternoon when Nicky would arrive. I prepped a snack plate with chopsticks so even if we were wrist deep in clay we could have a bite if we wanted to.
The doorbell rang, and I bounded down the stairs, flinging open the front door to launch myself at Nicky in a hug. She let out anooffrom the impact, wrapping her arms around me a moment later.
“Good morning to you, too.” She laughed and let me usher her inside. “Where’s everyone else?”
“On a hike. It’s just you and me for a little while.” I grinned and tugged her upstairs to the studio.
My space was tucked into a corner, with two of the walls all windows to let in the natural light. The other two walls were stacked with shelving, partially finished paintings, and rows of canvases waiting for attention. A potter's wheel sat in the furthest corner with tarps laid around to protect the flooring and contain the mess that accompanied the process.
“This is gorgeous!”
Nicky scampered around the room, looking at the paintings hung up and the plethora of supplies I had tucked everywhere. It was a bit chaotic, but it suited me just fine. I had enough space to work and knew where everything was, which was the most important part.
I got her outfitted with a smock, and she twirled adorably in the mass of fabric. The initial part of pottery wasn’t exceptionally thrilling, but Nicky was an avid student as I sliced off a chunk of clay and patiently taught her how to wedge it to smooth it out.
“Throwing is fab for getting out your frustrations. Just whack it down in the middle of the wheel.”
Nicky slapped the clay down a little off-center, and I had her do it a few more times until we got it exactly where we needed it to be.
“There we go! Now, let’s get it properly sealed and smoothed out.”
My arms weren’tquitelong enough to get her into position from behind, but that just meant I got to squish myself completely against her. I kissed her throat as I adjusted her grip on the clay. Nicky shivered and angled her head to give me better access. I gave her a nip before focusing back onto the task at hand, helping her smooth the clay further to eliminate the bit of wobble we had happening.
