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“I have a feeling he wouldn’t have it any other way. You have to tell me how the relationship is really going though. All the protectiveness, that still works for you?”
Lexie grins and starts telling me about Sheldon, and she barely comes up for air as she gushes on and on about how good he is. I let her keep talking, because it’s clear my friend is head over heels in love with her man and that he treats her like an absolute princess.
My side cramps after some time, and I glance down at the sound of my cell.
Nick:You ladies okay in there? It’s been hours.
I glance at the time. “Do you know how long we’ve been talking?” I stand, working out the kinks from sitting cross-legged on the bed for so long. “I lost all track of time listening to you yack about Italy and your wedding and Sheldon. I have to get up early and check my email for a staffing update. They won’t send it until they cover their call-ins in the morning.”
She laughs. “Sorry! I could talk about it for a lifetime. Sheldon and I both love it there.”
I scowl playfully. “And you love New York City too!”
She raises her hands in fake surrender. “It’s not like we plan to move or anything, but we won’t mind when we need to be in Italy either.”
We walk out to the kitchen, dropping our plates off from earlier. I grab a cracker and piece of cheese from the tray now sitting out on the counter. I can feel Nick’s eyes on me without even glancing toward the dining room table where he and the guys are going over plans.
“Sheldon and I took one of the side rooms. There’s another smaller room that the guys can use to take turns sleeping in, and two couches that turn into beds, which leaves you and Nick with Chase and Katarina’s room,” Lexie informs me, half dragging me down another hall and through the double doors that open into the master suite.
“Very nice. This is going to be pretty hard to take. I mean, that view alone,” I murmur, gazing out at the city lights. “How am I supposed to get any work done? And that whirlpool?” I ask, my cheeks heating with the recent memory of being with Nick at the club.
I sense his presence before turning around, but his eyes are like magnets, drawing me to the smoldering orbs of dark blue, and penetrating me with their heat. “We’ll be sure to put that to good use,” Nick acknowledges, placing our bags in the room and then leaving just as quietly as he came.
“Oh my God, Allie. The electricity between you two is off the flipping charts!” Lexie closes the door. “I thought nothing was going on! Every single conversation it’s the same thing,” she states, nodding emphatically, making her blonde curls bob as she does.
“Relationships and I don’t work, Lexie. You know that. Look at my mom. She was happy with my no-good father, had me, and then he just up and left us for another woman. My mom had to work multiple jobs just to put a roof over our heads and food on the table. I spent more time with you and your mom than I did at my own house. That’s not going to be me in five years, and my little girl is not going to grow up without a daddy.”
“You’re probably right, because at the rate you’re going, you’re not ever going to have a daughter.”
My chest tightens at the sting of her words. “That was a crappy thing to say, Lexie.”
She shrugs, but her eyes are kind and gentle. “Whether you like to hear it or not, Allie. It’s the truth, and friends don’t lie to friends. You can’t seriously think every man is like your father and that they’ll run out on you for another woman. There are a lot of good men in the world. You should give Nick a chance.”
The friend I’m usually giving advice to is watching me expectantly. “It’s not like I didn’t think about trying. You see how the nurses, well, all women for that matter, swoon all over Liam and Trent? They were doing that with Nick too, and he sure didn’t seem to mind.”
“Did he do something inappropriate, flirt with them, or say something that made you feel bad?” Lexie asks, concern registering right away.
“No, nothing like that. It’s just, well, the same thing happened at the gym. I look away for a minute, and Nick’s standing over some blonde bimbo who’s thrusting her chest in his face while she lifts weights below him.”
Lexie’s eyebrows raise, and she scowls. “I’m not following.”
I shrug. “Blondie almost lost the weights. Nick did the gentlemanly thing, but I jumped to conclusions and thought he was flirting. The point is, I’m always going to have trust issues. I never told you this, but when me and Keith broke up, it was because he left me for someone else. It just hurt too much to tell anyone, even you.”
“Allie! I would have been there for you! Dammit! Why didn’t you tell me that?” She slaps my arm. “That’s not how friends roll! You tell me when something’s bothering you!”
“Ouch! I want my quiet, unassuming, non-bossy friend back. The one who doesn’t slap! What did Sheldon do with her?”
Lexie’s whole face blushes. “What doesn’t he do with me?”
At least we’re onto a different subject and off of my issues. “Gotta love that.”
“I do, and so would you if you would just give Nick a chance.”
“You’re starting to sound like a broken record! Anyway, that’s the stuff I can do at the club. No strings, no attachments, and no chance of getting my heart broken.” I leave out that Nick is currently a huge part of that delicious arrangement because Lexie is never going to understand that.
Her watchful eyes narrow at me. “I got to know Nick pretty well while we were in Italy. We were at restaurants, on boats, and at the theater together. He never once acted inappropriately, not once, and let me tell you, he had every opportunity to have any woman he wanted. He’s hot, and women are always going to want his attention. I care about him, Allie. I hate to say this because I love you more than any sister I could have ever had. But, if you can’t trust Nick, he would just end up miserable with you in the end. It would never last. Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.” She leans over and hugs me. “I have no doubt you two will get it figured out. I’m going to go see what Sheldon’s up to.”
She passes Nick in the hallway, leaving me to stand in the doorway, contemplating what she’s said and watching him. He stops at the closet and then carries an armful of blankets and pillows into the bedroom.
