Page 48 of Spring Tide

I spend nearly two hours skirting around him, distracting myself with other players, and sucking up to my supervisor, Minh. Unfortunately, I can’t escape Nate forever. Once training is over, he lingers around while the rest of his teammates clear out.

This week, I’m supposed to monitor their progress and present an alternative program to my class. As all forty-two players pile out, they leave their workout logs in a haphazard stack near the locker room entrance. Well, everyone except for Nate, who decides to personally hand-deliver his.

He approaches me with that familiar swagger in his step. His expression is guarded, but there’s a tight half-smile that curves his lips.

“Need some help getting these to your car?” he asks, lacking his typical suggestive tone.

“I’m good,” I say softly, preoccupying my hands by tidying the stack. “Thank you, though.”

His eyes narrow. “What’s with the cold shoulder, Harps?”

I tap my fingers against the plastic binders, anxiously debating my response. Nate’s unabashed question caught me off guard. But I guess he’s chosen to take the straightforward route, so it’s only fair that I meet him with the truth.

“I’m just wondering why you asked me out if you were planning on kissing someone else?”

“Seriously?” His expression slides into a frown. “You told me you had to bail. Understandable, sure, shit comes up. But then I find out you’re on a double date with two linebackers?”

I wrinkle my nose. “What?”

“Some girl tagged you in a photo. I saw it before I even showed up at the Lounge.”

“Oh,” I murmur, my false bravado fading as he furrows his brow.

“Yeah.” He jerks his binder forward, tossing it onto the stack I just straightened. “Probably should have told me you were dating Ötzi before I put my tongue in your mouth.”

“We’re not—it’s not ... I didn’t mention it because we’re not serious or anything.”

“So, what, then?” He waves a dismissive hand, lips twisting into a mocking sneer. “You just wanted to bag football and baseball captains at the same time? Makin’ your way through the NCAA roster?”

I rear back, irritation gnawing at my chest. “You’re not being very nice.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t realize that’s what kind of girl you were.”

I let my shoulders slump. “Then I guess we were both wrong about each other.”

“Yeah.”

My pulse pounds in my throat, aching to bite out a scathing retort. It’s not my fault that Nate’s clearly insecure. He can use that as an excuse to justify his behavior, but it’s a waste of energy to argue with him now. So I flip around instead, gathering up the binders and tossing them into a rolling bin.

“Can you just leave?” I mutter, back turned in his direction.

“Shit, Harper ... wait.” He grasps ahold of my wrist, gently whirling me back around to face him. “I’m sorry for being a dick. It’s just, the whole Ötzi thing is really throwing me off. If you two have something going on, then I should probably stay out of it.”

“Yeah, I think that’s for the best.”

“Fuck, you must really think I’m an asshole now.” His forehead creases with worry. “Don’t you?”

I lift my shoulder in a half-shrug. Do I think Nate’s a complete and total asshole? No, I can’t make that decision yet. I try not to judge a person’s character based on one anger-fueled encounter, but I still don’t feel like nursing his bruised ego right now.

“Trust me, it’s not about you.” A shadow of doubt creeps over his face. “I’m just not interested in being theother guy. Been there, done that. I really did like you. Or do, I do like you.”

“Okay,” I say, rattled by his sudden attitude shift.

“Maybe if things don’t work out with Ötzi, we could try this again?”

“Um, maybe,” I say softly, even though operation Date Nate™? has already melted inside my brain, disappearing like an ice cube on a hot summer’s day. “Look, I should probably finish collecting these binders. I have a lot of work to catalog tonight.”

“Sure, okay.” He scrubs one hand across the back of his neck, gaze sheepish as he retreats into the locker room. Before the door swings shut behind him, he shoots one last apologetic smile over his shoulder.

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