Page 22 of The Chad Next Door
Is that really true? Or is that his version of a kid-friendly explanation? Because despite how so very far away from even a mention of marriage Chad and I are, I would very much like to kiss him. Maybe not so much if there’s a marriage stipulation in there, but it’s not a deal-breaker. If he really is the kind of guy who kisses with intention, I can absolutely get behind that.
Zelda processes Chad’s explanation, still glancing between us. I think she gets it, though there’s something she’s still trying to figure out. “So…” She scratches her nose. “Do you want to marry Hope?”
Chad’s careful calm finally cracks, and he looks at me with a curious expression before stepping back and tucking his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “I should head back over to my place and check on Duke,” he says, wincing a little.
“You can bring him over here!” Zelda offers, but I already know he’s going to decline. Just like the other day, things got too close, and he’s pulling back.
It’s probably for the best, but that doesn’t stop me from trying to keep him here a little longer. “You’re not going to eat with us?”
He reaches over, silently showing Link how to twist the noodles onto his fork. It’s like he’s done this a million times, and suddenly I want to look up how old Houston Briggs is. He has to be under thirty if he’s still pitching in the major leagues at the level he is, and if Chad is thirty-six… That’s a pretty big age gap. Either he did a lot when it came to raising his siblings, or he has his own kids out there somewhere.
Why do I not like that idea? Probably because it would mean someone out there has been loved by Chad Briggs, and I am apparently extremely prone to unwarranted jealousy.
“I came over to make sure you were okay,” he says with a shrug, and it’s like he’s put on a mask, hiding the way he really feels about leaving. Maybe he’s eager to get away from my drama. Maybe he thinks he’s in danger of doing something he shouldn’t if he stays.
There’s usually a difference between what we should do and what we want to do, and I’ve learned that life is a lot happier when thewantsoutweigh theshoulds.
Still, Ishouldfollow Chad’s lead. Not only is he older and clearly wiser than me, but I feel steadier when I know he’s nearby. That’s not something I want to risk by being greedy and driving him away. “I’ll walk you out,” I tell him. “Don’t want your old man eyes getting you lost out there in the dark.”
He scoffs but holds the back door open for me, which is a good sign.
I’m just about to pass him when Zelda says, “Wait! The spider!” And she picks up the cup. The enormous black spider goes scurrying across the counter, and Zelda and I both scream and scramble to get away. She hides behind the counter, and my scrambling is directly into Chad’s arms. Like,in his arms, my own arms locked around his neck and my legs wrapped around his waist to keep myself protected, like he’s some tree I just climbed like a baby bear. He’s certainly big enough.
Link grabs the cup that Zelda dropped and impressively traps the monster again, turning to Chad with wide eyes. “What do I do with it?” he asks.At full volume.
I squeak but force myself not to say anything because I don’t want Link to suddenly become self-conscious about really talking for the first time in weeks.
Despite the fact that I’m clinging to him like a baby koala, Chad grabs a paper towel and steps over to the counter where Link patiently waits for instructions. I hold on to him tighter the closer we get to the creature whose sole desire is to crawl into my mouth while I’m sleeping.
“We’re going to slide this under the cup,” he says calmly, and then he tucks his chin over my shoulder so he can see what he’s doing. The fact that he hasn’t asked me to move has me feeling all sorts of feelings, chief among them a wild attraction that will not be tamped down if I stay here for much longer. He smellsso good, like a combination of fresh mountain air and something I can only describe asprimal, and I breathe him in without shame, even though his heart rate picks up speed against my nose where it nestles in his neck. He knows what I’m doing, and he doesn’t seem to care.
More than that, he seems tolikeit.
Whatever he and Link are doing with the cup, I refuse to look, and I just pray Chad isn’t the type of guy to want to tease me badly enough that he drops the spider onto my head or down my shirt or something.
“See how we have him trapped?” Chad says. “Now, you just have to hold on tight and make sure there aren’t any holes as you take it outside and put it in the bushes.”
“Far, far away from the house,” I recommend.
Chad snickers, and then we’re on the move. The temperature drops significantly as we pass through the door, which makes me nuzzle in even closer, and he wraps both his arms around my back. Whether it’s to hold me in place or keep me warm, I don’t care. I just don’t want him to let go.
“Where should I put it?” Link asks, his voice a little wobbly from the cold.
“Put it in that bush!” Zelda says. Oh, she’s here too? I should have told them to put on coats because they don’t have a big, burly man to keep them warm.
Chad holds me a little tighter, as if he can read my thoughts. “That’s a great place. There you go. Alright, kids, head back inside and close the door so you don’t let all the heat out,” he says in that commanding tone of his. “I’m going to, uh, let your aunt walk me home.”
“You can put me down,” I whisper, even if I don’t want him to.
“Why would I do that?” he replies, just as quietly. He doesn’t move until the back door shuts, throwing us into semi-darkness with only the kitchen window giving us a bit of light. When he does start walking, it’s slowly, like he is taking as long as he can to cross the distance between our houses.
I shift a little, my arms getting tired from holding on so tight, and he adjusts his arms more securely around me. I’ve got my legs around his solid waist, and I feel like I need to break the silence before I start getting any crazy ideas about the things I can do while in this man’s arms. “What were you doing outside before I summoned you with my saucy screams?” I ask, wincing immediately upon hearing myself. “I meant saucy like tomato sauce, not…”
“I know,” he says with a little chuckle. “I was talking to my sister, helping her with some relationship problems.”Aww. “Then I was going to chop some wood before your scream summoned me.”
Okay, I know I had a bit of a lumberjack fantasy when I first saw him, but that’s just pushing things too far. “You can’t be serious.”
“Why? Because I’m too old to be doing manual labor? I’m carrying you just fine, aren’t I?”
