Page 31 of The Bright Side of Brooding
He looked left to right in a dramatic gesture, then dipped his chin. “So, how’s Masters?”
I stood straight, no longer leaning on the doorframe. The sound of Nick’s name from someone else sent a jolt of happy nerves through me. “Just fine, I’d imagine. Why do you ask me that?”
He raised a disbelieving brow. “Well, let’s see. When we left your house last night, I made sure he knew you and I weren’t dating.”
I reared back. “Why would you even—”
“He’d been wondering. I could tell. And he’s a man who wouldn’t do anything to harm someone else if he could avoid it. I wanted to make very sure he knew that spending time with you, should you happen to also want that, wouldn’t be stepping on my toes.”
My stomach twisted. I couldn’t quite tell why—anticipation? Embarrassment, even? “Do we act like we’re more than friendly? Has that ever been an issue for, uh, for you?”
“No. Oh, goodness, no, honey. Please don’t look upset.No.I damn sure would’ve asked you out in the fall, but after we hung out a few times, I figured out we just didn’t click like that. And honestly, that’s great, because I get you as a friend, and I get to see Masters all tied up in knots over you.”
His dark brows raised and lowered a few more times. What a ham.
“I wouldn’t say he’stied up in knots, but… he’s nice.”
Rob blinked a few times, absorbing that. “Sure.Nice.That’s how I’d describe him—”
“He is! But whatever. He did come back, and he insisted on helping me clean up.” I made a face.
Rob’s smile practically sparkled. “I’m so sorry. That sounds terrible.”
I rolled my eyes and gave him an unimpressed glare. “I make it very clear before people come that they are to leave, no cleanup. It’s one of my rules, and I don’t have many. Should you be so happy that he wouldn’t obey my simple rule?”
Even as I said it, I had to admit that in the end, I was glad he had.
“I think there are few people who can truly stand up to your level of determination. I also think the same is true for Nick Masters. So for me, I’m just going to sit back and watch you two out-stubborn yourselves and see what happens.” Then came another smile that brightened the hallway.
“We’ll see. In the meantime, you need to tuck away your charm assault before half the population of the post collectively swoons and things start shutting down.”
He loved that, based on the grin. “Delightful to see you, Summer. We’ll be training a ton until about two days out, so I may catch you in the neighborhood. But if I don’t see you before then, I’ll see you at the airport.”
I waved him off, watching him go. As he pushed out the swinging doors dividing the waiting room from the hallways where exam rooms and offices were, I thought I caught a glimpse of Dennin. My stomach immediately sank, but by the time the door swung back the other way, he was gone. Must’ve been my imagination.
Shaking off the slimy feeling that seeped in anytime I thought about or saw the creep, I focused on Rob’s words. Could Nick really like methatmuch? I mean, he wasn’t shy about showing interest. I appreciated the very clear absence of game-playing and trying to seem aloof, especially for someone who had a resting expression that screamed mildly irritated at best.
I didn’t know where it could go. He was introverted and taciturn, and I was… not either of those things. He was pushy, and while I liked parts of it, I didn’t know if I wanted that all the time. Like Rob said, I was determined, and I could admit I preferred to be the one in charge in a lot of situations. Would I want Nick, in all his beauty and unexpected kindness, to be there countering me?
I shook that off too. So far, we’d kissed a small, delicious handful of times, and he’d written me letters I couldn’t imagine ever getting rid of. We seemed to get along… kind of? Almost every interaction we had began with a disagreement, then melted into something fizzy and sweet. We hadn’t talked about all that much—well, other than a few deeply personal, hard truths from our lives. But who knew if we even had something in common?
I also didn’t need to be assuming that because we kissed, we were now a thing. I needed to chill out and focus on developing my community engagement plan and prepare for the London trip.
And if I happened to see Nick Masters out and about or, you know, around… I could talk with him, and it’d be fun. We were friendly, and we could keep doing that without it meaning something huge and life-changing.
