Page 26 of Love in the Stacks
I pull into the driveway, and Nicole sighs happily. I turn in my seat to look at her. She’s staring up at my townhome.
“It’s so cute,” she breathes. “I’ve always wanted to live in a townhome. My family took a trip to Baltimore when I was a kid, and I just fell in love with the beautiful red brick rowhouses. I imagined this whole future for myself where I lived in one and worked for a publishing house in the city.”
Another snippet of the full Nicole. I tuck this knowledge into my memory, like a delicate piece of parchment sliding into an acid-free folder.
“So, what happened?” I ask.
She looks at me, as if only just remembering that I’m here. She studies my face, her eyes ticking back and forth as if calculating how much to reveal. Finally, she smiles.
“I realized that I don’t like the cold. And also, book publishing is probably not the right fit for me. Too competitive.” She shrugs and reaches for the door handle.
We get out of the car and step toward the door to my place just as a chilly breeze gusts through.
“It feels cooler out now than this morning,” I comment. “Must be a cold front.”
Before Nicole can respond, I open the door and Joan’s right there, blocking our path with her tail wagging. I back Joan up enough for us to get through the door, and then she’s bumping her head against Nicole’s thighs in greeting. Nicole drops to her knees, scratching behind Joan’s ears and cooing to her in baby talk. Joan eats it up, angling closer until she’s practically on top of Nicole.
Laughing, I introduce them unnecessarily. “Nicole, this is my dog, Joan.”
Nicole lifts her face to mine for a moment, a wide grin on her lips. “Well, I hope so. Otherwise, what’s she doing here?” She immediately returns her attention to the wriggling pup.
I watch for a few moments, my heart squeezing in my chest. Nicole’s face is shining. She’s radiant. Her soft purple hair falls in front of her face as she bends her head toward Joan. Her lips are pursed as she sweetly croons praises, and her nose wrinkles adorably. I’ve never seen her look so beautiful.
Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I walk through the dining room space to the open kitchen to set my lunchbox on the counter. I deposit my computer bag onto the dining room table on my way back to the living room. When I pick up Joan’s leash from the side table, the metal jingles, finally wrenching her attention away from our guest. Joan bounds toward me. Nicole takes the opportunity to rise to her feet, clasping her hands together in front of her as she looks around the room.
“I’m going to walk Joan real quick,” I tell her as I snap the leash onto Joan’s collar. “Feel free to look around or have a seat or whatever.It shouldn’t take long.” Nicole looks nervous, so I offer her what I hope is a reassuring smile.
Joanie and I don’t do our typical thirty-minute walk, of course. I just take her around the block, giving her enough time to do her business before heading back to the house. The air has cooled even more, and I’m shivering as we step inside. January and February are typically our coldest months in north Florida, and by cold, I mean cold to me—with average highs in the sixties and lows in the forties. Occasionally a cold front will come through that drops us down an additional ten degrees or so for a few days. Feels like we’re heading into one of those now.
I dart my eyes around for Nicole and see her in the corner of the couch under a blue and gray buffalo check throw blanket. My heart almost stutters to a stop at the vision. She looks so cozy, so at home. Like I could slide under the blanket next to her and sweep her feet into my lap. Having her here, in my space, among my things, is messing with my head. I feel a yearning unlike anything I’ve felt before; a desire to hold her, care for her, protect her.
I’m not sure what she reads on my face, but Nicole smiles timidly as she moves the blanket and stands to walk toward me. She halts six feet away, hovering just out of reach.
“I got cold. Sorry if I overstepped at all.” Her chin dips toward the floor and my eyes follow. She’s barefoot, her shoes next to my spare flip-flops by the door.
“You’re fine,” I say, my voice gravelly. I clear my throat. “It’s actually getting pretty cold out there. You said the event is at the amphitheater? So outdoors?”
She lifts her head to meet my eyes, concern on her face. “Yeah.”
“You can borrow one of my sweatshirts.” I wince at my own tone. Though I mean it as a suggestion, it comes out sounding more like a command. Nicole starts to protest, but I level her with a determined glare. “You’ll freeze. And you’ve already told me you don’t like the cold. It’s no trouble. Really.” My voice is gentler this time, mollifying.
Nicole nods. “Thank you,” she murmurs. “That would be really nice.”
Joan whines to remind me that she’s still on her leash. I let her loose and tell Nicole I’ll be right back. I run upstairs and grab a sweatshirt for myself. I deliberate a little over which sweatshirt to lend Nicole before chiding myself to not overthink it. I pull out a plain, dark green zipper hoodie.
When she puts on the hoodie downstairs, I realize my mistake. The sweatshirt is too big on her, of course. The sleeves swallow her hands, and she shoves them up, the fabric bunching around her elbows. The bottom hem hits her about mid-thigh. The color, though. It’s just a touch darker than her eyes, making them glow with an ethereal blaze. I literally cannot look away.
“Adam?” Nicole’s voice brings me out of my stupor. The look on her face is half amused, half annoyed, and I know I’ve been caught staring.
“Yeah,” I grit out.
“Ready to go?”
I shake my head to clear my thoughts. Dragging a friendly smile back to my face, I answer, “Yep! All set.”
We both say goodbye to Joan, who is not thrilled we’re leaving again so soon. In the car, I turn up the heat and activate the seat warmers. We’ll be especially glad for those when we’re trying to defrost after the event.
I glance at the passenger seat and my chest tightens. Nicole sitting there, in my sweatshirt, her smile lighting up the car, feels natural. Like she’s always been by my side. Like she always should be.
