Page 31 of The Tomorrows After You
“Do you… need some help in marketing?”I asked.
Katie’s patronizing smile was like sandpaper against my eyeballs. “Oh, Nicolette, that’s okay, we really need someone who we know will be here through the Field Days on Memorial Day Weekend. I’m sure yourbusyschedule wouldn’t lend itself to the demands of the job.” I opened my mouth to protest, but she went on. “I mean it as agoodthing, honey. You’re just so successful, I mean… You’re way toobigfor Godot now.” She flitted her eyes over me, andI blanched.
“I don’t know,”Pastor Blackwell offered.“I think Miss Parker’s resumé might lend itself very well to contributing some new ideas.”Something in me warmed at his fatherly defense of my honor.
Katie spoke through gritted teeth.“Well, yes, but if you remember, Pastor Blackwell, Nicolette was never much of a joiner—”
“I’ll do it,”I quipped, jolted with instant regret. I needed more distractions like I needed a hole in the head. But the way she told me what Iwasorwasn’tirritated the shit out of me.
“Great!”Blackwell clapped and beamed at Katie.“That settles it, you have your full committee! If you’ll excuse me, I’m starved. I think I’ll see what’s left at the potluck.”
He breezed out, and I gave Katie a quick, overzealous smile. She shoved a piece of paper in my hands with the committee details.
It was a pink paper with strict agenda items and too many smiley faces.
Ugh, what had I gotten myself into?
10
Riot
Ihad been half teasing when I told Nicolette she should ride a bike to church but lo-and-behold she continued to surprise me when she pulled into the driveway at eight p.m. on Brennan’s old bike. I gritted my teeth. Had he helped her with it?
The idea of the two of them spending time together unsettled me. Brennan was immune to female charm, so it’s not like she could flirt information out of him. But, still, there were other reasons I wasn’t quite ready to admit to myself why I didn’t want them getting too close.
I was in a good mood when I got home from the scrap yard. And my mood was tickled more when Nicolette’s blonde little ponytail stumbled, getting off the bicycle. I went to greet her at the door, a bottle of water in hand.
“You must be thirsty,”I mused, extending the water bottle.
She growled but snatched it from me and took a long swig. I drank in the gleam of sweat that coated her neck. I could practically taste her salty skin from where I stood.
“Dick,”she enunciated. I withheld my chuckle. It wasn’t until she moved deeper into the kitchen that I caught an imbalance in her gait.
“Are you limping?”I swirled to face her. She glanced down at her ankle, rotating it.
“I’m fine.”But the wince on her face said otherwise. I pulled out the two chairs at the kitchen island.
“You’re not. Sit down. Let me look.”
“You a doctor now, Riot?”she asked with an edge to her voice before sitting down in the chair across from me, toeing off her sneakers.
“No, but I’ve seen enough injuries on the football field to know that healthy ankles don’t make people limp.”I absently pulled her foot into my lap and gingerly removed the black ankle sock. One hand gripped her heel, and I heard her suck in a breath when my other hand moved to hold her calf in place.
“Sorry, does it hurt there?”
“No,”she said, too quickly.“I mean, I didn’t... I just wasn’t ready for—”My eyes caught her lips, stammering to complete the sentence.“Your hands are cold, that's all.”
My hands weren’t cold. But it was a cute attempt to cover up the little gasp she made.“Sorry,”I muttered, appraising her ankle more carefully. I was suddenly aware of how much of her skin was touching mine.
“There’s no bruising... So, it’s probably not sprained.”She had delicate feet. Bony, yet elegant.“Do a quick rotate?”She swirled her pointed toes, gently brushing against the crotch of my shorts. I felt my cock jump instantly. I picked her foot up, praying she didn’t notice.“You should have told me you couldn’t ride a bike. I didn’t mean for you to get injured.”
She snorted. I tilted my head to look at her.“I know how to ride a bike just fine, thank you. This is from jumping outUncle Jake’ssecond-story window in the middle of the night.”She said his name like it tasted bad.
Nicolette huffed humorlessly and took another long swig from the water bottle.
But I was frozen still, some emotion I couldn’t describe racing through me. I felt my scowl grow darker, my eyes burning into her. She came to stillness when she spotted my expression.
For a long moment, our eyes tangled. The air grew heavy with all the things she wasn’t saying. My hands tightened around her foot, gripping it possessively. Her lips parted gently and her eyes widened. I was keenly aware of my breath and hers, blinking only when I realized I was gripping her foot tight enough to feel its pulse.
