Page 52 of Never and Always
Being with Nick made up for it. He was like a gift to compensate for her loss and all the years spent wondering if he could ever feel forher.
They were great together, and their years as friends just made them betterlovers.
When they left the hotel, he took her shopping instead of going back home. It almost felt like he didn’t want to go back, which was fine since she had no complaints in where he wanted to go. She was happy as long as she was withhim.
He took her to his office, which was near the police station. There she met his new secretary and enjoyed learning about what he did. It sounded fantastic, just the thing to suit him, and she was proud ofhim.
As he spoke, she recalled when they were younger and Glenn always seemed to have a plan on what he was going to do, but Nick didn’t. Glenn was always going to be a lawyer and planned his whole life around that. Nick was more of the carefree type of guy who always joked about not going tocollege.
Things changed a lot for him after his father was killed. Mia was really young at the time and didn’t know all the specifics, but she remembered and knew it affected him a lot. He never spoke about his father, not to her anyway. And she neverasked.
He seemed nervous as they went back home. Anxious even, and unlike the strong, confident person hewas.
It was only after Glenn called to let them know he’d be back tomorrow that Nick relaxed, then he took her up to his room to make love to her. She wondered if he was worried about telling Glenn about them. She couldn’t imagine why, if he was. Of anyone Mia could be with, she couldn’t imagine anyone better. Nick was Glenn’s best friend and he knew he was a goodman.
The last few weeks had been chaotic because of her, but Nick had fixed itall.
It was her who was worried about what Glenn would think and how he wouldreact.
It was about two a.m. when she woke up to find him sitting by the window looking out. He sat there looking like he’d materialized from a dream in just his boxers with those fantasy muscles on display. The moonlight bathed him in its light, shining on him through the long Frenchwindows.
She could have easily lay there and watched him forever—easily. But again, she wondered if he was worried about Glenn. She got up, pulled on one of his t-shirts, which swamped her, and went over to joinhim.
He smiled when he saw her and looked her over in that adoring way. Mia sat in his lap and put her arms around him, loving the feel of his skin against the palms of herhands.
“You should sleep, baby. I know I tired you out.” He chuckled, tracing kisses down her neck. She loved it, loved it a little too much, and had to will herself toanswer.
“You did, but I woke up and saw you, then there was no way that I was going back to sleep.” Shegiggled.
He slipped his arms around her and held herclose.
“Are you okay, Nick? You seem worried.” She thought she’d pose it as a general question to see if Glenn was really on hismind.
“I’m okay. I do this sometimes. Wake up in the quiet morning hours to think,” heexplained.
“What are you thinking about?” It did sound like he had something on hismind.
“Well, aside from you, I was thinking about my oldman.”
Mia stilled. This was the first time that he’d mentioned his father to her, and she didn’t know what tosay.
“I remember he had a great sense of humor,” she offered. When she thought back to what Nick’s dad looked like, an image of Nick came to mind, because he looked a lot like hisfather.
“Yeah, he did. I hate that as time passes, the memories fade. They don’t go, but they fade. I hate that. He was everything to me, andmore.”
“I’m so sorry he died,” she toldhim.
“Thanks. Me,too.”
“He would have been proud of you. Reallyproud.”
“I don’t know, I’ll never know. He always talked to me about joining the Marines, but I was a blockheaded, selfish teenager who never listened. I think he would have been happier if he actually knew I joined,” he reasoned. “He just didn’t want me to make a mess of mylife.”
“And you didn’t. Lieutenant.” She smiled, lifting up his dog tags. There were two: one for him, and the other had his father’s name onit.
“I wear it to rememberhim.”
“That’s reallyhonorable.”
