Page 193 of Steeling Her
All of those thoughts made me want to avoid him.
“I’m good, yeah. So far so good. I’m crashing in Haley and TJ’s but I’m looking for my own house right now,” he answers her smoothly.
“Where have you been looking? California has such beautiful homes out here,” she asks another question, clasping her hands in front of her body.
It’s like she wants to live through him. My mom always wanted to buy a home out here for the summer and take us all out here, but she opted on taking us back to her hometown.
“Um, Bel Air is at the top of my list right now. It’s a little more private, which is just what I want,” he tells her, and I try not to act so surprised.
Bel Air is a beautiful place with gorgeous gated communities like this home I’m in. I could only dream of living in one. A perfect garden with freshly mowed lawns; sprinklers dispersing water for the grass and flowers frequently; luxurious pools and the view from the master bedroom are what I can imagine because it’ll never happen to me.
“Amazing! Those houses are a real beauties! You’re lucky to have that as an option!” She smiles warmly as he talks to her about his plans. “Working hard pays off.” She winks at him and takes her seat once more, silently offering him to join us.
“Yeah—”
“Nick! Can you come swim with me?” Taylor yells at him by the side of the pool. Her hair sticks to her face and shoulder as it drips with chlorinated water. Danielle enters with a bathing suit covering her figure.
My brother obnoxiously wolf whistles at her, making her giggle in embarrassment and stealing everyone’s attention. “Looking good, Mama!” He winks at her and she rolls her eyes, making her way over to fill up a red plastic cup of wine so she can get inside the jacuzzi. She ambles over to Chris in her bare feet as Nick responds to my niece.
“Sure, I’ll be right over once I’m finished talking to your grandma, okay?” he says and she nods, jumping back into the pool and splashing her friends in the process.
Danielle giggles in my brother’s arms as they kiss each other affectionately. “Still an asshole,” I mumble to myself.
“I better get into the pool or else I’ll be dragged in. It was nice seeing you again, Elaine.” He makes my mom chuckle. Haley joins her at how true that event sounds. It even puts a smile on my own face at how well he already seems to know my niece.
“Don’t I know it!” My mom laughs with him.
He walks over beside Haley and places his belongings on the table with a clatter. I watch him, along with the others. Motion by motion, he first slips off his sneakers and sets them beside Haley on the ground. TJ is next to greet my mom soon after he arrives outside. He was on a call all this time about the program he’s on for training and recovery with what I believe would be his physical therapist.
Nick strolls down to the deep end of the pool and tears his shirt off. I could see the black ink scribed across his muscular chest. Over his left peck, there were two lines of scripture that I couldn’t see all that clearly. I couldn’t make it out but there were intricate designs drawn into his skin that had me sitting up straighter to get a better look.
His eyes turn away from the lapping water and towards me, where they lock with mine. His eyes say something back to my curious stare, something I can’t make out. I know for a fact that there were two lines on his left peck but I could only see black. His upper arm has what looks like an animal on one side and something else on the other, but again, I can’t make it out. There were lines of writing on different parts of his body, but I am too far to be able to read what’s written and it was driving me nuts that I couldn’t.
I’m curious. I try to subtly see what it is without drawing any attention to myself, but it is proving to be very difficult.
I didn’t think he was the tattoo type.
***
Nick
“Wipe the smile off your face, Jackson. I said I preferred you, it doesn’t mean I actually like you.” Chris points at me, mumbling through the chicken and bacon salad sandwich his partner put out for the kids.
“Wait a minute!” Jason begins laughing loudly out in the open. “You’re her ex?” He sounds astonished by this information. I’m surprised he hadn’t picked up on that earlier, he’s usually quicker than that from what I’ve gathered from him.
“Yes, he’s the ex-boyfriend that dumped her because he wanted to go back to Layla, or Mona, or whatever her fucking name was.” Chris rolls his eyes at me.
He’s really going to do this today? At his daughter’s birthday party?
It wasn’t true. Not one bit. I haven’t seen or spoken to Maya since I graduated. I never contacted her, and neither has she. We parted ways, and I don’t know what she’s been up to since. Frankly, I don’t care either.
“Maya, and no, I didn’t get back with her. I never dated after Carter. What I did was wrong, I know, but I was pressured into doing it—”
“By who? You’re side bitch?” Chris is really starting to piss me off. He stands taller as he says that and finally starts to speak what’s on his mind. I didn’t know when he was going to do it, I guess it’s now.
Yes, I had a reputation, but it wasn’t like that. I truly fell deeply in love with Carter. I still am, and I don’t think I’d ever get over her. She’s the one that got away, as cliché as it all sounds.
“When I dated your sister, she was the only one I had and wanted. But I had to choose between football or her, and I knew I chose wrong—”
