Page 31 of Power Plays & Proposals

"Did you talk to Penelope about us?" I asked him. He’d spent all of Sunday with her.

His hands slid over the steering wheel as he turned at the light. "I did."

"How did it go?"

"Turns out talking to her is more nerve-wracking than a faceoff in front of an arena full of people. " He smiled. "But she gave me permission to date you."

"What did you tell her about everything?"

"That we met at the bakery and have been talking for a while. But we wanted to take it slow."

"And the engagement?"

"I told her that when people assumed we were, that I realized it felt right. And when I asked you, you said yes."

"So not exactly a lie."

"And what about you? Have you told your friends and family the news?"

Discomfort had me fidgeting with my hands. "My mom and I had a long conversation yesterday. She's disappointed you didn't ask for my dad's permission first, but she would have settled for meeting you first."

"I'd love to meet them."

"You don't have to do that. They'd pull out the baby binder and tell you of all the ways I don't measure up to my cousin Haley."

He gave me a quick stare of disbelief as we stopped at a red light. "Well, that sounds downright backward. I don't think anyone can measure up to you."

I dropped the subject of my family as he drove, instead asking him, "Have you gotten a date from your lawyer?"

"February 3rd."

Four weeks of being a fiance'. I could do that. "That's just under a month away."

"Tired of me already?" He teased and took a left before pulling up in front of my building to park.

He had me wait so he could open my door for me, and then he grabbed the bags of books to carry up the stairs to my apartment. I wondered what he'd think of the place. My home wasn't anything fancy, the kitchen and living room spaces were one and the same. A convenience for those nights when I wanted to watch movies on my laptop while I ate dinner on the lumpy couch I'd picked up for cheap on an upcycling site.

"Where do you want the books?" Nate asked me.

"You can set them on the coffee table. Can I get you a drink?"

I remembered it the moment I saw Nate pause in setting the books down. I'd forgotten about the yellow notice Benny had taped to my door, and that I'd left it on the coffee table. The same coffee table Nate had just set the books down on. He picked up the paper and then looked at me.

"Is this because of Erin?"

"Yes and no. I was figuring it out when my landlord saw that I was fired and decided to go through with it."

His shoulders slumped under an invisible weight. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"It's embarrassing. I'm supposed to be a self-sufficient woman by now. But instead, I have student loans for a degree I never finished or wanted. And I can't earn enough from one job to pay for a good place to live."

"Where does your landlord live? I promised you I'd take care of things until you got back on your feet."

"I'll be okay Nate. I'm moving in with Maria."

I sat on my couch and he joined me. The couch felt much smaller with him next to me, and it wouldn't take much for my leg to brush up against his. It was then that I realized I was still covered in flour and wearing the bakery shirt. I'd completely forgotten about the change of clothes I'd left at the bakery.

"I'll help you move. I'm good at moving things." He had a serious glint in his eye.

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