Page 21 of Naughty Nicky

When I walk back into the bedroom, Nick is gone. I want to snoop. I want to know more about him. What his life has been like since he left Ouray. I want to know more than what he’s told me. I know he is holding things back, since he obviously keeps choosing dare. Although, I do think our game is over now.

I leave the bedroom and head back to the living room to find him adding more wood to the fire. I throw the blanket onto the couch just as he turns to face me.

“I’ll take your clothes.” He reaches out for them, and I hand them off then turn and grab my sweater I threw onto the couch earlier. “I’ll go throw these in the wash.”

“Thanks.”

“The kettle is on, and there is hot chocolate in the cabinet. Not sure if you wanted that or tea.”

I smile at him. “Hot chocolate sounds perfect.”

He gives me a soft smile in return. “I’ll make it when I come back upstairs.”

He heads toward the garage, and I make my way toward the kitchen. I find the mugs and the hot chocolate. I’m not sure ifhe would rather have tea but since he has hot chocolate, and he mentioned it, I guess I will make him a cup as well.

I’m in the refrigerator looking for whipped cream when he starts talking behind me. “Geez, you need to stop creeping up on me,” I screech as I turn around.

“Sorry. You looking for something?”

“Whipped cream,” I answer as I go back to the fridge.

“Don’t have any.”

I spin around. “Who drinks hot chocolate without whip cream?”

“Uh…me. I don’t want all that extra sugar. There’s enough in the hot chocolate as it is.”

“Heathen,” I mutter under my breath as I shut the door.

“I do have marshmallows.”

“Oh yeah?”

He nods and reaches into the cabinet above the fridge, pushing me into the door, giving me a strong whiff of that scent I was missing earlier, the one that is Nick Snow.

“Hopefully they aren’t hard.”

The word hard has me glancing down at his sweats, thinking about what could be hard. I curse myself for thinking about him naked again.

“You okay?” he asks as he steps away.

I don’t even realize I’m holding my breath as if I am trying to keep the smell of him clinging to me. “Me? Oh yeah, totally fine,” I mumble.

He gives me a look then laughs. “Weirdo.”

God, I hope he didn’t realize I was smelling him.

I remain still as I watch him stir the hot chocolate and add marshmallows to each cup. He grabs one and starts to walk toward the living room. “You coming?”

“Yep!” I say overenthusiastically. I curse myself for acting like an idiot but whatever. I’m sure he thinks I am one.

When I walk into the living room, I contemplate the floor again but since I’m in warmer clothes, I now decide that I can just sit on the couch. I get as close to the end as I can without falling over the armrest. Nick is messing around with a record player in the corner, throwing on a vinyl of some indie band I’ve never heard before.

He sits down on the opposite end of the couch, grabbing his hot chocolate off the coffee table and blowing on it to cool it down. I swear I try hard not to stare at his lips.

“So, whose turn was it?”

“Huh?” I ask, not really paying attention.

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