Page 70 of The Story of Us
“He looks at you like you hung the moon. This is it, darling. I’ve got a feeling.” Joanie reached for her handkerchief again. “I’ve been hoping you two would figure out what’s always been right in front of you both. And now look at you: two adventures for the price of one. And then marriage and babies and all that wonderfulness. When you’re ready, of course. Now, you know what the perfect way would be to celebrate?” Joanie asked as she used her handkerchief to dry Eloise’s eyes.
“What?”
“Some harmless snooping. I need to know how your man keeps his hair so damn shiny all the time. Which way to his bathroom?”
A laugh caught Eloise by surprise. “Joanie!”
“What?”
“We’re not going to snoop through Nate’s things.”
“Okay. Just the bathroom. No bedroom.”
“No snooping.”
“That’s a relief,” his deep voice said.
“Eeek. Busted,” Joanie whispered. Eloise looked over her grandmother’s shoulder, her breath catching at the sight in front of her.
Nate was all wet, his workout clothes glued to his body, leaving very little to her imagination. His hair was slicked back, the drops of water caught in his beard glittering under the light over the front door. His shoulders were loose, and she wanted to kiss the smirk off his face. As if he could read her thoughts, his smile widened. She felt the full force of his happiness as if it was a wave storming into the beach, crushing everything underneath it but, you know, with a more cheerful vibe.
“No one’s ever looked at me like that.” Joanie sighed, ruining the moment. “Shall I give you two some privacy? I can’t compete with those bedroom eyes.”
Nothing like being cockblocked by her grandmother.
“I’ll get you a towel,” Eloise said to Nate, needing a second to collect herself.
Eloise rushed down the hall, sucking deep breaths all the way down to her belly, trying to slow her heart rate from pounding to something reasonable. Seeing Nate like this had caused a throb to start between her legs. She grabbed the first towel she found and pressed a hand over her chest. If this was her reaction to seeing Nate kind of naked, what would it be like when they finally had sex?
And why did Joanie have to be here right now?
Eloise shook her head, admonishing herself for being so selfish, especially when Joanie had just literally solved one of her biggest problems.
Pasting a calm expression on her face, Eloise opened the hall door. Her grandmother’s voice filtered through. “Need any help with those wet clothes?”
23
Nate hadn’t expected to enjoy coming home to someone so much. Eloise was obviously doing her best to minimise the impact of her staying at his place by keeping everything extra neat and tidy. But as he stood, dripping in the doorway, he clocked all the tiny changes that had transformed his house into a home.
It was the kettle whistling on the stove, the beginnings of dinner arranged on two brightly coloured cutting boards he’d never seen before. His dog dozing on her bed with what looked like a new soft toy bunny—God, he’d laughed so hard when Eloise had bought that for her—tucked under her head. Voices and laughter filling the usually empty space in a way the television could never replicate properly when he turned it on, sick of the quiet. Although,The Golden Girlscould talk. That’s what he should be putting on, not football and basketball.
While Eloise dipped a chicken breast in a bowl of egg wash before covering it in breadcrumbs made from yesterday’s loaf, Nate finished drying his hair, another smile tugging at his lips.
“Well, then, what’s the secret to getting your hair to look so good all the time?” Joanie snuck a piece of cut-up carrot from a bowl of vegetables.
“If I tell you, you can’t tell anyone, especially my brothers.”
Joan clapped her hands together and swallowed before speaking. “This is going to be good. I can already tell.”
Nate snuck a glance at Eloise. Even though she was pretending to be focused on pouring olive oil into a pan, her small smile gave her away. “It’s from a company called Big Sexy Hair.”
“Well, now I have to see it!” Joanie crowed. “Please, Nate. Give me something to tell the girls at book club tomorrow. We’re reading a historical recount of the gold rushes in the area because someone complained it was all getting too smutty and …” Joanie mimed falling asleep, her glasses slipping off and landing on the wooden countertop.
A small puddle was gathering at his feet. “Give me two seconds.”
“Sure you don’t want to give a lonely old lady a thrill?”
“Joanie,” Eloise warned, and that little smile of hers? It was threatening to become a grin.
