Page 97 of Until August
I set the drink on the floor and grabbed her hand, tugging her closer. “Come here.”
She resisted and pulled her hand out of my grasp. “No way. You smell bad.” I did a sniff test, confirming she was right. Whiskey seeped from my pores. I smelled like a distillery. “Go take a shower, and then I’ll feed you.”
“Are you bossing me around, woman?”
“Someone needs to take care of you. After that stunt you pulled last night, that much is clear.”
The corner of my mouth lifted in amusement. She was so damn cute when she was bossing me around. “And you think you’re the one for the job?”
“Yes, I do. I’m worth my weight in gold, baby.” She threw me a wink. “And don’t you forget it. Now drink your hangover cure, get your ass in the shower, and meet me on the balcony.”
I grinned and watched her ass as she sashayed out of my bedroom, putting a little extra sway in her hips because she knew damn well my eyes were glued to her.
In the past, I’d always been the one who took care of the woman in my life. Never the other way around. But Nicola was nothing like Sasha. She wasn’t fragile or breakable. She was going through a tough time, and a lot of people would have caved under the weight. Not her, though. She was a fighter. I loved that about her.
Ten minutes later, I was freshly showered and feeling almost human again when I stepped out onto the balcony and took in the scene before me.
Nicola cradling a mug of coffee in her hands. The table laden with food—crepes with fresh fruit, crispy bacon, and a perfect omelet. In the center of the table was a ball jar with three bright pink flowers and large petals.
I had no idea when she’d had the chance to do this, but I was so overwhelmed that she did it all for me that I just stood there like a mute and said absolutely nothing.
“August?”
I opened my mouth to respond, closed it again, and sat across from her. “You did all this for me?” I asked wonderingly.
She brushed it off with a wave of her hand. “All I did was make breakfast. It’s no big deal.” She pointed her fork at my plate. “Eat.”
I wasn’t the least bit hungry, but I took a bite of food and another. Even though my stomach was rolling in protest, and I felt nauseous from all the whiskey I’d consumed last night, I forced myself to eat the food on my plate.
Because Nicola made it.For me. And she did it the morning after I’d stood her up and chose to get drunk instead of spending the night with her.
Nobody had ever made me breakfast. Nobody had ever taken care of me. I just couldn’t get over it.
I cleared my throat, searching for something to say when my eyes landed on the flowers. “What kind of flowers are these?” As if I was an aspiring botanist and needed to know everything about the blooms in front of me.
“Lotus flowers. They symbolize rebirth.” She lifted her glass of orange juice, freshly squeezed, might I add. “Here’s to new beginnings, August.”
She punctuated her words with a glorious smile, and I swear it was like the sun coming out after a long, dark, and brutally cold winter. For a moment, I let myself bask in the glow. It reached deep inside and warmed me to my bones, tapping into my very being.
I didn’t know if two broken people could heal each other, but her smile made me believe anything was possible.
* * *
“I have to get going.” She gave me an apologetic smile after we’d carried all the dishes inside. I didn’t have to ask where she was going. Nicola visited Cruz every day. “I’ll just help you clean up….”
I took the plate out of her hands and set it in the sink. “Leave it. Thanks for breakfast.”
Thanks for breakfast?
That was the best I could come up with?
I winced, remembering my drunk antics last night and the subsequent breakdown, and mumbled something that sounded like a half-assed apology.
She turned to face me and leaned against the counter, her big brown eyes searching for something on my face like she was trying to decipher a code. “You have nothing to apologize for. You were upset, and I was happy I could be there for you.”
I pushed my hand through my hair and blew out a breath, unsure what to say. I still felt like I owed her something. Just wondering what. I wracked my brain. Nope. Nothing.
“You’re not used to this, are you?” She sounded amused.
