Page 90 of Never With You
WEIRD PERIOD POOP HABITS.
This is how I die.
Death from humiliation.
It’s all just too much, from the shower fiasco to the Google calendar. This is a level of social pain I’ve never known.
My chest heaves up and down, and I stumble back, sitting on the closet bench. I even hunch over, putting my head between my knees because they say—whoevertheyare—that this position is good for hyperventilation.
Nate crouches beside me. “Based on your reaction, I’m guessing you didn’t send this to me on purpose.”
My head jerks up. “Why would I send that to you on purpose?”
Not to mentionhow. How did I send that to him?As someone who prides herself on being extremely detail-oriented, this feels like a major mistake and oversight.
“I don’t know. I don’t have sisters. I thought you were just letting me know when to tread lightly.” My glare makes him rethink his words. “Not tread lightly…just…you know…keeping me in the loop.”
In what world would I need to keep my coworker in the loop about my tender breasts and bathroom habits?
“Just go shower for dinner.” I push him away. “I’ll go outside to get ready.”
From now on, I’ll be wherever Nate is not.
While Nate isin the shower, I hide around the corner of the patio and step into my outfit: a chambray, strapless, wide-leg jumpsuit with a cutout stomach. Ties at the waistline make a bow, so the cutout isn’t so prominent. Once dressed, I wrap my damp hair into a knot on top of my head and apply some makeup.
I’m trying to make a quick getaway before Nate is done getting ready, so I won’t have to walk with him to dinner. But as I finish putting on my strappy sandals, he comes around the corner in navy shorts and a white button-up that’s practically see-through—dang you, lightweight linen.
The gravitational force of his sexy is strong.
So is the force of his heady cologne.
His eyes trace the length of my bare shoulders and collarbone then drop to the cutout, where there’s a glimpse of my midsection. His gaze lingers a beat too long before he snaps his eyes up to meet mine.
“Um…” He scratches the back of his neck as he clears his throat. “You look nice.”
Nice.
There’s that word again.
But this time, his compliment, or maybe it’s the way he downplayed his obvious approval, has a direct hit on my heart. That’s not going to work for me. So I put on my bulletproof vest and pretend like his appraisal and my reaction never happened.
“I’m leaving,” I announce as I grab my purse.
“We can walk together.”
Why?
Nate walks toward me, gesturing to the door.
There’s no way I’m getting out of this, so I surrender. “Sure.”
We walk in silence for the first thirty seconds, and I am happy to keep it like that, but Nate ruins everything by speaking.
“I just want you to know that you don’t need to be embarrassed.”
“About the shower or the calendar?”
He chuckles. “It was an eventful twenty minutes.”
