Page 42 of Already At Risk
A twinkle appeared in her green gaze. I wanted to figure out how to capture it. Keep it.
“You seem awfully nice,” she said.
A louder laugh escaped me. “Well, to be fair, I was born in California. Moved with my family to New York later.”
“Ah,” she said, as though that explained it.
“And you?” I prompted.
“Minnesota,” she said before taking a sip of the whiskey and closing her eyes, like she was appreciating the burn as it went down her throat.
“Makes sense. You’re also awfully nice,” I said with a grin. “I’ve never been, but I’ve heard. I have a friend from there.”
“Yeah?” Her gaze darted to me, as though she might know who I was talking about.
Well, she probably would know exactly who I was talking about, considering Noah’s reputation in Boston. But I didn’t exactly want to risk the chance that she’d suddenly seem more interested in a professional football player than me.
My ego wasn’t fragile, but I understood the pecking order of things. And famous athletes—especially the ones at Noah’s level—usually came above attorneys.
“Yeah, he’s a nice guy,” I said, keeping it as vague as I could.
“Mmm.” She pressed her lips together. “There are times in life where I wished I was born to be less nice, you know?”
I considered her carefully, undeniably curious.
“Tell me about it.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
cameron
“THAT CAT LIKES YOU?” Noah laughed after an extended moment of silence where no one knew what to say, least of all me. “She hates me.”
“She loves me,” Gemma piped in. She leaned forward, looking down the table at her boyfriend with a fair bit of smugness.
“Yeah, well, you’re easy to love, Em,” Noah said, meeting Gemma’s gaze with a look of longing that felt palpable.
I looked back at Chloe, knowing that regardless of the awkwardness, I needed to respond to her. It certainly wasn’therfault that I’d been crossing the lines of the lawyer-client relationship I had with her mom.
“Tell Annabeth I miss her, too,” I said with a gentle grin.
Chloe seemed content with that reply and moved to sit in a chair next to Noah. Although I suspected it had less to do with Noah and more to do with the baby strapped to his chest. Chloe leaned closer to her cousin, speaking in a low hush, her eyes wide with wonder and adoration.
It was easy to see the truth in what Natalie had mentioned before about Chloe wanting a sibling. She seemed enamored of Delilah. It might have also had something to do with her beingthe only other child at the table, but still. She clearly longed for some kind of connection.
Taking a sip of my beer, I let my attention wander back to Natalie. Her cheeks were pink, either from spending time at the rink or Chloe’s blunder. Whatever the reason, it was delightful. Like, really, truly. I couldn’t stop looking at how the flush sort of melted down her neck, disappearing into her scrubs top.
“I’m going to run to the bathroom. Chloe?” She looked down the table at her daughter, who perked up at the sound of her name. “Bathroom?”
Chloe shook her head, so Natalie made eye contact with Noah, who simultaneously nodded, confirming he’d keep an eye on his niece while Natalie was gone.
Which meant, with Noah’s attention on Chloe, my attention got to stay on her mom.
I watched as Natalie walked around the table toward the back of the restaurant. She fidgeted with her shirt as she disappeared from sight, into the hallway that led to the bathrooms.
It took everything in me not to follow her.
Everything.
