Page 20 of Tempting the Player
The guy walks off, and I turn angrily to Nate. “What do you think you’re doing, Nathan? I'm not yours... not even close. What the hell gives you the right?”
He angrily runs his hands through his hair, he's about to run out of patience.
He grabs me by the elbow and steers me off the dance floor. I yell at him, “What the bloody hell are you doing? Get off me!”
“Now’s the time for that talk.” He steers me off into a clear corner, his body is rigid and tense. Yup, definitely angry.
He spins me around so my back is against the wall. He is mad.
“Are you going to tell me what your fucking problem is?” he asks.
“Whatmyproblem is? Are you kidding me? What exactly is it that you want from me, Nathan?” He likes it when I call him Nate, so I'm purposefully not doing it – childish, yes, but I can’t help it.
“I wantyou!” he yells “All I'm asking is for you to give me a chance, but you blow hot and cold, I don’t know where the hell I stand with you!”
“I'm not interested in a casual shag anymore. I've grown up,” I say quietly.
“What are you talking about? Have I given you any indication that that’s all I want from you?”
I get mad now. “You are a piece of work, you really are. How many women have you got on the go right now?”
He gives me a blank look. “I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. I don’t have any women on the go. I'm trying to get one, but she’s being a pain in my arse!”
Enough is enough. “I saw your phone last week at the party - you’re going out with someone called Maggie - you were with her Friday night and chatting me up on Saturday, at a bloody kids' party no less. You should be ashamed of yourself, and I have sympathy for whoever Maggie is, having to go out with you.”
I turn around and storm off, leaving him open-mouthed. He’s speechless, well, ha... he’s been caught out! That should get him off my back, now he realises I'm onto him.
The music’s gone off and the lights have come on - buffet time - I sit back down with everyone . . . they're all watching me.
“Are you going to tell us what that was about?” Karen asks.
I shake my head. “Let me calm down first, you guys go and get your . . . “
I'm stopped mid-sentence when I hear a voice on the microphone, it's Nathan. My blood runs cold in fear of what’s going to happen next. What in god’s name is he doing now?
“Hi, everyone. Sorry to interrupt you while you’re eating, but I need to say something to someone here tonight, and this is the only way I can get her stubborn arse to listen to me.
You see, there’s this girl I like - she’s fantastic. . . sexy . . . funny – she's . . . well, she's everything. I can’t get her out of my fucking head - that’s why I'm up here making a total dick of myself.
Unfortunately for us both, she had the displeasure of knowing me ten years ago, back when I was a total wanker, and yup, I was a wanker with her. But she won't give me a chance to explain that the reason I was a wankerwith her back then was because I knew she was way too good for me - that I’d end up hurting her and she was way out of my league. I wasn’t a one-woman man when I was younger, as you all know - so I told my friends that it was a one-night thing that didn’t mean anything, even though I couldn’t get her out of my head for months afterwards. . . even now, it still stands as the best night I've ever had!”
I go bright red and hang my head, eyes to the floor, not wanting to meet anyone’s eyes. Everyone at my table has gone still - you could hear a pin drop in the room.
“But all of you who know me know that being a dad changed me, made me grow up, and I'm not that guy anymore - all I want is for a chance to show her that. Show her that I would treat her properly – like she deserves to be treated.”
His eyes land on me.
“I'm sorry I hurt you, Kate, I am, but I can't turn back time, but if you give me a chance, you’ll see that I'm different now… you might actually like me. Oh, and Maggie is my sister. I was fixing a leak for her last Friday night. Thanks, everyone.”
He gets off the stage, and I watch him go down the steps to stop at the bottom of the bar area. He leans on the wall with his head down.
I can’t believe he did that. And Maggie is his sister? I’m such an idiot. I'm a bitch for not trusting him because this time around, hehasbeen different. That is the single most romantic thing ever to happen to me. I have goosebumps.
Everyone is watching me, waiting for my reaction. I scrape my chair back and stand. I take a deep breath and walk to him. Eyes are on me from around the room. He doesn’t see me approaching, but when I get to him, he looks up. We stare at each other and don’t say anything, the pain in his eyes breaks my heart.
I lean forward to put my lips on his. He hesitates, but when he realises what’s happening, he places his hands on my hips, pulls my body to meet his, and he opens his mouth and kisses me passionately. I kiss him back as a huge noise erupts behind me, the men whooping and cheering, and others clapping. It’s a romantic kiss - one that you’ll remember until your last day. I part my lips, and his tongue delves inside, sending shivers all through my body. I reluctantly break off and smile at him.
I say quietly but with resolve. “Okay.”
