Page 46 of Unexpected Forever
Grabbing the water bottle, I take a long drink of it before I head out to find Nate.
This time, I find him sitting at the bar, typing on a laptop. He once again greets me with a smile, but it’s guarded this time.
“Hey.”
“Hey.” I run a hand over my hair, trying to tame the wayward strands. “Sorry for sleeping so long. And for crying on your shirt.”
He snaps the laptop shut and leans back in the chair. “It’s okay. I got some work done. Besides, you’re pregnant. I hear the mood swings are normal.”
“Have you been around a lot of pregnant women?”
A smile touches his lips. “No. But I heard all kinds of stories from a teammate when his wife was pregnant a few years ago.”
“Hmmm…”
“You hungry? I ordered a few things off the menu earlier.”
“Yeah, I’m starving actually. What ya got?”
He smiles and pushes back, standing. “I know there’s a cheeseburger and fries. There’s also—”
I hold up a hand. “Enough said, I’ll take it.”
“Go ahead and sit down. I’ll warm it up.”
I drop my chin into my hand, watching him move around the small kitchen. He’s dressed casually, in dark gray sweatpants and a black T-shirt with the Florida Bull Sharks logo on the back. And he’s barefoot.
Why does the sight of his bare feet feel strangely intimate?
For such a large guy, he moves with a grace only elite athletes of his caliber can pull off.
“You seem to know your way around the kitchen.”
“When you’re on the road as much as I used to be, you learn how to cook.”
He warms the food and makes a plate for each of us.
We settle into a comfortable silence for a few minutes as we eat.
“This is a good burger,” I say before stuffing my face with fries. “I think Nugget and I were hungrier than I thought.”
“Nugget?”
“Yep. It’s my nickname for the baby.”
He chews, but his gaze drops to my belly, where my tank top is stretched across the still-flat expanse, before it drifts up, lingering on my boobs, and then back to my eyes.
There go those damn butterflies again, and this time I have the added torture of tingling nipples.
The man didn’t even need to touch me for my body to respond.
He nods. “I like it.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Shoot.”
I swallow and set down my burger, unsure if I even want to hear the answer, but I can’t help but ask the question.
