porno flick. Unless that sort of thing does it for you, in which case leave it on, by all means.”
Holy fuck, I mean, holy fudge. Did he just say that? “C-c-can I wear jeans?”
“Jeans would work. So, are you gonna eat some proper food now?”
I got off my stool and tugged my dress down as I stood up. As the hem got lower, so did the neckline. Okay, so the dress was perhaps a size too small, but buying second-hand, I couldn’t afford to be fussy, and Nick’s porn comment was surely an exaggeration. None of the other men I’d worked with had ever complained about it.
I glanced over at Nick. His eyes flicked to his lunch, but I was sure he’d been watching me. Why did he have that little smile on his lips? Was it due to a fondness for avocado, or something else?
As he shovelled food into his mouth, I fixed myself a ham and pasta salad and re-took my seat across from him.
He checked out my plate. “Better.”
Nick left after lunch, calling out a goodbye as he slammed the door behind him, and I relaxed a little once I was alone in the house. The afternoon flew by as I cleaned up the dishes then vacuumed, dusted, and did some laundry. Considering he’d been away on a business trip for over a month, there was remarkably little that needed washing. Where had it all gone? Emmy’s house?
Nick still hadn’t returned by the time I went home at six. Since he hadn’t said when or even if he’d be back, I put together a casserole for his dinner and left a note on the counter telling him it was in the fridge. As an afterthought, I added heating instructions, just in case.
Sitting on the bus, I felt my lips twitch and gave in to the smile. Nick seemed like a decent man to work for, even if our first meeting had been horrendous and the distraction of spending time around a living god meant I’d vacuumed the same spot four times today. And, when I saw him half naked this morning, I think I might actually have drooled.
I phoned Tori that evening to give her an update, and she couldn’t believe what a strange turn events had taken either. When I got to the comment about the black dress, she choked with laughter.
“He really said that?”
“Word for word, I swear.”
“That’s hilarious. He’s clearly been taking a good look at your assets, then.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m sure he was just trying to save me from any embarrassment.” There was that word again. Could Tori sense me blushing down the phone?
“Whatever you say.” She was still laughing.
“He even said I can use his pool. Isn’t that amazing?” I tried to change the subject, and Tori gleefully went along with it.
“Sure is. I bet he’d love to see you in a bikini.”
“Shut up. I don’t even own a bikini.”
“I know, but I’m thinking you should buy one.” She sighed. “What I wouldn’t give to have my own pool. It’s so hot here I’m melting just lying in bed.”
“In September? In England?”
“We’re having an Indian summer. Either that, or it’s global warming,”
“Maybe one day you could come over to Virginia. Nick might let us both use the pool if he was out.”
“Wouldn’t that be awesome? A girl can dream, can’t she?”
The next morning, I got dressed in jeans and a loose top. In light of Nick’s comment about my outfit yesterday, I thought he’d be happy with that. As it turned out, it didn’t matter anyway, because when I arrived for work, he’d already gone. My note about the casserole had been replaced by one from him, telling me he wouldn’t be back until late and could I please get some more toothpaste?
No problem.
A week passed with no sign of him. Our only communication consisted of written words, his in a slanted scrawl and mine printed in my neatest handwriting. He left me his number “just in case,” and although I wrote mine back, he didn’t call.
I felt strangely disappointed about that.
CHAPTER 16
WHEN I WALKED into Adler House the following Sunday, Nick was standing in the kitchen wearing a pair of jeans. Only a pair of jeans. Soft, washed-out grey denim, frayed around the edges and sitting delightfully low on his hips. I could have stared for the rest of the day, but thankfully he was engrossed in watching something cook in the microwave so he didn’t notice me lick my