7
"What do you think?" Tracey asked me, eyes bright and excited as she cornered me during one of my volunteer shifts.
"I love it," I told her.
Tracey's idea for a winter holidays in July event for the children's ward was genius. It would give the kids something to look forward to, give them a reason to throw a party with presents and sweets and games. We could celebrate Christmas, New Years, and all the other holidays that took place around the winter solstice. I was sure the kids would love it.
Tracey beamed at me. "Wonderful, then you can get started planning it right away."
"Wait, what?" I asked.
"Thanks a million, Becca!" she said with a wave as she quickly made her way into one of the hospital rooms.
I stood there as the door closed in my face, then groaned, defeated, and went to gather my things.
How did I always get roped into doing this kind of stuff?
Nathan would probably say I was too nice.
And there my thoughts went again, back to Nathan Walker.
I hadn't been able to get him out of my head. Not that night we'd spent together, and not our encounter at the pet shop.
He'd asked me why I'd walked out on him.
Wasn't the answer obvious? He was a playboy rock star. He no doubt had a new girl in his bed every night. I knew what to expect. If I hadn't left right then, he would have kicked me out the next morning. I was sure he would have done it in a smooth, charming way, but I knew for certain he wouldn't have asked for my phone number or offered to call me sometime.
I hadn't expected anything more from him than a good time, and he'd given me one. I didn't regret it in the slightest.
There was a small part of me, though, that regretted it would probably never happen again.
I scolded myself to stop thinking that way. I'd wanted some fun, to live a little, and I had. There was no more to it than that.
Besides, even if I'd wanted something long term, Nathan didn't seem like the kind of guy you could rely on. Who knew how he'd react when things got tough?
But the way his thumb had caressed my skin, the intense way he'd stared at me…
I shivered, feeling his phantom touch on my inner wrist.
So maybe that regretful part of me wasn't so small. It didn't matter. I was going to put it all behind me and move on, grateful to Nathan for the amazing night he'd given me, and nothing further.
But no sooner had I made that decision, than I saw a familiar head of sandy blond hair.
Nathan was sitting in the hospital cafeteria, back to me. His broad shoulders were slumped, making him seem shorter than I knew he was. He practically towered over me when I was in my bare feet. He held a coffee between two tightly clenched hands, almost crushing the styrofoam cup.
I was on my way out. I'd been at the hospital all day. I'd planned to have dinner with my parents.
Nathan's shoulders heaved up, as if taking a deep breath, then he seemed to collapse in on himself, seated listlessly in the hard plastic hospital chair.
Crap.
I made my way over, careful to shuffle my feet so as to not startle him. He didn't look up when I stood in front of him on the other side of the table.
"Mind if I take a seat?" I asked.
Nathan looked up. His eyes were red-rimmed as they roved over me. There wasn't anything to ogle over. I was wearing the standard issue volunteer t-shirt with the hospital logo and plain denim jeans.
"Volunteering again?" he guessed, his voice liquid and thick.
