Lottie gazed up at him and saw a look so affectionate she thought she might cry.No one had ever looked at her with such care, not even her own parents.“I won’t.”
Despite her earlier misgivings about him, the promise came automatically.Lottie had one weakness in her life, and it was and likely always would be Nate.Then again, anyone would find it impossible not to respond that way when feeling as cherished as she did in that moment.
Nate smiled again, squeezing her hand.“Thank you, Charlotte.”He continued to spin them around the pool, her name spoken in his soft voice echoing in her mind.
Lottie nodded, taking the way he said her name into her heart.No one had ever called her Charlotte except for Mrs.G, and while Lottie loved her nickname, hearing her full name spoke to that lonely little girl inside of her that no one seemed to see.Mrs.G had seen her and taken it upon herself to show Lottie that not everyone was indifferent to her and that some people actually cared.She had always thought Nate used her full name to keep her at a distance, but maybe he saw that same part of her that had needed love for so long, and that was his way of showing it to her.Letting herself revel in the feel of his body against her, Lottie sighed happily and let him dance them around the pool for a while longer.
When another class came in to use the pool, Nate steered them towards the ladder, his expression regretful.“Time to get out I guess.”Lottie sighed again, disappointment laced throughout, also wishing for a little more time for their dance.
Nate allowed her to go first, something she was grateful for as it gave her the opportunity to watch him emerge from the water like a sexy, bearded merman.Water sluiced off his body, Lottie smiling at his no-nonsense black swim trunks that clung to his thick thighs.This was definitely a man that did not skip leg day.Lottie followed him out of the pool, her wet feet padding over to her things as she began to towel off.When she saw Nate looking around for one of his own and found none, she couldn’t help but smirk.
“Where are the towels?”His body started to tremble despite the air being more than warm enough.
Lottie finished wiping the water from her body and passed her towel over to him.“This is a BYOT situation.You have to bring your own towel, but I’m happy to share mine.”She would share a lot more than a towel with him, and from the appreciation in Nate’s gaze as he took in her retro bikini with the sweetheart neckline that showed a good amount of cleavage, he was willing to do the same.
“Thanks,” he rasped.Coughing into his fist, Nate wrapped her pink towel around his waist as she slipped on her cover-up and they started the walk toward the locker rooms.“I have a meeting with the downtown business association today.I was wondering if you would like to join me.”
A smirk continued to adorn Lottie’s face as she rang some water out of her hair.“Not normally my idea of a first date, but I suppose I can make an exception.”At Nate’s sputtering, Lottie placed a hand on his forearm, loving the feel of strong muscle twisting underneath her fingertips.“I was only teasing, Nathan.I’d be happy to go if it’s of help to you.”
Nate smiled softly and lifted her hand from his arm and kissed the back of it.“Thank you.I’ll meet you back out here in a few.”After a nod to his mother who was standing nearby, Nate strode into the men’s locker room, looking ridiculously hot in her tiny pink towel.
“Remember what I told you, Lottie.”Cora said next to her.Lottie inclined her head toward the woman but refused to take her eyes off the spot where her son had just disappeared.“Just don’t let his barking and biting scare you off.He’ll come around to things eventually.He always does.”
Lottie finally moved her gaze over to Cora, even more confused by her words than before but not wanting to disappoint the woman by asking more questions.“I won’t.”
Cora smiled and headed towards the woman’s locker room, Lottie following slowly behind.So much information from his mom and subsequent actions in the pool from Nate had her head swimming in confusion, and as she showered and got dressed for another day with the mayor, Lottie decided to try her best to ignore it and lean into whatever her time with Nate brought to her.
Chapter Nine
Nate
The upstairs offices that housed the Applewood Downtown Business Association had never looked intimidating to Nate before, but something about attending a meeting on what was essentially someone else’s turf had him feeling even more off kilter than he already had been.The pool of desire for Lottie that was always present in the depths of his belly had not only stirred that morning, but it swirled like a whirlpool the moment he saw her in her vintage swimsuit.There had been so much creamy sand colored skin on display that Nate nearly turned tail and went back into the locker room to take a cold shower, but there was no way he was missing out on more time with her.Instead of shamefully rubbing one out as he wanted to, he slipped into the pool as quietly as possible and joined her.
Homecoming and Prom in high school and town festivals had provided Nate with ample opportunity to dance with Lottie in the past, but he’d never taken advantage of them.Now, after having held her in his arms as he spun the two of them around the pool, he was kicking himself for letting so many chances pass him by.It wasn’t just the way it felt to have her body so close to his again, or the feel of her hands on him, but it was the look in her eyes as they moved together that had Nate wishing he’d done things differently.The chocolate irises held so much affection and admiration as well as a fierce loyalty that he hadn’t expected to see.All of those emotions directed at him had his heart thumping so loudly in his chest that Nate was certain everyone in that senior center could hear it.
Lottie had always looked at him differently than anyone else, and while he let himself see it for a brief moment years ago, Nate had spent so much time ignoring it after that that seeing it again shook him.After all he’d said and done, she still looked at him the way people always hope someone will look at them, with blinding love.Nate had that years ago and he rejected it, but by some miracle her feelings for him hadn’t gone away.The question was, how was he going to go about keeping her affections this time?The apology and taffy had gone a ways to getting Lottie to forgive him, but she merely agreed to join him in his quest to improve the town.Nate wanted more than that.Now that he’d tamped down the fear, the idea that she would be his downfall, he couldn’t stop thinking about how badly he wanted to keep her in his life.
