Was he high?
“Where the hell did that come from?” I asked.
He took my beer bottle from me. “Just trust me when I say it works. Go over to her.”
All right, all right, all right, I was going.
I scowled to myself and walked off, but I wasn’t sure I could give his suggestion a go. I had to own my shit and explain myself, which was hard when I hadn’t made up my mind about what I believed in. Coaching others was a goddamn breeze compared tocoaching myself, and now my mind was fucked. Was I ready to make changes? Consequences be damned?
Natalie spotted me, and what struck me was that she wasn’t surprised to see me.
She’d known I was going to be here. Or she had suspected.
Was I supposed to be annoyed she hadn’t told me she was related to Gray? I’d had my thoughts about her relation too, and I hadn’t asked her. I reckoned it hadn’t mattered enough to me who she was related to.
The careful sheepishness was clear on her face when we were less than ten feet apart, but I was more focused on the fact that she was in pain. She didn’t want to be here. She’d put on a nice blouse thing with flowers on it, and she wore another pair of those ass-hugging leggings that looked like jeans, but her posture screamed of discomfort, her expression was a little pinched, makeup was minimal, and she hadn’t done that wavy thing with her hair. She’d just pulled it back in a high ponytail.
My life would be much easier if I could form the right words around her. Something about her beauty tripped me up. It was in her eyes, the shape of her pouty lips—fucking everything.
I’d learned it was wrong to comment on a woman’s appearance if you wanted to express you preferred something else, but I couldn’t lie. The minimal makeup did it for me. No glossy glue on her lips, none of that smoky thing around her eyes, just long lashes.
“Hey, Gray’s aunt,” I said with a faint smirk. “My brother just informed me we’re kinda family.”
“Heh.” She shifted Jayden’s gift in her arms and came to a stop. “Yeah… I’ve been trying to come up with a nice explanation for why I haven’t mentioned anything—because I’ll be honest, I’ve known from the start, pretty much.” She cleared her throat. “Truth be told, I didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t wantthere to be anything that could come between our professional relationship. You’re the best PT I’ve ever had.”
I smiled. Flattery went a long way, but she had nothing to worry about. “It’s fine. I get it. PTs are like shrinks and hairdressers—once you find them, you need to have the right chemistry too.”
Relief flashed in her brown eyes. They really were something else. “Exactly. Thank you for understanding. I guess I’m…protective. Of what you and I have, I mean. I don’t want to muddle things.”
Ah. Message received, loud and clear. She didn’t want to get personal whatsoever. It stung a fuckload, but I had to see it from her perspective. She wanted to be a mother. That was her big goal. And she wasn’t gonna let anyone stand in her way.
I inclined my head. “I respect that. We’ll keep things professional,” I said. She tilted her head and was about to say something, but my next words were already tumbling out. “Speaking strictly as your PT, of course—should you be here today? I’ve learned your tells for discomfort, you know.”
“Oh.” She exhaled a chuckle and winced a little. “You mean because I look like shit?”
“It’d be unprofessional of me to say you look the opposite of that, but I was more talking about your posture,” I replied. “I can tell you’re in pain.”
Something in her gaze softened, and she smiled crookedly. “It was either this or walk around my block. My cramps fade after finding the perfect balance between lounging on the couch and taking walks. Hopefully, there’s another burger thrown in the mix too.”
I chuckled. Fair enough?—
“Plus, I have to get my car,” she added. “My nephew—I mean Gage—is taking a look at it, so I’m borrowing his latest rust bucket.”
That explained that. “What’s wrong with the car? Other than it being that make.”
She let out a laugh. “You sound like him. I don’t know—it doesn’t always start right away, so I figured I’d take advantage while the mechanic in the family is home.”
“Smart.”
She glanced at something behind me and waved, so I figured I should step aside to let her be with her family.
“By the way, what did you give Jayden?” she asked.
“A crossbow,” I answered.
“Crap,” she whispered to herself. “I had grand plans, but then the cramps from hell hit, and I had to resort to a lame gift card.”
I eyed the wrapped box in her grasp, and while it wasn’t big, she’d need hundreds of gift cards to fill that thing.
