He rushed to open the door for her, again something that she normally appreciated, but he seemed desperate for something. Her approval maybe.
“Thank you,” she said to him as she entered the restaurant.
He followed behind her and stood too close to her at the hostess stand. His fingers rested on the small of her back. She inched away, trying to put space between them. Ulrich was a nice enough guy but he was essentially a stranger. She wasn’t comfortable with his level of familiarity.
His hand fell away when Addie, of all people, walked up to the hostess stand, her eyes huge.
“Hey, Nova. I didn’t expect to see you on your day off.”
Her eyes shot to Ulrich before they came back to Nova and widened even more.
“Hey, Addie. Can we get a quiet table so we can chat?”
“Sure,” Addie said, picking up two menus. “Follow me.”
Nova followed her and Ulrich was right behind her. As inrightbehind her. So close that he stepped on the heel of her shoe.
Nova stumbled into Addie, grabbing onto her waist to keep from falling over.
“Sorry,” Ulrich apologized, his face turning red with embarrassment.
“It’s okay,” Nova assured him.
Addie slapped the menus on the table. “I’m going to borrow Nova for just a moment. I’ll get her right back to you.”
Addie’s hand wrapped around her wrist and she nearly yanked her toward the hall at the back of the restaurant. She stomped past the restrooms, dragging Nova in her wake.
Finally, when they reached the end of the hall, she dropped Nova’s wrist and whirled to face her.
“What the hell, Nova?” Addie asked. “You were sucking face with Torin not even a week ago and now you’re on a date with that…that…guy!” she said, throwing an arm toward the front of the restaurant.
Nova crossed her arms over her chest and glared at Addie. “Really? You’re going to throw that in my face after what you said the other night?”
“What I said?” Addie asked, looking completely and utterly confused.
“Yeah, Addie. Whatyousaid about how Torin isn’t like me and that I needed to keep my distance because I could hurt him.” Nova pointed a finger at Addie. “I’m trying to keep my distance the best way I can.”
“That was before I saw you kissing each other!” Addie argued.
Suddenly, all the wind went out of Nova’s sails and her shoulders slumped. “Look, Torin and I agreed what happened that night in the cooler was a mistake and we would remain friends. Nothing else.”
“You did?” Addie asked. “Then, why has he been walking around here like a rabid honey badger ever since?”
Nova stared at her in shock. “He has not.”
“He has. Just not when you’re around. What doesthattell you?”
“I can’t deal with this right now,” Nova said.
“I’m sure you can’t since I’m right.”
Nova rolled her eyes. “Oh, my God, you’re a huge pain in the ass.”
Addie grinned at her, but it was sheer evil. “Torin says the same thing all the time.”
“You know what, we’re going to have words about this later. Preferably tomorrow when I’m not trying to decide the best place to ditch your corpse.”
Addie’s wicked grin morphed into a laugh. “I’m looking forward to it.” Her eyes twinkled when she said, “Just for the record, I could take you.”
