I smiled. “Yes. I’d like to get to know you better.”
Nashton nodded, rubbing his hands together. “When you stopped coming to the gym, I thought I’d never see you again, which was a feeling I didn’t like. I had gotten used to seeing your beautiful face.”
I scoffed with a roll of my eyes. “You’re always calling me beautiful.”
He chuckled. “Because you are. Everything about you looks good.”
I didn’t know how to take a compliment. That was hard to do, which was why I brushed it off.
“Thanks,” I mumbled.
The server came and set the food in front of us. “Enjoy,” she stated with a smile and walked away.
“You seem like the type that doesn’t get compliments too much,” he noted, removing our food from the tray.
I smiled sadly. “You can say that. It’s not something I’m used to,” I admitted.
“As long as I’m in your life, you’ll hear it more often.”
I reached for my bagel and opened the wrapper.
“Since we’re getting to know each other, tell me some things about you. What do you like to do?” Nashton asked, reaching for his coffee cup.
“Oh gosh, there’s so much I like to do. I have to stay busy.” I chuckled. “But I like to color and go to the zoo. I love animals so much that I’m a veterinarian.”
Nashton’s eyes widened. “Word? You are?”
I nodded my head proudly. “Yes. I also have a cat named Pinks.”
He chuckled. “A cat named Pinks. That’s unusual.”
I giggled. “Yeah, I don’t know what I thought when I named her, but it stuck.”
“How often do you color?”
I tapped my chin with a hum. “Uhh, not as often as I’d like. I used to color every day, but now I don’t. I’m ready to get back to it.”
“Hopefully, you’ll be able to.”
“Yes. I’ve already bought more coloring books with markers, crayons, and coloring pencils. I’m ready.” It had been a while since I enjoyed my time like this. Nashton actually listened to me. I hadn’t had that in a while.
Silence filled us as we ate some of our food. I wanted to know about him too. He seemed laid back and quiet.
“What about you? What do you like to do?” I asked, reaching for my latte.
“As you already know, I enjoy working out, but I also like playing basketball and swimming. When I’m not doing either ofthose, I’m looking for new restaurants to try out or new food to learn how to cook.”
My eyes widened. “Wait. You like to cook too?”
Nashton smiled with a nod. “You can say that. Whenever I have a little downtime, you can find me in the kitchen. What about you? Do you cook?”
I took a sip of my drink before I nodded. “Yes. I do. It’s so calming to me.”
“That’s how I feel too. What’s some stuff you don’t like? With your pretty ass, you don’t look like you can hurt a fly.”
I threw my head back and laughed. “Don’t let it fool you. Although I’ve never had to fight in my life, I’m not scared to if I have to.” That statement brought back the time I hit Jonathan. I should never have put my hands on him, but he deserved it. “But I don’t like liars, cheaters, or bugs.”
“Oh, damn. I’m okay with bugs, but I don’t like liars or cheaters either. I also don’t like it when someone tries to disrespect me. I’ll cut them off and not want anything to do with them.”
