“Two French martinis, please.” I beamed at the bartender. “And an amaretto sour for the ball of energy down there.” I point at Neva who’d already found Jude and Nicky. They usually hung on her every word, mainly because they were slightly scared of how she might change their diet plans, but also because they thought she was some sort of nutrition god and both of them were interested in that side of things.
It took five minutes for Jesse and Nate to find us, Ryan slinking off, probably to video call his girlfriend that he thought we didn’t know about.
A large hand was placed on the small of my back and my heart rate went up by twenty beats a minute.
“You look amazing.” Nate bent down to quietly say the words in my ear. “That dress is almost as good as your yoga pants.”
Genny and Jesse were already talking about something to do with the club and they missed this quiet exchange entirely.
There was no way I couldn’t smile. The dress was short and tight, one I only wore when I felt good, and today Nate had made me feel good. “Thank you.” I looked up at him, the sizzle when my eyes met his making me concerned for the smoke detectors in the room.
“I won’t hang around you and make it obvious,” Nate carried on keeping his words quiet. “But I will keep looking over.”
“Good to know.” The differences between Nate and Levi were the same as between night and day, or hot and cold. When I was out with Levi he’d ignored me, telling me that we had to keep it all on the low-down. He’d go out of his way to talk to other women, or joke about them with his teammates, pretending that I didn’t exist. There had been one night when he’d left the bar with another girl, later telling me that it was so no one worked out that he was seeing me.
Nate kept his hand on my back. “Everyone knows we’re friends. When they see us talking, they’re going to think it’s something more. I’m cool with them thinking what they want.”
“Fine with me. Neva and Genny know – not about today, but they know that we’ve been messaging.”
He shrugged. “Next time we’re all out, please don’t wear that dress.” He shook his head, his eyes all full of me. “I have no idea how I’m not going to strip it off you.”
I managed a knowing smile, wishing I’d packed spare underwear in my handbag because his words were making me wet. “I’m sure you can contain yourself.”
My back felt cold as soon as he removed his hand. “I can. I don’t want to, but I can.” He gave me a wink and headed over to where a couple of the team were standing. I heard banter about the elbow to Levi’s head, and shut it out, Neva heading back to us with her second drink in hand, chattering on about something Jude had suggested.
I nodded at the appropriate times, not really listening, because my head and everything else was consumed with Nate, my body still in shock of a sort after how he’d played it like a maestro.
By the end of the night, even with tempering the amount of drinks I had, I was pretty sure that today wouldn’t be the last time I knew what it was like to have Nate’s body over mine, and I was pretty sure he felt the same.
Nate: Please tell me you’re not wearing that dress again tonight.
Me: It wouldn’t be acceptable for me to wear the same thing twice in a row. I am wearing a dress though.
Nate: Is it short?
Me: No, but I can’t wear a bra with it. The girls will be freeballing tonight.
Nate: I think you should wear something else. But not yoga pants. A baggy sweater and jeans – those mom jeans. Ones that don’t cling.
I shook my head. The week had been filled with texts like these, photos of his chest and one of him wearing sweats that would’ve been branded indecent by anyone else who’d seen it. I’d worked on his shoulder again, only Ryan and Jesse had been in the room at the same time, which proved to be some form of torture for both of us.
The team had played yesterday, drawing nil-nil away at Arsenal, which meant we’d spent the night in a hotel. I’d travelled with them, staying in the same place, sitting in my room responding to Nate’s messages about how he was only a floor away and there were better ways to pass the night.
None of those ways were possible as I was sharing a room with Leila. Genny had taken pity on her when Leila’s room was double booked and offered up the spare bed in my twin suite. As it was London, rooms were at a premium, and Leila was not in a great place as she’d just had her elderly dog put to sleep, and I knew there was something going on at where she worked that was playing on her, too.
We spent the evening in our hotel room, drinking pre-made cocktails and checking our phones, trying to snatch glances of the fireworks at midnight before having one of those night time conversations that only two single women can have.
Me: I’m wearing a long dress that’s split at the neckline down to my navel.
Nate: How much side tit can I see?
I rolled my eyes. He was obsessed with my boobs.
Me: Almost to my nipple from the centre, but I’m using tit tape so they’ll be no accidental nip-slips.
Nate: Fuck.
Nate: Maybe I shouldn’t go.
