“You had a little something,” I explained as I dropped my arm back to my side.
“Oh.” She wiped the same spot with the back of her hand. “I was having some wine. That’s actually where I was headed. To get more.” She lifted her other hand and I saw an empty wine glass.
“Oh okay, well I don’t want to interrupt you.” I stepped to the side to let her pass to the kitchen.
“That’s okay.” She grinned. “The bath can wait and it’s probably better I cut myself off.”
I stood staring at her, and my brain was screaming for me to invite her to go downstairs so we could speak in the kitchen. I could use a glass of wine myself and the kitchen was a common space where Lola or Hector, the weekend night nurse, could interrupt us at any moment. They would serve as stand in buffers to keep me on my best behavior. But again, knowing the right thing and doing the right thing were two very different things.
“Can I come in?” I asked.
Her large eyes stared up at me and for a brief second, I thought she was going to say no, but thankfully she nodded and moved back out of the doorway.
“Is everything okay?” she asked as I stepped inside and she shut the door.
As I walked into the room, I saw that in the adjoining bathroom the freestanding tub was filled with water and there were candles lit around it, creating a very romantic vibe. I wanted to take her by the hand, strip her out of that robe, and help her into the bath. But that wasn’t going to happen.
Shaking that image from my mind, I walked the other direction, stopped at the end of the bed, turned around to face her. “Yeah, I just, I wanted to apologize.”
Her brows furrowed in confusion. “For what?”
“For the other night. In the kitchen. I’m sorry I snapped at you.”
“No, it’s okay. I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s none of my business.”
“It is your business. Or at least, it feels like it is. I was the one who askedyouabout Naomi. And you’re not the only person who has suggested to me that I need to talk to her.”
“Really?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Alex, Maddox, Jada, my therapist Dr. Lavine, Carmen, hell, even Kurt mentioned it. But the only person who bothered me when they said it, was you.”
“I know, it wasn’t my place to—”
“No. That’s not why I snapped at you. I just…” I ran my hands through my hair. “I think I did it because I care about what you think about me. I don’t want you to think I’m some asshole who doesn’t give a shit that their mom is dying.”
Her head shook back and forth. “I don’t think that at all. How could I? You opened up your home to Naomi and took responsibility for her care. You didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I did.” It wasn’t a choice. I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if I hadn’t.
Skye took a step toward me, earnest sincerity shone in the pools of her caramel gaze. “No. You didn’t. You had absolutely zero obligation to do that.Andyou didn’t have to open up your home to me, and my mother and daughter either, but you did. Your foundation raises millions for foster care children—”
“It’s notmyfoundation,” I cut her off. “Alex, Maddox and I run it together.”
“I know.” She nodded. “My point was that I would never, Icouldnever think that you’re an asshole.”
A lot of people thought I was an asshole, usually because they perceived me as being cocky or arrogant. Maybe I was. But what they didn’t understand was I was a kid who had nothing, who no one wanted. I went from school to school, from foster home to group home, with nothing and no one who cared about me.
I didn’t have any real family or anyone who cared about me until I met Alex and Maddox when I was thirteen. And even then, they were kids. Alex was eleven and Maddox was nine. As adults the age difference was not a big deal, but then it was. Growing up, I put up a façade of cockiness to protect myself. As an adult, the wall had become a permanent structure. No one, other than the handful of people I considered family, had ever seen past it.
I let out a huff of air. “Well, I think that you are in the minority then.”
Her shoulder lifted in a shrug. “Maybe, that is what most people think about you. But that’s not the Nick that I’ve gotten to know.”
I could see the sincerity brimming in her eyes. She wasn’t lying. I knew then that she saw me, the real me. “Well, either way, I am sorry for snapping at you.”
“It’s okay. I didn’t take it personally. When people are dealing with…” Her words trailed off before she took a breath. “I’ve heard a lot worse.”
“How is she? How is Naomi?”
