Page 6 of Kissing Nick
I’m so damn proud of her.
It’s dark as we pack everything back up into Holly’s van, but the Christmas lights all around us twinkle brightly. Once we get everything packed up, Holly and I climb into her van and she pulls out of the parking lot.
“You still feel up for helping me?” she asks.
“Of course,” I say. “Let’s grab something to eat first, though.”
“Sure,” she says. “What do you think? Drive-thru or something?”
Drive-thru? Nah. I want us to have a real meal. If I could, I’d take her out to the fanciest restaurant in the city right now.
“There’s a good Mexican restaurant on the way back to your place,” I say. “They have an amazing salsa bar.”
“Ooh,” says Holly with a grin. “Not going to say no to that.”
And so we head to the Mexican restaurant. Holly is impressed by the salsa bar and tells me she can’t believe she’s never come here before. As we scoop tortilla chips into the myriad of salsas we’ve brought back to our table, we get a chance to talk some more. Work, hobbies, life in general: the topics of our conversation all just kind of blend into each other. I especially love hearing about her pottery, and when she explains why this weekend is so important, my desire to help her make it a success grows even stronger.
Several tacos and an order of churros later, we climb back into the van and head to Holly’s place. When we get to her place, I grab the box of broken pottery out of the back of the van and follow Holly up to her apartment. I’ve never sat around imagining what Holly’s apartment is like, but when I see it, it somehow seems exactly fitting for her.
“You can set the box on the kitchen table,” she says. “I’ll go get some supplies. I’m going to give my brother a quick call, too. I want to make sure he’s doing okay. Make yourself at home, Nick.”
I nod. As Holly steps away, I try to relax and settle in. But her mention of Oliver just reminds me that no matter how much I might want Holly right now…I can’t.
Or can I?
I mean, I know it’s an unspoken rule to not go after your buddy’s little sister…
…but this is different. I’m not just trying to hook up with her.
I want to cherish her, spoil her, give her the world.
Chapter Five
Holly
It really is sweet of Nick to offer to help me fix the pottery. I mean, who knows, maybe I would have come up with the idea myself anyway…but I love that he was the one who suggested it.
Before we start working, though, I really do want to check in with my brother and make sure he’s doing okay. As I sift through my supplies, looking for some resin and gold powder, I give my brother a call.
“Hey, Hol,” Oliver’s scratchy voice says as he answers the phone. “How’d today go?”
“Hey, Oliver,” I say. “It went great. But how areyou?”
“I slept most of the day. I feel about the same, though.”
“Okay. I’ll keep this short. I just wanted to check in with you. Do you want me to swing by tomorrow morning? Bring you anything?”
“I’m good. Thanks, sis.” He coughs a few times. “Well? Tell me about today. What’d I miss?”
I draw in a breath. The events of the day whirl through my mind. Nick warming up to me…him getting me lunch and that delicious cup of hot cocoa…him coming up with the idea to repair the shattered pottery…
“Hol?” says Oliver. “You still there?”
“Yes,” I say quickly. “Sorry. Let’s see. I sold a lot today. Over half my inventory, actually.”
“That’s amazing!” says Oliver. He coughs again, then says, “Nick help you out enough?”
“Yeah. He was great. He’s actually…” I catch myself in time before I accidentally almost tell my brother that Nick is in my apartment right now.