Page 159 of Castleton Hearts Boxed Set
Chapter 12
We both had to go to work the next day, so there was no way to avoid seeing her when we got up to get ready.
I heard Natalie get in the shower and hovered by the bedroom door to listen for when she was done. I waited a long time until I poked my head out.
“Nat?” I asked and was met with silence.
I went out to the living room and saw the pillows stacked up and the blankets folded with a note on top.
Thanks for last night. I’ll see you later.
-Nat
It was pretty cold and impersonal, and I wondered if she remembered what she’d asked me.
I sure did. I didn’t think I’d ever forget.
* * *
I dragged myself to the shower and tried to wake up. Today was going to be rough. At least my job could be kind of mindless, and I had some projects that didn’t require a ton of brainpower that I could throw myself into. I think I was one of the only people on the planet who didn’t mind fiddling with spreadsheets. I found it soothing.
Coffee was my lifeline today. I chugged one cup as I hurried to get ready, and made another as soon as I got into the office.
“Did you have fun last night?” Wendy, one of the insurance agents asked, as I tossed my bag under my desk.
“Something like that,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Wendy leaned on my desk.
“Can I get details? My only late nights lately have been with a baby attached to my boob.”
We both laughed and I just told her that a friend had come over and we’d had a few drinks. The phone rang, cutting our chat short, but it was fine. I was too exhausted to do a ton of office chitchat.
Part of me wondered if I was going to see Natalie and Preston today, but I didn’t.
Somehow, I made it through the workday, even though I messed up a few emails. I was so competent at my job that I could screw things up a little bit and still be fine because I was really good at everything else.
Pretty good arrangement.
I wanted desperately to talk to someone about what had happened with Natalie and help me process what the hell that was, so I decided to head to the Pine Tree Bar and Grille and see if Esme was working. I ran the risk of seeing my brother, but since Gretchen couldn’t drink, I had the feeling she was making everyone else be sober too.
“Hey, how are you? What do you need?” Esme asked as I sat down on one of the stools at the end of the bar.
“No alcohol. Just a drink and a friend,” I said.
Esme grinned. “I can do both of those things.”
She mixed up one of her mocktails, set it in front of me, and leaned on the bar.
“What can I do for you?” she asked.
“Okay, so I’m not sure how to say this,” I said. “And I’m not even sure if she remembers doing it, or if I should be telling anyone…” I was babbling, but Esme just waited for me to get my thoughts together.
“Natalie came over last night, and we’d had a few drinks, her more than me, and we were talking about dating and then she just asked me to kiss her out of the blue and I didn’t know what to do.”
My mouth was suddenly dry, so I sipped at the drink, which was some sort of spicy and sweet thing full of tropical fruit. Delicious.
“So that happened,” I said. “And then she left this morning without saying anything and I haven’t talked to her all day.”
