My phone starts buzzing in my pocket and I scoot down in my chair to be able to slide it out of my skinny jeans. “Let me guess,” Brooke grins. “It’s your over-the-top, possessive man boss?”
I get the phone out and look down at the screen to see said man boss’s name. “Sure is,” I smile, knowing Brooke is just teasing about Nate’s possessiveness. He’s an incredible boyfriend and she knows it. I’d dare say she’s a little jealous.
I hit accept on the phone and bring it to my ear.
“Holy shit,” Nate gasps, feigning surprise. “You’re alive.”
“Ha, ha,” I grunt, rolling my eyes. “You’re so funny.” I mean, I know I’ve been crazy busy with all my college work and Nate has been busy building up his new business, but it hasn’t been that bad… has it? I kind of miss him though. We spent every day of the summer together and before that, we were together all the time too. This is the first time since our break up that we haven’t been spending every minute of every day together, and to be honest, it sucks, but knowing that I’ll see him at the end of the day always makes me feel better.
Nate isn’t the only one I’ve been missing though. I’ve hardly had a chance to see my parents over the last two weeks. I’m constantly driving back and forth from campus. I’m slipping out of the house early in the morning, hoping I can get a little reading done before my first class and then coming home to mom rushing around to get dinner on the table while dad works away in his study. After a quick dinner, I’m straight back in my room with my head in a textbook until Nate comes climbing in through my window and demands I put the book down.
“What are you doing?” he questions with a smile in his tone that makes me melt.
“Brooke and I are just having lunch,” I tell him.
“Oh, so you’re still on campus?” he asks as a suggestive tone seeps into his deep voice. “I thought you were heading home. I was going to come by and help you relax.”
A grin cuts across my face and I’m pretty damn sure I blush like a little school girl talking to her crush for the first time. “Damn,” I sigh, heavy with disappointment. “Are you coming by tonight? I’ll be home around five.”
“Just leave your window open.”
“You know my parents know you sneak in every night, right?”
“What?” he gasps. “Are you shitting me? I’ve been scaling the side of your big fucking house when I could be walking straight through the door?”
“Yeah,” I laugh. “They think it’s funny the lengths you go to be with me.”
“Jesus Christ,” he grumbles under his breath. I can just imagine him shaking his head as a hand comes up and grips the back of his neck. “If they know I’m sneaking in, I may as well come early and have dinner.”
I suck in a breath and sit up a little straighter. “Really?” I question, hoping he’s not joking around. I mean, Nate and my dad don’t particularly get along so Nate sitting down to have dinner with my family is sort of a big deal.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s about time I bury the hatchet with your dad, and besides, it means I get to see you a little while longer.”
“I don’t know how I went so long without you.”
“Ugh,” Brooke grumbles beside me. “You two make me sick.”
I roll my eyes but I can’t remove the smile off my face. “Alright, babe,” Nate says. “I’ll see you tonight. Is dinner still at seven?”
“Yeah. Love you.”
“Love you, too,” he says moments before ending the call.
I place my phone back down on the table and find myself lost inside my head, daydreaming about my man as little butterflies take flight in my stomach. Nate Ryder will never get old to me. No matter what happens in our lives, he’s is always going to give me ‘the feels’.
“Earth to Tora,” Brooke says, clicking in my face, breaking me out of my inner thoughts. “Your burger is getting cold.”
I look down and have to blink a few times. When the hell did that get there? My stomach growls at just how delicious it looks and I don’t waste another second before digging in and making sure there’s a bottle of ketchup on the table for when I’m ready to down my fries.
Geez, I should really be eating a salad or having something healthy. I mean, I’m not going to hold onto this body forever but today, I’m too exhausted to care. Maybe I’ll go for a run on the weekend. Oh, hell. Who am I kidding? I’ll be spending my weekend concentrating on that damn history project.