Crossroads

Page 8

Bryce could feel his own eyes stretching wide. He didn’t even know what to say?
“I’m kidding. I’m not that clueless. I thought your eyes were going to pop out.”
“I thought my eyes were going to pop out, too.”
Nick patted his shoulder. “Keep your eyes in your head. I’ll be back.”
“Hopefully not,” Bryce said, but then felt a little stab of disappointment. He enjoyed chatting with Nick. And now he almost wished the reason they’d come out hadn’t been for Nick to meet someone, but for them to hang out instead.
They could visit any time though. That wasn’t the point of the night. Bryce raised his bottle at Nick, who walked toward the blonde. Bryce saw him speak to her. The man beside her moved, so Nick took the spot and then waved the bartender over.
Nick was a riot. Totally naïve in a way Bryce wasn’t sure he’d ever been. Maybe naïve wasn’t the right word; almost innocent, but also eager, if that made sense. Like he wanted to soak up all these experiences as though he was a child, seeing everything for the first time. Bryce had never known someone like that. He wasn’t sure why he got a kick out of it. He didn’t think he’d ever been that innocent.
Bryce tried not to stare at them like a weirdo, but his eyes were drawn to the duo. Nick had gotten them both a drink. They were speaking to each other. She kept touching him—his arm, his leg, his shoulder. Nick didn’t return any of them, but he did keep talking. She’d laugh and then he’d laugh.
It was a good thirty minutes later when he wondered why in the fuck he was sitting here watching his neighbor get picked up by a woman, but wasn’t trying to pick anyone up himself.
It was time to change that.
Before he had the chance, the woman stood, leaned forward, mouth close to Nick’s ear. “There ya go,” Bryce whispered to himself. What the hell was this? He was treating Nick like his project or something.
But then Nick backed up. The woman looked confused, rolled her eyes and walked away.
“What the hell was that?” Bryce asked when Nick made it back to him.
“She wanted to fuck me in my car.”
Bryce waited for the punch line. Waited for him to continue. Waited for something and then... “Umm...and that’s a bad thing?”
Nick looked at him like Bryce had suddenly grown a second head. “Yes. I don’t want to sleep with someone in my car who I’ve known for thirty minutes. Hell, at least say we can go to a hotel room.”
Well, when he said it like that, it made Bryce feel like a dickhead.
But still...this was sex they were talking about. Bryce couldn’t find words. This was going to be harder than he thought.
CHAPTER FIVE
“The night’s still young. We have plenty of time.” Bryce scratched his arm as he spoke.
Nick knew he was being ridiculous. He found something wrong with every woman he’d talked to tonight. In his defense, he had gotten one phone number. The woman had been beautiful and nice. Plus, she hadn’t wanted to go home for a quick fuck. Yeah, he knew that had been the theme for tonight, but once here, it was just too weird for him. As much as his dick didn’t agree with him, sleeping with a random woman he knew nothing about just didn’t work for him. He wanted a connection, to actually know someone he was with. He couldn’t get that in short conversations at a bar.
He knew Bryce thought he was crazy, and maybe most people would, but that’s just who Nick was. “Three brothers, huh?” he asked Bryce, trying to make conversation. He was done making attempts to get laid tonight. He’d rather sit here and just enjoy himself.
The bartender set an order of potato skins down for Bryce. “This is the only place I order these. They’re my favorite. And yeah. Mitch is the oldest. His wife is Abbey. She’s a real sweetheart. She’s a doctor and he’s an accountant. Jamie is the middle. He’s a dumbass, but I love him. He thinks he’s a comedian, but really he’s a veterinarian. His wife is Hope. They’re both these fun-loving, adventurous people.”
Sounded like Bryce to Nick. He was fun-loving. It made him wonder, though... “Your parents are happily married?”
Bryce nodded. “They are.”
“Yet you’ve never had the urge? You have happily married people all around you, but you’ve never wanted to settle down?” Nick hadn’t planned on falling for the first woman he dated, but he also always knew he would settle down and get married. He was okay with being that guy. Then he remembered something else Bryce had said. He had come close to something serious with his friend. “What happened with the friend you told me about?”