Nate (A Texas Jacks Novel) (14 page)

I set the phone back down after a few moments, knowing he’s on a jobsite and can’t jump every time I send him a message. I start pawing through my clothes again. I decide that maybe I would be fine wearing jeans and a dressy blouse. Maybe I could pair the outfit with sexy heels—though I’m sure I’ll have to bug Halley for a pair. Just as I’m thinking it would be worth sending a text to Halley, my phone chimes with a text.

I look down and automatically my whole face burns with embarrassment as I read his response.

Nate: Anything you want, but I say clothes are always optional on our dates. ;)

I’m so glad no one else is here to see this text from Nathan.

Charlie: Umm…I’m not even sure what to say to that.

Nate: Nothing to say, babe.

Charlie: Then again, I wouldn’t know, since someone won’t tell me what our plans are for later.

Nate: Be prepared…for anything.

Charlie: Isn’t that part of the Boy Scout motto?

Nate: Who ever said I was a Boy Scout?

Charlie: Are you sure your name is Nathan?

Nate: I never claimed to be Nate, either.

Charlie: So, let me guess. I’ve got one of the other Stooges on the other end of Nathan’s phone. Right?

Nate: Oh, a wise guy, huh? And who’s to say you aren’t talking to Nate right now?

Charlie: If I were to call you right now, who would I get?

I wait for a response, but all I get is radio silence.
Just as I thought,
one of the guys messing around with Nathan’s phone. Typical of the Stooges.
Giving up, I vow to stick to the items of clothing I’ve laid out, deciding against the heels.
Who needs to fall and break a leg on their first date? So,
it’s flats for this short chick.
Too bad. Heels would have put me in a closer proximity to his kissable lips.

The phone rings a while later, flashing Nathan’s phone number.

“Hey, cowboy.” I greet Nathan as soon as I answer.

“Hey, short stuff,” he replies.

“Since when did I become short stuff? I thought I was your little one?” She sounds confused at my change of nicknames for her.

“You are, and you’re my short stuff, too.” I reassure her, not realizing that she liked me calling her little one over the last week or so. “The guys and I could come up with cuter names for your pint-size all day long, if that appeases you.” I tease her as the guys chuckle around me, nodding their heads in agreement.

“Great. You just gave the Stooges more ammunition against my size!” She sounds appalled by my revelation. “I’ll be the brunt of all of their short jokes now,” she pouts.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. It just means they think the world of you. Speaking of the Stooges,” I start, as I take notice that Holt and Tucker are starting to slowly back away from me. Frowning, I wonder what that’s all about. But then I turn my attention back to Charlie. “I hear you tried to reach me?” I’m worried something’s come up and she has to cancel on me. Although, that wasn’t the impression I got from Holt when he said he talked to her earlier. Still, her reaching out to me first has me overly curious. Normally, I make all of the first moves.

There’s a pregnant pause in the conversation, as I’m waiting for her to let me in on why she needed to talk to me.

“I’m guessing you weren’t fully briefed on our conversation then.” She states.

“Uh, no. Holt didn’t really say much of anything.” Narrowing my eyes at my friends, I see that they’re now too far away for me to say anything without her knowing. “Is something wrong? We are still on for tonight, right?” I quietly inhale, and then slowly exhale, wondering to myself if that came out as desperate as I thought it sounded.

“Oh, we’re still on for tonight,” she assures me. “I was just texting you to see what I should wear. Though, the response I got wasn’t what I was expecting.” Now she sounds a bit shy and unsure.

“Okay. And exactly what did they say?” Now I’m more suspicious as to what was said to get shy Charlie on the other end all of a sudden. “Did they give away our date?” If those punks ruined this, there
will
be hell to pay. I love a little thing called instant karma— though only when it comes to those two knuckleheads.

“No, no, it was nothing like that.” She tries to reassure me.
What did they say to her?

“Okay. Mind telling me what happened?”

“Maybe you should just read your text messages. That should explain it all.”

Great, now I have to wait until we end the call to find out
. I’m thinking it’s a good thing the guys took off. I should have known better than to leave my phone lying around. With Holt and Tucker, you never know what they’ll do, especially when it comes to my cell phone. Add Charlie into the mix, and that spells trouble—
for me.

“I’ll be sure to do that, just as soon as we hang up,” I mumble into the phone. “As for what to wear,” I say, getting us back on track, “make sure to dress warm and comfortable, but that’s all of the clues you’re getting out of me, little one.” I playfully warn her. No way am I giving up my well-laid plans.

“But, what if I’m overdressed? Or under dressed, for that matter?” I can tell she’s back to being nervous.

“Charlie, you never have to worry about being dressed inappropriately. You, my little one, are always dressed perfectly. Now, stop biting your lip, because I’m not there to kiss those lips I love to stare at, and stop worrying yourself sick. I want you to say goodbye, then hang up, and find the best date outfit to wear with a cowboy. I’ll be there in an hour to pick you up. Can you do that for me?”

“I can do that,” she’s says on a sigh, but I can tell she’s also back to being the sweet Charlie I have come to like so much in the short time we’ve know each other.

“Sounds good, sweetheart. See you in a while.” Then I hang up before she can say anything else.

T
HERE’S A KNOCK AT THE
front door, making my insides twist in knots. I’m not much of a dater, so I’m really nervous about going on one now. But at the same time, I’m beyond excited. I haven’t told my family about Nathan yet.
That’s the last thing I want to do.
I can imagine the hours of teasing they will unleash upon me. Then, there’s my mom. Yeah, time to move on to other thoughts before I start thinking about her picturing me with eight babies, a mini-van, and a white picket fence.

On shaky legs, I make my way to the front door and unlock it to let Nathan in. My giddiness ratchets up a notch as he stands there with a crooked grin on his handsome face. Just looking at him, and seeing how pleased he is at the sight of me, helps to uncoil the knots that had my stomach in jitters all day. I step back out of the way and let him in.

“Hey, beautiful.”

“Hi,” I barely get past my lips.

“What did I tell you?” he says, as he checks me out, from head to toe and slowly back up again, a satisfied smile prominent on his face. “You look perfect, just like I knew you would.” He reaches out and pulls me into a quick embrace, and then lets me go shortly after. “You ready, little one?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” I try for a flirty response, but yeah, I’m not good in this category. I grab my purse, jacket, and keys off the couch before turning back to Nathan. “Where to, cowboy?” The second flirty response is a charm, right? I hope so.
Can he tell how giddy I feel?

“Cowboy. I really like when you call me that.”

“Good.” We step out onto the landing in front of my door so I can lock up. Then I boldly reach out to take his hand and lead us to the parking lot. I’m sure he can feel the slight tremor that’s taken up residence in my hand, as I’m trying for assertiveness and hoping to calm my nerves. I need to let go of my shyness, as much as I dare— for the moment anyway. After all, it’s only our first real date of being alone together.

He helps me up into his 275 Ford extended cab, with his hands on my waist, when it hits me.
This is our first date. Alone.
This will be our first time without the guys acting as comic relief, or the girls as my safety net. As he shuts the passenger door and rounds the front of the truck, I start to wonder if he feels just as nervous as I am, and what his expectations from this date will be. As he climbs into the main cab of the truck, I pray we can overcome the awkwardness I’m feeling.
Does he feel it, too?

“Feel free to change the station to whatever you want. Make yourself at home whenever you’re in my truck.” He winks at me, before he puts the truck into drive and pulls out of the parking lot.

I sit over on my side of the truck, with this big, gaping, void in between our seats. It’s awkward already, and I have no idea what to do next, so I reach my hand out to the radio, searching for my favorite country station before settling back into the nice, semi-cushy, leather seats. I’m still striving for calmness and confidence, which I’m lacking in both departments for the time being.

“Are you okay all the way over there?”

“Peachy.” I give him a tentative smile that I know spikes his curiosity.

“Any reason you’re practically hugging the door?” He chuckles.

“Sorry,” I give him a sheepish look. “Just a little nervous, I guess.”

“No need to be, I’m not planning to bite.” I sneak a glance at him to see he’s got that crooked grin on his face again. “Probably. I can’t make any promises though.”

To avoid getting caught in this mouse trap, I decided to find out where we’re headed.

“Sorry, you’ll just have to be patient until the ride’s over.”

“One thing you should know about me— patience isn’t my strong suit.”

He laughs, probably thinking that I’m joking. He would change his tune if he got anywhere near my siblings.