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Chapter Thirty


I worried about Addison the rest of the day. Nick kept trying to distract me. I could tell it was bothering him that I wasn't paying as much attention to him as I usually did. He kept asking stupid questions and poking me and nudging me. He still didn't want to go home, so he stayed at my place another night and we ordered in Chinese food and he tweaked out when he realized I didn't have a TV. He went through all my CDs until he'd loade my six-disc changer with "approved" albums, and then finally coerced me into sitting on the living room carpet with a deck of cards to play poker.

"Loser each hand loses clothes, yes?" Nick said, dealing out the cards.

I raised an eyebrow.

"I want you naked," he explained.

I laughed, "You really think strip poker's the way to do that?"

"Sure," Nick answered.

"You're confident."

"I'm fucking good at poker," he replied. Nick grinned. "You need me to teach you how to play sugar?"

I shook my head, "My dad taught me once on a camping trip," I replied.

Nick smirked. "Okay then." He dealt out two cards face down and one card face up to each of us. I peeked at my cards. I had an Ace and a ten in the hole and a seven facing up. Nick had a six up. "Ante up?"

"Shirt," I said.

Nick grinned, "You wanna get naked too, huh baby?" he grinned. "Shirt it is. I see your shirt." He dealt out another card face up to each of us. Mine was a queen. His was a nine. I nodded at him and he dealt another card. "After I win this one, I'm gonna ante up with panties so I can see that ass of yours again." He grinned.

"We'll see about that," I answered. Nick dealt two more cards down and one up. My hole was Jack and King and my face-up was a deuce. I grinned up at him. "You in?" I asked.

He grinned back, "Oh hell yeah," he said.

"Let's see your five hand," I said.

Nick flipped over his cards. "Full house," he said, grinning and revealing a pair of nines and three sixes.

"Royal straight flush," I replied, flipping over my ten-Jack-Queen-King-Ace combo.

Nick stared at the cards. "Son of a bitch," he muttered.

"Take it off, Carter."

He pulled his shirt over his head. "Well that backfired," he muttered.

"You can quit if you want to," I said.

"Beginners luck," he persisted.

An hour and a half later, Nick was sitting on the floor opposite me with nothing but a pair of gym socks and a sofa pillow cushion and I was armed with a four of a kind that I hadn't revealed yet. I was trying to decide if I'd let him keep the cushion or the socks. Technically he'd only gotten the cushion on the technicality that I had both a tank top and a bra on under my t-shirt anyways.

It's not my fault I always dressed in layers and that he rarely wore underwear.

"Okay," Nick said, "Show your hand."

I was about to toss my cards down onto the carpet when there was a knock on my door. I looked at the clock. It was after eleven-thirty. I pointed at Nick, "Don't you go anywhere, I'll be right back to call my bets." I got to my feet, still in a tank top and jeans (yeah, I was that good), and went to the door. I peeked through the peep hole. Outside Addison stood on the porch.

I had to choke back a squeal of delight. "Nick you might wanna put something on again, Addie's here," I called.

"Thank God!" he yelled, "There's a serious draft in here!"

I yanked the door open. I was about to wrap my arms around Addison when I realized she wasn't alone on the porch. Cora was standing a few feet to the side, wearing a sullen expression and a denim jacket. Addison looked disgusted. Cora came over, "Is he here?" she demanded.

I licked my lips. "Even if he is it isn't your business. According to Addison, nobody wants their trash after it's been thrown away."

"He's only here to make me jealous," she said, "He doesn't give a shit about you. Don't be naive."

"Go to hell." I started to close the door, but Cora caught it and held it open.

"NICK!" she shrieked, and pushed her way past me.

Addison followed her, glowering at me.

"What the hell is your problem?" I demanded of her, "Two days ago you were rooting for me to make out with him on the hood of his car and now I'm getting the death stare?"

"Cora and I did some talkin'," Addison said.

Cora looked completely out of place in my dining room with her fancy make-up and wildly designer hair. She turned to look at me. "Where is he?"

"He's --"

"Right here," Nick said, stepping into the room. He was fully dressed again, arms crossed over his chest. He stared at Cora. "What're you doing here?" he asked.

Cora turned to look at him. "You're coming home," she replied, grabbing for him.

He ducked away easily. "I'm fine where I am," he said.

Cora narrowed her eyes. "You're like a fucking child!" she yelled, "Look at you, stubborn asshole. Standing here like you're making a point. You're just making an idiot of yourself. You're coming home now."

"You accused me of sleeping with her, and now I am," he responded. "See what you did? Now go away so we can get back to fucking."

Cora slapped him. The sound of the skin on her palm resounded in the dining room and Addison and I both gasped loudly. Nick stood there, his jaw flexed the direction she'd slapped him in and he took a long, low breath with his eyes closed. Then he turned and walked out of the room.

"YOU WALK AWAY FROM ME AND YOU CAN'T GET ME BACK, CARTER!" Cora screamed.

I heard a door slam down the hallway.

"FUCK YOU!" Cora screamed, her voice pitching. She turned on her heels. "Come!" she snapped at Addison as she walked by. Addie looked at me an for a split second I thought she was going to say no and stay and that we'd be okay, but instead she turned and followed Cora out the door and down the driveway.

I watched until the car drove away carrying them.

Then I went to the bathroom and knocked. "Nick?" I called. "Are you okay?"

He opened the door. "Yeah... I'm okay... but I kinda broke your wall a little..." he pulled open the door and I saw a dent in the wall where he'd obviously punched it quite hard. "I'll pay for it to be fixed," he added sheepishly.

I stared at the dent in the wall.

"She knows slapping me like that sets me off," he said. "She knows it and she did it on purpose." He growled and sat down on the closed lid of the toilet. I was still staring at the dent in the wall. Nick sighed and stared down at his feet, his hands running through his hair, messing it up, making it stand up all crazy-like. "She's always known exactly what buttons of mine to push," he muttered.

I turned to look at him. "You aren't here just to make her jealous, right?"

Nick looked up. "What?"

"Like you didn't just come to me to make her jealous and come get you, right? This wasn't like some part of a scheme or anything like that, right?"

"Why would you think that?"

I shrugged. "Just answer me."

"Of course not," he replied simply.