He laughed sarcastically and brushed past her to unlock his door. “Forget that. I know what you want.”
“Oh really?” She asked, her voice a touch on the edgy side. Hmm, he must’ve struck a nerve with the ice queen.
“Really.” He stated and pushed open his door. “I’ve got your routine down pat, sweetheart.” He leaned against the door jamb and watched her intently. Her arms were crossed and her eyes narrowed. Her guard was up and she was ready to fight. Good, he was in the mood for a fight. After the shit day he had, this seemed like the perfect ending.
“You need your itch scratched, so you come knocking on my door.” He cocked his head to the side. “You’re so polite afterwards too, saying ‘thank you’ before you run out the door.” Her mouth opened to speak but he didn’t let her have a word in edgewise. “I’ve had a long day and I’m really not ready to service you just yet, so if you don’t mind hanging around…” He turned around and stepped inside his apartment, leaving the door open behind him. She could enter at her own risk as far as he was concerned.
Sam stood in front of his door baffled. She’d seen him angry before, but never was it directed to her in this way. As much as she wanted to tell him to fuck off and maybe even give him a taste of her right hook, something stopped her. She inched her head forward and tried to seek him out without stepping into the apartment. She was still torn as to whether or not she should follow him inside. She had come there with intentions to keep this thing between them physical. He was right. She was sitting on his doorstep for one reason only, and if she stepped inside his apartment and probed to find out what was bothering him, well, that would cross the line of just physical.
She stormed into his apartment and slammed the door behind her. Nick glanced up from his kitchen island, where he was busy pouring himself a water glass full of Jack Daniels. He lifted the glass to his lips and took the first hefty sip. It burned his throat as he swallowed, but still he went for a second sip. He placed the glass back on the counter and shook off the feeling as the alcohol spread through his system. He lifted his head and stared at her. She was standing in front of the island, her eyes shooting back and forth between him and the bottle of liquor. He slid the bottle towards her, and wondered if she had the balls to do a shot.
Her eyes met his and instead of reaching for the bottle she reached for his glass. She watched the amber liquid swirl around the glass and then she cringed as she took a sip. Nick actually smiled briefly as she pinched her nose so she wouldn’t smell it as she took the shot. She placed the glass back on the counter top and made a face of pure disgust.
“How the hell do you drink that?” She grimaced and watched the smile on his face quickly falter.
He shrugged his shoulders and took another sip. “I’m used to it.” He said flatly and busied himself with pulling out take out menus from one of the drawers. He fanned them out on the counter and nodded towards her.
“Are you going to eat dinner with me? Or is that too much trouble? Maybe you didn’t work that into your plan for tonight.” He asked and felt as if he was daring her to eat a meal with him much like he felt he had done with the drink.
“What’s with you tonight?” She asked as she leaned against the island. Her eyes worked hard to try to see into the depths of his soul.
“Are you asking because you care or because you’re insulted?” Nick asked curiously as he braced his hands against the edge of the counter and leaned closer to her.
“Both.” She said honestly. “But mostly because I don’t know how to react to this side of you because I’ve never been on the receiving end of it.”
Nick shrugged. “It comes with the package, sweetheart. The way I see it you can either take it or leave it, but if you leave it, you’ll leave unsatisfied and we both know you came here to be satisfied.” His voice was deep and raspy. He took another sip of his drink and waited for her to make a decision.
She wanted to tell him she didn’t come here just for that, but it would be a lie and only at that moment had she considered that maybe she didn’t just want to be satisfied. Maybe she could enjoy his company if she let herself. Instead of committing to an answer, she grabbed a menu and bit her lip as she perused it. “How’s Chinese?”
Nick took her in for a moment. He’d never say it out loud, but he was happy she didn’t turn around and walk out the door. He nodded. “That’s fine with me.” He reached over his head and pulled his T-shirt over his head. Her eyes widened and she dropped the menu from her hands. She quickly recovered and picked it up, shoving her face behind it. “Order whatever… I’m going to grab a quick shower.”
She brought the menu down and looked at him, watching as he padded towards the bathroom. “What do you like?” She called out to him.
He looked over his shoulder. “I’ll eat whatever you order.”