“We’re gone for days at a time, sometimes weeks. It all just depends. I know we said complete honesty, but I have to warn you, I can’t talk about my jobs. When we leave, there’s a good chance you won’t even know where we’re heading. I can say whether it’s foreign or domestic, but that’s about it.”
“I understand. Do you get homesick, being gone for so long?”
He shakes his head. “I haven’t, but I never had someone to come home to. I get the feeling my next trip out is going to be different.”
I smile at him. Hearing him say that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.
“Did you want to live at the clubhouse? We can get a house in town if you like. If that will make you more comfortable.”
“Do I have to decide now?”
“No. We can stay at the clubhouse for now, and if you change your mind, just let me know.”
“I like being around people. It’s what I’m used to. Silence drives me crazy. I also like to stay busy, so I think I’m going to look for a job.”
“You don’t need a job,” he says around a bite of food, chewing and swallowing before speaking again. “The only thing you need to focus on is being happy and keeping you and the baby healthy.”
“I’m going to need something to do.”
“Have you thought about college?”
I drop my pizza slice to the box. If I eat another bite, I’m going to explode. “I was going to. I got accepted to the University of South Carolina, but I think that had more to do with my grandparents’ legacy rather than my grades.”
“So you don’t want to go to college.”
“It’s expensive.”
He huffs, the crust of his pizza hitting the box beside mine. He closes the lid, bending over to place it on the floor on his side of the bed before turning back to me. He doesn’t grab my hand, but he locks his pinkie finger around mine. “I didn’t ask the price of college. I asked if you wanted to go.”
“I don’t want to go before I have the baby. I think I’ll be too distracted, and I don’t want to commit to it right now, saying I will after the birth because I’ll probably be too distracted then as well. Is it required?” I scrunch my nose, showcasing my distaste for even the idea of sitting in a classroom for hours at a time. That’s time away from him, time away from the baby. I can’t imagine many things that would be worse.
He inches closer, adjusting himself so he’s reclining back on the pillows, and I fit myself against him.
“Cara is working at an animal spa place. Maybe she can get you a job there.”
“I don’t know a single thing about dogs. We were never allowed pets growing up.”
“I’m not going to stop you from working. I’ll never be that man, but can I ask that you run the places by me first? I know this town and some places look like a decent place to work but are actually run by people I’d rather you not associate with.”
“Like ex-girlfriends?” I roll my eyes.
“Like dopeheads and criminals, April.”
“Oh.”
The night goes on, my eyes growing heavier and heavier, and Nate doesn’t complain when I wiggle down in the bed to get ready for sleep. He simply clicks off the television and his bedside lamp, snuggling up against my back. I don’t miss the fact that he keeps his lower half inches away from mine.
Chapter 16
Apollo
“I’m sorry,” I mutter.
I think I’ve said those two words a hundred times in the last two hours, or maybe even more considering we’ve already driven to Aztec to drop our marriage license off at the county clerk’s office.
“It’s fine.” That has been her two word response each time.
This honesty thing is going to fucking kill me.
“You mean the erection you had?”
“Yes, April. The erection. The one that was practically pinning you to the bed?”
“Now someone’s getting cocky.”
“Exactly!” I hiss, arms raised up over my head. “It was my cock. I was lying on top of you.”