Chapter 10-3
797 Words
Natalie pushed up and sat next to Mac. What had she gotten herself into? This was so much worse than she feared. Mac was looking for his perfect penguin.
“What are you thinking?”
Knowing that this might ruin what might have been a damn near perfect morning in bed, she told him the truth. “I’m like your ex-wife.”
“No, you’re not.”
“You’re looking for your perfect penguin.”
“What?”
She licked her lips. As crazy as she sometimes sounded when she rattled off useless knowledge when she was nervous, those facts often came in handy. “Some penguins mate for life. They search for the right penguin, and then the male will search all over the entire beach to find a perfect pebble to present to his prospective mate. He’ll spend as long as necessary to find the smoothest, prettiest rock. If she accepts it, she’ll put it in her nest and then they’re together.”
“What does that have to do with me?”
“You believe in your one true love.”
“Of course. Well, not necessarily one, but true love, definitely.”
“I don’t.”
“You don’t believe in love?”
“Not true love, meant to be together forever, no.”
He stared at her in that intense way he had, making her want to tuck under the blanket because he might see right into her soul.
“And yet you’re filming a show where we’re supposed to help women find true love.”
“I’m an out-of-work librarian. It’s a paying gig.”
“That’s not entirely true.”
“Yes, it is. Do you think they ever would have come knocking on my door as Natalie? No. They wanted Gem.”
“Why Gem?”
“I told you that story already.”
“Only the beginning. Not why you created her.”
“I needed to be someone else for a while. As Natalie, I had no idea how to date. I married young, fresh out of school to my college sweetheart. We were fine for a while, but then he became distant, and we were leading separate lives. He wanted a divorce because I was boring.”
Mac chuckled.
She lightly smacked his arm. “That’s not funny.”
“Sure it is when you think about what an i***t your ex is. You’re anything but boring.”
“Thank you for saying that, even if it’s not entirely true. I’m okay with being boring. It’s who I am. But Gem allowed me to experiment and try new things.”
“So you don’t want anything permanent, just one experiment after another?”
Surprisingly, she heard no judgment in his voice. “I don’t know what I’m looking for anymore. I can’t focus on my personal life when my career is up in the air like this.”
“Okay. I understand.”
His words sank in and left a bitter feeling behind. She didn’t know why his words bothered her, but she was annoyed they did. “What does that mean?”
“That means I’m willing to be your next experiment.”
“Huh?”
He surged forward so their faces were close. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily. I’m not running off because you’re unsure of things in your life. I’m here and I’ll wait.”
Her heart jumped in her throat. “Wait for what?”
“For you to be ready.”
“Ready for what?”
“To accept my perfect pebble.” He kissed her cheek and smirked. “Is it okay if I use your shower before we head out?”
Nat stared at the empty space where Mac had been sitting. What was going on?
“Natalie?”
“Huh?”
“Can I use your shower? Maybe then we can go grab some lunch and make a plan for the show.”
She blinked at him and tried to focus. “Yeah, sure.” She climbed from the bed. “Wait? Lunch?”
He set the clothes down that he had been gathering. Stepping close to her again, he grabbed her shoulders. “Yes, lunch. You know, sustenance to replenish the fuel you sucked from my body.” He bent a little to be eye-to-eye. “Are you okay?”
“Fine. Lunch sounds good.” She grabbed a T-shirt and led him from her room.
He stopped. “Is your roommate back?”
“I’m sure Jillian would’ve announced herself if she came home.”
He continued to stare from the doorway of her room.
“Hey, Jilly, you home?” she called. Of course, no one answered. Jillian would’ve come in banging and making a ruckus to make herself known. They rarely brought men back to the apartment. It wasn’t a rule or anything, but both she and Jillian felt more comfortable sleeping with a guy and being able to leave without him having her address.
Confident that they were still alone, Mac headed for the bathroom, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he passed. “Feel free to join me.”
Nat considered his offer. Things had gotten kind of heavy and she never wanted heavy in the bedroom. She’d become adept at keeping things light. With a smile, she decided to join Mac in the shower. A good b*****b should get his mind off penguins and forever love. At least with her.
As light as she tried to feel, it didn’t work because part of her was drawn to everything Mac offered.
- Writer
