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He glanced down at the floor. “Would you want me to…could I stay with you?”
Stay? Her chest lifted as her thoughts and heart raced, both at an abnormal pace. She could picture him staying here more than she even wanted to admit. She wanted that. But was it okay to have him stay here? While she was free-spirited in many ways, Colby was decidedly old-fashioned in some. Having a guy spend the night was one of those ways. Not that he meant that. Her cheeks heated.
“Stay with me? Here?”
Nate dropped her hands, the corners of his mouth turning down slightly. “I’m sorry. That was overstepping. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No, it’s okay, I just—”
“I’m going to go.” Nate began to back away toward the front door.
Colby’s chest seized up. He couldn’t go! The fear of being alone settled over her, a cold ice compared to the warmth of his embrace just moments before. She wanted nothing more than for Nate to stay. She reached for him, grabbing his hand as he turned away for the door.
“Wait,” she said. He stilled, his back still to her. His head bowed. Her voice, when it came, was a whisper. “Nate, will you please stay with me? I’m…I’m afraid. I know it’s silly. Please stay?”
“Are you sure?” He did not turn, but his head lifted slightly.
“I don’t want you to go.”
There was more to this statement than the fear of the storm. As he turned, and his chocolate-colored eyes met hers, they seemed to light up with something that she felt was mirrored in her own.
“If you’re sure,” he said.
Colby nodded. “If you don’t mind. I don’t want to make this harder on you.”
Nate’s smile rolled over his face. “I could never mind. Let me get some things from the car.”
He turned for the front door and the car. Colby let her breath out in a long sigh. She felt so relieved at the idea that she wouldn’t be riding out the storm alone. But she was also terrified about something different. Her attraction to Nate was ramping up and they were going to spend a night—or more—alone in this house. And he still hadn’t addressed the past.
The past—yes. She could hold onto that thought. It would keep her from falling too hard for him. Plus, there was Napper. Again, she felt a jolt of guilt at the fact that he had slipped her mind, when he had been at the front of it for two weeks with the app and their daily conversations.
If the app came back, did she still want to meet him? Would she tell him about Nate?
Napper seemed like a distant memory.
A loud crash made her jump as a branch fell from a tree outside the window, hitting the fence and then coming down. Her fears rose back up. She didn’t need to worry about her feelings for either Nate or Napper right now. She just needed to get through the storm in one piece.
But as Nate walked back through the door, still smiling, Colby’s heart fluttered. She didn’t want to be alone in the storm, but part of her felt more frightened of spending time alone with Nate. The house was boarded up, but what could she do to protect her heart?
