Beautiful Disaster (The Bet) (11 page)

She had more questions than Nicholas had answers and when he could provide none, she was quick in asking her mother, who for her part, seemed wholly amused by Nicholas's bewildered expression.

"Is she always this…"He struggled for the r
ight word as he approached the Weeping w
illow Ellie sat under.

"Hyper? Oh yeah, she always gets this way before her naptime. You'll see, in another hour, she'll be all tuckered out." Ellie scooted over, making room for him to sit. She opened the wicker basket, withdrew a PB&J sandwich and handed it to Nicholas. "Gabe made these, they're Sophie's favorite. But I'd check inside first, he has a tendency of putting banana slices in for her."

Nicholas grinned, accepting the sandwich. He leaned against the tree, drawing
up
a knee. "Who's Gabe?" he freed the sand
wich from the S
aran
W
rap and as Ellie advised
,
opened it to check for any unwanted banana pieces. "Sophie's father?"

Keeping an eye on Sophie, who sat a few inches off their checkered blanket, cheerfully feeding the ducks, Ellie took a moment to glance at Nicholas. He appeared nonchalant, as if he'd just inquired about the weather, but Ellie could
feel
curiosity peeking through. "Gabe's my uncle. He should be joining us in a little bit; he had to run down to Splendor to check on a few things."

"Splendor---Splendor---the restaurant downtown? He works there?"

"Sort of. He owns the place, but he spends most of his time in the kitchen. He's more chef than business owner. I work there part time. Have you ever been there?"

"Can't that say I have, but if the man can make a meal half as good as this PB&J
,
I'm sold. And having you there will be an added bonus."

"Friends don't flirt with each other, Nicholas."

"And you Ellie are seriously full of yourself; I was o
nly saying that because I want
a discount." He said cheekily, laughing when Ellie threw a grape at him. "Besides, if I
were
flirting with you, you'd know." The irreverent humor lingered, but the emotions in his eyes conveyed a different story.

"So, tell me something no one knows about you." At Nicholas's raised brow, Ellie elaborated. "Friends tell each other things. It doesn't need to be personal, just something no one else knows. Like me, I can wiggle my ears and nose at the same time." she went on to demonstrate, pulling her hair back, she took a second to concentrate, before wiggling both her ears and nose simultaneously.

Nicholas chuckled. "Impressive, but can you hit your head, rub your stomach and curl your tongue three ways?"

Ellie laughed. "Nope, can't say that I can. Alright, Grayson, let's see it then."

Nicholas gobbled up the rest of his sandwich, before rising to his knees. "Prepare to be amazed, Holbrook." It was undoubtedly the funniest thing Ellie had ever seen and considering that he seemed so damn sure of himself, it was quite hilarious to see him fail so miserably.

"Nicholesh monkey, mama!" Sophie giggled, erupting in squeals as Nicholas chased her around, imitating
a
primate without an ounce of shame. He tackled her to the ground and commenced a tickle attack the likes of which she'd never felt, only stopping when her squeals reached a deafening decibel.

"Alright, squirt
,
time for you to eat." Ellie hauled Sophie to a sitting position, brushed her hair away from her face and gathered the loose curls back into two pigtails.

"Owce cweam!"

Ellie shook her head, handing her a portion of the PB&J, with
the
crust cut off. "No ice cream until you finish your sandwich, remember?"

Although her mouth formed a petulant
pout
and Nicholas readied himself for a sizable tantrum, none was forthcoming. He watched with avid interest as Sophie docilely accepted the sandwich from her mother, and then greedily stuff
ed
it in her mouth.

"Small bites, Soph." Ellie cautioned handing her a sippy cup filled with milk. She looked up from minding Sophie to find Nicholas staring at her, the expression on his face, inscrutable. She self-consciously
bit her bottom lip and frowned.
"What?"

He shook his dark head, "You're not exactly how I pegged you out to be."

"And how's that? Spoiled and sheltered?"

"Not exactly, you have this maturity about you that's a little intimidating." He chuckled softly, averting his gaze; he raised a hand to the back of his hea
d seemingly abashed. "It's cool.
I like it."

"Trust me, it comes with the territory and if I seem at all mature, as you say, it's only because I can't be anything else where Sophie's concern. Besides, I can't see you intimidated by anything, Nicholas, least of all me."

He turned his head towards her, "You hated me." He
looked
deadpanned.

Ellie rolled her eyes and laughed, "I didn't hate you. I just didn't like you all that much."

"And now?"

"Well, we're here aren't we? And I haven't called you an egotistical jerk in the last few hours."

"You called me an egotistical jerk?"

"Not to your face."

"Ah, but it's been implied, hasn't it?"

"Most definitely."

"You…"

"Ellie! Sophie!" Both mother and daughter turned at the sound of their names; Sophie beamed, squealed
and ran to meet the tall, dark-
haired man approaching them. In one fluid motion
,
he swept her off the ground and positioned her between his shoulders. He stood a few inc
hes taller than Nicholas, broad-
shouldered and athletically built. He had an unsmiling face, the beard and mustache around his mouth did nothing
to enhance
his dour countenance and when his dark gaze settled on Nicholas, his visage tightened, a glower forming between his brows. 

"Hi, Gabe." Ellie greeted with a warm smile. Nicholas watched as she raised her head accepting a kiss on the forehead. The brief contact shouldn't have bothered him as much as it did, but it did and Nicholas found himself frowning, the muscles in his jaw tightening. "Gabe, this is Nicholas, Nicholas, Gabe." Hating to be at a disadvantage, Nicholas found himself on his feet, meeting Gabe's scowl with cool
temperament
. He already knew what the bastard thought of him and for some inexplicable reason it bothered him to be so easily judged. But he had to give the guy credit, if he'd deemed Nicholas a menace, than he was
much
smarter than he appeared. Nicholas couldn't fault him for being leery. He was after all, attempting to seduce his goddaughter.

Achingly aware of the cloying tension, Ellie abruptly stood, "Don't go all caveman on me Gabe, Nick's just a friend." She tugged on
his arm to get him to sit down. O
nce she accomplished that, she hoisted Sophie from his shoulders and settled her on her feet. "How was Splendor?" On her way back down, she yanked on Nicholas's arm and he went down hard, landing on knees beside her.

"Tracy called in sick; I had to stay a little longer until Kelly came in to cover her shift."

"T
racy's a big fat liar, Gabe.
I hope you told her to bring in a do
ctor's note when she comes back.
"

"She promised she'd bring one
." He said simply, his offhand
tone belying his foul mood.

"Are you going to---"

"Mama, mama, Ducky! Ducky!" Sophie took off running, her hands outstretched
,
her little legs pumping as she tried to grab a duck.

"Soph!" Ellie was after her, catching up to her before she ran into the lake. "Sophie! What did I tell you about running away from me?" she asked, pulling Sophie from her tight embrace. "That was very bad of you, don't do that again, Ok?" her bottom lip quivered, her eyes watered and genuine tears coursed down her caramel cheeks. Ellie enveloped her in a hug, comforting herself and her sobbing child. Her heart raced so fast that she could taste it in the back of her throat, the fear she'd felt seconds ago, leaving an acrid taste in her mouth.

Having witnessed the scene, Nicholas was relieved to see that Sophie and Ellie were alrigh
t, his relief however was short-
lived the second Gabe opened his mouth to speak. "What exactly are you
r
intentions with my goddaughter, Nicholas?"

Nicholas leaned his head against the weeping willow; his gaze remained on Ellie and Sophie. "She's praying for my soul."

Gabe furrowed his brow at Nicholas's cryptic tone. He didn't trust him. He'd always believed himself to be a good judge of character and the very second he'd laid eyes on Nicholas, Gabe knew he was trouble. There was something deceitfully wicked lurking behind that pretty face, something that made the hackles on his neck rise and he sorely wanted to know what that something was.

"Would you listen to me if I asked you to stay away from her?"

Nicholas twirled the cigarette he'd withdrawn from his jacket moments earlier and inserted
it
between his lips, igniting the butt in the process. He then turned his head sideways, a small, wry grin pulling at the seam of his lips. "Not really." Nicotine and tar filled his lungs before he exhaled the white smoke.

"Ellie's been through so much
. She's finally at a stage in life where she's actually happy," Gabe evenly met Nicholas's gaze, making sure his next words had the necessary impact. "Fuck this up for her and I'll be coming after you." 

"I would expect nothing less." With that said Nicholas stood and headed t
o where Ellie and Sophie played. H
e smiled as Sophie ran to him, took his hand and pulled him to see the ducks.

Chapter
Seven

"Thanks for the invite, I enjoyed myself."

Ellie believed him, a step up
from bullshit lines to actual sincerity
. Maybe he wasn't as hopeless as she'd first believed.

"Well, I'm glad. Soph enjoyed having you around."

Nicholas grinned, "She's a great kid, still shocked as hell she's yours though."

"For life."

"You've done a great job so far."

Ellie shrugged, "It's all a learning experience. I do what I can." Silence fell between them and Ellie shuffled her feet. Gabe, having taken a slumbering Sophie inside when they'd arrived, peered at her through the living room window and Ellie fought the urge to sigh in exasperation. "I should get in, it's getting late. I'll see you at school, Nicholas."

"Yeah... night Ellie."

"Goodnight."

He straddled his bike, revved the engine and with one last look at Ellie's retreating back, he sped away, the bike echoing down the silent suburban streets until it was nothing more than a dull hum.

"Tell me you aren't falling for him, Ellie." Ellie heaved a sigh and spun around.

"Like I said, Gabe, he's just a friend."

"He was no one last week and now he's a friend?"

It seemed no matter how hard she tried to forget her past with Tony, it continued to haunt her. Gabe, despite all she'd done to prove herself a responsible parent, still insisted on treating her like a child. Moreover, the fact that she'd never given him reason to doubt her and yet he still distrusted her, greatly disheartened Ellie.

"I know you want to protect me. But you have to understand that I know what I'm doing. Have a little faith in me, Gabe and trust that you've raised me well enough not to make the same stupid mistakes again. I need you to trust me." She'd learned from her mistakes, had taken accountability of those mistakes and seen to rectify them as best as she could. The lessons she'd learned fortified her with knowledge she used to raise her own child.  

Gabe raked a hand through his hair, the ge
sture hinting at his agitation. H
e sighed, reached out and pulled her into his arms. "I do trust you, Elle." He
murmured
his voice a rumble in the caverns of his chest.
Ellie stood close
w
ith her ear against his sternum
she hear
d
the steady beats of his heart. "It's that boy, I don't trust." Typical parental response, Ellie
silently
mused.

"Nicholas is harmless, believe me, he's nothing like Tone. Maybe a little too arrogant for his own good, but he's actually really sweet."

"If he breaks your heart, I'll break his face." He said in all seriousness, his face revealing nothing, as usual. That expression always managed to leave Ellie a little wary. Of course she knew that Gabe would never harm her or Sophie for that matter, but she couldn't help but wonder, whether those ten years in the state penitentiary had done this to him.
It took
away all possible emotion to leave behind a silent, of
ten
times, humorless shell of a human being?