Traitor.
"Hey, Tess. Good to see you," Nick says, seemingly unfazed in the least by his nakedness.
Jerk.
"Nick!" I manage again, beginning to worry I am taking after Max now with the repeating.
Nick lets out a chuckle that really irritates me. "Shit," he says again. "You got up the stairs much faster than I thought you would. Let me just grab some clean clothes and I can help you with Max's things."
"Uncle Nick. Uncle Nick. Uncle Nick. Uncle Nick," Max keeps repeating, squirming relentlessly for me to let him down.
My eyelids remain squeezed shut, but I need both hands to help with my struggle to keep Max secured to my hip because he has now started to kick his feet. "What are you doing, Nick?" I ask without looking in his direction.
"I went for a run and grabbed a quick shower. Like a dumbass, I left my bag down here with my clean clothes and thought I could mad dash it once I heard the garage door. Guess I was wrong. You don't have to keep your eyes closed. I'm sure you're not going to see anything your French guy Andy isn't equipped with."
Dumbass is right.
Feeling like I've been stabbed in the heart, I give up the struggle with Max and let him down just in time to see Nick's back muscles ripple as he bends to open the large duffle bag on the ground beside his bare feet. "His name is Ansel, not Andy," I correct, "but I'm pretty sure you already know that. And for the record, he's not my guy anymore. We broke up."
Nick raises his gaze, and for the first time I notice just how blue his eyes are. "I'm sorry to hear that. Ethan hadn't mentioned it," Nick says rather sincerely as he pulls on a pair of jeans, opting to go commando.
Not that I notice.
Without bothering to button them, he then grabs for Max who is already by his side. "Hey kiddo," he says, scooping him up and tossing him in the air a few times before setting him on his feet. "What do you say we get these warm clothes off?"
Max giggles and nods his head, taking his own hat off and tossing it to the ground. His hair is a mess, much like Nick's, and I think he knows it because he pulls on his own blond curls to try to make them stand straight on end, more like Nick's. Nick copies him, making his dark hair look somehow put together despite the fact he is fresh out of the shower. Even if I hate to admit it, it is kind of cute to watch their interaction.
As Nick starts to unzip Max's coat, I clear my throat.
Nick looks over at me.
I am standing at the top of the stairs from the lower level and he is still standing across the room near the bottom of the stairs leading to the upper level. It's odd, but neither of us has moved very far.
Are we at a stand off?
"What are you doing here?" I ask again. This time I added the word here to be more direct. And yes, I also did that so I wouldn't sound like Max on repeat.
Having already removed Max's coat, Nick shoves Max's hat and mittens in the sleeves and hangs the coat on the banister, all the while glaring at me with a look of utter confusion. "I'm here to help you with Max."
Dumbfounded, I drop Max's things to the floor and take a step forward, pointing my finger at the very large duffle bag. "You're staying here? In this house?"
Nick nods.
"With me and Max?" I clarify, now taking my own hat and coat off because even though it is only twenty degrees outside, it feels like a hundred in here.
Again, he just nods.
"No, no you're not. No way," I insist.
There is a slight rise of his brows. And then he does it again. He nods, like him and I living together is the most normal thing in the world.
Max nods too.
And then Nick sits on the floor and Max copies him, flopping to the ground in a burst of cuteness and landing right in front of Nick. "Let's take your boots off," Nick says, pointing to Max's feet.
Max points to Nick's bare toes, which I have to admit, are pretty damn sexy. "Socks too," Max says.
Nick laughs. "Socks too." And then he gets to work removing Max's boots.
"Nick," I say calmly this time.
"Tess." He glances up.
"You can't take care of Max. What do you know about kids, other than being a big kid yourself?"
Nick's eyes narrow and he flips me the bird behind Max's back. Okay, I deserved that one. I might have gone too far with that because obviously he is a big part of Max's life. I, on the other hand, haven't lived in Chicago since way before Max was born. To Max, I've just been the visiting auntie. So, what the hell do I know?
"Okay, yes, clearly you can," I concede. "Still, we cannot live in this house together for the next two weeks."