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Chapter 32 – A Girl’s Intuition

Nicola was an absolute nervous wreck as she attacked her closet for an appropriate outfit. She and Lucy had spent every day for the past week with Howie and were finally meeting his band mates for the first time. Nicola had already spent the first hour making sure Lucy was prepared, now she just needed to get herself together. She wanted to look her best, but nothing seemed right when she held it against her slim body. Nicola growled in frustration, throwing yet another top on the pile atop her bed. She offered a sour glare toward Hollie when her friend started to laugh. “Decker, I asked you to help me, NOT laugh at me!”

“I’m sorry, Cola-Pop, but since when did you start caring about what you wore on your body?” Hollie snorted, trying her best to control her giggles. Hollie already confirmed that Howie was indeed a special person in Nicola’s life, because Nicola hated sophisticated outfits and caring about her appearance. Nicola always bought her clothes on the intuition of comfort, not style.

“I started caring about clothing when I found out I was spending the day with four men that I pretty much cussed out! So, I can’t really depend on my sweet and sunny deposition to win these men over!”

“It was funny the way you reamed—”

“They’re his best friends, Hollie. It wasn’t funny, it was idiotic,” Nicola scolded, pulling out an ancient dress from the back of her closet. Nicola crinkled her nose in obvious distaste as she jerked the dress away from the rod, causing dust to explode all around. Nicola coughed loudly as the dust lingered around her, embedding into her skin. She shivered, immediately throwing the dress that resembled a pale lilac onto the ground. “What about that?”

“Don’t be serious! Isn’t that the dress from Senior Prom?” Hollie snorted, releasing another fit of tight giggles.

“If I hosed it down—”

“Now that I think about it, you haven’t even worn a dress SINCE prom!”

“Hollie Ann!” Nicola bellowed, slumping onto the floor in the middle of her closet. She crossed her arms against her chest like a pouting child.

“Cola-Pop, calm down! I’m just saying…stop trying so hard. You’re already a great person and you don’t need to impress them. Hell, if they don’t realize what a terrific woman you are, they’re complete and utter assholes.”

Nicola inhaled deeply. “Thanks for the pep talk, but make sure those words don’t end up in Lucy’s vocabulary. She’s already learned enough from your mouth, trust me.”

“I have no recollection to which you’re speaking,” Hollie answered professionally.

“I’m calling bullshit, because my daughter told Howie that you thought he was a beefcake.”

“That’s my girl!” Hollie hooted.

“Beg your pardon?” Nicola quipped, arching her eyebrows in question.

“MOMMY!” Lucy interrupted, bursting into the room, and saving Hollie from a stern lecture. Hollie slumped back in the computer chair with relief as Nicola turned her attention to Lucy. The child’s eyes were bright with excitement as she gripped the cordless phone tightly in her tiny hands. Her flaxen locks were twisted into a single braid, complimented with a pretty lavender ribbon that matched her sundress. Hollie smiled, knowing that the lavender dress was Lucy’s favorite, and that the boys would absolutely adore the little girl. “Mommy! Howie called!”

“And?” Nicola drawled, peering out of the closet.

“He said to bring a swimsuit and he’s coming right now,” Lucy replied, looking up to the ceiling as if peering into her brain for the needed information.

“Thanks, Baby,” Nicola blurted, hurrying back into her closet with renewed energy.

Hollie chuckled as she watched more items of clothing come flying out of the closet. Knowing that Nicola was busy, Hollie bent down to scoop the little girl into her arms. Lucy squealed in surprise as Hollie blew several kisses onto her rosy cheeks. “I want to know what you think of Howie, Miss Lucy!”

“He’s great, Aunt Hollie! His house is big and when Mommy takes care of his owie, I got play in his TV room with Polly. Polly got me lots of My Little Ponies to play with and Howie got all the Disney movies for me, but I hav’ta keep it a secret from Mommy!” Lucy whispered loudly into Hollie’s ear.

“Oh, okay! We’ll keep it a secret,” Hollie promised, winking at Lucy.

“You know what else, Aunt Hollie?”

“What?”

“I hope he’ll be my new Daddy.”

*~*~*

“Thanks for bringing me down, Kev,” Howie said as he and Kevin waited on Nicola’s porch. Howie was still learning how to control his new car that allowed him to drive, so he just wanted a quick ride for the day. Kevin had volunteered for the job when the others decided to go grab snacks for the get together. Another reason Kevin had volunteered to drive was because Howie was a wreck worry about the encounter between his friends and girlfriend. What they didn’t know was that Howie carried a continuous prayer that the boys would accept Nicola and Lucy.

“No problem, Howie,” Kevin answered as the door opened.

Kevin was floored when a small child appeared behind the large door. The little girl’s eyes became bright when she saw Howie. She scurried into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. Howie hugged the girl tightly as she delivered several kisses to his cheeks. “Hi, Howie! I’m so happy you picked us up!”

“Hey, Sweet Pea!” Howie cooed, returning the kisses.

“Guess someone hasn’t met the brat,” Hollie teased, noticing Kevin’s shocked expression.

“Oh, yeah! Kev, this is Lucy. Sweet Pea, this is my friend, Kevin,” Howie quickly introduced.

“Hi,” Kevin murmured to Lucy, although he was concentrating on Hollie. Something about her presence attacked his very core. Her dark blue eyes hiding behind the turtle shell glasses hinted to a restless wildness that complimented the sapphire stone in her nose, but her body posture suggested she was mellow. Her beauty was appealing to many men, but whatever Kevin saw in her eyes made him want more.

“I’ll get Cola-Pop,” Hollie finally decided, turning from the uncomfortable silence. She was about to yell when Nicola came running down the steps. She was muttering incoherently as she dabbed lip-gloss on her lips. She decided on a pair of worn, boot-cut jeans and a sleeveless lavender peasant top.

“Bare with me for my moment of chick-dom, Decker… How’s my butt–” Nicola stopped mid-sentence when she noticed Howie and one of his friends in the doorway. She blushed furiously, realizing that she had been close to revealing her nervousness. She subconsciously ran her fingers through her strawberry-blonde curls. “I am so sorry.”

“You look beautiful,” Howie commented honestly, not really focusing on her blunder.

“Besides, Cola-Pop, you have no butt to worry about anyway!” Hollie snickered, still amazed at Nicola’s state of mind. Hollie had never seen Nicola so worried about her appearance and it utterly fascinated Hollie.

“Cola-Pop?” Howie asked curiously.

“Mommy’s nickname from Aunt Deck,” Lucy chirped, cutting off the ‘er’ from Hollie’s nickname.

“Who?” Kevin responded in confusion.

“Oh, sorry!” Nicola blurted, extending her hand to Kevin. “I’m Nicola and this is Hollie. I’m Cola-Pop because of the ‘cola’ in my name and my bubbly nature, or maybe she gave it to me because I have fizz for a brainwave… I don’t know. And I call Hollie by the nickname ‘Decker’ because of deck the halls with…oh you know!”

“Oh, I see,” Kevin chuckled, focusing again on Hollie.

“You can call me by the name Hollie. Only Cola-Pop can get away with calling me Decker, because I know she could kick my butt if need be,” Hollie teased, extending her hand toward Kevin.

“It’s always been Kevin, even for pretty women like you,” Kevin replied, bending down to kiss her hand.

“We got a genuine Rico Suave, Cola-Pop,” Hollie laughed, pulling her hand back as her heart fluttered.

“So I’ve noticed,” Nicola replied with a sly smirk.

“Cola-Pop is very cute,” Howie decided, motioning for Nicola. She bent down with a knowing smile, gently kissing him. Lucy clapped in praise of the kiss, causing Howie to chuckle against Nicola’s soft lips. “I’ll need to make up my own special nickname for you.”

“Can’t wait to hear it,” Nicola enthused.

“One more question,” Kevin interrupted before they could kiss again. He motioned toward the child on Howie’s lap. “Is this your little sister, Nicola?”

Hollie and Nicola exchanged a brief look of confusion before look to Howie. He shrugged apologetically as his cheeks began to grow red. Nicola sighed heavily, “You didn’t tell them, did you?”

“Um…no…” Howie faltered. “I didn’t know how.”

Nicola merely nodded in disappointment. “Kevin, right?”

“Yes.”

“That little girl is Lucy, my daughter from my deceased husband,” Nicola answered softly.

Kevin stared at Howie in utter shock. He couldn’t find the appropriate words to convey his surprise. Howie had never mentioned a child when speaking of Nicola. Howie returned Kevin’s look with an uneasy glance, as if telling him not to rock the boat. Kevin bit down hard on his tongue, trying to gather the words to speak. Kevin finally stumbled with the words, “I…I’m sorry, Nicola.”

“It was over six years ago and I have my Lucy. So, don’t worry,” Nicola mumbled, shielding her emotions. She scooped her child from Howie’s lap, kissing Lucy’s soft curls.

“The guys will definitely flip,” Kevin mumbled.

“We better go, Nic,” Howie interjected, wanting to break through the tension.

“Okay,” Nicola answered, turning to Hollie. She and Lucy kissed both of Hollie’s cheeks. “What are you going to do tonight, Hollie?”

“Waiting to hear from you,” Hollie quipped, pulling Nicola in for a hug. While the women embraced, Hollie whispered in Nicola’s ear, “Don’t give Howie a hard time about explaining Lucy. Remember, you didn’t tell him about Lucy till you agreed to date him. The past is just hard to explain to others. So, promise me you won’t blow off the man of your dreams for a stupid mistake?”

“I promise, Decker,” Nicola replied with a smile. “But, since you’re waiting to hear from me anyway… Why don’t you stay here, then? I have a big screen TV and a full fridge.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course.”

“Can I crash in your huge bed?”

“Till I get home…”

“Sleep on your side?”

“Chick—”

“Just teasing!”

“So, are you staying?”

“Definitely, dude, free food and an amazing bed to crash in… Have fun, Cola-Pop. I’ll be waiting!”