It was late afternoon and Nicole was finally able to leave for the day. As if the day itself wasn’t hard enough, she’d gotten her first up-close and personal experience with the new doctor. She wasn’t impressed. Not only was he cocky, but he was way too flirty with the staff. Basically, he was a royal pain in the ass. As she approached her car, she saw Waverly leaning against the hood. Her day was finally brightening. “Hey, you,” Nicole greeted as their lips met in a slow kiss. “You don’t know just how good it is to see you----my ray of sunshine.” She threw her purse in the car and then captured Waverly in a much needed embrace. “AAWWWW!” Waverly said stealing another kiss. “So….I have some news.”
“Oh, no. Please don’t let it be bad news,” Nicole whined. Waverly giggled and pushed a stray lock of Nicole’s red hair behind her ear. “Oh, my poor baby,” she said placing a gently kiss on her nose. “I personally don’t think it’s bad news,” she answered reaching into her pocket and pulling out a set of keys. “I thought you might like to go with me to check out my new apartment.”
“WHAT?” Nicole grabbed the keys and looked at her girlfriend. Excitedly, she asked, “Where? When? How?” Taking the keys back, Waverly instructed Nicole to take a ride with her and all would be revealed. On the way to her new apartment, which was only 4 blocks from the hospital, Waverly explained she’d had her eye on a loft apartment for a while. The building had been under renovation for the past year. Waverly knew some of the crew working on it, found out who owned it, and inquired about the loft area. After much deliberation and haggling, she had been able to buy the whole loft area and worked with a designer for the upgraded remodeling. “So, this is why you’ve been so busy lately and your apartment looked so bare the other night.”
“Guilty,” she replied as she opened the door to her new lodgings. They entered into a large spacious area with open concept kitchen and living area. To the right was a two-way fireplace with a large shag rug in front and with a bedroom on the other side of it. The bedroom had a clear view of the city through a wall of windows. There was one bathroom with a huge bear claw tub, shower, and double vanity. The whole apartment was decorated with everything new. It was very stylish and very Waverly which meant it was very inviting and cozy.
“Oh my gosh, Waves, this place…it’s beautiful,” Nicole exclaimed as she explored the new décor. “And the view….you can see the whole city practically.”
“I know. It’s one of the reasons I wanted it so badly,” Waverly explained as she made her way to where Nicole was standing and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. “I can’t believe you did all of this and I had no clue.”
“I’m like Wynonna. I’m a sneaky squirrel,” Waverly said with a giggle. “Plus, I wanted it to be a surprise.” Turning in her arms, Nicole wrapped her arms around the smaller woman’s waist, “You really like surprises, don’t you?” “Sometimes,” she said grinning mischievously before standing on her tip toes to place a kiss on Nicole’s lips.
Later, as they lay tangled in the new sheets and in each other’s limbs, Waverly slid her fingers and palm around Nicole’s cheek. She let her fingers trace over Nicole’s kiss swollen lips and said, “I am so crazy about you, Nicole Haught.” Kissing Nicole between each of the next set of words, she let her know just how much she cared about her. “You are beautiful. Smart. Funny. And…..” This kiss lasted a little longer than the others. “Really good at other things too.” What Waverly really wanted to say was ‘I love you’, but she wasn’t sure if she was ready and what she was about to do already had sent her anxiety skyrocketing. Waverly rolled over and retrieved a box from the nightstand. As she sat up, she handed to small box to Nicole who was now propped up on her elbow watching curiously. Nicole opened the box presented to her. Inside was a key. She looked up at Waverly nervously. “Wait! Before you freak out, let me explain,” Waverly said. “There are no strings, Nicole. It’s yours to use as you want. You are welcome here anytime. I want you to think of this place as yours too.” Waverly’s heart was racing. She was scared that Nicole was going to reject the offer. Reject her for moving fast. Nicole looked at Waverly, “WOW! You really do like surprises.”
“Oh, God! It’s too much! I’m sorry!” Waverly panicked and tried to take back the box. “Don’t you dare!” Nicole exclaimed pulling the box to her chest. “I love it-----I just wasn’t....expecting it.” “Really?” Waverley asked shyly still needing some reassurance from the red head. “Yes. I really do,” Nicole said laying box aside and pulling Waverly down to meet her lips. The next morning, Nicole slid the key on her keyring.
