Back to Me (Carolina Rebels 1)

She stretches over my chest and kisses my tattoo. “I love you more, Noah. Sorry for scaring you.”

“You’re all right. That’s all that matters. Just try not to do it again, yeah?”

“Yeah,” she replies.

I tug her a little tighter. Once her breathing slows into that peaceful sleeping pattern, my muscles begin to relax and my eyelids drift closed as exhaustion takes over.

“NOAH,” I START, but he interrupts me.

“Be quiet.” He squeezes his arms tighter around me.

It’s been almost two weeks since the car accident and we’re at the airport for me to fly home. I’m nervous as hell about telling my parents, but I’m so ready to see them. I know they’re ready to see me, too, especially since my dad wants to check me over himself after the accident. We even videochatted so he could see me, but he’s still anxious to see me in person. If Noah ever lets me go, I can go home and ease Dad’s unnecessary worry. First, I have to do the same thing for Noah. He hasn’t hovered over me too much, but he’s been anxious about this trip of mine.

“I’m coming back Saturday, and you’ll see me next Tuesday,” I remind him. He has a game in New York Friday and then another one Monday, so I won’t see him until the following day.

“Oh, I know. I’m just going to miss you like hell, Mere. It’ll be almost a week before I’ll see you again.”

Damn. I hadn’t thought about it that way. I was trying to avoid it. “I know,” I say softly, squeezing him back.

“Keep me updated on how it goes with your parents and my sister. Let me know if I need to talk to any of them.” Noah’s worried about his sister. Our families started having Thanksgiving together when we were in high school; that’s how close they were. They still do it. It’s not like I can avoid Ashley even if I change my mind about seeing her beforehand, which I’m already tempted to do.

“It’ll be fine. I’ll try and if it doesn’t work, oh well. As long as you’re happ

y and I’m happy, we’ll be fine. That’s the perk to us living in another state.”

Noah grins and quickly kisses me. “That’s why I love you.”

“That’s the only reason?”

He laughs. “No, there are lots of them, but that’s definitely one of them.”

“Don’t forget to take Leo to Sylvia before you leave for your road trip.” She offered to let him stay over at her house until I come back.

“I won’t.” He doesn’t let me go; he holds me closer.

“I’m going to miss my flight,” I reluctantly say. I don’t know why it’s so hard to leave him now when it wasn’t when I came back for a weekend.

He takes a deep breath, cups my cheeks, and kisses me slowly. This kind of kiss should be banned in public. I lean into him and let his tongue memorize mine. Somehow, I just know this is the kiss I’ll get on our wedding day. He pulls away and then kisses me quickly one more time.

“I love you,” I tell him, a little breathy.

“I love you more,” he whispers.

He drops his arms. As if I’m the one who wouldn’t let go, he nudges me toward security. I walk away to get in line. I shuffle through it slowly and glance back to where we were standing. Noah is still there with his hands in his pockets. He smiles. I wave, tears coming to my eyes. I quickly grab my phone and text him. A moment later, he’s checking his.

Me: I’ve changed my mind. I want you with me when I tell them.

Me: Actually, I don’t want to go at all. I want to stay here with you. I can tell them another time.

Noah: You’ll be okay, Mere. You can do it. I’m only a phone call away. And yes, you do want to go. You’ve been talking for a week about seeing your parents. Don’t get nervous now, or I’ll have to come get you.

Me: What’s so bad about that?

I glance up to see him laugh. Unfortunately, the line is moving and it’s almost my turn, so I put my phone away. I definitely don’t want to be the person who holds up the line or who doesn’t follow directions. My nerves start to ease away once I can’t see him anymore. Odd how that works. Sure, I’m still a little nervous about telling my parents, but the panic I felt earlier about the entire trip is gone.

It rears up when I find myself once again sitting in an airport with only a carry-on, waiting for my flight. Things are so different now, though. I’m with Noah. I’ve found a new career path. My life feels settled and I’ve found a home in North Carolina of all places. I have a new plan and it feels right. That’s something I haven’t had in a long, long time. I’m happier than I ever thought possible, even when I was with Noah before.

Everything seems to take forever. Waiting to board, waiting to take off, waiting to land, and waiting to make it back to the terminal. Once I’m finally off the damn plane, I text Noah that I’ve landed safe and sound, and soon, I spot my parents. Dad is once again holding a sign reading Ms. Quick. I laugh and get a double hug from them.