My pulse pounds at every pressure point, and Noah has to sense it. Even though Noah hasn’t moved, it’s like he’s fading...into the shadows...into the darkness...to realms that I fear. “Where is this coming from? Why did you leave so early today? Why didn’t you answer when I called? Explain to me what’s going on, because you’re scaring me.”
“I discovered some info on my mom’s family,” Noah answers.
His words hang in the air, and I’m terrified to breathe. “And?”
“Just God fucking with me again.” His shoulders slump forward.
I internally kick myself. Noah walked in and caught me hugging Hunter—a man he doesn’t trust—while Noah was bleeding.
I touch the top of Noah’s shoulder, and the connection jolts both of us. He withdraws. A prick of rejection begs me to lash out, but I ignore the emotion. I risk a second attempt, and this time Noah stays still when I glide a hand along his arm and step into the shelter of his body.
Come on, Noah. I’m trying here. A part of me melts when Noah finally loops a loose arm around me. Can’t complain. It’s contact. I rest my head on his shoulder, and he leans his body into mine. He’s not really holding me. It’s more like I’m keeping him upright, and I’m okay being his rock. Whatever happened today had to cut him deep.
Understanding that there are some pains that are too hard to verbalize when they’re fresh, I offer the out...for now. “Later, then?”
“Later.” A pause. “Forget what I said about leaving. We’ll go when you’re ready. Stay the whole week.”
“Give me a few days, okay? Let me see what I can do on this Aires painting, then we’ll go. We’ll skip Texas, and you can be home in time to watch Jacob play. I swear.”
Noah gently kisses my forehead. “Okay.”
But it doesn’t feel okay. Noah’s hurt, and I don’t know how to ease his suffering. “Do you have to work today?”
“Yeah. A few hours this afternoon.”
“When you’re done you should round up Beth and Isaiah, and then we’ll go to the party.” Maybe that’ll help.
Noah twirls a curl around his finger and yanks. “How about I send Isaiah and Beth and we spend time alone in the room.”
“You have a one-track mind, Noah Hutchins.”
I had hoped for his patented wicked smile that promises trouble, but I only receive a slight tilt of his mouth. “When it comes to you, I do. Go back to work, baby. I’ll see you in a couple hours.”
Noah walks away, and I have the same hollow devastation in my stomach as when I watched Aires leave all those years ago.
Noah
My need to attend the party tonight was about me listening to Mia and trying to prove that Echo and I are solid. After this morning with the priest and after that moment with Echo, a beer isn’t a bad idea. Hell, three may not do the job.
Like Mia said, Echo’s finding where she belongs, and it’s not with me. My problem—I don’t know how the hell to be man enough to let her go. Loving her like I do, I don’t know how I can keep her.
I pull Echo’s keys out of my front pocket and swear under my breath when I reach the street. The damn bastard’s standing in front of his gallery. I spin on my heels. I’ll walk the entire perimeter of this small town twice before I pass him. Echo wants her shot, and I want her happy.
“Noah,” he calls, and I freeze on the sidewalk. The right thing to do would be to ignore him. There’s nothing good to be said between us. “It’s Noah, right?”
With my thumbs hitched in my pocket so I won’t knock his ass out, I face him. “What do you want?”
“Echo.”
I step closer and damn if he doesn’t flinch. “Last I checked she makes her own decisions, and she’s chosen to be with me.”
“For now,” he states. Echo said he’s ten years older, and he has that belated frat-boy look going on. I’m sure he’s used to getting exactly what he desires. “I’ve seen this many times. Lots of girls come here fresh from high school or a year removed, still thinking that high school love is forever, but it isn’t.”
“Did you know her older brother was younger than you?”
He laughs, but it doesn’t touch his eyes. “I’m interested in her talent. That’s another issue with high school boys. They think the reason anything happens is because of sex. Someday you’ll discover there’s more in life, but for now stop jeopardizing Echo’s chance at a career.”
There we’re on the same page. “You leave me alone, I’ll leave you alone. In fact, I’ll stay thirty feet away from this place if it’ll make her life easier.”