Fury bubbles up inside of me at his recklessness. “Don’t you ever put yourself in danger for me like that ever again,” I smack his abs, too afraid to think about what would have happened if he got seriously injured tonight.
He makes me look at him, his thumb tracing my lips with his eyes locked on the movement. I lean into the palm of the other hand that cups my face as his eyes flit to mine. “I’d stop breathing if that meant you get to live just one more day, Andie.”
My breath gets stuck in my throat at the conviction in his husky voice. The words create a flutter of butterflies in my belly, soothing an ache I didn’t know existed.
No one has ever chosen me. No one has mademe their priority, so to hear him say that disarms me as much as it infuriates me.
“So, no, Andie. Don’t ask me to make a promise you and I both know I’ll break without any fucking remorse,” he grunts, his tone turning darker, gaze piercing into mine, daring me to argue as he pulls my hair, baring my neck to him.
He bites my throat, his sharp teeth on my soft skin reminding me that he won’t budge. A whimper slips out from my parted lips, and my hands fist the sheets when he sucks my skin.
Out of the blue, a question pops into my head, and I ask on a breathy moan, “How did you land in Boston so early?”
He pulls back, his hand still in my hair, as his eyes search my face, wonder quoting his own. “Did…Am I…Did you really just ask me that while I was in the middle of sucking your throat?”
My face flushes red, heat spreading through my body when I realize he’s right. He chuckles at my expression, tugging me back into his arms as he answers, “A man with a private jet owed me a favor.”
The smugness in his tone makes me cackle. But then my eyes widen as I take in the insinuation of his words. “You borrowed a private jet for youand the team to get here early? For me?”
“Of course, I did,” he sighs, rolling his eyes at me as if it’s normal for people to do that. “I heard you all upset over the phone when Ezra told you he couldn’t come. So, I thought I’d cash in that favor.”
He winks at me as I stare at the magnificent man who makes everything feel like the bare minimum.
“Thank you.”
He pecks my lips, murmuring against them, “I know a few other ways you can thank me, Rainbow.”
His voice drops an octave, and I really want to give in to the temptation and let him relieve me of the ache between my legs. But there’s something that keeps nagging at the back of my brain.
The last time I asked him something personal, he blew a gasket and told me exactly who I was to him. Now, as I look at him, the warmth in his embrace, the care in his eyes, the way he just jumped in to save me, I have to believe that I matter to him. Enough that he wouldn’t run at the first sign of vulnerability.
Pushing on the bed, I sit up and lean against theheadrest of my bed. With furrowed eyes, he follows my movements, sitting beside me as the blanket covers our legs.
Grabbing his t-shirt from the nightstand, I put my arms through, feeling like I need to be properly comfortable to have this conversation if he doesn’t shut down.
As if sensing the shift in the mood, Millie patters inside my room and hops on the bed, snuggling and making herself comfortable in my lap.
Loaning a little bit of courage from the creature, I preface, “I’d never force you to tell me anything you don’t wish to. But I have some things I wanna ask.”
My face swivels to him, hoping he can see the sincerity in my eyes. My stomach drops when I witness him shutting down. But then he sighs, shaking his head as he turns his face and looks ahead at the yellow wall in my bedroom. “I guess this can’t be avoided anymore.”
He roughly rakes his hand through his hair, and I find myself saying, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, Noah.”
His head pivots back to me. “I want to.” He gives me a sad smile, takes my hand in his,and squeezes it.
I nod for him to continue, my free hand lightly scratching the orange fur ball in my lap.
“I was born and raised in Michigan,” he begins, his eyes instantly getting that faraway look.
And I know that whatever he’s going to reveal is going to make me feel the agony of a thousand cuts. I just hope that he doesn’t have to be the one to comfort me by the time he’s done telling me everything.
I want him to lean on me.
Thirty Six
Noah
16 years ago, 14 years old