8. Chapter 6
FRANKIE
N oah’s eyes widened as he looked at her.
She knew what she’d said wasn’t good. She survived it and looked back on it with so much regret.
If she could go back, she would never have gotten with him.
Even though she’d learned a lot, it had caused too much stress in her life and made her go down this spiral that she was still trying to get out of.
“Frankie.” Noah’s voice was gentle.
She raised her hand, stopping him. “I know. I’m not with him anymore, and I haven’t been for a while. I ended it soon after I realized how stressed I was. How much weight I had lost and how little sleep I was getting.”
She was still trying to put all that weight back on and get her sleep to improve, but after she’d broken up with him, she was in a funk. Nothing was the same, and she couldn’t work for several months. That was the start of her downfall and she was still recovering from it.
“Oh, Little one.” His voice was so soft as he spoke.
Noah got up from his chair, walked around and knelt once again in front of her, grabbing her hands in his. “You’re shaking.” He held on tighter.
“I’m okay,” she whispered.
Her hands always shook, but he didn’t know that. He just thought she was getting worked up over the memories, but she wasn’t… not fully.
“If anything like that happens again, you come immediately to me. I don’t care if it’s twenty years from now.
If something like that happens again, you come to me.
I will take care of it.” Noah looked deep into her soul as he said those words.
“You are too precious for those things to happen. It breaks my heart, knowing you had to go through that.”
She shrugged. “I had a friend warn me about him, but I didn’t pay any attention.”
She’d gotten with Lark a year after she got diagnosed with Essential Tremor.
When she was still learning everything, specifically what her triggers were and what helped to get better.
During that time, she’d learned a lot about what made them more prominent.
The number of times she had to go to the doctors to get checked up was extreme.
Her poor bank account.
“That doesn’t mean you deserved it.” Noah squeezed her hands. “It never means you deserved it. Everyone makes mistakes. That’s part of life, but you did not deserve that. I don’t want you to think that you did because you didn’t listen to your friend.”
Tears pricked her eyes, and she took a deep breath, blinking several times. She could not cry right now. Not until she was back home in her apartment, where no one could see her and she could hug Lita.
“It’s okay to cry,” he whispered.
She shook her head, looking up at the ceiling, blinking several more times before looking back down at Noah. “I’m okay.”
“Baby.” His voice was so caring and concerned at the same time.
“I promise. I’m okay. I just haven’t had someone be that nice to me in a while.” She trailed off. “And I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry. Thank you again for this job opportunity. I’m really excited about it. I promise I won’t be late tomorrow.”
“Well, things are going to change. Everyone is kind here so you’ll get what you need.
” He kissed the top of her hands. “You won’t be late because someone will be picking you up.
They’ll come to your apartment twenty minutes before your shift starts.
You will take the ride to and from work.
If I find out you didn’t and you say yes to being punished, I will spank you. ”
Her bottom clenched at the thought of being over his lap. She did not need to think about that. No matter how much she wanted to see what it was like to be getting spanked by him.
“Sadly, I can’t take you home right now, but Dominic will.” Noah stood, still holding onto her hands. “Come on. I’ll put these nuggies in a container so you can take them home.”
“You don’t need to do that,” she rushed to say. “Someone else can eat them here if they need them. Or if you want them, you can have them.”
“They are yours, and you will take them home.” He gave her a pointed look.
Nodding, she rose out of the chair, still holding onto his hand as he picked up her plate and started to walk out of his office. It was glorious to have Noah take her hand. The warmth, them being bigger, and just the feel of it, like they were meant to fit together.
Everything with Noah felt right.
“You can wear clothes that are comfortable for work. We don’t have a strict dress code. Just nothing too revealing,” Noah said as they walked down the hallway. “We’re going to stop by the kitchen real quick.”
Noah was walking slower this time, and Frankie was happy. She knew she wouldn’t be able to keep up with him if he kept his pace from before. It was way too fast for small legs.
“Trent, can you put these in a container for Frankie here?” Noah asked, handing a plate to a man in a white chef’s coat.
“Sure thing.” Trent smiled at her. “Nice to meet you, Frankie. If you ever need food while you work, you let me know and I’ll make you something. We have a lot of different types of food back here, and I can always go out and get you something as well. You just let me know.”
“Oh, I won’t be needing?—”
“Every employee gets a free meal a day. Sometimes two, depending on how long they work. For lunch, you don’t have to bring anything.
Trent will make you something to eat if you wish.
Snacks can be found behind the bar or with Trent.
Just ask one of the bartenders or Trent,” Noah said before she could get her full sentence out.
“Giving out free meals?” Trent raised an eyebrow.
She looked between the two of them. Did he normally not give out free meals? Was he only making an exception because he knew she lived in a bad part of town?
“No, we give everyone a free meal a day,” Noah said again, more forceful this time. “It’s been something Mac and I have been talking about. We started rolling it out last week. That’s why Juliet and Monty got some free meals last week.”
“Oh, I thought that was odd at first. I must have missed that meeting.” Trent chuckled. “Or I was there and zoned out for that part. Anyway, here is the container of nuggies. I added a sachet of ketchup in case you didn’t have any at home.”
Frankie smiled and took the heavy container. “Thank you.” Her eyebrows pulled together as she looked at the container. There were more nuggies in there than she had originally had on her plate. “I think you made a mistake.”
“I don’t make mistakes, girly. I had extras I didn’t put on your plate before, but I’m giving them to you now. Enjoy.” Trent walked off.
Noah squeezed her hand and started to walk toward the front door, right where Dominic was. His eyes narrowed on their hands before a smile blossomed across his face.
“Interview go well?” Dominic asked when they stopped in front of him.
“Yes,” she replied softly.
“Can you take her home? The door will be fine for now. I’ll get Trent to keep an eye on it every once in a while you are getting Frankie home,” Noah asked.
“Sure thing, boss.” Dominic slightly bowed, amusement written all over his face.
“Knock it off. Go get the car while I talk to Frankie.” Noah waved his hand in the air, dismissing him.
What did Noah want to talk to her about?
Was he going to say that he forgot something about the job, or bring up that she had lied to him earlier about having a medical condition?
She squeezed his hand unconsciously as nerves ran through her.
He wasn’t going to tell her she didn’t have the job.
He wouldn’t tell her employees had a free meal every day if he was planning on firing her before she had even started.
Dominic walked off, leaving Frankie with Noah.
“You’re okay,” he gently said. “Nothing bad is going to happen. I can feel how tightly you are holding onto my hand. You can relax.”
She looked down at her hand, squeezing his really hard, and let go. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”
“It was all me. I shouldn’t have said I was going to talk to you without letting you know what was coming. It’s nothing to be worried about. I just want to talk about tomorrow.”
The tension in her shoulders loosened as she stared up at him. Tomorrow. Right. First day of work.
“When Dominic or Lucas comes to get you in the morning, they will drop you off at the door. I want you to come to me first so I can show you a couple of things before you get to work. This won’t happen every day, just tomorrow, and maybe at the end of the week to see how things are going,” Noah explained.
“If you can’t remember where my office is, ask Trent and he’ll show you, or wait until Dominic or Lucas comes back. ”
“Okay,” she whispered.
“Better yet, I’ll be here at the front door, so you don’t have to ask anyone. Make it easier on everyone.”
She nodded.
“Car is here.” Dominic peeked his head into the building. “Ready to go, Frankie?”
Noah kissed the top of her head and let go of her hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Dress comfortably.”
Did he just kiss her head?