17. Chapter 15
FRANKIE
E xhaustion weighed down on Frankie’s shoulders as she stood outside her apartment building, waiting for Dominic to get her.
She had been waiting for ten minutes already.
Something was wrong. The time for her to get to work was nearing, and she wouldn’t make it in time if she had to walk or take the bus.
Frankie looked up and down the street. Several men were out, all looking at her, and an uneasy feeling rolled through her. She quickly took her phone out of her pocket and pulled up Noah’s contact information as she started her walk to the bus station.
“Everything is going to be okay,” she whispered to herself. “I just need to call Noah, and he’ll come pick me up. Easy, right?”
But Frankie’s finger didn’t hit the call button. She knew he said to text or call him anytime, but she didn’t want to be a burden. What if something happened to him or Noah and she didn’t know about it? What if she interrupted something really important?
She groaned and looked up from her phone. Now she couldn’t call Noah. Not when she could be interrupting something or bothering him by calling.
Frankie sat down at the bus station, waiting for the bus to come. She should text Noah and let him know she would be late. She owed him at least that. But before she could text him, his name popped up on the screen.
“H-hello?” she whispered.
“Frankie, where are you?” His panicked voice came through the speakers. “Tell me where you are and I’ll come pick you up.”
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
“Frankie. Where are you?” he asked again.
“I’m at the bus station close to my apartment,” she told him.
What was going on? Why did he sound worried?
“Stay right there. I’m almost to you,” he said and hung up.
Frankie looked down at her phone, confused. Did she miss something? Why did he want to know where she was?
“Frankie.” Noah sounded urgent when he arrived in his car. “Get in the car.”
She did as he’d said, putting on her seatbelt before turning to him. “What’s wrong?”
“Dominic had an emergency this morning and couldn’t come pick you up.
When I got to your apartment, you weren’t outside, so I knocked on your door, but someone told me you had already left.
I checked the cameras and you had. I didn’t know where you were,” he explained, tenderly touching her face. “I was worried about you.”
“Oh,” she whispered, not knowing what else to say.
Silence filled the car as they stared at each other.
“Why didn’t you text me? Call me?” he asked.
Guilt festered in her stomach. “I was going to, and then I didn’t want to bother you. I thought Dominic’s not coming was important and you were probably helping.”
“Darling, never. No matter what you call or text me when you need or want to, understand? I will stop everything for you,” he gently said.
Noah was confusing her. He was acting all sweet and caring toward her, but he was her boss. He hadn’t said anything about not dating employees or the owners, but she figured it was an unspoken rule.
Did he want a relationship with her? Or was he always this worried about everyone who worked for him?
Frankie hadn’t seen him interact with many other employees to know.
“I want you to need me,” Noah confessed. “I want you to call me when you need something. Or even just when you want to talk to someone. I want you to call me when you are unsure about something. I want to be there for you.”
Frankie blinked several times as she stared at him. Did he really just say that, or were her ears playing tricks on her?
“I know that was a lot to listen to, but just know you can call or text me at any point. You will not bother me,” he reminded her. “Now, let’s get to work.”
And just like that, he turned around and started to drive. She must have heard him wrong. There was no way he’d just told her he wanted her to need him and then said they were going to work. It was like he was dangling a carrot in front of her, and when she reached for it, he’d taken it away.
Frankie relaxed in her seat as much as she could. Noah was giving her whiplash, and she didn’t know how to cope with it. What was she supposed to say?
They drove to the club in silence the whole way. She could see him looking at her out of her peripheral vision, but she didn’t dare look at him.
“Are you okay?” Noah asked.
She nodded. “I’m fine.”
She thought she was tired before, but now she felt exhausted, like she should crawl under her covers and go to sleep. Noah was taking up too much of her thoughts every single second of the day.
“Frankie,” he gently said as he pulled into a parking spot. “Can you look at me?”
Frankie really didn’t want to. She wanted to pretend that nothing had happened.
“Now,” he commanded.
She looked over at Noah, who was smiling at her. He was always smiling at her, like she was the most precious thing in the world.
“If you need anything, let me know. I want to help you if I can or if you just want to talk to me. I want to be there for you.” He brushed a piece of hair out of her face.
Frankie nodded but didn’t say anything. She didn’t trust her voice right now.
“Good girl. You don’t need to work any extra time today. Arriving late was not your fault, so don’t feel guilty about it,” Noah told her, his face getting closer to hers.
“O-okay,” she whispered, waiting for him to kiss her forehead like he’d done so many times.
But it never came.
Noah pulled away from her. “Ready to go in?”
Her shoulders slumped, and she nodded. Frankie had gotten a taste of what it was like to have forehead kisses, and she wanted more of them. She wanted more of them from Noah, but she couldn’t just ask for that. She turned away, tears pooling in her eyes at the whiplash she was getting from him.
Frankie got out of the car and quickly made her way into the club, walking straight toward the employee room.
“Frankie!” Trent called out. “I was getting a little?—”
She didn’t pay any attention to Trent as she entered the employees’ room. She needed a couple of seconds to regain her composure. But the tears welling in her eyes wouldn’t go away. They were staying like bad breath in the morning.
“Frankie,” Trent gently said behind her.
Her shoulders curled in on herself as she kept her head down, not wanting Trent to see her crying.
“Are you okay?” Trent asked. “Can you turn around for me?”
She held her hand back with an open palm, hands shaking badly as she tried to signal for him to stop. She didn’t want him close. She didn’t want him to know she was about to break down at work. No doubt he’ll tell Noah, and she didn’t want to be around him right now.
“Okay, you’re okay.” His voice was soft and smooth. “I’ll stay right where I am. Do you need anything? Do you want a hug or to talk?”
Frankie shook her head and hugged her arms around her stomach. “L-left a-a-alone.” Her voice was shaking a lot.
She tightly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She needed to get her act together and quickly. Frankie was at work, and she shouldn’t let Noah affect her so much.
But he did.
Everything he did affected her, made her mind spin with thoughts and questions that didn’t feel like her own.
“Do you really want to be left alone?” he asked.
Her shoulders shook as her arms tightened around herself. No, she didn’t want to be left alone, but she didn’t want just anyone with her. She wanted someone she trusted and could break down in front of, but that wasn’t possible.
The one person she had come to trust was the one causing all of this.
“All right, you just take your time. I’ll let Noah know you are going to start a little later,” he gently offered.
Frankie whirled around, keeping her head down. “Don’t!” She raised her voice, panic engulfing her whole body.
“Don’t give you a couple of minutes? Or don’t tell Noah?” Trent asked.
She sucked in a breath. He was asking too many questions.
“Frankie, I have to talk to him about it. He’s our boss,” Trent explained.
“Please,” she whispered, her voice cracking at the end.
“Take some time to cool off and pull yourself together. I’ll give you that time,” was all he said.
Her heart ached, knowing Noah was going to find out she wasn’t doing so well right now. Was he going to come after and check on her? If he did, she was just going to have to make sure she wasn’t anywhere near him.
“We’re all here for you. Everyone in this building cares about you and wants to see you happy and okay,” Trent said. “If you need anything, let me or anyone else know.”
Frankie heard his footsteps leave, and she crumpled onto the bench right next to her. Noah was going to find out, and she wasn’t prepared for that.
“Are you okay?” a feminine voice asked.
Her head shot up, and she saw bright blue hair.
“Wow,” she whispered.
“I get that reaction a lot when people see me for the first time. Or well, recently. I just dyed my hair this color a couple of weeks ago, so people are still a little shocked,” she giggled.
“I’m Monty. I’m one of the bartenders here.
Or well, juice distributor. Snack dealer.
Whatever the other Littles like to call me. ”
Frankie chuckled and wiped under her eyes to get the tears away. “I’m Frankie. I clean the club.”
“We’ve technically met before, but you were asleep. Noah took care of you, though, right?” she asked. “I told him you were asleep and figured you were an employee, but I hadn’t met you yet.”
Frankie’s face fell at the mention of Noah’s name. She didn’t want to think of Noah or that Trent was probably speaking to him right now.
“Oh, I don’t like that face. What has Noah done?” she asked, sitting beside Frankie.
“Nothing,” she whispered. “That’s a lie. He kind of has done something, but I just don’t want to talk about it. I want to push it to the back of my mind and get on. I’ve got a lot to do.”
Monty stood up from the bench. “Well, if you want to talk, I’m always here. I’m not normally here this early, but I’m always here in the afternoon. Unless my younger brother is sick and I have to take care of him… which seems to be a lot more lately, but he is going to get better.”
“Why are you here early?” she asked.
Monty’s face turned bright red. “I was seeing someone. I’ll see you later!” she chirped as she skipped out of the room.