Chapter 12 Sasha
Chapter Twelve
SASHA
“Quinn?” I knocked lightly on her bedroom door. I was greeted with a long silence. “Quinn?” I prompted.
I heard the shuffle of footsteps before my daughter swung her door open. Her dark hair was in a lopsided ponytail, and her dark eyes blinked at me through her glasses. “What?”
“If you need anything, Melanie is right next door.”
The only word I could think of to describe my fifteen-year-old daughter’s expression was sullen.
She scrubbed her toe back and forth on the hardwood floor.
The motion drew my eyes downward, and I idly noticed she was wearing mismatched socks—one bright royal blue with stripes and the other pink with polka dots.
“What would I need?” she asked, pushing her glasses up on her nose. “I’m just going to play some video games online. Matilda is here to keep an eye on me.”
I glanced over at Matilda who thumped her tail on Quinn’s bed where she was comfortably ensconced. “Honey, I don’t know what you might need, but I just wanted to remind you to check with her if you need anything.”
Quinn nodded slowly. “Mm-hmm. She’s always right next door, Mom. Where are you going for dinner?”
“I’m not sure yet. Why don’t you ask Noah when he gets here?”
My daughter didn’t actually growl, but I imagined if she wasn’t trying so hard to play it cool, she would’ve. Just then, the doorbell rang. Quinn moved to close her door, and I put my hand on it. “I’d like you to meet Noah. He’s an old friend.”
“And your new boyfriend,” she said, complete with an annoyed sigh.
I pressed my lips together. I wasn’t quite ready to call Noah my boyfriend, but I wasn’t about to get into that little debate with my daughter.
“Come on,” I said with as much gentleness as I could muster in my tone.
With another heavy sigh, Quinn followed me silently down the hallway to the living room.
We didn’t have a large apartment. We had exactly what I could afford—a small two-bedroom in Boston.
It was a common New England setup—an old home renovated into apartments.
We shared the second floor with Melanie.
She was a good friend and had babysat Quinn when she was younger.
Quinn didn’t need a babysitter these days, but I liked having someone for her to check in with if needed. Melanie was a godsend.
The small hallway in my place had two bedrooms and a bathroom with laundry. The rest of the apartment was a living room with a small archway into a kitchen.
I opened the door, and the moment I saw Noah standing on the other side, my belly did a quick flip. I abruptly got nervous and fluttery—a feeling I did not want to have in front of my daughter.
Noah’s shoulder rested against the wall with his hand tucked in his pocket.
He looked good enough to eat. Based on what he was wearing, I presumed he had come here straight from work.
He wore slacks with leather shoes paired with a navy down jacket over a button-down.
He glanced up, smiling the second he saw me.
My pulse revved like a little engine in my body.
My own lips tugged into a smile instantly, and I felt like a foolish girl.
My flustered state was made worse with Quinn’s watchful eyes. “Come in,” I said quickly.
Noah stepped through the door, and Matilda circled his legs.
He greeted her with a thorough scratch behind her ears before she trotted away.
Quinn was hovering several feet back, her arms crossed tightly and the foot with the pink polka dot sock tapping on the rug.
Inexplicably, I recalled that she had picked out that rug.
She loved that brightly woven rug. She’d decorated most of the apartment.
It had been done in bits and pieces when we could afford new things and when she was old enough to have opinions.
It wasn’t as if I’d never been on a date before. It’s just I’d never been on a date with a man I really liked. I worried that I liked Noah too much. I didn’t even really know what to do with him, much less how to incorporate him into my life with Quinn or if he even wanted that.
Gah! There was no instruction manual for dating with kids, much less with teenagers. I thought maybe I could find a self-help book on it. But, even then, every situation was so unique.
Quinn looked at Noah, her lips pressed in a tight line. She lifted her chin as if she were daring him.
“Noah, this is my daughter, Quinn.” I gestured back and forth between them. “Quinn, this is Noah. I’ve known him—” I began
She interrupted me quickly. “I know … since you were a kid.” She cleared her throat. “Nice to meet you.”
Noah looked at her quietly, his eyes warm. “Nice to meet you as well.”
He held his hand out, and I held my breath. I honestly didn’t know if she was going to shake his hand. I really didn’t want to have to prompt her to be polite.
After several seconds, she uncrossed her arms and shook his hand rather vigorously. She then surprised me by asking, “Where are you going to dinner?”
Noah shrugged easily as she dropped his hand. “I hadn’t decided. Do you have any recommendations?”
Quinn liked that. I could tell. While she didn’t actually smile, I could see the hint of one glimmering in her eyes. She twisted her lips, tapping her toe. “Mom likes lobster rolls. She also likes good Italian food. It can’t be shitty or cheap.”
“What if cheap is still good?” Noah countered, a grin teasing at the corners of his mouth.
Thank God he had enough sense not to try to pull me into this conversation. The minute Quinn thought he was trying to have a private joke with me, her hackles would rise.
Quinn nodded, blinking behind her glasses. “Well, in that case, that’s fine.”
“Is there something you would like if we brought takeout home for you?” Noah added.
Quinn bit her lip, tapping that pink polka-dotted toe again. “Maybe. It’s cold out tonight, so I think Italian. A good calzone. Lobster rolls are better in the summer,” Quinn offered.
“True,” Noah said with a quick nod. “That’s when the lobster is fresh. We’ll get Italian. I know a place with excellent calzones. Shall I put your order in my phone, or does your mom know your favorite?”
Quinn actually smiled, although she was still eyeing him skeptically. “She knows. But it’s Greek.”
“Got it.”
Quinn looked at me. “Have fun.”
“Text me if you need anything,” I called as she began walking away.
“I’ll text Melanie,” she called over her shoulder.
Noah glanced toward her and back to me, a subtle smile teasing his lips again. I reached for my coat, sliding my arms into it just as her door closed.
“Well, she didn’t slam it,” I offered as I glanced up at him.
Stepping closer, he dipped his head and brushed his lips across mine.
I thought he meant for it to be a brief kiss, but I was wrong.
He brought me flush against his body, his palm sliding up my back to cup my nape as he dropped kisses on each corner of my mouth before fitting his mouth over mine and sliding his tongue between the seam of my lips.
I was breathless by the time he drew back.
“Noah!” I whispered.
“I missed you,” he said, entirely unrepentant. “Her door is closed, and she can’t see us.”
I shook my head as I zipped up my jacket and then reached for my purse. Noah curled his hand around mine when we stepped through the door.
“Who is Melanie?” he asked as we walked down the stairs to the main entrance on the first floor.
“My neighbor. She’s in the apartment across the hallway upstairs.
She’s lived there since we moved in and owns the building.
She used to babysit when Quinn was younger, and now she’s there if I ever need her in a pinch.
Quinn doesn’t really need a babysitter when I’m gone for a few hours, but I like having someone nearby. ”
Noah held the door open, waiting as I walked through. The cold winter air of January in Boston struck my cheeks when I stepped outside.
“That’s nice.” He caught my hand as the door swung shut behind us.
This was the first time we’d seen each other since last week in Haven’s Bay.
Although it had been only four days since we got back, our time there felt like a distant memory.
It was so separate from my day-to-day life.
Even if my vacation hadn’t included hot nights with Noah, it was nothing like my regular life.
I’d missed him acutely, which was unsettling for me.
I’d discovered that he was a reliable caller and texter.
He had called me every single day since we’d gotten back from Boston.
He tried to persuade me to go to dinner sooner, but I told him I wanted to give Quinn a few days to adjust to the idea.
She’d scoffed at me when I told her that.
Moments later, the holiday lights glittered as we drove through Boston. “Where are you taking me?”
“Obviously, an Italian place with great calzones,” he teased. “I know a good one. It’s actually right in downtown Boston. We don’t have to worry about parking.”
Downtown parking in Boston was a forever challenge. “No?”
“We’ll use the parking lot for my work. That’s one handy perk of having to drive downtown for work every day.”
“I don’t even know where you live in Boston,” I commented. “How long is your commute?”
“I actually don’t live that far from you. About five minutes by car and maybe a fifteen-minute walk.”
“Really?”
He nodded and turned onto the street that led to downtown Boston. “We didn’t really discuss our Boston lives much last week. It’s a good neighborhood, but not right downtown and sort of affordable.”
I laughed. “Absolutely. I suppose it is logical. I lucked into my place. Melanie knows my boss and gave me a good price. I don’t know if I could have afforded it without that connection.”
Noah nodded before adding, “Quinn looks a lot like you. She seems like a nice kid.”
“I’m glad she was polite tonight. She’s not accustomed to me dating anyone.”
“No?”
“We already had this conversation. I hardly ever date. I’ve dated so little she doesn’t even know I’ve dated. I think she’s a little worried because I already know you, so she thinks it’s going to be a thing.”
“A thing?”
“Her description, not mine,” I said dryly.
“What is a thing?”
“According to her, it’s a relationship. She teased me and then cried, so…” My words trailed off, and a sigh slipped out.
I was startled when I felt Noah’s hand curl around mine, pulling it from my lap. His thumb brushed along the side of my wrist. “She’s fifteen, and she’s had you all to herself. It’ll be an adjustment for her.”
I glanced at his profile, taking in the strong, clean lines. My belly flipped again, and my heart clanged like a bell in my chest. “I know. Is this a good idea?”
“Having dinner?” His eyes slipped briefly to mine and then ahead again as he came to a stop at a stoplight.
“Yes, this whole thing.” I waved a hand vaguely in the air. I was a nervous wreck, and I hated it.
“Sasha, I think it is. You’re not just a fling to me. I know we have to take it one step at a time with Quinn. She’s important to me, even if I just met her.”