Chapter Eighteen Goldie #4
But as I say it, it’s already forgotten because he’s blowing raspberries with his lips.
Noah looks down at me. “I don’t think anything’s getting him back down. Why don’t you and your sister head back to the house and get some rest. I’ll stay here until his family gets here.”
I frown because I don’t want to leave Noah, but Chase’s meandering thoughts make me laugh again as I look over my shoulder.
He’s staring at my sister again. “You look like an angel.” He gasps. “Am I dying?”
She starts to get up, but he whisper-screams, “Wait, wait . . .”
Evie stares me down. “I am dangerously close to cutting off the drip. Pain can be a really good motivator. Maybe now’s the time he focuses on his healing.”
“Evie,” I admonish, but Noah laughs.
Chase tries to wink, but both eyes close. “Angel . . . just tell me one thing.”
Evie drips her gaze to him. “Yes, you should go to sleep.”
He points toward the ceiling. “Does he know that I’m your food god?” She glances at me as my mouth drops open. “I saw you eating my meat the other night . . . hallelujure.”
“Oh my god.” I laugh as Evie shoots to her feet in protest. “I literally got outvoted for the restaurant.”
Noah’s chuckling, too, as Chase’s eyes drift shut.
“Do you want to head back?” Noah says down to me. “You could probably use some sleep.”
I’m shaking my head, but my body betrays me and yawns.
“Yeah,” my sister says. “Because I’m gonna need my strength to get through my impending divorce.” She points to Chase, who is awake again and tries to tongue her finger. “This is my good deed for the year. I will not let either of you forget it.”
“Noted.” Noah disconnects from me and walks around the hospital bed to hug her. “Thank you for being here with my girl and being so quick on your feet.”
He lets her go, and she fake punches his shoulder. “I expect a really, really expensive Christmas gift this year.”
I grin, wrapping my arms around him from the back.
“I’ll do you one better,” he teases. “I promise to tell him this was a fever dream. You were never here.”
Evie points at him. “And this is why you’re my favorite.” She tilts her head to where mine is peeking out from under his arm. “Are you coming with me or staying here?”
“I think coming . . .” I peer up at Noah. “But give me a sec.”
“Yeah, just meet me at the car.”
She turns and heads out the door, yelling over her shoulder, “Night, hubby.”
“Have my babies,” Chase barely gets out before he drifts back into dreamland again.
Noah pulls me into a hug. The kind you stand in for a few minutes to just decompress. We’re wrapped around each other, breathing at the same time as the exhaustion of the day finally starts to hit me.
He exhales and kisses the top of my head before I push to my tiptoes and kiss the bottom of his chin.
“Are you sure you want me to go? I can just go grab you some nonwork clothes and change mine and be right back. Or I can stay—I am in pajamas, so it’s convenient.”
He sighs. “What the hell would I do without you?”
“Don’t worry, you’ll never find out.” I smile.
“Baby, I’m fine. Promise. Go home and get some rest. I’ll let you know if anything changes. Me and the food god are gonna watch game highlights and sleep.”
“Okay.” I chew the inside of my cheek, still wanting to ask him if he needs to talk. “It’s just—hearing how scared you were earlier. And how triggered you were about your mom . . .”
He rubs the back of his neck but says nothing, which says everything.
“And I’m sure the detectives didn’t help. Are you really okay? You can talk to me, you know. You don’t have to be an artichoke today. We can get right down to the heart.”
He cradles my face with one hand. “I swear to you everything’s fine. I am fine.” He swallows before giving me a tight smile and pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Stop worrying. I promise I’m good.”
I kiss him one more time, unable to shake my worry because I hate that he isn’t talking to me. But I don’t push. He’ll open up when it’s time. And maybe that’s not in the hospital where his best friend almost died.
Noah walks over to the chair next to Chase’s bed as I head to the door.
“I love you,” I say, looking back.
Noah smirks with a wink. “I know and I love you too.”
I pull the door open and head to the elevator bank. Evie’s probably already to the car by now, so I pull my phone from my hoodie and send her a text.
Me: pick me up out front.
The elevator dings, and the sound of the doors sliding open lifts my eyes. But I instantly frown because staring back at me are the two detectives from earlier.
I take a quick step back to give them room to exit. “Sorry.”
But neither moves, so I step inside. My brows draw together as I put my back to them, leaning over to press the button for the main floor.
“Have you found any leads yet?” I throw out almost immediately, glancing over my shoulder.
“You’re Goldie Monroe, correct?” the one to my right says.
“Yeah.” I let my answer sit for a second before I turn slightly to face him. “Are we in trouble for something?”
I shift to look at the detective on my left, who smiles and shakes his head. “No. Should you be?”
What the hell is going on? That same uneasy feeling I had before starts to swirl in my stomach. And it’s not because I’m caught off guard. Something is off.
“No . . . I just . . . this seems weird. Why were you asking Noah so many questions earlier? And why are you riding down in an elevator just to talk to me?”
He inhales deeply just as the elevator begins to slow. “If you don’t mind me asking, how long have you and your boyfriend been together?”
“What?” I blurt out as the doors open.
The one with the mustache motions his arm for me to exit, so I do, but as soon as I’ve cleared the crowd getting on, I turn to face both of them.
“How is that relevant to Chase’s accident?” I hold up my hand. “And if you could answer just one of my questions before asking me another, that’d be great.”
My eyes volley between them, but only Mustache answers. “We just want to know how well you think you know your boyfriend.”
Do they think Noah had something to do with the accident?
I draw my brows together. “Well enough to know he’d never hurt his friend. He was across the country when this happened. You know that, right?”
The quiet detective shrugs. “And you’re one hundred percent sure about that?”
My blood boils. This has to be a joke. I think back to how uncomfortable he looked when they were questioning him. Unbelievable. He’s devastated over his friend, and they were accusing him of the crime.
I scoff. “Oh, I see what’s happening here.
A kid from a prominent wealthy family gets hurt, and you see Noah—all the tattoos, the black clothes—and you assume he’s done something terrible.
News flash: Those two love each other like brothers.
You’re barking up the wrong tree. Go do your jobs better and catch the person who actually did this to Chase and stop harassing the ones who love him. ”
I turn to stalk away, but Mustache Guy lifts his finger. “One more question. Where’s your boyfriend from?”
An irritated huff leaves my chest as my eyes meet with him again.
“Hempstead,” I snap. “It’s in New Hampshire, in case you’re unfamiliar.”
He chuckles. “Yeah, that’s what he said too. I guess I’ll just have to check again. It was the weirdest thing. We couldn’t find a Noah Adler from Hempstead.”
I roll my eyes. “I’d say your inadequacies are your problem. Stop making them ours.”
This time, I don’t turn around, instead stalking straight to my sister’s waiting car.