Chapter 29 #2
“What’s going on out here?” My heart froze as Noah’s voice confirmed my worst fear.
I sunk a little lower in the hot tub, wishing I could disappear as he emerged onto the balcony.
He was still dressed in his ski gear, and I had to admit Anna had a point about him.
Noah did look pretty hot in his baggy snow pants with his ski jacket hanging open to reveal a Weybridge Academy hoodie underneath.
His hair was tousled, and his cheeks were pink from being out in the cold.
I never thought a guy could look appealing in such messy, baggy clothes, but Noah somehow made it work.
He was grinning as he came out to see what was happening, but surprise flashed on his face, and his mouth cracked open slightly when he saw me in the water. I guess I was the last person he expected to be out here.
He got over his shock quickly though, and his gaze softened as he looked at me. There was a hint of a smile, and his expression seemed hopeful. I hoped me being here wasn’t going to give him the wrong idea.
“Isobel, you’re here.” He was speaking to me like we were the only two people out here, and I felt myself sink a little farther in the water.
“We were just about to leave.” I stammered out the words.
“No, you weren’t,” Luther replied. “You only just got here.”
I shot Luther a scowl, but he simply grinned before he returned his focus to his friends. “Are you guys getting in or what?”
“Yeah, I’ll just get changed,” Kaden replied.
Noah glanced at me as if he were waiting for my permission. I didn’t want him in the water with us, and I was still getting over the surprise of his arrival. But this was his friend’s house, and I could hardly insist he stayed inside while we were all out here enjoying the hot tub.
My hesitation didn’t give Noah any indication either way, and the silence left the door open for him to make a decision. Eventually he pulled his gaze from mine to look at Luther. “Sure, I’ll just be a sec,” he said.
Noah and Kaden disappeared into the house, and I tried to convince myself sharing a hot tub with Noah wasn’t a big deal. It’s not like we were alone, and I could always head home if it got too awkward. I still didn’t feel all that comfortable with the idea though.
Anna leaned across and punched Luther’s arm as soon as the guys were gone. “You told us they’d be out all day.”
Luther plastered a forced look of pain on his face, and he rubbed the spot on his arm. “I thought they would be,” he said. “You heard Kaden; they decided to come back early.”
Anna’s eyes narrowed on him before she sank back into the water. “I guess, but I’m still annoyed with you.”
Luther chuckled. “When aren’t you annoyed with me?”
Anna ignored him and turned to me. “Are you happy to stay?” she asked. “Because we can head back home if you want?”
I desperately wanted to leave, and Anna was clearly giving me a way out, but we’d only just gotten here, and I could see she wanted to stay.
Cress seemed to be holding her breath as she waited for my response.
Now that Kaden was here, I knew she’d want to stay more than ever.
I also knew they’d both insist on coming with me if I left.
I released a breath and shook my head. “We can stay a while longer,” I said. “It’s too cold to get out anyway.” The cold wasn’t the only thing stopping me from getting out. I didn’t want anyone to see the ridiculously small bikini I had on, and at least the water provided some concealment.
“That’s the spirit.” Anna nodded and gave me a reassuring smile.
Only moments later though, I considered braving the cold and running for the hills as Noah emerged from the house without his shirt on.
I may have wanted nothing to do with him, but that didn’t mean I was oblivious to how good Noah looked topless.
It was a small relief when he got into the hot tub between Cress and Luther.
But only small. He wasn’t sitting next to me, but he was right across from me, which meant I had to look at him.
I’d told my friends we could stay just a little while longer, so I was going to suck it up and stick it out for them. Still, I did my best to keep my focus on the view of the mountains and as far away from the boy sitting across from me who was watching me with his intense green eyes.
“I wonder what’s taking Kaden so long,” Cress said. “Maybe I should go check on him.”
“Oh, yeah, check on him,” Anna joked, earning herself a glare from Cress as she got out of the hot tub.
I rubbed my arms, feeling more and more unsettled.
Guilt was starting to build within me. It was one thing to come over here when Noah was on top of a mountain somewhere but a whole other thing now he was in the water with me.
I knew Wes would hate this, and I really didn’t want to upset him.
It didn’t help that every time I glanced Noah’s way I couldn’t stop myself remembering the way he’d wrapped his arms around me when he’d rescued me from crashing on the ski slope.
“How are you feeling after yesterday?” Noah’s voice made me jump slightly as it interrupted my thoughts.
It appeared I wasn’t the only one thinking about the moment he’d come to my rescue.
There was genuine concern in his eyes, and I knew he was only trying to be polite, but I didn’t like the way my heart beat a little faster when he looked at me that way.
“Uh, yeah, I’m fine, thanks, but I should go,” I said, pushing myself up so I could climb out of the hot tub.
The freezing air hit me as soon as I left the water, and a chill raced down my spine.
I didn’t look in Noah’s direction once as I scampered across the terrace to grab a towel and wrap it around me.
I didn’t want to see his reaction when he got a glimpse of my skimpy bikini.
“Isobel,” Noah called out to me, but I ignored him. “Did I say something wrong?”
I heard movement in the water and splashing as someone stood up. “Just let her go, Noah,” Anna said.
I didn’t wait to hear if he would listen to her warning and headed inside.
I needed to get out of this house. I needed to get away from Noah.
I wanted to hang out with my friends, but there were so many conflicting feelings churning inside me, and the swirling waters of the hot tub were just making it worse.
Once I was back inside, I realized I’d left my clothes on the balcony.
There was no way in hell I was going back out there though.
You couldn’t pay me enough to face Noah again in just a towel and this bikini.
I spotted one of the boys’ sweatshirts on the kitchen bench, so I grabbed it without a second thought.
I dropped my towel and pulled it over my head.
Thankfully, the hoodie was big enough that it almost fell to my knees.
I headed for the entrance and quickly put on my shoes. I pulled open the front door but gasped when I nearly collided with Wes and Sawyer who were standing right outside.
“Guys, you scared me,” I said, placing a hand against my chest.
“We got your note.” There was nothing warm about Wes’s tone, and I got the impression he wasn’t pleased.
“Yeah, it was icy as hell up the mountain, so we came back early,” Sawyer said. “What’s this I hear about a hot tub?”
“Oh, yeah, it’s out on the balcony,” I said, gesturing inside.
Sawyer didn’t need any more encouragement, and he waltzed right by me into the house. Wes didn’t move though, and my stomach dipped unpleasantly as he frowned at me.
“Whose sweatshirt is that?” he asked.
I glanced down. I’d forgotten I wasn’t wearing my own clothes.
That my legs were bare, and I’d stolen one of the boys’ hoodies.
It was only now, as I looked down at the Weybridge insignia across the front of it, I realized it wasn’t just any boy’s hoodie.
It was Noah’s. His initials were on the front, and I was guessing his surname was sprawled right across the back of it.
“Isobel?” Noah’s voice called out behind me, making me grimace. Wes was clearly already upset I was here, and Noah showing up wasn’t going to help. “Look, I’m sorry. I—” Noah’s voice cut off as he came to my side and saw Wes.
Both boys became rigid as they scowled at each other, and I wished Noah hadn’t chosen to stand so close to me. It somehow made everything look so much worse.
“Wes…” I reached out to him, but he took a firm step back as he glanced between Noah and me.
The anger in his eyes was palpable. “You’re here with him,” he said.
“I’m not here with him. Noah wasn’t even supposed to be here.”
“Right, and that’s why you’re wearing his sweatshirt?”
“Wes…” I tried to explain, but he wouldn’t give me a chance.
“If you’re not here together, why was he chasing after you?”
“Because—”
“Did you cheat on me?”
His accusation chilled me to the bone, and I let out a shocked breath. “No! I would never.”
Noah stepped forward as if to protect me from Wes’s words. “She didn’t cheat on you,” he growled. “And if you believe she’d even consider that for one second, you clearly don’t know Isobel at all.”
Wes stepped forward too, squaring up to Noah so they were inches apart. “This is none of your business, Hastings.”
Noah didn’t back down, and his scowl deepened as he stared at Wes. The boys were matched in height and build, and it felt like only the tension filling the air between them was stopping them from colliding.
“It became my business when you started hurling baseless accusations,” Noah continued. “When you started dragging my name through the mud right along with hers.”
“This is between me and my girlfriend,” Wes fired back.
Noah stood his ground though, maintaining the barrier he’d created between Wes and me. Standing between us only seemed to be aggravating Wes more though. Noah was making everything worse.
I pushed my way past Noah and turned on him. “Noah, would you please just go back inside?” I pointed into the house. Over his shoulder, I could see Anna, Sawyer, and Luther poking their heads out from the corridor that led through to the balcony. They’d obviously heard the commotion.
Wes let out a dry laugh when Noah didn’t immediately move. “Well, if he won’t leave, then I will.”
He turned and marched away from the house. I shot Noah a scowl before I took off after Wes.
“Wes, wait,” I called after him, but he continued powering across the driveway toward his house like he hadn’t heard me at all. “Wes, please.”
He didn’t look back, and it wasn’t until he got to the front door that I managed to catch him. I reached out to lightly touch his arm. “Would you just talk to me,” I said. “I can explain.”
Wes stepped back from me and shrugged off my grasp. “Explain?” he balked. “Isobel, you’re wearing Noah’s hoodie…”
I’d never seen him like this before. He was practically shaking with anger. “I didn’t know it was his,” I said. “It was the first sweatshirt I could find when I got out of the hot tub. I didn’t cheat on you. I would never.”
“You were still in the hot tub with him.”
“For about three seconds.” I folded my arms across my chest. “And it’s not like we were alone.”
His eyes were narrowed as he considered my explanation. “Is this why you didn’t text me to tell me what you girls were up to? So you could spend time with him?”
I was starting to get frustrated now. “No, I didn’t text you because I didn’t think I needed your permission. And like I’ve already told you, Noah wasn’t supposed to be there.”
He looked like he wanted to argue with that, so I cut him off before he got a chance. “I was just hanging out with my friends, Wes. And yes, Noah turned up, but I decided to leave once he arrived.”
“You didn’t think he’d be at the house he’s staying at?”
“Oh my gosh, Wes! Luther said he’d be gone all day, and Cress thought so too.
” I shook my head. “But that’s not the point.
The point is you don’t trust me. And if you can’t do that; if you can’t believe me when I say nothing happened, then something about this relationship isn’t working. It shouldn’t be this hard!”
“Yeah, maybe it’s just not worth it.” His face was stern, and his jaw clenched. He was deadly serious. I couldn’t handle this right now. I couldn’t deal with yet another heartbreak. So, I turned from him and ran down the driveway away from the house.
“Isobel!” Wes called to me, but I didn’t stop.
And he didn’t chase after me. So, I kept on going.
I ignored Luther’s place and continued down the road.
I must have looked ridiculous wearing only my snow boots and an enormous hoodie in this weather, but I didn’t care.
I was too upset to go back to Wes’s house, and Luther’s was the last place I wanted to be.
So, I kept moving forward, trying my best to ignore the cold as I hurried away.