Chapter 17
SEVENTEEN
NOAH
Panic.
That’s the only feeling I could muster up as Gracie walked into the cottage and how the fuck I managed to act so nonchalant in the face of things, I have no idea. I thought for sure that she had figured it out. Why else would she be coming here knowing the rest of the guys aren’t here?
I had honestly expected her to march into the theater room guns blazing and ream me out for what I’d be doing.
But that didn’t happen.
No, instead, she confided in me about what I’d—sorry, about what her super crazy and creepy stalker—has been doing.
Shame on him, how dare he do that to her?
So yeah, I was fucking panicking. Panicking over nothing, it seems.
Because now?
Well now, I’m fucking delighted.
Things couldn’t have worked out better for me.
Holy shit, it’s taking everything in me not to grin like a lunatic right now. Jesus, it’s honestly been hard not to laugh at the absurdity of this entire conversation.
This is absolute perfection.
I couldn’t have dreamed up a better scenario if I tried.
I wanted to find a way to keep her close and feeling safe, and well, I guess I have found a way to do that.
Correction, she was the one who came to me.
All of my efforts have finally come to this, and it couldn’t have worked out more beautifully.
What better way to get close to her than to protect her from her scary stalker?
Who better to protect her from the guy stalking her than… the guy stalking her?
It’s brilliant really, since whenever she’s with me, the stalker won’t bother her. And whenever I’m conveniently unable to be at her side, her stalker can swoop in and watch out for her.
I mean, I don’t particularly like that she’s scared of me, but she doesn’t know it’s me, so as long as I can keep up appearances on both ends and she begins to feel closer to both of us, she’ll accept that we’re one and same eventually.
Surely, she’ll start to fall for us both and then when she realizes we’re one and the same, she’ll realize she’s madly in love with me, right?
She’ll have to.
She won’t have another choice.
Okay, so maybe I’m a little delusional, but love makes everyone crazy.
It’s fine, everything will be fine.
She looks like such a beautiful mess right now, and it’s clear she came here straight from waking up and realizing that I was in her dorm. Pride fills me at the notion of her coming to me of all people. Not her friends, not Logan or Harley or Cole. Not the police and not her parents, but me.
She stares at me expectantly and I belatedly realize that she asked me a question.
But what was it?
I wrack my brain.
So, will you help me?
I school my features into a look of contemplation. “Of course, little one. But why me?”
What is it that makes you need me, of all people, love?
She worries her bottom lip and I nearly lose what little control I have and pull it free to bite down on it myself.
Fuck, this is hard.
Empasis on hard.
Being alone and in such close proximity to her is taking more control than I ever thought necessary.
“You’re the levelheaded one. The one who can control himself. I don’t want the others to know because I don’t want them to go off halfcocked and try and kill this guy. I trust you, and I know that you’ll protect me wholeheartedly while also respecting my wishes.”
I hold back a snort. Able to control myself? My actions lately are proving otherwise.
But she came to me because she trusts me.
My chest warms and I have to quell back the urge to pull her into my lap and hold her.
My eyes roam over her workout leggings and hoodie that she would never usually leave the house wearing and I know she must have been scared when she woke up this morning.
I know I should feel bad about that.
But I can’t bring myself to feel anything but elation at her sitting here with me.
My eyes snag on the bracelet and fuck, my already semi hard dick thickens in my sweats. I shift so she can’t see the evidence of my arousal.
She’s still wearing it.
I’m convinced that her still wearing the gift I carefully picked out for her means that she’s already halfway in love with me.
Just the other half to go.
I don’t bring attention to it though, because I don’t want her to feel like it’s wrong to be wearing it then watch her take it off. The longer I don’t acknowledge it, the longer she’ll keep wearing it.
Hopefully.
I like seeing her in something that I bought for her, like I’m marking her, claiming her, like she’s showing the world that she’s mine.
I mean, maybe that’s being a tad dramatic since it’s just a bracelet that literally no one will understand the significance of, but we’ll work our way up to things that will really show she belongs to me.
We’ll start with her wearing the bracelet.
We’ll finish with her taking my last name.
Or maybe I’ll take hers? I don’t mind, so long as the world knows we belong to each other.
“You know I’ve always got your back. What is it, exactly, that you need me to do?” Other than pretending to protect you from the stalker that is actually me. “Are you sure we shouldn’t tell the others? Report it? We have no idea how dangerous this guy is.”
The answer is very.
Not to her, of course. Never to her.
Just a danger to every other guy who even glances her way.
She looks unsure for a moment, as though she’s really considering my words before shaking her head, that determination flashing in her eyes once more that makes me want to kiss the fuck out of her.
“No telling anyone. At least not yet. I don’t want to worry everyone and make it a big spectacle when he’ll probably be bored of me by next week.”
I suppress a snort.
That’s never gonna happen, babe.
“Okay, we can do that. But what is it that you actually want me to do?”
She shifts in her seat, and I have the distinct feeling that she has no goddamn idea of what she wants me to do about it.
“Okay,” I say, putting her out of her misery.
“How about I try to come up with a plan to figure out who this guy is, and we can deal once we figure out his identity? In the meantime, I’ll casually get Logan to look into your security system.
” I definitely won’t. “And I’ll stick to you like glue.
As often as I can, anyways. Between classes and trying to keep the guys from becoming suspicious… ” I trail off and she nods eagerly.
“That’s perfect! And I’d never expect you to be with me 24/7. You have a life, too, and I don’t expect you to put your life on hold for me.”
Only I would.
I absolutely would.
Since she is my fucking world and I’d do literally anything for her.
She can’t know that though.
Not yet.
Soon, I promise myself.
“It’ll be hard to figure out who he is without involving Logan since he’s probably the best person to track someone down, but he’s taught me a few tricks over the years and I’m sure we can figure it out.”
Her eyes fill with tears, and the sight fucking guts me yet turns me on at the same time.
Holy shit, I’m fucked up.
Oh well.
“Hey, hey, hey. Don’t cry, little one.” I slide off of the sofa and crouch in front of her before taking her face in my hands. I gaze up at her, trying not to look at her with awe in my eyes. “We’ll figure it out, yeah? It’s gonna be okay.”
Her chin wobbles but she pulls herself together and just when I think she’s about to pull away from me, she does the opposite. She flings herself towards me and I go falling backwards, landing on my ass with a lap full of Gracie.
I shift so she can’t feel just how inappropriately turned on I am right now before wrapping my arms around her and pulling her tighter into my embrace. I let the feeling of her wash over me, taking comfort of having her in my arms like this for the first time.
Sure, we’ve hugged before, but it’s never been more than a fleeting, casual embrace.
Never anything like this.
And I know that whatever fucked up shit I’ve done to her lately was clearly a step in the right direction.
“Thank you, Noah,” she whispers.
I hold back a groan as my name leaves her lips.
Fuck, just how many times have I fantasized about holding her like this? How many times have I imagined feeling her body against mine like I am right now?
It would be so easy, so fucking easy to drop the facade and take her right here and now like my body is aching for me to do, but I need to exercise restraint.
I can’t kiss her like I want to.
I can’t let my hands wander down to her ass and squeeze her through her leggings like I want to.
I can’t strip off her clothes and bend her over the sofa while I pound into her from behind before I wrap my hand around her—
Nope.
I can’t think like that.
I can’t let my thoughts wander when she’s so close and my resolve is this close to breaking.
She trusts me, more than anyone else.
She came to me when she could have gone to a number of other people.
And I won’t break that trust.
Well, no more than I already am.
For now, I’ll just have to be her friend and hold back the impulses I have when I’m with her as myself.
I can do this.
For her, I can do anything.
“Don’t ever thank me, little one. I’ve got your back.”
She pulls away and looks up at me, a small smile gracing her lips that does nothing to ease the temptation to kiss her.
Her green eyes sparkle and I get lost in them for a moment, so fucking thankful that she’s in my life.
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t in love with her, and it’s been painful, not having her with me.
But I wouldn’t change a thing.
Not. A. Single. Thing.
Because I’m pretty sure this was always the way things were meant to go.
We have to get through the hard times to get to a good place.
We have to travel through the dark to get to the light.
“I knew coming to you was the right thing to do.”
You can say that again.