59. Noah
We’re standing in front of the wall near my sister’s hospital room.
Dani looks like she’s going to murder me. Lucky for me, she doesn’t have her giant flashlight in her hand right now to kill me with.
She hits me below my shoulder. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
My eyes grow wide. “Sorry, my hand spazzed out.”
Sticking my tongue partially out, I burst out into laughter.
“Bullshit.” She crosses her arms underneath her breasts, reminding me I’ve seen them bare.
In fact, I’ve seen her naked body. Getting hard as I keep thinking about it. Don’t fucking go there, man.
She looks down at the bulge growing in my shorts, her mouth hanging partially open. “What the hell is turning you on right now?”
“You!” I raise my voice.
“Keep your voice down,” she says quietly, her jaw vibrating and placing her hands on her hips. “How? I’m not even doing anything.”
“It’s the Danielle Solomon effect, remember?”
I’m not telling her I’m picturing her wet, naked body in my head. Why the hell would I do that? That’s too weird.
“Right.” She shakes her head, flattening her kissable pink lips.
She walks into Lizzie’s room with me trailing behind her.
Lizzie’s face is essentially a blank canvas. “Look who finally decided to show up.”
I open my mouth to talk first. “We told you we were going to be running late, genius.”
“I’m fucking with you, shithead.” Lizzie’s eyes land on Mom and she points to us with both of her index fingers. “They’re taking me home.”
“We’re relieving you of Lizzie duty,” I tell Mom. “Dani and I will meet you back at the house. Celia, can you take my mom home?”
“It would be my pleasure.”
“Celia!” Mom shouts.
“Laura, just let the kids do this for Lizzie. Let them have their time to bond.”
Bonding time. Yeah, maybe this isn’t a good idea.
Celia senses Mom’s hesitation. “Let’s take this outside.” She wraps her arm around Mom’s shoulder, leading her over to the chairs hanging out in front of the room.
“I’ll be right back,” I say to my sister and Dani.
I run out of the room to catch up with Mom and Celia. When I do, I tap Mom on the shoulder and meet her confused gaze.
“Can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Of course,” she says.
“I’ll be waiting by the elevators,” Celia says as she rubs Mom’s back before she walks over to the elevators.
“How are you doing with all this?” I ask her.
“I don’t even know how to answer that to be completely honest with you.”
“That’s how I feel.”
“How is anyone supposed to feel when their husband and their child get into a car accident? And then their husband passes away.” She closes her eyes, her lips quivering.
“Lizzie isn’t a child though,” I say in the hopes of stopping any tears from coming out of her brown eyes.
“Oh, honey, you’re always going to be my children. I don’t care if you’re forty. I will still call you my child.”
I chuckle. “Fair enough.”
She studies my face and body language thoroughly. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”
“What?”
“I know you’re an adult, but you know you can talk to me about anything. You know that, right?”
I exhale, reaching my arms out and placing my hands on her shoulders.
“Dani and I are together.”
She rapidly blinks her eyes, moving her head around. “So, that means you guys are…” She waits for me to finish her thought for her.
“Dating.”
She nods in slow motion. “I see.”
“You’re freaking me out, Mom.”
“It’s a lot of information to absorb.”
“How? It was one sentence.”
She huffs. “Your dad knew this would happen. He told me you two getting together was inevitable.”
Inevitable is beginning to become one of my favorite words ever.
“Seems like you and Dani have an affinity for the word inevitable.”
She studies my face. “There’s something else you’re not telling me.”
Guiding Mom over the chairs hanging out in front of Lizzie’s room, we sit down next to each other and I face her.
Fuck, my heart is beating so damn fast.
I exhale. “I’m in love with her. And I didn’t tell her when we were together last night. I wanted to, but I chickened out. I’ve never felt this way about a woman before. When I saw her standing in the middle of the fourth floor in this hospital a month ago, I thought I was hallucinating. I was convinced she wouldn’t come, but she did, despite how she felt about me at the time.” I pause to catch my breath. “I was stubborn as hell back in high school, not listening to Dad or Grayson because I couldn’t wrap my head around the idea that I could be in love with a woman I couldn’t stand growing up.” I lick my lips. “When I’m with her, it feels like I’m underwater and I can’t come back up for air. All I want to do is hold her hand, hug her, and touch her in some way. So, yeah. I love Dani Solomon and I don’t know how to tell her.”
Mom breathes out through her nose, blinking her eyes as a tender smile spreads across her lips. “You’ve got it bad, Noah Bear. Is that why your shelves are full of romance books? It’s been to serve as a reminder of her after you two stopped talking?”
I nod, closing my eyes.
“Guess it’s time for some words of wisdom from your mom, huh?” She gives me a loving smile. “Love has its way of finding us when we least expect it. It can be terrifying, overwhelming, and exciting all at the same time. It’s like listening to a song for the first time and knowing right off the bat it will become a favorite of yours for a very long time.”
“Brain Damage by Pink Floyd has become one of my favorite songs of all time,” I babble. “We listened to it in my bedroom and the way she kept looking at me felt as if I wasn’t in my own body. She makes me feel everything when I’m with her. All I want to do is take care of her because she’s done so much for us. For her friends. For her family. She deserves someone who loves her unconditionally. Someone who treats her like a princess. Someone who worships the ground she walks on. Someone?—”
Mom cuts me off. “I think you’re talking about yourself, honey. She deserves someone like you.” She pauses. “You know, sometimes I wonder if you”re my son and if we’re from the same bloodline. You have such a big heart and you care so damn much about people. Let Dani have a piece of your heart, and let her in, even in the parts you don’t want her to see because I know she’ll love them. I know she loves you too.”
“How do you know?”
“Call it maternal instinct.” She winks at me.
“Hey,” Dani says as she walks over to us.
“I’ll talk to you later,” Mom tells me as she kisses my forehead.
Mom and I stand up and she walks over to the elevator. I watch her disappear with Celia.
Dani places her hand on her hip. “Is everything okay?”
Oh, you just missed me spilling my guts to my mom about how I’m hopelessly and desperately in love with you.
“Yeah, everything’s fine. Just had some mother and son bonding time.” I pause. “Where did you just come from?”
“I had to go to the bathroom after you chased down your mom.” She licks her lips. “I can go into more specific detail about what I did in there if you want me to.”
My mouth parts slightly. “I’ll pass.”
We make our way back inside Lizzie’s hospital room.
“I thought you were never coming back. God, you almost missed out on me giving myself a concussion by banging my head on the wall behind me from Mom giving me the whole PT spiel and everything,” Lizzie says.
“I would’ve paid to see that one,” I reply.
“You suck.” Lizzie sticks her middle finger up at me.
“Hey, Lizbug,” Dani greets my sister.
“Hey, lioness. Ugh, I slept so shitty last night. It’s not just that my back is killing me from the accident, but now it’s going to be even more sore from sleeping on this damn bed for several weeks. How did you two sleep?”
Dani and I look at each other. I clear my throat excessively. “Sorry. Had a lump in my throat.” She squeezes my ass just as I answer Lizzie’s question, making me spring forward a touch. “W—we slept fine.”
“You okay, little bro?”
I turn my head in Dani’s direction, eyes widening. “Uh-huh.” Turning away from me, she smiles at me. A goofy yet sneakily hot kind of smile.
“Oh my God. You two had sex!” Lizzie blurts out.
What the hell?
We both freeze in place.
“Shhhh,” I say as I place my index finger over my mouth. “The entire fourth floor is going to hear you!”
“I knew it,” she says, crossing her arms in front of her chest.
“How did you know?” Dani asks her, gently shaking her head.
“The energy between you two feels different. I felt it the moment you walked into the room. Noah, buddy, you were trying so hard to not look at Dani.”
There’s something else that’s hard right now. And it’s not me struggling to not look at Dani which doesn’t matter anymore since Lizzie knows.
Well, she doesn’t know everything.
“There’s more,” I say.
“More?” Lizzie asks.
“This isn’t a friends-with-benefits type of situation. It doesn’t even come close to it.” My eyes land on Dani’s. Her lips are partially open and she’s listening intently. “I’ve been absolutely crazy about this woman since high school. This past month and a half has made me reevaluate my feelings for her. Admit how I truly feel about her to myself and to her.”
This is it, Noah. Tell her that you love her. That you’re in love with her. Just fucking do it.
Dani’s holding her breath in anticipation of what I’m about to reveal. Yet, I feel like she already knows.
I just haven’t told her I love her with actual words.
“I’m—”
“Is everything okay in here?” A nurse with dirty blonde hair and hazel eyes asks us. I can’t make out her name tag.
Goddammit. Every time.
“Everything’s fine. Sorry for being too loud.”
“Yeah, so sorry,” Dani echoes.
“Just checking. I’m glad you’re going home today Lizzie.”
“Me too!”
“You got this,” the nurse says as she walks out of the room.
Dani and I peek our heads out into the hall to make sure nobody else is coming.
No more interruptions. I’m begging.
I pull Dani back into the room by her waist, twisting her around, so she faces me. I’m aware I’m staring at her full pink lips that hypnotize the shit out of me.
My sister is staring at the both of us. She’s anxiously waiting for something to happen. “Don’t mind me. Pretend I’m not even here,” she says.
Breaking eye contact with Dani, I turn my attention back to my sister and change the subject. “Did Mom call for a wheelchair?”
“She called for a wheelchair an hour ago. One of my nurses said someone is on their way with one.”
Just at the right moment, a female nurse with brunette hair rolls a wheelchair in front of the doorway. “Elizabeth Kaplan?”
“That’s me.”
The nurse nods her head, rolling the wheelchair further into the room. She helps Lizzie get into it.
I can’t help but notice my sister is checking her out.
“You’re very pretty…” She looks at her I.D. badge to get her name. “Leia. Like Princess Leia from Star Wars?”
“Elizabeth!” I shout.
“What?”
“I’m sorry about my sister. She’s on a ton of pain meds.”
Lizzie flips me off, causing Dani to burst out into laughter.
“No need to apologize. Let’s get you out of here, Miss Elizabeth.”
She gives Nurse Leia an extended salute. “Yes, ma’am.”
I check around the room to make sure that we all have everything.
Once I see we have everything, Leia pushes Lizzie out of the room and towards the elevator.
Dani and I follow at a measly pace. Interlocking her hand with mine, Dani looks up at me with those big beautiful brown eyes of hers.
I’m such a goner for this woman.
Leia rolls my sister into the elevator, but there’s not enough room for all of us to fit in there.
“Why don’t you wait for the next one?” Lizzie smirks, licking her lips and raising her eyebrows.
My sister’s a mind reader. I swear she crawls inside my head and finds out all the dirty things I’m thinking about. It’s not only cruel. It”s highly disturbing.
“Bad idea,” Dani says in a hushed tone into my ear.
“Sometimes bad ideas are actually good ideas in disguise.”
“See you guys downstairs,” Lizzie tells us as her middle fingers dance in the air.
God, how many drugs is she on?
“You’re such a…” The elevator door closes. “Moron.”
I press the down button.
Dani steers clear at any chance of looking me in the eyes.
I can’t take my eyes off her. The way her dark brunette hair frames her beautiful face. How her tank top is hugging every damn curve. How easy it is to make her blush, smile, and laugh.
The elevator doors open.
We step inside.
I can tell she’s waiting for me to make a move. Tension engulfs the air swirling around us. It’s so thick you couldn”t cut it with a sharp knife.
To my chagrin, she walks over to me. Her hips are swaying back and forth just to test my raging hormones.
My heart sinks all the way down to my stomach. Nerves are radiating throughout my body. “You coming over to kiss me, Solomon?”
“What would give you that impression?”
“You’re staring at my lips.”
“That obvious, huh?”
“Just shut up and kiss me already if you’re not all mouth.”
Her body slams into mine, kissing me like she hasn’t kissed me in days, weeks, or possibly months.
Ding. Level 3.
I’m going to miss these damn elevators because they’re magical.
I pull away, realizing I need to tell this gorgeous woman standing in front of me I’m in love with her.
“Dani, I need to finish what I was trying to tell Lizzie in her room. The truth is I was actually talking to you.”
She sees my chest heaving and notices I’m breathing heavily. “Are you having another panic attack?”
“No. There’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you.”
Ding. Level 2.
Her arms cage me in, brown eyes dissolving me like chocolate melting in the hot Florida sun. “Then, tell me already!”
“I’m in love with you. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you last night. I wanted to, but it never came out. I knew you were anxiously waiting for me to tell you. It’s just…I’ve never been in love before and didn’t know what it felt like. Until I met you. When I’m with you, nobody else exists. All I can think about is you. All I want to do is be near you. Kiss you. Hold your hand. Make you laugh. Be your shoulder to cry on. I want to be your everything. I love you.”
“You’re in love with me?” She smiles.
“Of course I am. I’ve been in love with you since we were teenagers. Hell, probably since we were kids.”
Ding. Lobby.
I walk out of the elevator, dragging her out with me. Her eyes are glassy. “Oh God, please don’t cry.”
“They’re happy tears. I promise.” She laughs through the tears, choking on them in an attempt to catch her breath. “Hey, Noah.”
“What’s up, Dani?”
“I’m in love with you, too. I’ve been wanting to tell you since this morning. Remember when Bella told you I had something to tell you? This is it. She thought it was ridiculous that I’ve been waiting for you to tell me you’re in love with me. I didn’t want to come off as desperate, so I kept my mouth shut. I’m not keeping it shut anymore. I love you.”
Tears are trickling down her face. I bring my thumb up to her cheeks, wiping away the tears falling out of her eyes.
We’re standing in the middle of the lobby.
I walk closer to her, sealing the gap between us.
All eyes are on us. There are a few elderly women sitting on the chairs behind us. A group of teenagers hanging out by the cafeteria entrance.
“Noah, people are watching.”
“Let them watch. They’re about to watch the best TV show of their lives. And it’s in real time, baby.”
“You’re such?—”
I cut her off. “An idiot?”
“Yeah.”
“But you love me anyway?”
“Of course, I love you. Even if you’re an idiot. My idiot.”
Gripping onto her back, I dip her before I plant a kiss on her. My hand is cupping one side of her face. Her lips are soft and sweet. I’m high on adrenaline. The rush of all this feels addicting and fucking incredible.
My lips release from hers. I bring her back up, so she can stand upright.
One of the elderly women stops us on our way out. “That was quite something, wasn’t it? Tell me who this handsome young man is, young lady.”
“This handsome young man is my boyfriend.”
The woman’s eyes land on me. “Hold onto this one.”
“I plan to keep her for a very long time.” I smile, winking at Dani.
She grins at the floor, cheeks turning red.
We say goodbye to the group of women and make our way out of the hospital. My sister and Nurse Leia are waiting for us in front of the sliding doors.
“Well, you guys definitely put on a show there,” Lizzie says with a big dumb smile spreading across her lips.
“You saw us?” Dani asks Lizzie.
“We both did. It’s hard not to because the doors are transparent and you were both in perfect view.”
“I’m going to go pull up the car.” I kiss Dani’s cheek. “I love you!” I shout as I walk away from her.
Running to the car, I feel so damn relieved I finally told Dani I’m in love with her and how I love her. The best part is she’s in love with me too. She. Loves. Me.
I wasn’t kidding when I told one of the elderly women we talked to in here. I’m keeping this woman for a long time. Or for as long she’ll keep me.
Pulling in front of the hospital, I roll down my window. “Ready to go home?” I ask my sister.
“Does it mean I have to deal with Mom and her annoying antics?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“I’d rather stay here.”
“Lizzie, Dad’s funeral is in two weeks.”
“Please don’t remind me.”
I’m not ready to say goodbye to Dad. And I know that Lizzie isn’t ready to say goodbye to him either.
God, I hope the next two weeks go by as slowly as possible.