35. Noah
NOAH
Shit.
Well, that’s one way to ruin the night.
Jeremy hates talking about our family, especially his mother. That woman deserves to be brought back from the dead, tortured, and then re-killed for what she did to him.
I need to try to change the night around. These two have to click. I already fucked it up with my little prank. Honestly, I didn’t think Willow was that serious about the sweet thing. I gotta know the story behind that and the Monopoly thing.
“So, Jenna, what do you do for a living?” I ask.
“I’m a part-time waitress right now at a brunch place downtown, but I’m in college.”
“What are you studying?” Jeremy asks, stopping to take a sip of his drink.
“Fashion design.”
“That’s cool. That explains the matching outfits. You two look amazing in those dresses.”
Atta boy, Jeremy.
“Thank you. I’ve loved designing clothes ever since I was a kid. My grandma taught me how to sew, and by ten I was designing my first outfit.”
“Holy shit. Really? That’s young.”
“Yeah. I needed a distraction, and sewing helped me cope with a lot of shit,” she says before taking a long sip of her drink.
I recognize that look. It’s the same one Jeremy gets when anything reminds him of his mother.
“I understand that more than you know,” he says softly as he places a hand on her back.
She seems to soften at the touch. I wrap my arm back around Willow’s shoulders and pull her closer. She melts into me while sipping on one of the shakes. Her eyes are closed, and she’s just enjoying the music playing from the other side of the bar.
“What are you doing tomorrow?” I ask her.
“What?” she asks, breaking out of the music trance.
“I was just wondering what you were doing tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow’s Sunday? Um…I don’t think I have anything going on. Do we, Jenna?”
“I have to work in the morning.”
“Shit, that’s right. What time is it?”
“Almost ten,” Jeremy says as he grabs his phone. “Yep, nine forty-three.”
“Damn. We might have to get going soon. Don’t you open?” Willow asks Jenna.
“It’s fine. I’ve worked a shift on only two hours of sleep. I’ll be fine,” she says, but the last word is followed by a small yawn.
“How about we finish up, and I can drive you two home?” I ask.
“Um…I know what you drive, Noah. You can’t fit multiple people in that thing,” Willow says, nudging me, but I just pull her closer.
“I have a different vehicle tonight.”
“Oh, what fancy sports car did you drive tonight?”
“I drove my truck.”
“You have a truck too?” she asks, stunned.
“Yep. I also have a boat and jet skis. And quads.”
“You must really like the great outdoors.”
“I do. It’s my favorite place to be. I’m thinking about buying some property up north.”
“Really? Where at?” she asks.
“Just up in the thumb.”
Jeremy and Jenna are in their own little world.
I can see Jenna turned sideways in the booth with her legs tucked under her.
Jeremy’s already scooted closer and has also angled his body to face hers more.
His one arm is on the back of the booth, and the other is on her knee.
They are completely unaware of our conversation.
I wonder if I have Jeremy take Jenna home in my truck, would Willow take an Uber back to my place?
“Do you want to come over? I live right on the water,” I ask. My voice cracks only slightly from nerves. I shouldn’t push so fast, especially with how last night ended, but fuck it.
“Tomorrow?”
“No. Tonight.”
“Noah…”
“What? I just want to show you the house and the lake. Jeremy can take Jenna home in my truck. You and I can Uber back to my house. Then Jeremy can drive the truck back, and I’ll take you home later.”
“I don’t know. I couldn’t leave Jen…What the hell?”
She glances over to say she couldn’t leave Jenna, but Jenna is already kissing Jeremy, blissfully unaware of the world around her.
“I think she’ll be fine without you,” I whisper against her neck.
I felt her body shudder earlier when I whispered in her ear, and it just did it again.
“We really shouldn’t.”
“Why?”
“Because you…We…Damn it, Noah. I told you last night. We can’t…”
I don’t give her the time to finish that sentence.
Without thinking, my one hand grabs onto the back of her neck, the other cups her face, and the next second her lips are on mine.
Fuck. The rush of pleasure that washes over my body has my eyes rolling.
Her soft moan as I bite gently on her lower lip has my cock hardening.
She doesn’t pull away. She doesn’t fight this. She feels this connection between us. Even if she doesn’t know why it’s there, I know she feels it.
Every kiss and bite on those perfect, plump lips has her gasping. Her fingers slowly moved from my chest up to my neck before she tangled them in my hair.
*Ahem*
A throat clears, breaking Willow’s spell on me.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I think we need to get going, Willow,” Jenna says, and I can tell Jeremy is just as flustered as I am.
“Willow, please,” I practically beg.
“I can take Jenna home in an Uber to make sure she gets home safe and sound,” Jeremy cuts in.
“Then how will you get to my place?” I ask.
“Uber.”
“That’ll be too much money. Just take my truck. We’ll take the Uber.”
I watch Jenna out of the corner of my eye, mouthing the word please to Willow, and my stomach knots.
Is she begging her not to leave her with Jeremy, even though just a few moments ago they were practically tongue fucking each other?
I swear to God if he did something to fuck this up, I’m going to kill him.
“Okay, that works,” Willow’s soft voice cuts through the anger simmering in my veins.
“So you’ll come over?”
“As long as Jenna’s cool with Jeremy taking her home.”
“Oh yeah. I’m good. You two go have fun…Lots of fun.” She winks at Willow, causing her to blush.
I make eye contact with our waitress from across the restaurant and nod. Thankfully, she noticed from this far away and quickly came over with the bill.
“Can we have a few boxes, please?” Jenna asks.
The waitress nods, walking off then quickly returning with four boxes. We pack up our remaining burgers, all eager to get the hell out of here.
“One more drink while we wait for the Uber, then?” Willow asks as Jenna and Jeremy stand to put on their jackets.
“Sure. I’ll take one of whatever your favorite is,” I say as I stand to get my keys out of my pocket.
“Why? Just ‘cause it’s my favorite, you think it’ll be your favorite too?”
“It’s worked out so far, hasn’t it?” I wink down at her, watching her chew that bottom lip like she’s holding back words.
“Thanks for tonight, Noah.”
Jenna opens her arms for a hug and stares up at me. I’m hesitant. I’m not the biggest fan of physical contact, but I can tell from the look in her eyes this isn’t just about pleasantries. She wraps her arms around my neck, hugging me and pulling me closer before whispering in my ear.
“Remember, I know what you look like. I have her location, and I’ll kill you if you hurt her. Trust me, I know how to dispose of a body. Oh, and the back of her neck is her sweet spot. She told me one night when she was drunk. Good luck.”
“Thanks, Jenna,” I whisper back, then she pulls away, slapping me on the shoulder before bending to hug Willow.
“Love ya, babe. Text me if you need anything,” she says to Willow.
“Love ya. I’ll see you later.”
“Or tomorrow?” Jenna winks.
Willow looks up at me and can’t hide that adorable, embarrassed smile. She hesitates before finally answering her friend.
“Or tomorrow.”
Fuck yes!