13. Noah
I swore I wanted to be aloof and mysterious, but I’d never quite mastered the art of shutting the fuck up.
And that problem only got worse in True’s presence.
If you looked up the word “rambling” in the dictionary, there would be a picture of me, grinning like a fool.
Because why the hell had I just turned a casual twenty minute drive into honesty hour?
I didn’t know why I felt so comfortable around her. It had been like that since day one. She still made me nervous as hell, but not nervous like I didn’t trust her. Nervous like she was fine as hell and it took everything in me to focus when she was in my presence.
Obviously, I was getting over that. There was a budding sense of familiarity with her. I didn’t doubt that seeing her every day had accelerated that sense of closeness.
I liked her. And I wanted her to know me.
Even if it came out as a rambling trauma dump while she did her makeup in my passenger seat.
The timing was wild, and I still couldn’t bring myself to regret opening up to her.
I should probably talk to my therapist about that.
If True cared about me revealing parts of myself I usually kept hidden, it never showed on her face. She listened without judging and didn’t interrupt me. The only other person who listened to me that intently was Greyson and I’d always thought he was the exception—not the standard.
Once she was in the bookstore, I drove the next block over and parked my truck in a parking space behind the purple BMW I knew belonged to Romeo Wilde, the owner of Soulstice Apothecary.
With a final glance at the makeup bag True left in my passenger seat, I hopped out the truck and walked inside the herbal shop my sister worked at.
“Welcome to Soulstice, my name is Lot—” Her eyes swelled and she was around the counter before I could make it three feet inside the door. My sister wrapped me in a hug, letting her head rest against my torso while she asked, “Noah. What are you doing in town?”
With a laugh, I pulled away from her. “You make it sound like I live outta town, Lottie.”
She scrunched her nose. “You kinda do. So like I said, what are you doing here?”
“I need to pick up some lumber from Cal’s store and borrow his table saw.”
She smiled at the mention of her husband, but her brow rose as she waited for me to give her more details. “Lumber for what?”
“I’m working on a project for my neighbor.”
Her brows danced on her forehead then she pursed her lips. “Hmm. Tell me more.”
“She’s a writer and she doesn’t have a desk. So I want to build her one.”
“A writer, huh?” Lottie stared at me like she was trying to see through me and that shit always made my skin crawl.
“Yea. A writer , Lottie.”
“Be careful.”
“What?”
“I see those hearts in your eyes, Noah. And I know how you get. You like her.”
“Since when does being a good neighbor need to come with that warning? She’s good people and I want to do this for her. That’s it.” That wasn’t it, but the skeptical glint in her eye made me want to walk out this damn store. I knew she was just being protective as my sibling, but shit…
“Give yourself some time to just…be.”
That was easy to say when she’d been with the love of her life since high school. “It’s been two years. I went to therapy. Got my shit together. What’s wrong with me being hopeful?”
Pity and understanding flashed in her eyes and that urge to walk out grew stronger. I was tired of people feeling sorry for me. “Yea, but…still. Enjoy your time not being tied down to anyone. Because you know once you’re attached, it’s all or nothing. That’s your strength in relationships but not everyone appreciates it.”
“Yea, ok…” I scratched at my temple and looked away from her penetrating stare. “Y’all got any of that sleep tea you were telling me about?” I asked, knowing if I didn’t change the subject, our conversation would end in an argument.
My sister didn’t miss a beat and walked back over to the counter. “Sorry, honey. We sold the last box this morning. Rome didn’t expect it to be this popular when he launched it last spring. Every time we restock, we’re sold out in less than a day.”
Fuck. “Aight,” was all I said, but I could hear the frustration in my voice.
“What’s up? I thought you were liking your sleep meds and sleeping through the night these days.”
I thought so, too. But then I woke up in Greyson’s bed again this morning. Something that was happening more than it had in the beginning and I was ready to get off those pills.
“Wanted to try something natural. The side effects are fucking with me.”
And by side effects, I meant climbing in bed with my best friend in the middle of the night. It was embarrassing how easily I used him as some type of human security blanket. It was more embarrassing not having any control over it. Greyson didn’t help anything by acting like it was normal. At least this time I woke up before him, so I wasn’t left in bed with my humiliation once he left for work.
I tried to tell myself it could have been worse. I could have accepted my sister’s offer to move in and did this shit at her house. Pride wasn’t one of my strongest qualities, but I had a baseline for the type of situations I would put myself in. Greyson was the safe bet. He was always the safest person in my life and I knew that was another part of why it kept happening.
“Oh no,” Lottie started tapping her pen against the counter before she dropped it and snapped her fingers. “You know what? I have some samples of the pillow spray we’re gonna give out at the Fall Festival next week. Hold on, let me go get it.”
I turned my back to the counter and let my eyes wander out the door, smiling when I remembered how close True was. I hoped she was getting some work done or that she at least liked the book cafe.
“Here you go. I got one of the lavender scent and one unscented.” The clink of glass bottles pulled my attention back to my sister as she placed them in a paper bag with the store’s logo on it.
“Thanks, sis.”
“Mhmm,” she hedged, holding onto the bag when I reached for it. “Mom and dad have been calling me about you.”
Yea, I should have made my run for it when we were still talking about the desk because I couldn’t handle this conversation right now. “Ok?”
“And they want to know why you aren’t answering their calls.”
“Oh, I think they know.”
Lottie flinched at the dip in my tone and I almost felt bad, but that guilt was fleeting.
“Noah, come on. I know you go through your phases of giving them the cold shoulder, but what did mom do?”
She was married to my father and watched him belittle me for most of my life.
I didn’t say that out loud because I had shit to do and didn’t have time to unpack my irritation with the sibling that had never felt any of the pushback I received.
“I don’t feel like dealing with them, Lottie.”
“What happened?”
“The same thing that always happens.” My father makes a plea for me to move home and sell cars. I say no. He insults me and tells me I’m less than a man because I don’t wanna do what he wants. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
“Can’t you just hear them out? I’m sure they?—”
“Lottie, I love you but I ain’t tryna hear that right now.”
My sister looked sad and it tugged at my heart. Just not enough to make me disrespect myself and give in. I was over being my father’s verbal punching bag.
And now he had my mother blowing up my phone in his defense, pleading me to have a conversation that never led anywhere but hell.
From the way they acted, I was the prodigal son when the only thing I’d done was live life on my terms.
“Listen, unless one of them is on their deathbed, I’ll see them at your vow renewal next month.”
Lottie looked like she wanted to say more but nodded instead, finally sliding the bag across the counter to me. “That’s fair.”
“Before I forget, I need to change my RSVP for your reception. I’m bringing someone.”
“Who? The neighbor?”
“Her name is True. And yea.” If she says yes , I didn’t add. It was bold to ask for a plus one when I hadn’t confirmed anything, but the cut off for RSVPs was tomorrow.
Her eyes showed me every question her mouth wasn’t asking and I was happy when all she said was, “I can’t wait to meet her.”
Four hours later, I stood on the sidewalk watching True walk toward me with an easy smile and her laptop clutched to her chest.
Opening the door for her, I helped her climb in and asked, “You had a good day, Red?”
She let out a sigh and reached for her seatbelt once all her stuff was on the floor in front of her. “The best I’ve had in a while.”
Pride tried to take root in the center of my chest knowing I’d introduced her to something that put that pep in her step.
True took the aux and put on Joe while my mind replayed everything I talked about with my sister.
She wanted me to be cautious when everything in me told me to trust my gut for once and not overthink this.
I watched her from the corner of my eye, smirking at the way she mouthed the lyrics and got lost in her own world.
God, she was pretty.
Ask her to the reception and get your answer.
I ran through that mental pep talk twice before I made up my mind to just do it. I went to lower the stereo’s volume, but before I could say anything, True got a message on CarPlay and my heart sank to my fucking ass.
Greyson:
Noah’s sister is having a reception for her vow renewal next month, you want to go with me?
She grabbed her phone and read over the message again before looking at me.
“Your sister is renewing her vows?”
“Uh, yea.” I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my hand so tense it sent pain up my forearm.
“Is it weird if I say yes?”
My ears were ringing. Or I was going deaf. Why else did it sound like she was talking to me through a funnel with alarm bells ringing in the distance?
Swallowing hard, I tried to force out a casual tone. “Why would it be weird?”
“I don’t know.”
I could feel her eyes on the side of my face again and I still wasn’t looking in her direction. I couldn’t.
“I haven’t met your sister yet and—you know what, never mind. If he has a plus one, it should be fine, right?”
“Right.” Wrong .
True’s voice held excitement when she said, “I’m gonna tell him yes. I need to get out more anyway. And I haven’t had anything to dress up for in so long.”
Biting down on my lip, I nodded, keeping my eyes ahead. Had my sister put some kinda jinx on me? So that I’d get rejected before I could even ask?
Greyson and True had chemistry. I could feel it every time I was in a room with them. It made sense that he wanted her to be his date.
SWV filled the car speakers next and all I could do while True sang along was tell myself it happened for a reason. I didn’t know what that reason was, but there had to be one.