Chapter Thirteen
KATIE
Our lips crash together, and teenage me is screaming inside. Having him like this shouldn’t feel so safe, so right, or so natural, but it does. It feels perfect.
I’m burning from the inside out as I moan and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him even closer. I’m being greedy and desperate, but I don’t give a damn. One kiss broke down barriers that have kept us apart since we were teenagers.
Noah’s hand lowers, then grips my ass. I shouldn't like this. I shouldn't enjoy tasting his lips this much. I need him more than air, but I can’t deny how the confusion hits me like a punch to the gut. I fight an internal battle with my head and my heart.
His hardness presses against my stomach, and my body wants to lose control. This time, I know the feelings are mutual. There’s no denying it.
“Fuck,” his soft lips whisper against mine. I swipe my tongue against his, deepening the kiss because he feels like home.
“Noah,” I moan when he squeezes my breast. No man has kissed me with such intensity in…well, ever. Not even Gabe, and the fact that I’m comparing the two disgusts me.
What the hell am I doing right now?
His mouth trails to my ear, and I arch my back, pushing away all the lingering thoughts in my mind.
“You’re so goddamn beautiful,” he whispers, causing electricity to shoot down my spine. “I’ve wanted to kiss you for so long.”
“Me too,” I groan as he fuses our lips back together.
Noah cups my face and tilts my chin up, twisting his tongue in deeper as I fist the fabric of his shirt. His fingers thread through my hair, and I release a throaty moan at how good it feels to be touched by him.
I don’t know where this is leading, I don’t care.
That is until I hear a car door slam outside.
I pull away, anxiety and panic soaring through me. “Fuck.” I step back, putting space between us. “That's Loretta and Owen.”
Noah's eyes widen as I adjust my messy ponytail. Adrenaline spikes through me at how reckless I’ve been. “You have to hide right now,” I tell him eagerly.
It won’t matter if he’s here or not because my lips are swollen and my face is flushed. My body’s going to give it away before I even get a word out. This can’t be how Loretta finds out Noah is here. Hell, she can never know.
Seconds later, Noah shuts himself in a hallway closet full of old lighting fixtures and spider webs.
I feel awful that he has to hide away like an unwanted stray cat after everything he's been through. If it wasn’t for her own judgments and her impact on my son’s life, I wouldn’t give two shits what she thought. But it’d hurt Owen more than anything.
I pick up my coffee cup, hoping to seem normal as the door swings open.
Loretta enters with a wide grin, and Owen follows her.
I put on the act of my life as the floodgate of guilt opens.
Devastated wouldn’t even begin to describe her reaction if she knew what I was just doing and with who, and I already know there’s zero chance she’d approve of our relationship.
There’s a lot of hostility in the Reid family.
My heart races, and turmoil twists inside me as my thoughts circle in a tangled web.
I'm torn between my loyalty to Gabe’s family and the way I've always secretly felt about Noah. When she comes closer, I try to ignore my beating heart. Loretta looks me over from head to toe, and I hope my face doesn’t give me away. I take another sip of coffee.
“Hey, sweetie,” she says. “Were you able to get a lot of work done today?”
“Yep, I focused on the bathroom. Got the toilet and cabinets knocked out, pretty much everything other than the tub and tile.”
“That’s incredible!” Loretta beams.
Owen’s all smiles as he sets down his Bible and bag on the table that’s still set up from when we had dinner with Noah.
“How was church?” I ask him.
“It was good.” He sits on one of the folding chairs and yawns, already bored.
Loretta takes her attention off me and looks around, giving me a moment to relax and breathe.
“Oh wow, you've done a lot more since I've been here,” she tells me, but I know it's bullshit. Not much has changed in the past two months. No monumental progress has been made, at least nothing she’d notice.
“Wanna give me a quick tour?”
“Oh, there’s not much to show. Just the bathroom,” I blurt, pointing toward the toilet and trash bags by the door. I let out a nervous laugh.
“Do you need some help carrying all that to the front for trash pickup?” she asks. “I could get Elliot out here to assist you.”
One thing I appreciate about Loretta is how she’s always offering to help. I don’t know if it’s because she’s trying to overcompensate for her son cheating on me while pregnant or because it helps her cope with his death.
I’ve always felt like it was a way for me to forget how badly he treated me. It wasn’t her fault, though. Gabe made his own choices, no matter how his parents brought him up. The fact he was sleeping around on his pregnant wife has been swept under the rug and replaced with demonizing Noah.
“No, thanks. Granted, it was heavy getting it to that point, but I can manage,” I say although Noah did that. “I’m gonna get my cart from the garage and load all the trash on it. Don't wanna kill my back or either of yours in the process!”
“Alright, show me this bathroom then,” she says.
My adrenaline spikes when we pass the closet as I lead her to the guest bathroom.
“This is fantastic progress, Katie. I can almost imagine what it’ll look like when it’s done. The space is much larger than what I remember.”
It’s hard for me to envision anything in here with the bubble gum pink tiles and tub.
“Yep, so this is it. I plan to take the rest out soon. Once I get the tile off, I can paint and put the flooring in. Hoping to within the next few weeks.” I lean against the doorway, hoping she doesn't ask to see the primary bedroom since it has the air mattress and blankets. She’d inevitably ask too many questions, and I’d have to lie to her, which I’d hate.
“Mom, can we go home?” Owen asks with an exaggerated yawn.
“He nearly fell asleep at dinner.” Loretta grins. “He and some of the other boys were running around outside in the parking lot afterward and got worn out. We had lunch, then went to the park.”
“Wow, okay. I should get him home then. I still need to make dinner, and he needs a bath.”
“He’s sweaty too,” she admits as we enter the living room. “Make sure he cleans under his arms.”
“Mimi!” Owen whines, and I laugh.
She gives him a kiss on his forehead. “I’ll see you sometime this week after school.”
A thud from the hallway grabs all of our attention, and my breath hitches. Noah.
“What was that?” Loretta asks, placing her hand over her heart.
“I-I’m not sure. Let me go see,” I say, rushing to the hallway. I walk past the closet, knowing damn well the noise came from there. I hurry and move to the bathroom, then Loretta steps into the hallway.
“What was it?” she asks.
“Oh, the broom fell.”
“Oh, thank goodness,” she says, coming toward me. She’s beside the closet door now.
I keep my eyes on her, hoping Noah stays still long enough for her to leave. I’m sure he can hear how close our voices are.
“Right!” I grab the broom and lean it back against the wall, hoping my acting skills are believable. “I was guaranteed by the previous owner that this house wasn’t haunted.” I let out a choked laugh. “Perhaps they were wrong.”
Her eyes soften as she walks toward me, then grabs my hand. “If you ever want help here, don’t hesitate to ask. We’d be happy to lend a hand.”
“I know,” I say. “You’ve done so much for me already, and I kinda wanna do as much as I can on my own.”
“If you change your mind, just ask.” She squeezes my hand. “Elliot and I adore you both, and once this house is finished, it’s gonna be beautiful.”
“Thank you. I’m trying my best,” I admit, swallowing down my panic.
She gives me a sweet smile combined with a hug before saying her goodbyes. I don’t move an inch or even breathe until I hear her car reversing out of the driveway.
“I’m sorry,” Noah whispers when I open the closet door.
“You almost got us busted,” I scold. “And I nearly had a panic attack when she followed me over here.” I inhale a deep breath before releasing it.
Seconds later, Noah inches closer and palms my cheek. It takes all the willpower I have not to sink into his warmth and give into what we both want.
“Owen’s here,” I remind him, then take a step back. The added space is needed, but I immediately feel the loss.
The moment passes just as quickly as it came.
“Mom!” Owen yells. Noah follows me into the living room, and I try to act as if we didn’t just share a heated moment. Owen’s face lights up with excitement.
“You’re still here!” he says.
“Sure am.” Noah offers him a boyish grin. “How was your day?”
“It was good. But tomorrow's Monday.” Owen frowns.
Noah chuckles. “Back to school?”
Owen sighs, and I notice he gets antsy. “Yeah, ugh.”
Noah and I look at each other, and though there’s an awkwardness between us, I try to act normal in front of Owen.
There are so many things I want to say, so many questions I still have about the confessions we admitted earlier.
Losing control was dangerous and exhilarating, but I’m not sure it can happen again.
Over a decade of pent-up emotions poured out of us today.
It’s a dangerous game to play, and there’s a lot to lose—not just for me but for Owen too.
We need to discuss what took place and figure out what it means or where we go from here. I’m not sure how to start the conversation, but things will get more tense if we don’t talk it out.
Owen yawns, and I check the time, realizing it’s close to five.
“We probably should get going since you have to take a bath after dinner,” I tell him, flattening down his hair that’s a mess from playing.
“But Mom,” he whines, and I know it’s because he wants to hang out with Noah. It makes me happy and breaks my heart at the same time.
“We have to be up early,” I remind him.
He pushes out his bottom lip.
“I’ll be around for a while,” Noah promises him. “Probably will be workin’ on the house every now and then too.”
Owen’s face lights up. “Really? Maybe I can help too.”
“Who would’ve thought all it took was Noah to get you interested?”
Noah chuckles, and Owen crosses his arms over his chest.
“I am sometimes,” he says, and he puffs out his little chest.
“You do.” I wink. “Go put your stuff in the car, and we’ll get going.”
“Bye, Noah.” Owen gives him a wave, grabbing his Bible and bag.
I linger for a moment, not really sure what to say. “Let me know if you need anything, okay?”
“I will. Good night.”
“Night,” I say and force myself to walk away.
On the drive home, I try to process what happened earlier.
I feel silly for not believing Gemma and Everleigh in high school, but he didn’t make it obvious—not to me, at least. Had I known, maybe things would’ve been different, but it doesn’t matter now.
What happened can’t be changed. All we can do is move forward, even if I don’t know what that currently means.