Chapter 22
CHAPTER 22
NOAH BARRETT
S avannah’s lips brush over mine in a feather-light kiss. For a split second, my mind short circuits. Savannah is kissing me. Right now. For real. I’ve dreamed about this every day since we broke up. And now … I’m frozen.
Her lips pass over mine again, and I snap out of my daze. My hands slide around her back, and I pull her to me. I kiss her, pouring all my pent-up feelings into it. I want her to know I missed her. I need her. I’ve waited far too long for this.
Her fingers slide up my chest and my pulse skyrockets. It feels amazing to kiss her. I don’t want it to end, so I slow my movements, passing over her lips like I’m enjoying a lazy summer day.
Savannah is the balm to my wounds. She brought me back to life when I thought all was lost. She saw all of my flaws and loved me despite them.
She slides her hands over my shoulders, and the sensation sends sparks of attraction through me. All kinds of questions form in my mind as we explore each other’s lips. Did she change her mind about being in a relationship? Is this the start of renewing our love?
I pull back just enough to catch my breath and look into her eyes. Our breaths intermingle as I silently ask her what she meant with her kiss. Do I dare hope that she’s changed her mind about me?
A noise behind me both startles me and answers my question. Levi clears his throat. “Eh, hem.”
I step back from Savannah, disappointment raging inside of me. She didn’t kiss me because she wanted to rekindle our relationship. She kissed me to prove to Levi our fake relationship is real.
“Hey,” I say to Levi, my emotions crashing from the high they were on two seconds earlier.
“Hi Levi,” Savannah says, her voice tight.
Levi shoves his hands into his pockets. “This whole ship is a love fest.”
I raise my eyebrows at him. “What do you mean?”
“Micah’s making eyes at Kiki’s sister. Tobias and Kiki are all lovey-dovey. I came down here to get away from it, and you guys are sucking face.”
I narrow my eyes at him. Levi’s the last one who should complain about people in relationships. He’s the most girl-crazy guy I know. “What’s the matter? Did you get dumped?”
He huffs and puts his elbows on the railing. “Yeah.”
I clap my hand on his shoulder. “About time. You’re always the one doing the dumping. You should know how it feels.”
He snorts. “Thanks for being there for me, bro. Means a lot.” The sarcasm drips off his voice.
“I am here for you.” I squeeze his shoulder, because I feel like I need to give him reassurance before speaking my mind. “I just think it’s time to start taking relationships more seriously. Stop playing around and find a long-term companion.”
Levi’s shoulders slump. “I really liked Lisa. I thought she might be the one.”
“How long did you date her?”
“Almost four weeks.”
“That’s it?” I ask, louder than I meant to.
Savannah nudges me aside and pats Levi’s arm. “I’m sorry. Being dumped really sucks. Don’t take it to mean you’re not good enough. Sometimes things just don’t work out. You’ll find your forever person. I know you will.”
I slink back, feeling terrible for scolding him when he’s hurting. I don’t know how she does it, but Savannah seems to say the right thing all the time.
“Thanks, Savannah,” Levi says, glaring at me.
“How’s school going?” I ask, changing the subject.
Levi scoffs. “Who told you about that?” He turns his glare on Savannah, and she flushes.
“Don’t worry. I won’t say anything to Tobias.” I grip the railing. Why am I messing this up so much?
Levi straightens. “School is fine. It’s boring, but fine. They let me transfer my credits from all the other classes I’ve passed, which means I can actually get a degree a lot faster than I thought.”
“That’s great.” I smile at him. “I’m proud of you.”
He slumps. “Yeah. That’s all great and all, but I still don’t know what I’m going to do with my life.”
“What are you majoring in?” I ask.
“Business.” He glances at me. “It was either that, or education, and let’s face it. I’d suck as a teacher.”
Savannah turns around, her back to the ocean. “You should open your own bakery.”
Levi snorts. “Yeah, right.”
Savannah puts her elbows on the railing. “No, I’m serious. Your creations are amazing. You could start a business and really do well.”
“I agree,” I find myself saying. “You’d do well at that.”
Levi shakes his head. “But I can’t do that. I’m not good with accounting or marketing. I’d end up going out of business. I’m not like Tobias.”
“Then hire someone,” Savannah says. “You could do all the baking, and someone else can run the numbers, create promotions, and that side of things.”
Levi grins and slaps the railing. “Hey, that could work. I’d actually love to open my own bakery. That would be amazing.” His smile fades, and his shoulders slump again. “But I don’t have any money to start a business. I still owe Tobias a bunch.”
I cock my head to the side. “Wait, what? You owe Tobias? For what?”
Levi blows out a breath. “I told him I’d pay him back for the tuition he spent on me. I quit a lot of schools. It was expensive.”
I want to tell him so badly that he’s worth fifty million dollars, but I hold that in. Instead, I blurt out, “You do realize Tobias is a millionaire, right?”
Savannah nudges me but doesn’t say anything. Levi stares at me, an incredulous look on his face. “So? I still owe him that tuition money.”
Frustration wells in me. “Tell him to take it out of your inheritance .”
Levi laughs. “Yeah, right. I’ll tell him that.” He slaps me on the arm. “Good one.”
He pushes off the railing. “I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone. You can get back to what you were doing before I so rudely interrupted.” He chuckles and walks off down the deck, disappearing around the corner.
I turn to Savannah. She’s still casually leaning on the railing, but her arm muscles are tense. I duck my head. “Look, about earlier…”
“I kissed you.” She forces a smile. “It’s okay, Noah. Things don’t have to get all weird between us.”
I take a step closer to her. “And the tears?”
She shakes her head. “I told you. Happy tears.”
I shove my hands into my suit pockets. “I thought you weren’t going to push me away anymore.”
She sighs, and I see her walls crumble before me. She turns to face the ocean again. She doesn’t speak right away, but I wait for her.
“I was full of emotions, because I was happy for Kiki. And sad for myself.”
I slide my arm around her waist and put my hand on her bare arm. I want to understand her, and I’m glad that she’s finally opening up to me. “Why are you sad?”
She shakes her head. “I just…I’m jealous I guess.”
I want to kiss her forehead and tell her that she doesn’t have to be jealous, because what Kiki and Tobias has, we could have together. I want to confess to her that I have feelings for her, and that I’ve never stopped loving her. But my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth and I can’t say it.
I’m here. Why doesn’t she see what’s right in front of her?