Page 20 of After All This Time

“Well, if my mom isn’t staying, then that means I am.” Noah’s tone is confident.

“No, I’ll stay. You’ve all been here for hours,” I tell them.

Laura looks like she’s going to say something, but doesn’t. She’s too tired to argue with me.

Noah stands there, staring at me.

I can’t get a read on him and it’s driving me nuts.

“Are you sure, honey?” Mom places her hand on my shoulder, tilting her head.

I nod. “Yes, I’m sure.”

Gesturing to my mom and Laura to go, they do so without a fight.

Noah walks up to me and a breeze blows his minty scent my way. “Thank you.”

Why does he have to smell so good? Why the hell am I paying attention to how he smells? Get a grip, Dani.

“For what?” A confused look appears all over my face.

“For what you did for me earlier and what you’re doing for my family now.”

“Oh, now you thank me. How sweet of you.” I roll my eyes, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“Sorry it took me so long.”

“If only you apologized for all the other shit you’ve done, we’d be in a much better place. Also, you never have to thank me for helping your family. And you didn’t have to thank me for what I did earlier. I’m just busting your balls.” I lightly punch his arm.

I hear a sound come out of his mouth.

Licking my lips, I giggle. “Oh my God, did I hurt you?”

He shakes his head, squinting his eyes with his eyebrows furrowing. “No.”

“You can tell me the truth. I heard you moan,” I tease.

He walks closer to me. “Trust me, when I moan, you’ll know,” he whispers in my ear.

Oh, hell no. Not today, sir. Not ever.

I swallow and clear my throat. He takes a few steps back. We’re at an arm’s length away from each other now.

“Well, you’re full of shit,” I blurt out.

“Seems like I’m always full of shit when it comes to you.” He rolls his eyes. “Good night, Dani.” His jaw flexes, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down.

I grin, raising my eyebrows. “Yeah, good night.”

I honestly have no idea how long Lizzie is going to be in the hospital for. I just know that I’m going to be here for all of it.

No matter how long it takes.

As I watch Noah leave, I wonder how these next few weeks or months are going to be.

We didn’t kill each other which says a lot about the both of us.

I’ve changed.

---