Page 42 of Falling for Fury

“You already had to waste your time, I’m not going to let you waste your money on that piece of shit and a fucking salad you didn’t even get to eat.” His tone is judgy at the mention of the salad and my stupid hormonal brain wonders what first date Noah would have been like.

“You didn’t answer me before. Why are you following me?” He nods and does a quick, polite smile to the waitress as she hands him a copy of the tab and takes his card to scan, before he locks his eyes back on mine. The energy between us is electric like always, an unexplainable intensity that seems to sit between us, like a bomb frozen in the last second, bound to explode at any moment.

“I didn’t follow you,” he all but growls. “I walked past the window and saw you in here with that douche.” His face is set in a scowl and he gestures to Eric, who strolls on past us, doesn’t even say goodbye or attempt to pay, but instead, openly flirts with the waitress near the entryway. Pig.

Swallowing the embarrassment that I apparently didn’t warrant any farewells, or at least for him to fight to keep the date going. I jut my chin out to feign confidence and direct my fury at the appropriate person. “And what? You thought you had a right to crash? You do realize what I do and who I see is none of your business, right?” Not that this date was going anywhere, and I’m not overly upset about being interrupted. But what if this date happened to be with the one and he just ruined it? “Noah, you don’t get to do this. You left me in that room, remember?“ His frown deepens, the anger coming off him is like nothing I have ever seen on him before. Kind of a refreshing change, and if I wasn’t so annoyed about my lack of sex tonight and this caveman act he was putting on, I might even laugh.

He pinches the bridge of his nose and heaves a sigh as the waitress hands him back his card. “I know… Addison.” The words are practically a grunt, and he opens his eyes, the deep chocolate brown burn into me, like he is trying to communicate a million things he can’t say. Things I can’t read or decipher. Probably things I really don’t want to address or get into, so I turn on a heel and leave, shaking my head at this stupid night.

Storming out of the restaurant and into the fresh spring air, the night calm and clear, and the street buzzing with activity as I begin a walk up the street while ordering an Uber.

“Addison, wait a second.” Noah comes up beside me, his firm grip on my waist as he pushes me away from the road, making room for himself. I say nothing, rolling my eyes. Stupid caveman.

I try to keep my attention on my phone and ignore the way his proximity makes me feel like I’m on fire, steals the breath from my lungs, and has me aching in places that should absolutely not be aching.

“How’s Bozzelli’s?” Oh, we’re pretending like he didn’t just crash my date?

“Good, Lucas is a great boss. You wouldn’t know he was only twenty-five.” My words are clipped, and he is undeserving of my conversation, but this is just what happens when he is around. I lose the grip on the solid walls I have in place. What I give him about Lucas is only the truth, anyway. No harm keeping casual conversation about casual things.

Lucas does manage to keep everyone in line and everything running smoothly. Despite his modesty and lack of confidence in how well he is doing, he is killing it. I have helped out with a few behind the scenes things. He’s run into a few supplier issues, and he leant on me for support. Probably a bad idea because now he throws more admin shit at me when I’m there for the earlier shifts. I’m not too bothered by it. It actually breaks the shift up a bit and keeps me busy. Keeps my mind busy.

Noah nods, looking ahead, and his hands stuffed in his pockets.

“What were you on your way to do when you walked past?”

“What?”

“You came in and crashed my date, Noah. I imagine you had other plans tonight?” I softly chuckle at his obvious frustration and the way he has no idea how to deal with his feelings. I’m not about to tell him any of that. Not my guy, not my problem.

The anger at him ruining my chances of getting laid decrease rapidly, especially considering it was probably more of a save than anything else.

“Oh, I was just on my way to meet the guys. I’ll catch up with them another time.” His voice is low, and he still looks like something is bothering him, not even meeting my eyes as he continues. “I don’t understand why you were out with him.”

“Because I’m a grownup, and I can see who I want to see.” My tone taunts him, taking pleasure in his rare bout of frustration, and I think I might sense some jealousy there.

“But him, Addison? Surely you have more self-respect than that.” Okay, we’re done playing nice now.

I come to a stop in his path, surprising us both and forcing him to look at me. “That’s enough. What is your problem?” I practically growl at him as I poke a finger into his chest. The contact sends shock waves through me, warmth spreading as I feel his heart beating rapidly.

His brows scrunched and body held tight with tension, his eyes search mine, for what, I have no idea. Before I can ask anything else, he heaves a sigh and grabs my hand that is poking a finger to his chest, as he shakes his head. He wraps his hand firmly around my wrist and pulls me slightly to him, mouth mere inches from mine.

“You. You are my problem.” His voice is deep and gravelly and practically oozing sexual promise as I feel the warmth from him vibrating around me. That always-there tension between us pulled taut, and without my permission, my stomach flips. I lick my lips, desperately trying to ease my suddenly dry mouth as a few tense seconds pass with him staring at my lips.

My phone beeps and a car pulls up beside us, severing the tension like a slap to the face. My Uber. Thank the heavens. My chariot, here to save me from more bad decisions.

I don’t waste a second. I pull away from Noah and practically jump into the car, closing the door. The driver wastes no time pulling away, and I turn behind me to find Noah on the street, watching as I drive away. I ignore the sinking feeling at the sudden loss of his warmth and the way seeing him turns me into a hormonal sex-pest wanting to feel his lips and his touch on me again.

That tingling lingers, and it makes me recall the way his lips felt across my body, making me wish he had just made a move, whether I was ready for it or not. Torn between wanting him near and wanting him out of my system completely, I remember the way those eyes bore into me, the feel of his breath on my lips as he had whispered his goodbye at the lodge.

See you soon, Addison.

Noah

‘What are you even doing here?’

Great question, Addison. Wish I knew the answer. I was on my way to Pucks and happened to walk past a mid-tier Italian restaurant and turned my head at the right time to see a pair of familiar green eyes and golden hair that had me double taking and backing up so fast I nearly tripped.

Through the window, she sat facing me without even seeing me. I couldn’t see the guy she was sitting with, but I didn’t need to. She looked about as comfortable as someone forced to sit in a pile of shit, and I knew he was going to be a straight-up fucking loser. No idea why or how, but I was suddenly in the restaurant and making a plan to save her. I have elected to ignore the fact that one thought about this sleaze running his hands on Addison, touching her in the ways I had, and hearing those same sounds, had all but turned me into a raging caveman. She was right—it was none of my business. What she didn’t realize was that I, apparently, don’t give a fuck.

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