Page 58 of Fractured Trust

Another woman sidled up next to him, but this time, he had zero interest in interacting.

“I’d love to have a photo with you,” she purred, her hand brushing against his forearm. He turned to look at her, his eyes taking in the jet-black hair, smokey cat eyes, and scarlet lips.

Smiling to hide his lack of enthusiasm, he said, “Sure,” and stepped closer to her. She whipped out her phone and stood up on her tiptoes, wrapping her arm around his neck and pressing her cheek against his while she held the phone up.

Noah’s smile was tight as she took a shot. “Just one more,” she said, and he nodded. But a fraction of a second before her finger tapped the button, she turned her head and pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth. Noah jerked back, anger coursing through him.

He narrowed his gaze on her glittering eyes, her mouth turning down in what she probably thought was a seductive pout, as if that would stop him being pissed off at her. As if, because of who he was, she had a right to put her lips on him without invitation. All his anger, all his hurt and disappointment, came roaring to the surface, and he opened his mouth to tell her exactly what he thought when a heavy, tattooed arm landed over his shoulders.

“Hey man, I need to talk to you for a second,” Tex said, then turned to the woman standing in front of them, her eyes bouncing between the two of them as her pout morphed into an excited smile. Maybe she thought she was going to get two for the price of one. “Sorry honey, important band business to discuss. Have you had a photo with Zac yet? If you move quickly, you can grab him while he’s on his own. Better get going though, there’s a big group of high school girls heading his way.”

When she turned to look, Tex steered Noah away. “You okay, man? You looked like you were about to rip her head off.”

Noah was shaking; his thoughts tumbling at breakneck speed. It was the same thing that had happened eleven years ago and that had lost him Summer in the first place. What the hell was he doing here? In this room, surrounded by these people that thought they had a right to him. When the only person who had the right to touch him was thousands of miles away, and he didn’t have a right to touchheranymore.

Tex stopped, turning Noah to face him with a hand on his shoulder. “You need to pull it together, Noah. I’m saying this for your sake, and for Summer’s. She is still in your life; your story isn’t over. Happily ever afters don’t always come easy; sometimes they hurt like a bitch. And sometimes you have to fight for them. If you get knocked down, you get right back up and keep fighting. That’s how you win. But right now, not only aren’t you fighting to win, you’re fucking conceding defeat.”

Noah stared at his friend’s concerned expression and something that had been drawn tight and hard inside his chest loosened. Just a little.

He’d never told anyone how much pain he was in the last time Summer had broken his heart. Had never let his friends know the true extent of what he was going through. Back then, he hadn’t even told them that he’d seen her kissing Deacon.

Instead, he’d drowned it all in alcohol and drumming and living the life of a rock star. He’d thought back then that it had worked; that he’d gotten through the experience unscathed. But that wasn’t true. Because it had all come pouring back the moment he’d seen her again. And he didn’t want to go through that again. Not alone. He didn’t want to keep pushing everything down, hoping it would go away.

Because he already knew it wouldn’t.

Noah raked both hands through his hair, then laced his hands together behind his neck. He exhaled heavily. “It fucking hurts, Tex. I feel like I’m walking around with my heart cut out of my chest right now. I need her. I need her in my life, but I’m terrified if I keep trying, and she pushes me away again, that’ll be it for me, there’ll be no coming back.”

“I get it, man. You, of all people, should know that I get it.”

Noah winced at the reminder of his role in what had happened between Tex and Eden. But it was true. If anyone understood how he felt, it was Tex.

It had all worked out for the two of them in the end, though. When it came down to it, neither of them had been able to let go—

Noah froze, his mind working.

He’d been asking Summer to trust him. To put her heart in his hands and trust that he wouldn’t let it go. He’d asked her to take his word for it that he’d always be there for her. But he’d fallen at the first hurdle. He’d let her go.

Again.

What was he doing, fucking moping around feeling sorry for himself? He needed to prove to Summer that he was always going to be there for her. No matter what. And he needed to trust whatever it was between them. Because the bond they had? It had lasted eleven fucking years. It hadn’t broken, no matter what had happened in between. No matter how badly they’d both been hurt, that bond hadn’t broken. He needed to trust in that if nothing else.

The words he’d said to Summer before the tour reverberated in his head:At some stage you’re going to have to stand your ground and fight….

If Summer didn’t love him, he could accept her decision and walk away. But she did. He knew she did. She was running scared, that was all. Which didn’t meanheshould throw in the towel. All it meant was that he needed to fight harder. So, he was going to fight, and keep fighting, until there was no hope left.

Tex’s eyes were searching his, and he grinned at what he must have seen. “Looks like you’ve figured something out.”

Noah let a genuine smile cross his face. The first in the two weeks since she’d walked out his door. “I’m going to prove to her that even if she pushes me away, I’m going to be here for her. She’s fucking it for me. And even if all I get is to be her friend for the rest of my life, then I’ll be the best fucking friend she’s ever had.”

Tex cocked his head, a smirk tugging at his lips. “You’re going to be her best friend?”

Noah stared back at him, then rubbed his hand over his face and laughed. “No, fuck that. I’m not going to be her friend. I’m going to be the goddamn love of her life, whether she likes it or not.”

Chapter 30

It was like suffering through a withdrawal, not having Noah in her life again. She must be a masochist for putting herself through the same pain she’d been through once already. Wanting him was a constant ache in her chest; a need that vibrated through her bones; a longing that made the backs of her eyes burn with the constant threat of tears. At night, she’d toss and turn—her mind as restless as her body—while she tried desperately not to think about what Noah might be doing. And sometimes she’d lie there, shaking with anger at the unfairness of it; that her heart and soul should long for the one person who frightened her the most.

Two weeks after she’d ended things with Noah, Summer was sitting out on her tiny balcony, watching the sun set in a blaze of fire as it extinguished itself in the vastness of the ocean. An ocean that wasn’t visible from her apartment but that was there anyway—as vast and deep as the regret she was filled with. She’d poured herself a glass of wine, but had yet to take a sip, just holding it in her hand as she gazed out at the rose-gold-painted horizon and tried very hard not to let her mind wander into painful memories.

---