Page 55 of His Stepdad Wears Leather

“Oh my god,Noah.”He heard a sob on the other end. “You don’t know… how long I’ve waited to hear from you.”

Had she? He wasn’t sure how to respond.

“Are you okay?” She paused and he sensed her anticipation from the other end.

He wasn’t okay. Not exactly. Noah glanced up at the old mill, wanting Brody. He didn’t want to run, but what choice did he have?

“Noah? Are you still there?”

“Yeah,” he whispered, turning away from the building. “I’m here.”

“Oh, darling… I want to see you,” his mother murmured. “Are you still in Tennessee?”

“No,” he answered before taking a few steps away from Carter. “I ran away.”

“What?Whereare you, Noah?”

“I’m close.” He eyed the address in his hand and rattled it off. “Is this the right address?”

“Yes!” she shrieked. “You’re actually here?”

He nodded, as if she could see that. “I am. Can I… can I come stay with you for a while?”

“Can you?Of courseyou can, sweetheart.” She chuckled. “Are you driving? Should I come get you somewhere?”

Noah eyed the bar and realized he didn’t want her coming there. There would be questions he wasn’t ready to answer. Plus, if he waited around, Brody might find him before he could leave—and he wasn’t ready for that conversation. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever be ready for it. “No… I need… a little a little fresh air,” he fibbed.Some time to think and sort a few things out.“I’ll be there real soon. I promise.”

“Are you sure? I can come anywhere and get you. I don’t care how far it is.”

Noah smiled to himself. “Yeah, I’m sure. I’ll see you in a couple of hours or so.”

“Okay,” she said, breathless. “I can’t wait, Noah.”

“Me, either,” he murmured, relieved.

He ended the call and turned to hand the phone back to Carter. “Thanks, man.”

“No problem,” Carter replied before slipping the cell into his back pocket. “You okay?”

“Better now, thanks.”

“You leaving?” Carter asked.

Noah nodded. “Yeah. Time to move on.”

“That’s too bad,” Carter said. “Brody and you seemed to hit it off.”

“It was only supposed to be one night,” Noah murmured. “It was fun while it lasted.”

“I guess that means we need to find a new bar back?” Carter asked.

“Yeah, you probably will,” Noah said before giving the man a wave. “It was nice to meet you, Carter.”

“You, too, Chris.” He started to turn toward the door, but stopped. “Hey, do you need a ride somewhere?”

Noah was seconds from saying yes when he realized Carter could give his location to Brody. He didn’t need his daddy showing up on his mother’s doorstep. “Nah. I’m good. Thanks, though.”

“No problem. I guess I should get back to inventory.”

---