Page 42 of Kissing Chaos
He pulls me in for a hug. “We okay, sis?”
I nod. “Yeah. Love you.”
“Love you, too. And when you have some free time,
I want to hear about which dream of yours is coming to fruition. Noah seems to think you’ll rock it.”
17
Noah
“Are you sure you don’t mind me dropping in tonight? I swear I don’t mind crashing on Jenny’s couch.” Exhaustion coats my sister’s voice as it drifts through my phone. Oakley just landed in Atlanta and has seventeen hours to burn before her next flight out.
I roll my eyes at her, even though she can’t see me, while slipping a tray of pizza rolls out of the oven. “You know you never need to ask, Oaks.”
She sighs into the line, and I can imagine her rubbing her eyes in exhaustion.
“Be careful driving down, alright? I’ll see you in an hour.”
“Love you, bubs.”
“Love you, Oaks.” With that, I hang up, neither of us saying goodbye. I snatch a pizza roll off the tray and pop it into my mouth, immediately regretting the action. “Shit!” I exclaim before spitting it back out.
“Guess it’s true what they say about elevator men, then, huh?”
I jump, nearly knocking the tray off the counter at Jett’s unexpected appearance. “Tryin’ to kill me, chaos?” I ask with a hand to my chest, the hand that is also cradling my too-hot pizzasnack. The gentle smile on her lips is almost enough to bring me to my knees.
I haven’t seen her smile around town this week. Since the pillow search a few weeks back, we’d started crashing in each other’s lofts a couple nights a week. The last time I’d seen her was Monday, and I had to leave for work before she woke up. And for some reason, she became a pro at avoiding me this week.
Even as I prepared our snacks, a small voice in my head kept whispering that maybe she wouldn’t show up tonight. Hell, sneaking out of her bed to go to work was one of the toughest things I’ve done.If I’d known she’d ghost me, I’d have stayed in that bed all day with her instead.
“Told you leaving your door open was a bad idea. You never know what riffraff might sneak in unannounced.”
Chuckling at the lightness cloaking her this afternoon, I resume placing the piping-hot pepperoni goodness into a bowl and grab two sodas from the fridge.
“So, what’s this about elevator men?” I ask as I watch her cheeks redden, her hands wringing together in front of her and her eyes looking away from me.
“Oh, you know.”
“No, I’m not sure I do.” I set everything on the counter and slip around to stand in front of her, leaning my hip on one of the bar stools.
I love when Jett gets this bashful look on her face. I have no business chasing this theoretical possibility of a relationship with a girl who’s made it clear she doesn’t want to label whatever this is between us. And yet, when she looks at me like that—so unabashedly open with what she’s thinking—I can’t help but want to wrap her in my arms and hold tight.
Making sure to keep some distance between us, I motion toward the couch. “Kind of surprised you showed up.”
“Is it okay that I did? I know I kinda sorta panicked and hid from you for the last few days. Just had some major thoughts to work through, and I took on another new project for one of the clients that followed me.” She motions over her shoulder at the door. “I can go back to my place, no problem. Especially since it sounds like you have company coming.”
Forget keeping my distance. I move closer to Jett and slip my fingers into her hair, cradling her jaw. A shaky breath leaks from her as her eyes close. When she leans ever so slightly into my hand, it’s almost too much for my sanity. A weight lifts off my shoulders as my thumb glides back and forth over her porcelain skin, some of the grief I carry lessening slightly.
“There she is,” I whisper as her eyes reopen. “I want you here. Oakley is my sister and doesn’t count as company. But even if she did, you’d still be welcome.”
She gives a near imperceptible nod before taking a breath and stepping back from me. “How’s your week been? You look tired.”
My head rocks side to side. I’m not sure how to address the feelings beating down on me. Even though I’ve battled the same feelings for years, this handful of days never gets easier. As emotions try to slip forward, I clear my throat.
“Better now that you’re here.”
She tucks a loose strand of her hair behind her ear, glancing around the loft to avoid looking at me. “Gotta quit with the lines, buddy.”
