Page 23 of Mr. Picture Perfect
After five excruciating seconds of silence, which must feel like years for poor Noah, I quickly throw my arm over his back to save him. “I was just talking to him about it in the living room earlier. He’s doing alright. Not a scratch on him, thankfully.”
“Oh, bless your heart, look at you! You’re like … You’re like a big brother to him!” sings Nadine with hearts in her eyes. “Lookin’ out for sweet little Noah like a guardian, like a big bro, like family, like blood, protectin’ your little brother!”
Oh.
I cringe.
The last thing … that I want to be seen as … is a big brother.
Noah’s big platonic brother. Noah’s totally-not-a-romantic-option-for-him-at-all-in-any-way big ol’ protective brother.
Sensing Noah turning into a block of stone under my touch, I drop my arm from his back at once. “I, uh … I’m just—”
“Y’know what?” sings Nadine with a gesture at the windows. “The air is just lovely outside tonight, isn’t it? How ‘bout let’s all go out onto the deck and keep this sexy brainstorming sesh going? We’re cookin’ ourselves up somethingreallyhot and spicy here. Hot and spicy genius. I can’t wait to get this ball rollin’!”
Noah departs my side the moment the crowd of us starts to go toward the doors.
My heart pops like a balloon.
Deflating until there’s nothing left.
To my dismay, the “brainstorming session” occupies over an hour and a half of the night. Laughter rings out over the nearby swimming pool and the dark grassy fields beyond as everyone contributes their ideas and opinions to the discussion. Noah had found himself a slightly isolated chair sandwiched between two potted ferns, and the only neighboring seat was quickly taken by Paul and his magic glass of wine that never seems to empty, so I ended up taking a chair by Burton and Tanner. The whole time we brainstorm, I sneak glances at Noah, curious what’s on his mind, but unlike in the kitchen, I can’t ever catch his eyes. In fact, he’s determined to look anywherebutme.
Maybe I shouldn’t have put my arm around his back.
Maybe he was happy standing in the living room watching the kids play that game, and I came and shattered his peace.
Is my crush so obvious that I’m making him uncomfortable?
Billy and Tanner are first to excuse themselves, rounding up their kids and getting ready to make the long trek down the path back to their house in the woods. Soon after, the rest of us call it a night and start gathering up to leave, too. While Paul cleans up the kitchen and Nadine discusses one last thing with Tamika and Burton, I spot Noah quietly slipping out the front to the cars.
For half a sec, I decide I’d better let him leave in peace, having done quite enough to suffocate him with my attention tonight.
The next second, I’m chasing him to the front of the house. “Hey there, Noah!”
He stops and turns, feet crunching in the gravel. “Something wrong?” he asks quietly back.
“Oh, uh, no. Not at all. I … I just wanted to say …” My hands find my pockets.
And then: nothing.
That’s when I belatedly realize I should have figured out what I wanted to saybeforeI opened my mouth. Now I’m standing here like an idiot.
“Well,” I make myself say, “I mean … about tonight …”
“Oh. Don’t worry, Tamika will contact you to schedule it.”
I lift my eyebrows, confused. “Schedule what?”
“Your interview. She’s great with them. You’ll have fun.”
That wasn’t what I was about to say. Though, come to think of it, I didn’t know what I was about to say. “So … Tamika is doing the interview? Why can’t you do it?”
“Me? No. I’m not good with those. I’m better sticking with the photos, writing, and website code. I’ll be at the shoot on Monday.”
“But what if …” I take a step toward him. He appears to notice, as his whole body freezes up. “What if I wanted …you… to be the one who interviews me?”
He gazes down at my chest. “I—But I don’t—I’m not the—”
