Page 57 of Chasing Infinity

Testing the waters out, I thrust my hips forward slightly, wondering if she’s feeling as frisky as I am. Her eyes shut blissfully, and she lets out a breathy moan at my movements. I lean down to kiss her again when I’m interrupted by the loud ringing of my phone.

It startles me, and I snap my head towards where it’s sitting on the nightstand and give the device a scowl. I begrudgingly pull away from Addison, rolling onto my back and reaching for the phone. When I see my father’s name flash across the screen, I growl and have half a mind to decline the call, but curiosity wins out, and I answer despite my better judgment.

“What do you want?”

“Noah,” my father replies, and I can hear the condescending amusement in his tone. “What a lovely way to greet your father.”

I sit up and run my hand over my face, adjusting my body until I’m sitting back against the headboard of Addison’s bed. She’s watching me, still nestled under the covers, her face wary. “Can I help you?”

“I was wondering if you had dinner plans this evening. I know you’re still in town, but I haven’t seen you in a while. Thought it might be good to catch up?”

I stare at the wall for a moment as his request sinks in. Alarm bells ring in my brain; why the hell does he want me to come over? I run through a few scenarios in my head rapidly before responding, “I’ll have to check my schedule, but it should be fine.”

My father laughs on the other end of the line like I just told the funniest joke. “What could you possibly be doing instead? You’re still a visitor here, if I remember. I’ll see you at seven tonight, Noah. Don’t be late.”

He doesn’t allow me to respond before he hangs up once he finishes his instructions. Pulling the phone away from my ear, I scowl at the device. Bastard.

“What was that about?”

“Just Declan playing mind games. He wants me to go over for dinner tonight.”

“Oh,” Addison worries at her bottom lip. “Do you want me to go with you?”

I look at her sharply and shake my head. “Absolutely not.”

“Don’t need to be rude about it,” she huffs at me, frowning.

“That came out wrong. I didn’t mean it that way. I just don’t want you to subject yourself to an evening of misery and psychological warfare with my father.”

“It’s fine, Noah,” she says, her tone indicating that it’s definitelynotfine. Addison rolls away from me and out of bed. Finding a pair of sweatpants on the floor and my t-shirt from last night, she dresses quickly and starts to walk out of the bedroom.

I grumble to myself, following right after her to the bathroom, not caring to pull on any clothes. “Are you mad at me?”

Addison’s reflection in the mirror stares at me as she puts toothpaste on her toothbrush. “No.”

“You are,” I argue back, my arms sliding around her waist and pulling her into my body. Addison starts brushing her teeth but closes her eyes at our close contact, relaxing against my chest. “I’m sorry. It’s not that I don’t want you with me. I do. Always. I just don’t want you aroundhimif I can help it. He’s dangerous, Parks.”

She opens her eyes and stares at me, still brushing her teeth. I can see the wheels spinning in her head as she ponders what I’ve said. Finally, she spits out all the excess toothpaste into the sink and then turns to face me. Her arms wrap around my neck, and she leans up to kiss me. Her breath tastes minty.

When she pulls away, she gives me a small smile. “I get it. Just… I’m getting tired of being left out of the loop. You know how I like to know things. And it’s not that I don’t trust you, but I feel like you don’t trust me.”

I inhale deeply, staring down at her. We’ve had this conversation on what feels like a non-stop loop, I’m growing tired of it, but I know she won’t let up until I tell her what she’s wanting to know. Or she might go searching for answers on her own, and if she were to come across the wrong person, that could be catastrophic. I make the decision that I’ll finally tell her everything like she’s been bugging me to.

“Okay,” I tell her, tightening my hold on her waist. “How about after I get back from dinner this evening, you and I sit down, and I’ll tell you everything.”

“Really?” she asks, her eyes brightening. “Everything?”

I nod my head, fighting off the sick feeling in my gut telling me this is a huge mistake. Knowledge is power, but ignorance can be bliss. The deep-seated fear that knowledge of this might lead to consequences we can’t come back from lingers deep in my mind. I don’t want Addison privy to this dark side of my story. Yet despite feeling ill, I know this is what I need to do if we’re going to keep moving forward together. And more than anything else, I want that with her.

“Every last detail. Tonight.”

A grin takes hold of her face, and she stands up on her tiptoes to kiss me again. When she pulls away, she presses forward and wraps me in a hug. “Thank you, Noah. Now go put some clothes on.”

I laugh as I release her from the hug and look at her teasingly. “I thought you liked me naked.”

“Oh, I do. But when you’re naked,Iwant to be naked too, and we’ve got to get going.”

“Fair enough. Only there’s one problem.”

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