Page 120 of Nick and Noel's Christmas Playlist

Noel’s stomach sank. “No, of course not.”

“Did he kiss her back?”

“No, he pushed her away.”

Pike leaned on the back of the seat, staring at her. “I take it back. We are dropping you off and grabbing Nick. He is clearly the wronged party.”

Noel whirled around. “Seriously? You don’t understand at all where I’m coming from?”

Anthony shook her shoulder gently. “The place you’re coming from is illogical. The man would give his underwear away if he thought someone needed them. The only reason you’re freaking out is because you hate Amber. Should Nick have asked you in the first place? No, he should have told her to take a flying leap. But he’s not that guy and if he was, you wouldn’t care so damn much.”

Noel opened and closed her mouth, fighting to form a sound argument, but Pike spoke up before she’d collected herself.

“Plus, I think you might be a wittle skeered,” Pike said in a baby voice.

“Scared of what?” she spluttered.

Pike cupped his hands over his heart. “Of opening yourself to love.”

Now her stomach churned with guilt, frustration, and irritation. If she didn’t get the heck out of this car, she might puke. “Yeah, you know what? Take me home before I gag.”

“I’m not wrong. You kept Nick at arm’s length and once you let him in, you couldn’t deny your chemistry. You invented this conflict and now, boom! You can pretend that you tried, but you’re lying to yourself.”

Noel resisted the urge to pop Pike in his smug, self-satisfied face.

“No response because I’m right,” Pike sang.

Noel grit her teeth and didn’t speak to either of them the rest of the drive. She hadn’t overreacted. Being in a relationship meant putting yourself in the other person’s shoes. She wouldn’t take off with Trip for any reason.

But Nick would. Even if it was someone he didn’t like, he’d still help.

Noel’s heart sank, deflating her self-righteous anger along with it. Pike and Anthony were right. She’d fucked up because she’d been looking for a reason to run. Instead of putting the blame where it belonged, with Amber, she’d taken all of her bottled up emotions out on Nick.

How did she explain that to Nick, her person? The man she…

Loved.

Fuck, what did I do?

Chapter 27

NICK

Stretched out along his couch, Nick still couldn’t sleep and it was past two in the morning. Pike and Anthony called him back after dropping Noel off, offering to take him out and give him their two cents, but he wasn’t feeling it. The last thing he wanted to do was talk about Noel. It’s not like he could fully shake her from his mind, living two doors down from her. The fruity scent of her was all over his bed. His house. Everything reminded him of her.

How do you forget about the other half of you? Your person?

Nick couldn’t, so instead of sleeping, he’d drunk one too many glasses of whiskey and turned on a movie. Something violent and gory.

No romance whatsoever.

Insistent knocking interrupted his sulking and he climbed to his feet, glaring at the wooden door. He squinted into the peep hole and stilled.

Noel’s anxious face stared back at him.

She was standing outside his door at two in the morning in the freezing cold.

His heart thundered as he unlocked it and dragged the door open, staring at her in drunken befuddlement. “You’re here.”

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