“We did. I just pray I can fix this fuckup.” He nods. I return the sentiment, and then I’m heading out the door. The clothes on my body are from last night. I should change since my house is just down the street. I don’t, though. It’s the furthest thing from my mind. My only thought is getting back to Noelle, and I’m going to do exactly that.

  Chapter 14

  Noelle

  I took the world’s longest and hottest shower, wasting not only water but also a good portion of my day. There are times when a girl needs to sit on her ass, let the hot water rain down on her body to wash away the tears. I did exactly that until I couldn’t anymore. I washed my face, ridding myself of last night’s makeup, then scrubbed and conditioned my hair. There were a lot of knots from a certain man who had no problem holding my head a certain way when I was sucking his dick. Then there was my body. Try as I might, there was no washing the lingering touches from Easton’s hands off me. The water started running cool, so I stepped out of the shower, wrapped a towel around my hair, and did the same with my body. I avert my eyes from the bed, my gaze landing on the floor, and I’m confronted with what I knew the second I walked away from Easton with my phone.

  His clothes are gone.

  He’s gone.

  The only thing I’m left with are the memories, the sheets, and the scent of our time together. My feet move me in the direction of my closet. I’m not processing shit right now. Nope, I’m going to bury my head in the sand and do what any woman does best, go for comfort. I drop the towel and grab my big fluffy robe off the hook, uncaring that the temperature is still in the seventies. I need the comfort and something to warm up my freezing insides.

  I walk out of my bedroom. The trail of clothes down the hallway doesn’t help matters either. It seems last night and this morning are trying to fuck with me some more. How wonderful. I lift my chin. Ignorance is bliss, and I’m going to do my best to ignore the things I have no control over right now. In a perfect world, Easton and I would have talked things out. Figured where it all went wrong, I also wouldn’t have run into the bathroom like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs. Clearly, we both made mistakes, me more than him. I can list all the things I did wrong, starting with hiring a fake date, sleeping with said date, and then not sticking around to see this whole fiasco through. No wonder Easton left while I was in the shower. I’d have left me, too.

  “Ugh, I’m so dumb.” Maybe a hot cup of tea will help. As for the puffiness beneath my eyes, that’s another story. I don’t think any amount of cold gel patches in the fridge will help, and that’s okay. I’m in the ‘misery loves company’ mood right now and want to stay here. I grab the tea kettle off the stove to fill with water. The microwave would be faster, but it’s never hot enough. I want it scalding hot, enough to burn my tongue. Once the kettle is full, I place it on the stove and turn the burner on high. While it heats up, I grab a mug, a tea bag, a spoon, and the small sugar jar I keep in the cabinet. Then, because I’m a horrible cat mom, I prepare Kitty Kitty her favorite, a can of tuna with treats. She’s well fed daily, given attention. She just didn’t get the extra love last night. In fact, Kitty Kitty wasn’t in her usual spot when I came home. Maybe she knew her Mamá was getting some, so she went on a prowl herself.

  The kettle whistles, and I’m glad. While I love Kitty Kitty, the tuna stench is not my favorite, which is why she usually gets dry food. I push the bowl away from my nose. Today, the smell is getting to me more than normal. It’s not like I drank a lot. There wasn’t much time between meeting my family, going to the restroom, and then dance. Easton and I couldn’t make it much longer, both of us burning for way more than him getting me off.

  “Shut up, brain,” I say to no one, and with nothing else to do except make my cup of tea, I do just that. The monotonous task should keep my mind busy, except it doesn’t. Once my tea is doctored up, I grab the mug, Kitty Kitty’s food, and make my way to the front porch. Even if my cat isn’t out there, I won’t have to deal with the mess inside my house. Never mind the emotional hangover I’m currently experiencing.

  I open the door one handed, praying that I don’t get tuna fish on my robe. That may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back today. “Kitty Kitty, are you out here?” Her meow echoes under the covered roof. She’s lying on top of the railing, purring for my attention, and the little stinker isn’t meeting me halfway. Oh no, Kitty Kitty wants me to bring her the bowl while she stays exactly where she is. Luckily, I’m trained by my cat, and she isn’t trained by the owner. “Fine, here’s your food, diva.” I set it in front of her then move to the front steps to sit down and enjoy my cup of tea. The furniture on my porch is in working order, but there’s something about sitting on a porch step, leaning against the railing, and letting the sun hit your face.

  I’m taking my first sip of hot tea when my morning goes from bad to worse. Easton pulls into my driveway, still wearing the same clothes from last night, and there’s no way I can ignore him or what he does to my stupid rapidly beating heart.

  Chapter 15

  Easton

  I pull into Noelle’s driveway, my hand aching from hitting my brother’s hard-as-fuck jaw. I’ll need some ice soon, or I’m going to be hurting as bad as he is. One look at her front door makes my thoughts of stopping for a change of clothes or worrying about my fist vanish.

  Her head and body are leaning against the railing post, a hot mug of something is in her hand, a towel on her head, and a big fluff ball of a robe is wrapped around her. How Noelle is able to stand being outside with the heat and humidity with what she’s wearing is beyond me. After placing my car in Park and turning off the ignition, I open the door and step out into the hot Florida air. My eyes stay on hers, watching as she glances at me quickly before averting her eyes to the black cat slithering beside her.

  “Noelle,” I say quietly as I walk toward her. She ignores me, but I don’t stop. It’s an impossible feat considering how firmly Noelle has wedged herself inside of me. “Noelle,” I say one more time once I make it to the bottom of the steps. Still, she doesn’t look at me. One hand holds her mug while the other continues petting the cat’s head. I drop to my knees, hands going to hers, needing her touch. “I’m sorry, Noelle, so damn sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice at you, and I damn sure shouldn’t have left you the way I did.”

  “Easton, no, no, no. This wasn’t your fault. If anyone is at fault, it’s me. I knew I hired a date. You didn’t know what you signed up for. You were blind to this whole thing.” I take the mug out of her hand, place it on the banister, and entwine our fingers.

  “The only person at fault is my brother.” I flex my hand. “Who you’ll be getting an apology from sooner or later.”

  “Where does that leave us?” She finally finds my eyes, and that’s when I realize she’s been crying. Fuck, I did that. Me. And damn if that doesn’t rock my world.

  “That depends on you. I want this with you. I want to see where this is going, and I want to do it with you by my side.” My mom would kick my ass if she knew I’ve hurt Noelle.

  “Are you sure? Because this wasn’t what I expected. Honestly, I didn’t expect you to come back,” she admits.

  “I’m positive. I’m going to show you exactly how positive I am, starting right now.” My hand cups her cheek, and when hers covers mine, she realizes my knuckles are cracked.

  “What did you do?” Her hand slides to my wrist, pulling it down and looking at the cuts.

  “My brother, Justin, he’s the one who owns Date for Hire. He asked me to accompany you in his place. He lied to me, lied to you, and now he’ll never pull a stunt like that again.”

  “Oh, Easton, come on.” She stands up. The belt loosens and her robe gapes, showing me and the neighborhood skin.

  “Inside, Noelle. Not worried about my hand as much as you showing too many people what’s mine,” I grunt as I straighten. My hand slides inside her robe, holding her close to me while feeling her skin.

  “Hand first, then you can have your wicked way with me.” My hand slides down, cupping the cheek of her ass, lifting her up, and she wraps her legs around me.

  “My hand can wait. Getting inside you is all that matters.” Her head dips. She nips at my jaw only to soothe the slight sting away with her tongue.

  “Easton,” she moans, rubbing herself against me. Between the cat, the steps, and the door, I’m going to do good to make it inside the house before I take her against the front door.

  “Fuck, Noelle,” I groan. My hand is on the doorknob, and we make it inside. There’s no holding back now. My mouth lands on hers, soft lips, sweet sighs, then my tongues invades her. I kick the door shut, push her against the nearest wall, and apologize to her with my touch.

  Epilogue

  Easton

  Six Weeks Later

  A lot can change in a short amount of time, kind of like me finally forgiving my shit-for-brains brother. Who now is making his own path in life with his dating service he has set up online. I didn’t agree with how we went about conniving his plan, but in the end, it got me the girl. Noelle is currently sitting on the back patio, a glass of wine in her hand, hair up in a messy bun, a sweatshirt hanging off her shoulder, and a blanket on her lap. She’s waiting for me to join her after spending the afternoon with our families combined. Thankfully, Isabella was a good buffer when things got tense and Justin opened his mouth to insert his fat foot. We’ve kept how we met a secret. Neither of us wants to deal with the looks and questions we’d get.

  “Hey, where have you been?” Noelle asks, sitting up and moving from her slouched state on the couch and ottoman set. Tonight, we’re at my place, where she prefers, yet I’ve been unable to convince her to move in permanently. I’m hoping to change her mind after tonight.

  “Work. I don’t know who’s worse, the players, the coaches, or the athletic department,” I grumble as I move closer, a bottle of beer in my hand. It’s not a total lie. The phone call came as I was in the closet, grabbing the important part of today.

  “All of the above, I’d say.” She tucks her feet beneath her legs. Every night we’re here, my seat is in front of her in one way or the other. Usually, her legs are on the ottoman, open for my shoulders to wedge between them as we watch the last rays of sun cascade over the water. Noelle’s hands will be in my hair, and I’ll massage her feet while we both decompress after work.

  “You’re right about that.” I sit on the stool instead, facing her, needing to see her face for what I’m about to ask. “Today seemed to go better.” Sonia is a force to be reckoned with. It doesn’t matter how many times Ramon gives her the look or tells her to stop, she keeps up with the questions. Thankfully, my mom was here to run interference, got her talking about the most mundane things and gave Noelle and myself some time to breathe.

  “Remind me to send your mom the biggest bouquet of flowers tomorrow. I didn’t realize how neurotic she’d get once we made things official.” There’s a look of worry on her face, and she quickly adds, “In the dating sense, I mean.” My mother raised a teenage boy on her own. She knew the best way to get me to talk willingly was to sit me out. The waiting game is what Mom liked to call it. She’d be working at the kitchen counter on her laptop, making sure she was in the hub of the house. That was where our conversations happened, or when we were in the car. She’d bribe me with an ice cream or a meal in order to spend extra time with me. A lot of talking happened that way. Our relationship was always honest and open, and she used to tell me her biggest fear was raising her son to become a man she didn’t like. Truthfully, I think she was worried I’d turn out like my dad. Mom did a great job raising me, and I’m nothing like him.

  “Ah, not flowers. She prefers plants. Those last longer.” Noelle nods at that idea. She’s been to Mom’s before and has seen her plants in every room.

  I take the glass of wine out of her hand, placing it and my bottle of beer on the ground. “Maybe I haven’t stated my intentions and feelings clearly enough. We’re very much in a relationship. You’re my woman, and I’m your man.” The ring I place on my pinky is obscured from her view for now. Noelle wraps her hand in mine. It’s the only thing I need. “I want you here, forever.” I bring her hand to my lips, placing a kiss on her fingers.

  “Easton.”

  “I want you as more than my woman. I want you so tied to me you can’t ever leave. I want my house to be your home. I want my last name attached to yours. I want you to be my wife.” I’m not asking for her hand in marriage. It’s a sealed deal, and we both know it. Noelle is nodding so fast she almost looks like a bobblehead. Tears are threatening to spill over. I pull her ring off my pinky and slide it onto her ring finger.

  “I love you, and even though you didn’t ask me to marry you, the answer is yes. Always yes.”

  “I love you, Noelle, always.” She’s off the chair, climbing into my lap, and I hold the fuck on. Right here with her in my arms, my mouth on hers, the soft purrs leaving her throat, it’s the only place I want to be.

  Epilogue

  Noelle

  One Year Later

  “Again? Can’t they wait till we’re at least out of the banquet room?” We’re at my parents’ annual Christmas party, sans Alejandro. It seems my now husband and brother had their way with him after Christmas the first year Easton and I were together. Antonio was the muscle, while Easton was the brain, using his contacts to dig up a whole lot about my ex-boyfriend. It was Gabriella and me who sat down to tell Mamá and Papá what Easton overheard in the restroom. Papá was ready to storm over to Alejandro’s parents’ house and pummel him. I told them Easton and Antonio took care of it while also admitting the truth on how Easton and I met. Mamá looked mortified. Papá shook his head while locking gazes with Mamá. He was already pissed at the Alejandro news, and I added to that. I figured he’d be disappointed, but he wasn’t. Papá told Mamá word for word that she drove their daughter to feel like she had to hire a date to get her to leave me alone. A date that could have turned out to be a sleazeball. Mamá was already on the verge of tears, but that statement tipped her over the edge. I knew she came from a good place, spurred by the need to see both of her kids happily married, and with grandchildren to spoil. Mamá apologized, I forgave her, and I made it clear that Easton was there to stay and she was never to treat him any differently than she treated Gabriella. Newsflash, Gabriella is one of us. Mamá loves her like a daughter, and I expected the same for Easton. I left that day feeling lighter, brighter, and happier. Plus, my relationship with my Mamá is now better than ever.

  “They’re in love, even after all these years. Let them be. We’ll be out of here as soon as you quit gawking.”

  “You’re lucky you’re so handsome, Mr. Bosa, especially holding our son.” There is absolutely nothing hotter in the world than watching the man you love holding your newborn baby boy, Christopher Bosa.

  “Maybe, maybe not. Care to get our boy down and see how lucky we’re feeling?” Easton has been on a mission ever since I was cleared to have sex at my six-week follow-up.

  I crook my finger for him to come closer. Even though I’m in heels, he’s still too tall for me to reach his ear. He bends down, and I whisper, “Are you going to at least pretend you’ll try to pull out in time?” His answer is a groan. I’ve had to beg him multiple times to come on my stomach and breasts. Some may think it’s a moment killer, but I think it’s the hottest thing ever. I’d pay money to watch Easton jack his cock to my naked body.

  “Not even for a minute. My goal is to get you knocked up by the time we check out tomorrow.” His hand dips low on my back. Some things never change. My husband likes people to know who I belong to. As if the four-carat diamond ring doesn’t tell onlookers when he’s not around.

  “Hmm, we’ll see about that.”

  “Yes, we will.” He wants our children to be close in age. He was also the only child from his mother. His dad having the number of marriages he had plus having Justin later on in life makes him want ours to be closer. I blame Antonio. We’re close in age, have a rock-solid relationship now. As children, we were a totally different story. He hated his younger sister tagging along, and I hated that he'd leave me at home. We obviously outgrew that stage. Antonio and Gabriella are doing similar—Isabella is now a big sister.

  “I’ve got a Christmas present for you tonight, Easton.” I feel his body tighten against mine.

  “You and Christopher are the only Christmas presents I need.” It’s him murmuring in my ear now, and I do a full-body shiver.

  “Easton.” I rapidly blink to clear up the tears from his sweet talking.

  “Love the two of you, Noelle. You know that. Nothing in the world can compare to the way I feel for our family.” Yep, there goes me not keeping his surprise a secret until we get back to our room.

  “And I love you, Easton. I’m pregnant.” He may have slipped a few times and not pulled out in time. And neither of us likes condoms. So, while I gave him hell earlier about not coming inside me, it was mainly to tease him.

  “Jesus, sweetheart. You keep giving me everything I never knew I needed. I’m going to cherish you forever.” No other words are needed or said. Easton’s lips move to mine, and he kisses me like only a husband kisses his wife. It’s full of passion, love, and devotion. I can’t wait to see what happens later tonight. Once Christopher is down, the real celebrating will begin, and I’m going to enjoy every minute of my time with my husband.

  I hope you enjoyed Easton and Noelle’s story!

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7