Always the Last to Know(47)

It was Noah.

No baby this time. Just him, looking irritable and beautiful.

“Hi,” I said, opening the door.

He didn’t answer.

“Hello, Noah,” I said, enunciating.

“Your mother sent me.”

I sucked in a breath of cold air. “Why? Is my dad okay?”

“He’s fine. She wanted me to check your house.” I closed my eyes in relief. “But I can go if you want. Which would be my preference.”

“You’re so very sweet, Noah. Come on in. What little heat I have is racing out of here.”

He came in, brushing past me.

Damn. He smelled so good—wood and polyurethane and laundry detergent. “How’s your baby?” I asked.

He deigned to allow half his mouth to twitch in a smile. “He’s great.”

I nodded. “Good. Well. What do you think?”

“Money pit.”

“That’s what Jules said. I’m glad you let your hair grow again, by the way.” No, Sadie. Nope. Don’t say that. Too late. You did. “I saw your picture on Facebook. That’s all. Nothing big. I wasn’t stalking you.” Please stop. “It was when you were engaged, that’s all. All our classmates were talking about it.” Sigh.

He just looked at me with those dark, dark eyes. As opposed to looking at me with his teeth, for example. God. I needed a drink.

You have a boyfriend, some distant part of my brain sang happily. He’s very nice to you! You almost always have an org—

“I don’t like the sound of that furnace,” Noah said. “Okay if I go downstairs?”

“Sure! Yeah! It’s super dark, though, because there’s no light down there. Which is what happens in the absence of light. Darkness.”

“Are you drunk?” he asked.

“I wish. I’m just feeding off all that brooding masculinity of yours.” I snorted and regretted it deeply.

Noah sighed, took a flashlight out of his toolbox, which I hadn’t noticed before, and found the cellar door, which was easy, because it was right in front of him.

I took a few cleansing breaths. Texted Alexander that I missed him.

It would just take some getting used to, seeing Noah again. He was my first love. Of course I still had a soft spot for him. There would always be a place in my heart for—

“Sadie! Can you come down here and hold the flashlight, please?”

“Coming!” I groped my way down the stairs. Lightbulbs. I definitely needed to buy some lightbulbs. Shouldn’t have dismissed Jules and her list quite so fast. Noah was at the hulking black thing (furnace, I assumed), doing something with his hands. Something manly and hard and dirty.

He handed me the flashlight, which I pointed in his eyes. “Sorry,” I said, shining the light at his feet.

“Your filter is filthy.”

“So are my . . . never mind. Filthy filter. Got it. Should I call someone? Or buy something?”

“You have someone.” Oh, my heart! “I’ll be right back.”

“Are you—” Nope. He was already up the stairs. I heard my front door bang closed.

I had to get a grip. Yes, he was gorgeous. What did I expect? That he’d become Nick Nolte in my absence? And yes, that brooding Jon Snow act was doing things to my lady parts.

But he had a child, and I had a serious, long-term, almost engagement going on, and Noah didn’t even want to be friends. I could respect that.

Except it seemed to trigger dirty thoughts that had the added benefit of irritating him, which, I had to admit, was kind of fun. Maybe I was just overtired. Maybe I needed something to distract me from Dad’s condition, which made me cry if I thought about anything other than a full recovery. Every time I thought about him, lost in his own brain, panic slithered around my heart.

Whatever the case, I shouldn’t mess with Noah.

But once, we’d been so happy together.

Noah came thumping down the stairs. “This is a furnace filter. You need to change it once a month on your model. Watch me so you can do it yourself next time.”

I watched. It didn’t seem difficult, not in those capable hands. That frickin’ beautiful hair. His soft voice. I bet he was a great dad.

“All done.”

“Okay. Thank you.” Finally, a normal sentence. “Are you seeing anyone these days?”

“Not your business.”

“Sorry.”

We went upstairs—him in front, which gave me a perfect view of his ass, and I’m sorry, how could I miss it? The radiators were clicking with what I assumed was heat.

“I appreciate this, Noah.”

“Don’t do any construction on this house without checking with me, all right? I might not like you anymore, but I don’t want you dying. Your mother would be crushed.”

“Or relieved. But yes, I see your point.”

He finally looked me in the eye, and his expression softened a little. “I really am sorry about your dad.”

“He’s getting better. You know, when it first happened, I was scared, but he’s . . . he’s good. He’s improving.”

“I brought Marcus over to see him the other day. You were at the grocery store, LeVon said. I hope that’s all right. We, uh . . . we visited him at Gaylord, too. Figured it would be okay.”