One Last Time(39)

Noah’s eyes stay on mine, almost as if he can read the confliction that stirs within me.

His lips turn to a grin and he straightens, breaking the intensity. “I need to head out and meet someone. I’ll be back in a few days, and we can begin then.” Noah leans in, kisses my cheek, and lifts my chin so my eyes meet his. “Okay?”

“Huh?” I question, not comprehending what he said.

“Three days?” He smiles.

“Sure. Days away. I’ll be here.” Days away? What the hell is wrong with me?

“Perfect.” His lips move toward mine, and I freeze. He’s going to kiss me, and I’m just standing like a statue, unsure if I want this or at least trying to pretend I don’t want this. Instead of touching, though, he holds still as our breaths linger. His voice is barely a whisper, but I hear the words as if he’s yelling. “I’m going to win your heart, Kristin. Be ready.”

His touch is gone a second before he turns and walks out the door.

I grip the back of the couch and try to catch my breath because I’m in no way ready.





Chapter Sixteen





Noah





“I want you to be happy, Noah,” Mom reiterates in our weekly video chat. She believes it’s her mission in life to keep my feet on the ground.

She forces me to call the same time and day no matter where I am. Right now, I’m sitting in the car outside of a condo I’m looking at leasing in Tampa. The realtor is standing at the front of the car, clearly pissed.

What can I say? I’m a mama’s boy, always have been.

“I am happy.” I give her my best reassuring smile.

“You’re lying.” She pulls the phone closer as if she’ll be able to see me better. “I know you better than that.”

She’s the only person in this world who loves me beyond all my faults. She has also spent a great deal of time drilling that into my head, but it’s true. When my life fell apart, she forced me to move on. Losing Tanya was a crossroads in my life where if I went the easy path, I’d be God knows where. Mom wouldn’t allow it.

I owe her everything. If one call a week is the only thing she asks for, I’ll give it without reservation.

“What could I be sad about?”

She looks off to the left and sighs. “That’s for you to figure out, but maybe it’s time for you to open yourself up a little. It’s been a long time, Noah. A lot of things are different, you’re different.”

I don’t want to talk about this. “I’m moving that way,” I say, hoping she’ll shift the conversation away from Tanya.

“Oh? How so?”

When my mother can see my reactions, it makes it harder to blow her off. I’m pretty sure this is why she insists on video chats instead of phone calls. “A few things, Mom. I got another project on the docket, I auditioned for it a few months back, not thinking much about it.”

She smiles. “Tell me about it.”

I fill her in on all the details of the movie. I’ve done a few small roles in film, but nothing spectacular. This would be a lead, and it’s working for a director I highly respect. The film isn’t a genre I would’ve typically looked for, but since it was Paul Skaggs as the director, I took a chance. Hopefully, I don’t fuck it up and this is the transition into more film than television.

“I feel as though this is a good move for you, Noah,” Mom gives me her beaming smile that’s filled with pride. “Tell me what else is new. I feel like there’s more you’re purposely leaving out.”

She’s like a shark who smells blood in the water. “There’s not much to say, it’s very new.”

“You’ve met someone?”

It’s easy to forget that my family and real friends don’t read the shit on the internet. They’re not worried about what new drama the media has created to sell magazines. If there’s news, they hear it from me.

“You’d like her.”

I know I do.

“Tell me.” She smiles. “What’s her name?”

Trust isn’t the issue for why I’m hesitant, there’s nothing in the world that would make my mother betray me, but naming Kristin means opening myself up to a million questions.

“Noah Frazier, why are you making that face?” Mom asks after I’ve been quiet too long for her liking.

I never could lie to her, which is sad since my job is acting. “Her name is Kristin, she’s a single mom, has two kids, and lives here in Tampa.”

Her lips purse. I knew it. “Single mom?”

“I know what you’re thinking, and I would never do anything to hurt her or the kids. I’m aware of what it means.”

My father left my mother when I was four. He took every penny she had, the car, and never looked back. She somehow was able to push on with her life. My mother worked two jobs but was at every soccer game I had, and I had no idea we were poor. The older I got, the more she would share about being a single parent and the reasons she wouldn’t date.

One being my father hadn’t returned and she still felt he was her husband. That was, and still is, the most ridiculous thing ever, but I think there is more to it than I know.

My mother’s eyes are full of concern. “That’s not my worry, Noah. It’s that you live a life that isn’t family . . . friendly. Are you ready to even consider something where you are more stable in where you live? If she’s from Florida, how are you going to have a relationship?”