He took my chin without a word, turned my head toward him, and laid one on me, groaning low into my mouth.

“Didn’t think it was possible to be happier than I was two minutes ago,” he said, then cracked a grin that made my freaking knees weak. “But you just made me stupid fucking happy, Adds.”

My mind screamed at me to pull away, to run from this feeling building inside me. I ignored that as well. “I’m glad.”

He winked and wrapped those burly arms around me again, his eyes meeting mine in the mirror once more, and dipped his head, mouth close to my ear. “Can’t wait to see you in it.” Then he made a rumbly sound and pressed his lips to my temple. “In those purple lace panties I love and nothing else.”

I made myself laugh through the overwhelming nerves firing through me, and he watched me, that grin still on his handsome face. “I’ll see what I can do about that.”

He gave me another quick kiss that grew into a longer one before he finally lifted his head. “I gotta get to work. See you tonight.”

Not a question. He just assumed we’d be spending the night together again. And I nodded, unable to resist him, watching as he left.

The stupid smile on my face made my cheeks ache, and I let it drop. Why was I so damn broken? I…cared about him. I liked him a whole lot, yet the idea of staying in this relationship, of getting deeper in this with him, was utterly terrifying.

Goosebumps broke out all over me. He said wearing his patch was all about safety, but to anyone looking, I’d be Manic’s old lady. That wasn’t a small thing, it was huge.

A crash came from the café, and I jumped, shaking off the haze I was in and rushed down the hall and through the door between my kitchen and the café.

Gerald was cleaning a mess on the floor. Flour by the looks.

“Sorry! I’m here,” I said, rushing to help.

He smiled and shook his head. “I know it doesn’t look it in this particular moment, but I do actually have things under control.”

“I know you do. You’re a lifesaver.” I grabbed my apron and tied it around my waist. “I owe you big.”

“Don’t sweat it. Honestly, I just love seeing you so happy.”

I smiled, another one of those forced goddamn smiles because the fear growing in my gut was stifling anything else, and got to work, pretending that I wasn’t already in a tailspin that I didn’t know how to stop.

* * *

The morning went by in a rush.

There was enough of a lull to get the cabinets restocked before the lunch crowd hit, but it was midafternoon by the time I could finally take a load off.

I was going through recipes and planning what I wanted to bake the rest of the week and avoiding thinking about that property patch and what it meant when the door opened. I glanced over, and Noah walked in.

“Hey, honey,” he said, moving toward me, a tentative smile on his face.

I hadn’t seen him since Macy’s funeral, and seeing him now hit me harder than I thought it would. I stood, and he put something on the table before pulling me in for a hug.

“It’s good to see you,” I whispered, my throat suddenly tight.

His eyes were glistening when he pulled back and smiled at me. “Sorry, I should have stopped by sooner. It was just hard, you know?” He shook his head and breathed deeply. “God, I never get used to how much like her you are.”

I’d been told that my whole life, and it was something I’d loved, that I was proud of. We sat and I took his hand. “How’ve you been doing? Really?”

“Not so great. A woman like your aunt leaves a damn big hole.”

My throat worked. This was so hard. His pain was visceral, and my own rose up, almost choking me. I cleared my throat. “Do you want a coffee? Something to eat?”

“No, but thanks.” He gave my hand a squeeze and slid a carved wooden jewelry box toward me. “I dropped in to bring you this. She made me promise if anything happened to her, I’d get it you. You know Macy, always prepared.” He held my gaze. “I’ve been putting it off because I know that you’ve been struggling as well, but I thought it was time.”

I pressed my hand to the carved box, smooth and cool, and memories flashed through my mind. I remembered seeing it when I was little. It’d once belonged to my grandmother. “Thanks, Noah.”

“Some of the pieces that were your mothers, she’d been meaning to give you for a while. But you know your aunt, she was a little tornado, always busy. She’d see it and say, ‘God, I gotta give that jewelry to Addie.’ Then she’d shut the cupboard and forget all about it.”

Tags: Sherilee Gray Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net