AllFreeNovel
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“More like I'm floating in the middle of nowhere, with no way back to shore.”
Nolan exhaled sharply, dropping the rope and heading below deck. He returned a moment later with a bottle of dark liquor with a label older than either of them at nearly forty years. “Time for a real drink.”
“Fuck yes.” Noah sucked the rest of his beer down, settling it in the empties bucket and taking the offered glass from Nolan.
“Okay, good liquor means it’s time to spill.”
“You sound like Mia.”
“I come with liquor, not cookies.” Nolan studied Noah while he drank, reading deeper than the words his friend spoke. “It won't do anything unless you drink. It'll help loosen lips or make the world upside down.”
“Lex and I seem to be at a standstill. Or we were, I don't fucking know." he groaned, letting out an exasperated sigh. "I planned fucking everything.” Noah sipped his drink, letting it burn his tongue and throat. It turned warm in his system. “Zander helped me. The whole damn night was perfect.”
Nolan stayed quiet, letting Noah have the space he needed to vent.
“The flowers, twinkle lights that have no business being that fucking small. The batteries were even smaller.” Noah’s agitation grew. “Every detail. She still said no.” Twice if he wanted to count the night he was a jackass and cornered her after an intense scene.
“That’s harsh.”
“Yeah.”
“Did she say why?” Nolan’s words were cautious.
Noah returned with a defeated shrug. “She distracted me in a way only she could.”
“Sex.”
“I’ve never met a woman more adverse to talking than her. I feel like I’m mapping landmines. Cautious over what to say and how deep to go. If I push too far, she runs.”
“Mia’s hinted that she’s been through a lot.”
“A lot doesn’t cover it.” Noah huffed, tipped his head to the sky, and held his empty glass to Nolan for a refill. It was his turn to drown in his sorrows. “When she’s on my table, all her walls come down. I see her for who she is. Past her scars.” It was ironic that it was the physical scars he was tasked to cover up when they met. She crawled into his heart, and he vowed to slay every emotional demon that dared take her light away.
He wanted her to let him in.
Nolan handed Noah a fresh glass. “You know she has a heart of gold, anyone who knows her sees that. Her ex was so destructive in every way she’s built a fortress around her heart. The only thing you can do is love her and be patient with her until her heart and brain know that you’re not going to hurt her. Be patient, she’s healing from a hell she didn’t deserve.”
“I know.”
“That doesn’t mean you take it lying down. If you don't fight for love, what kind of love do you have?"
Bitterly, Noah wondered as well.
***
With her arms overloaded, she pushed the side door to Mia’s open. “ Oh my fuck, I will be so damn happy when we’re done with this weddin g,” Lexi spoke dragging in the third armful of supplies into Mia’s kitchen. “I smell coconut even when I go back home.”
Mia was finishing up the dishes when she walked in. “That might sound ungrateful.”
“I’m not ungrateful, I swear,” she promised. “This one seems like it’s taking forever to plan and we’re not working on anything else.”
“You’re bored.”
“I enjoy being stimulated.”
“Thankfully, that’s your boyfriend's specialty.”
“Yes, yes he is. Hey, speaking of. He was supposed to meet me here this morning. Did Zander drag him off to work on his diving?”
