His eyes narrow slowly. “But whatisit?”
“Friendship?” I offer.
As he tries to absorb this, he wants to know, “Friends with benefits?”
“Uh, no.” I laugh. I don’t need to get further attached to this man. “Maybe friends who kiss once in a while.”
“Friends who kiss …” he repeats. “I could be down for that.”
I know I won’t mind getting the occasional toe-curling lip lock. I try to force myself not to think about what will happen when Noah goes back to Chicago. Somewhere in the back of my mind I know that if I let him, this man could break my heart. I may tell myself that I’m done with letting anyone have that kind of power over me, but the problem is, I don’t have a great track record when it comes to listening to my own good advice.
CHAPTER THIRTY
NOAH
Even though I know I shouldn’t have kissed Allie, I couldn’t help myself. I would have never pushed it had she said no, but then she threw herself into my arms and I felt like the luckiest man alive.
I wait while she unlocks the outside door that leads to her upstairs apartment. When I open it for her, she turns and smiles shyly. “I had a nice night.”
“Me too,” I respond with a little more gusto than might seem cool. But I really did have a wonderful time, and I want her to know that.
“I like you, Noah.” Allie valiantly tries not to make eye contact, which means she’s either embarrassed by what happened or she’s wishing it never did. Meanwhile, I’m hoping it’s neither.
Trying to soften my expression to an irresistible smolder, I tell her, “You’re pretty great yourself.”
I know my attempt at sexiness fails because she laughs at me. “Don’t flirt with me,” she says plainly. “We’re friends, that’s all.”
“Friends who kiss,” I remind her, sounding like a pouting kid.
“Maybe ...”
Her expression is full of warning, so I don’t cross her. Instead, I ask, “Have you given any more thought to the girls joining us for morning practice?” I hadn’t planned on offering that, but I want to see Allie as often as I can, while I can.
“I’ll ask the girls about it,” she says. “But I probably won’t come in that early. I want to make sure Margie gets a good breakfast every morning.”
“You sound like a mother already,” I tell her.
“I suppose helping Margie will be good practice for me. Although, I feel more like her big sister than her mom.”
“Has she been to the doctor yet?” I want to know.
“Next Tuesday. I’m going to take her during lunch.”
“Are either of her parents going?”
She shakes her head. “Not that I know of. Considering their stance, I’m pretty sure neither of them would want to.”
“Has Margie asked Jordan to come?”
Allie seems surprised by the question. “Do you think he’d want to?”
“Maybe. I mean, this is his baby, too,” I remind her.
“Yeah, but he’s in the same camp as her mom and dad.” She doesn’t need to tell me which camp that is.
“That doesn’t matter,” I tell her. “If Margie ever wants Jordan to feel like the dad, she needs to include him.”
Allie’s head moves up and down slowly. “You’re probably right. I’ll mention it to her.” Then she says, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
