10
As soon as Noah got off the gondola, he waved goodbye to his co-workers before heading to the resort lobby. He smiled at the front desk staff before stepping through the door to the office. His mom sat at the desk, powering down her computer before leaving for the day.
“Hey, Mom.”
She turned and smiled. “Oh, hey, Noah. How were the slopes?”
“Good. No serious injuries to report.”
“That’s good to hear. What brings you over here? Going on a date with Jessa again?”
“I will be later tonight. What I would like to know is what you said to her?” Noah raised an eyebrow.
An innocent look crossed her face before she shrugged. “I just wanted to meet her. I only introduced myself.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes, that’s it. Your dad came along and interrupted our conversation.”
Thank God for that.
Noah grabbed a chair from a nearby table and turned it toward his mom before sitting down. “Mom, I know you mean well, but please don’t try to check on her intentions.”
“What makes you think I’d do that?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Maybe because you seem to do that with every woman I have an inkling of interest in. Which is incredibly embarrassing at my age. And even more embarrassing when Idon’thave an interest in them.”
Karen rolled her eyes. “That happened once.”
“Once was enough.”
She sighed heavily. “I just want to make sure she’s good for you.”
“I think I’m old enough to decide that for myself.”
“I know. I just don’t want you to be sad again.”
There it was. He knew his mom always stressed about him after his last real relationship went up in flames. Noah tried to date occasionally, so she wouldn’t worry about him, but then she would stress he would get hurt. But if he didn’t date, she stressed he was alone. As far as he knew, his mom didn’t stress about his other siblings. Probably because he was the oldest.
“Mom, I’m fine. You need to stop worrying about me.”
“I’m your mother. I’ll never stop worrying. Is it too much to ask to just have my boys happy?”
Noah chuckled. “I think we’re all pretty happy.”
“Yes, but I’d like grandchildren.”
Noah rolled his eyes and stood. “Need I remind you that you have one beautiful granddaughter named Emma?”
“I love Emma dearly. You know that. But it would be nice to have more than one.”
Noah laughed and moved toward the door. “Maybe someday.”
“Hopefully someday soon!” she called after him as he stepped out of the office and back into the lobby.
Noah walked out to the parking lot and climbed into his truck. He needed to get home to shower and change before his date. Wintervale was a small town, so it didn’t take long before he was pulling into his driveway.
He made it inside his house and showered quickly before dressing in a pair of dark jeans and a button-up shirt. Then he went to his dining room table and set out plates and napkins before calling in a food order at the resort. In hindsight, he would have swung by the store and grabbed a tablecloth to cover up his old table. He also would have grabbed a candle to light to cover any scent of man that could be lingering in his house. Not that he thought it stunk, but he couldn’t be positive.
