He was quiet as he drove us back to Abigail’s apartment. The sound from Timothy’s show was the only thing filling the silence between us. I couldn’t help but glance over at him, only to find that his jaw was set and his gaze focused as he drove. I couldn’t tell if he was upset with me or with Abigail, but he was definitely battling with something.
And, for some reason, I wanted to know what was wrong with him.
“Are you really going on a date with that guy?” His question startled me. I turned to face him, but he was still staring straight ahead.
“Yes,” I said, my confidence faltering with each second that passed. It was easy to feel confident in my decision with Abigail standing next to me, egging me on. But now, alone, I was struggling to justify my decision to myself, much less Noah.
Noah didn’t respond to my answer. Instead, his grip just tightened on the steering wheel.
When we got back to Abigail’s apartment, I got Timothy showered and in his pajamas before I turned my attention to myself and my appearance. It didn’t take me long to locate the dress that Abigail had been talking about. Once I locked the door to the bathroom, I stared at my reflection and then the dress. It was short and tighter than I was used to wearing.
I knew why Abigail had offered it. It said sexy single lady, instead of grieving single-mom widow. Since I was a woman in search of a husband, wearing this dress made sense. But it had been a long time since I was sexy single lady. I wasn’t even sure how to be that woman again.
I shook my head as I shimmied out of my floral dress and slipped into the black one. I was thinking too much. I just needed to rely on Abigail’s confidence that I could do this and push all of my own doubts from my head. If I thought too much about it, I was going to throw on my pajamas and cancel the whole evening.
I decided to take my makeup into an evening look with a little smoky eye. I let my hair fall around my shoulders before I took a curling iron to the ends to give it a little more life. By the time I was finished, I was impressed with myself.
I would date me.
After I put away my makeup and gathered my floral dress, I pulled open the bathroom door and turned off the light. With my floral dress tucked into my suitcase, I smoothed down the little black dress and headed out into the living room.
Noah and Timothy were busy playing some video game. Their gazes were directed at the TV, and it wasn’t until I was halfway through the living room that Noah glanced up. His entire expression froze as he stared at me. His gaze was dark and unreadable, and it sent the butterflies that were already living in my stomach into overdrive.
Why couldn’t I read this man? And why did his opinion matter so much to me?
Needing something other than Noah’s reaction to focus on, I turned my attention to the clock over the oven.
7:45
Crap.
“I should get going,” I said as I walked over to the counter where I’d set down my purse earlier. By the time I turned back around, Noah had stood and was heading toward me.
“Do you think I should come?” he asked.
I watched him for a moment before I glanced back at Timothy, who was so tuned into his game that he hadn’t even looked up. “No. I’m okay,” I said as I turned my attention back to Noah. “Abigail and Bash aren’t back yet, and someone needs to stay with Timothy.” I took in a deep breath. The desire to cancel this date washed over me, but I fought through it. It was just drinks. I wasn’t promising my life to him.
Noah’s gaze felt like it was piercing me as he stared at me, his blue eyes turning stormy. I held his gaze before I pulled the strap of my purse higher up onto my shoulder.
“I’ll only be an hour or so.” I reached over and grabbed Abigail’s keys, which had been next to my purse. They jangled as I hooked my finger around the keyring. I gave Noah a quick smile before I crossed the room and sat down next to Timothy.
He was so engrossed in his game that he didn’t look over, and when I leaned in to kiss his cheek, he moved to the side to see around me. I told him goodbye twice because it wasn’t until the second attempt that he actually acknowledged me.
I didn’t meet Noah’s gaze as I headed through the living room to the front door, even though I could feel it follow me. I didn’t look back as I shut the door behind me and headed out to Abigail’s car.
It wasn’t until the engine was started and I had backed out of the parking spot that fear took ahold of me and I paused.
What the heck was I doing?
19
SABRINA
By the time we got back to the hotel room, I was exhausted. Thankfully, Samuel had been a little angel and was so well-behaved at the mall that all I wanted to do was praise and kiss him. My conflicting feelings towards Liam were stressful enough. A cranky baby would have sent me over the edge.
While I put my bags into the bedroom, I could hear Liam and Katie talk in the living room. Katie was wondering where she was going to sleep, and Liam was confused why she was staying the night. It was awkward to listen to them go back and forth, so I decided to fix Samuel a bottle in the room and avoid going out there completely.
They must have come to some sort of agreement, but Liam did not look happy about it when he walked into the bedroom and informed me that he was off to find Katie her own room. From the brief glimpse of Katie that I got as she passed by the open door, she wasn’t happy about this arrangement either.
