“What’s up?” Noah asks as Rick comes closer.
Everything about this guy is polished in a way that gets under my skin. The pressed clothes. The perfect hair. The calm expression that looks like it’s been rehearsed in a mirror. It makes me want to knock that perfect mask right off his face.
“Plans have changed,” he says, looking straight at Noah like I’m not even here. “Kayaking got pushed to tomorrow since Mom and Dad wanted a slower morning after the drive and all the wine last night.” He gestures vaguely back toward the cottages. “Everyone’s heading to the lake to swim now, so your mom asked me to come get you.”
“Oh. Okay,” Noah says, his voice tight. “Thanks for letting us know.”
A pause stretches out. Rick shifts his weight, glances at me, then looks back at Noah.
“Actually, now that I found you, I was thinking maybe we could talk for a minute.” His tone is light, easy, but something about it sets my teeth on edge.
“Okay,” Noah says, like he’s waiting for Rick to keep going.
Rick hesitates, then says, “Alone.”
Noah’s brow furrows. “Connor can stay.”
Rick shoots me a look with real annoyance in it, the first honest expression I’ve seen on his face. Then he turns back to Noah.
“I’d rather it be just the two of us,” he says, his face smoothing out again. “Just to clear the air. It’s been a while.”
Noah’s eyes flick to mine, and for a split second he looks unsure before his face closes off again.
“That’s not necessary,” he says. “There’s nothing to clear.”
“Please?” Rick steps closer, lowering his voice a little. “Just a quick chat.”
Noah looks deeply uncomfortable, but after a beat, he nods. “Alright.”
Every part of me wants to step between them. Tell Rick to get fucked. Tell him he lost the right to pull Noah aside the second he decided shame mattered more than Noah did. But it isn’t my place. This isn’t actually my relationship to defend. Noah isn’t actually my boyfriend. I have to keep telling myself that, even while something ugly and possessive keeps rising in my chest.
“I’ll give you a minute,” I say instead, because what else can I do?
I move a little way down the path, far enough to give them privacy, but close enough that I can still see them. Rick wastes no time guiding Noah farther off, just out of earshot. I watch from where I am, trying not to make it too obvious.
I can’t hear what Rick is saying, only watch the effect it has on Noah.
At first Noah stands there with his arms folded hard across his chest, listening, but it doesn’t take long for his whole body to tighten, like he’s already regretting agreeing to this. Then his chin lifts, and a few seconds later the sound of his voice carries back to me—not the words, just the tone. Short. Flat. Carefully controlled. Even from here, I can tell he’s getting angry, no matter how hard he’s trying to keep it off his face.
Good.
I’d rather see anger in him than that awful, wrecked look from this morning. Anger means Rick hasn’t gotten to him in the same way yet. It means Noah is still pushing back.
But then something changes. Noah’s shoulders drop, and the fight goes out of him so fast it turns my stomach. A second ago he looked angry. Now he just stands there, still, like whatever Rick said caught him off guard.
I force myself to stay where I am, picking at the bark of a nearby tree to give my hands something to do. This was always part of the deal—helping Noah face his ex. I just didn’t expect it to be this hard to watch.
At one point, Rick reaches out and puts a hand on Noah’s arm. It’s brief, probably meant to look harmless to anyonewatching, but I still see Noah flinch. I make myself look away as something dangerously close to jealousy rises in my chest.
Fuck. I need to cool down.
I pull out my phone and open the gym app where I track my training. I think about the workout I’ll miss tomorrow and try to distract myself by going over Monday’s plan instead.
Finally, after what feels like forever but is probably only a few minutes, I hear footsteps. When I look up, Rick is heading toward me.
As he draws level with me, he cuts me an unreadable look. It’s definitely not friendly, and he doesn’t even bother hiding the hostility in it. I give him the same look back, then turn toward Noah.
Even from here, I can see him take a deep breath, his shoulders rising and falling with it. Then he looks up, like he’s only just remembering I’m here, blinks once, and starts walking over.
