Page 104 of Hometown Hottie

51

NOVA

Carson appeared out of thin air. I had no idea where he’d come from, but one minute, Andy had been in front of me, and the next, I found myself staring at Carson’s broad back instead. He was breathing hard, his shoulders rising and falling fast and his spine ramrod straight.

Biceps flexing, he crossed his arms, and the next thing I knew, poor Andy deflated like a balloon and slunk away. Carson hadn’t even said anything. All he’d done was stand in front of me, and yet, it seemed like he’d scared Andy half to death.

My heart went wild in my chest, righteous anger taking control of my pulse. I scowled at his back. The nerve of this guy.

Not two days ago, he’d told me he would see me around like I meant nothing more to him than some distant neighbor he only walked past every once in a while, and now here he was, scaring away a friend who’d only been trying to talk to me.

Indignation fueled the anger building in my belly and my scowl deepened. I didn’t know what to think but I didn’t want to let myself get my hopes up that it had meant anything either. Part of me wanted to believe it did, that he hadn’t wanted another man talking to me because he still wanted me to be his, but I couldn’t let that part win.

Focusing on the anger and indignation instead, I acted on instinct and smacked Carson’s arm so hard that my fingers stung. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? That guy went to high school with me. He’s harmless, not that you should care.”

Carson turned around slowly, blinking like he was coming out of a trance and wasn’t even sure what he was doing here. His gaze met mine, those greens so electric and alive with emotion that for one foolish moment, I thought he was going to tell me that he’d made a mistake.

My heart skipped and my soul reached for his. I felt like the world was finally about to turn right way up again. I knew I shouldn’t forgive him too easily, but I didn’t know if I was strong enough not to. All I wanted was for him to realize that Ryan didn’t have to be in our way. That I would shove him out of our way myself if he tried to come between us again.

Before I could even think about offering my forgiveness, Carson opened his mouth and all that hope came crashing down around me at the lame excuse he offered. “You looked like you needed help.”

“I didn’t.” I hadn’t been prepared for how much it was going to hurt to be so close to him again, but the pain of it took my breath away. I struggled for air, my lungs not wanting to function if it meant breathing in his spicy scent, and I stumbled back to put a few feet of space between us.

Once I was what I thought would be a safe distance away, I folded my arms and glared at him. “I was fine. I am fine. You should go and enjoy your night. There are plenty of women here who would love some attention from the famous Carson Drake.”

A shimmer of pain crossed his eyes, and I wondered why the hell we were even talking if it was hurting us both so much. I blinked away tears, feeling so damn foolish for thinking that he might’ve come over in an attempt to apologize. To win me back.

My throat started closing up, completely clogged with the sobs I was fighting as I stared at him through narrowed eyes. “Go, Carson. I didn’t ask for your help and I didn’t need it. Just go. Please.”

Almost like it was an involuntary movement, he took a step closer to me, invading my personal space and making me want to reach for him. That pain in his eyes was so raw that I almost started hoping again, but I gave my head a hard shake even as he frowned at me like he didn’t understand the words coming out of my mouth.

“I don’t want any other women, Nova,” he said, sounding so damn sure that my heart broke a little bit more. “I don’t care who wants my attention. I don’t want theirs.”

“Yeah, well, evidently, you don’t want mine anymore either, so I’m still at a loss for what exactly you’re doing over here.”

His dark eyebrows tugged together, confusion written across his furrowed brow. “You think I don’t want you anymore?”

I scoffed, hating that this was the conversation we were having after the end. It made me feel pathetic. Like I was fishing for him to say, “Of course, I want you, Nova. I’ve always wanted you and I’m never going to want anyone else.”

Silently berating myself, I lifted my chin in the air and hoped with everything in me that he didn’t see the tears swimming in my eyes. “You made yourself pretty clear the last time we spoke. You don’t want to be with me. It wasn’t a good idea, remember?”

“No.” He shook his head over and over again, squeezing his eyes shut before opening them again. “That’s not why I broke it off. It wasn’t because I want to be with other people. Do you?”

What I want is to not answer that question.

The truth was so damn obvious and it was staring him right in the face, but if he couldn’t see it, if he couldn’t see how much this was hurting me precisely because I didn’t want anyone else, then he wasn’t looking hard enough. And that wasn’t my problem. I wasn’t going to beg him to take me back.

I nearly cried with relief when my phone started buzzing in my pocket. Saved by technology.

Breaking eye contact with Carson, I finally felt like I could breathe again. I reached for it, thinking it was Cassidy and planning on telling her where we were so she could join us, but it wasn’t her. It was my dad.

My heart suddenly stammered, my very bones suddenly knowing that something massive had gone wrong. Dad didn’t just call to chat or to check in.

“Hello?” I pressed the finger of my free hand into my ear in the hopes that I’d be able to hear my father. “Daddy? What’s wrong?”

“It’s the bakery, Nova! It’s on fire!”

For just a second, I thought I’d misheard him. What he’d said couldn’t possibly be true, but when he ended the call without saying anything else, I knew the worst had happened.