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“I am sorry she showed up to ruin the night.” Chance held on to Noelle’s hand and was so relieved when she didn’t pull away. It was progress. He linked their fingers together.
Noelle smiled. “I did have a fun night. I haven’t laughed in a while.”
Noelle looked at Quinn. “Maybe we should call a cab. I heard it takes a while for them to get out here.”
Chance jumped at the chance to spend more time with Noelle. “Let me take you home on the bike, Noelle.”
Her eyes widened. She looked down at her tight purple dress. “In my dress and heels?”
“It’s a short ride. I always have an extra helmet, and I will even let you wear my jacket,” he offered.
“What about Quinn? I don’t want to leave her in a cab alone.” Noelle looked undecided. Chase spoke up. “I can give her a ride home. We live in the same apartment building.”
“Yeah. He is my annoying neighbor across the hall.” Quinn smiled at Chase. “He is not a morning person.”
“You talk through the whole elevator ride. You never even breathe and give me a chance to respond,” he complained, but without any heat.
Chance looked at them with curiosity. He could see an obvious attraction between the two. He’d have to ask Chase about it later.
Noelle hopped off of the stool. “Sounds like we have a ride home, then.”
Chance kept her close to his body in case Carly was out there lurking around. He was going to have to keep his eyes open. He and Carly hurt Noelle once. He was not going to let it happen again.
Chapter 7
Quinn stretched her arms up in the air and yawned. Her hair was loose around her face. The temperature was warm today, and they were both wearing shorts and T-shirts. “Last night was fun.”
Noelle couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah. Except for Carly showing up it was. I am glad you talked me into it.”
“The motorcycle ride was amazing. I think I found my new hobby.” Quinn grinned cheekily.
“Riding the motorcycle, or Chase?” Noelle teased.
Quinn blushed and swatted Noelle’s arm playfully.
It felt good to feel normal again. She wasn’t feeling depressed or agonizing over where Chance was and who with. They weren’t a couple, so it took the stress off of her a bit.
“You didn’t fall for Carly’s lies, did you?” Quinn asked with a frown. “I could see Chance’s anger, but he was trying to be cool. Carly is mentally unstable if you ask me.”
“No, I didn’t,” Noelle admitted. Jealousy clouded your view. She realized that now. “I think I was so insecure in my relationship with Chance. I knew I loved him, but he never gave me the words or made me feel like he took us seriously. With Carly flirting and constantly touching him all I saw was red. I was never calm enough to think straight. Jealousy is an awful thing. Now I can see Carly needs help, not anger.”
Quinn nodded with understanding. “He should have treated her like he did last night, letting her know he wasn’t putting up with her nonsense. Maybe that scene that broke you up would never have happened.”
“You’re right,” she agreed. “He was too nice to Carly. He smiled at her and laughed at her jokes. She always had her hand on his arm like he belonged to her, and he never pushed her away. I never noticed how much she drank. It’s very sad.”
“He never took your concerns seriously. That had to make you feel hurt,” Quinn reminded her as they waited for customers to walk in. The morning had been busy, but now it was lunchtime and slow. “He made you feel childish for letting him know how much she bothered you. I see a change in him now. Maybe he realized how important you are to him.”
“Maybe.” She had enjoyed spending time with him. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed his company. Even Chase seemed slightly friendlier toward her. Hank had always been nice to her. Last night was nice, but did that mean she should risk her heart again? What if she couldn’t recover a second time? That is what scared her and made her hesitate.
She made an effort to get her mind on business. Thinking about Chance confused her.
“So what do you think of my idea to have a fashion show to drum up more business? I have a lot of cute summer outfits in mind,” Noelle asked Quinn. She could not spend all day thinking of Chance.
“I like the idea,” Quinn answered honestly. “We could allow the models to keep one or two outfits in lieu of paying them money. We can make flyers and put an ad in the paper.”
“Or we could just tell Hattie and let her spread the news,” Noelle said in a joking manner, making Quinn laugh.
Before Quinn could form an answer, they heard the window shatter. Noelle and Quinn screamed in fright. Quinn threw herself to the ground and covered her head as if it was a drive-by. Noelle took shelter behind a clothes rack, bending low. Her heart was thumping in her chest so hard.
