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“Hey.” I wrap my arm around her waist. “Your dad’s got strong opinions. But that doesn’t make him right.”
“Maybe not, but according to him, as long as he’s paying my tuition, he gets to decide how I spend my time.”
“Not your off time.” I stroke the edge of her jaw. “I have to say, I’m kinda looking forward to sneaking up to your dorm next semester.”
“About that,” she says, biting her lip. “I’ve decided I’m not going back to school next month. I’m taking a semester off...until further notice.”
I blink. “You’re sure?”
“I’ve thought a lot about it. College isn’t for me, at least not right now. I asked Colton if I could stay on and try to hack it as an event planner, and he said yes.”
“You have done a great job so far.”
“Don’t speak too soon,” she says. “We still have to get through tomorrow night.”
“No matter what shit those two clowns pull tomorrow, you’ve done an amazing job.”
“Thank you.” She smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “What will you do?”
“If you’re staying, I’m staying.”
“Really? You’re not going back to Burlington or...moving to LA?”
“I mean, I’ll have to go back to deal with my apartment, but if this is where you’ll be living, then this is where I want to be.”
Noelle throws her arms around my neck. I press her to me, savoring the heat from her body and the curve of her hips.
She pulls back to look at me. “Pleasedon’t mention it in front of my dad. I do not want to deal with his reaction just yet.”
“You think he’ll freak?”
“That’s putting it mildly,” she says.
“My lips are sealed, for real this time.” I run my thumb across her bottom lip. “You know, one nice thing about us going public is that I can kiss you whenever I feel like it.”
“Well, when you put it like that—” She kisses me softly. “—it all becomes worth it.”
Chapter Thirteen
Colton
New Year’s Eve morning is a whirlwind of last-minute decorating, furniture arranging, and light stringing. As expected, Richard and Miranda don’t emerge from their cabin until well after noon.
It’s just as well that they stay out of our way. With Miranda’s usual penchant for leaving chaos in her wake, and Richard clomping around like a bull in a china shop, it’ll be a miracle if this party goes off with only minor hitches.
The DJ, catering staff, and pyrotechnics experts—also known as Antonio and his granddaughter, Maya—arrive at more-or-less the scheduled time, and the party guests start pouring in around six p.m.. Miranda and Richard invited over eighty people, and at a rough estimate, it looks like sixty-five or so have shown up. I made sure to plow out a portion of the lawn for parking this afternoon, so the extra visitors won’t clog up the main roads.
Noelle moves around the barn like a ballroom dancer, chatting with guests, directing staff, cleaning up spills, and making sure folks have everything they need to have a good time.
I hate that I can’t pull her close, that I have to turn my gaze away when she’s standing right in front of me in her black party dress. Frankly, I’m just here in case something goes wrong, or if someone has a question about the barn’s restoration. I’m not here to enjoy myself.
Thankfully, everyone else seems to be having a good time, for the most part. Miranda’s on the sauce. Sawyer’s busy managing the catering staff, who are doing their best to keep the buffet table tables stocked with food and drinks.
Richard’s parked himself at a table in the corner with a glass of something brown. Even his own friends seem to be avoiding him. His daughter’s doing the work of three people, and excelling at it. But he’s got a blind spot a mile wide. He doesn’t see that she’s thriving here.
Last night, I told her I want to be there when she breaks the news to him about dropping out of college. If he tries to give her shit for it, I’ll be the first to step between them.
Around ten o’clock, Noelle comes over to ask if I can replace the fuse on a string of party lights that have gone out. I run to the workshop, at the back of the barn, in one of the few areas I decided not to incorporate into the main room. As I’m scanning the workbench, I hear the door whine open and latch shut.
