I glance down to see her pale complexion has turned blotchy crimson. I want nothing more than to defend her honor to this absolute scumbag, but she catches my eye, and in that one look, I can tell that that would only make things worse. All she wants to do is get the heck out of this bar.
I do the only thing I can think of to get rid of Nelson. I bend down and kiss her, square on the mouth.
I hear Nelson curse, but Noli’s arms come up to wrap around my waist. She squeezes me tightly, and I hold her close. There’s no heat in our embrace this time. All I’m trying to do is comfort her. I don’t break our kiss until I sense that we’re alone. I pull away and rest my forehead against hers. She’s still quivering, so I keep a firm hold on her hips.
“You ready to go?” I whisper.
She nods but doesn’t speak.
“Come on.” I grab for her hand and lead her out of the bar.
Once out in the fresh air, I open up the rideshare app on my phone and get us a car that takes us back to the house. We ridein silence, but I don’t let go of Noli’s hand. She’s trembling, and she stares out the window the whole way home.
What do I say to her?
Did I handle that right?
Is she mad at me?
I hate Nelson.
I have half a mind to drop Noli at home to sleep off this entire night and go back downtown and give him a piece of my mind…and my fist. But I don’t want to leave her side.
We wander into the darkened Airbnb, and Noli speaks first.
“I didn’t tell Poppy we were leaving. I feel terrible, ditching out early.”
“I’ll text Mack. Don’t worry about it.”
She nods numbly and wanders into the living room. Her knee collides with the end table. She mutters a curse, bending down to rub her leg.
I cross the room and grab for her elbow. “Hey. Hey.” She won’t meet my gaze. I dip my chin. “Are you crying?”
She pinches her eyes closed. “I’m fine. That really hurt.”
I don’t know if she’s talking about her run-in with the end table or with her jackwad ex.
“I know,” I say. Because it doesn’t matter. “I’m going to get a bath ready for you, okay? Do you like baths? I should know this as your husband-to-be.”
Noli chuckles, though barely. “Yeah. Baths are good.”
“Okay. Good. Let me draw you a bath. You grab a glass of water. I’ll have it ready in no time.”
She nods absently, and I release her arm so she can go to the kitchen. I cut into our bedroom, because of course now that we’re dating, and given the lack of extra space in the rental, Poppy and Mack have us sharing a room. Though, Poppy made me swear an oath that there’d be no hanky panky—her words, not mine. It’s a two-bedroom place. Poppy and Mack are sharing one. Noli was going to share this one with Rose, but now Rose is on the couch,where I was supposed to be. Anyway, it’s a whole thing. I haven’t even let my brain go there yet, and it’s the last thing I’m thinking about now. All I want to do is take care of Noli. I want to wipe the worry from her expression, and I want to make her believe that no one, and I meanno one, believes the things Nelson said about her.
This is what I’m good at. Helping people. I do it for a living. But this feels different. My heart is beating erratically. My palms are sticky with sweat. This feels like I’ve got some skin in the game. Because I want to take care of Noli. I hate the thought of Nelson hurting her. I hate the thought of him dating her in the first place. It makes me want to put my fist through the wall. In fact, the thought of her dating someone else—after our whole fake-dating sham is up—makes me feel queasy.
I’m not sure what to do about all these messy feelings, because I’m going to have to get over my attachment to Noli. I’m not what’s best for her. But for now, she’s in my care, and I’m going to do whatever I can to take away some of her pain.
20
Prairie dogs are kind of cute
Noli
I’m not sure how long I’ve been in the bath. I must’ve dozed off for a while, because when I blink my eyes open, the lavender-smelling water is lukewarm.
I take my time toweling off and brushing my hair straight. If only the bath could have washed me of all the memories of tonight. It was a disaster.
