I like Noelle Evergreen—a lot. And with time, I can easily see it becoming more. Which means I have a few things to take care of before I can tell her. I don’t want anything between us when I tell her exactly how I feel about her. I just hope she feels the same way.
I grab my phone and excuse myself to the bathroom to send a text. Once theDeliveredline appears beneath my text, I feel light and new. A bit of sadness sits on my chest, but it’s the kind you feel when you finish a good book. You will miss the story and the characters. But that story is done, finished, and it’s time to open the cover of a new book.
12
Kat
December 24
WAKING UP THIS MORNING, I feel different in the best ways. I feel likeme,like the me I used to dream about as a kid, the truest version of myself. I don’t know if it’s possible to feel a physical shift in your mentality. Maybe it’s a feeling your brain fakes to make you feel better. But, by God, it’s coursing through me this morning.
Noelle and her family, aside from Nancy, are getting ready to leave right now to go run a few errands around town.
Noelle is last to walk into the living room, of course. Beautifully late, as always.
She is wearing an emerald-green turtleneck, one that I instantly recognize as the one she had on the first night I saw her—reallysaw her. High-waisted black jeans emphasize her incredibly full ass. Which I can’t stop myself from completely staring at as she bends over to put her shoes on.
After all of this is over and we can really be together, I am going to lay her bare on the bed and taste and touch every delicious inch of her body.
As if feeling my stare, she spins as she rises back to her full height, catching me in the act. My eyes dart to hers, and a deep red burns in my cheeks.
She squints her eyes as she walks up to me, where I’m leaning against the back of the couch. I open my arms as she approaches, and she cups my waist with her hands, brushing her thumbs up and down. Even through my thin shirt, I feel her touch as if it were on my bare skin.
“Any last-minute requests?” she asks as she leans down and kisses my forehead, breathing me in before pulling away.
Shaking my head, I look at her, studying her face. I try to memorize it as best I can, but I find a new freckle, a new feature to love every time I look at her.
“Everything okay?” she asks me.
My brows furrow, and I ask, “What? Of course.”
“You’re looking at me like you want to cry.” She chuckles.
Oh. I didn’t mean to. I just can’t help but get a tad emotional when I look at her this morning.
“I’m sorry.” I laugh.
She sucks her bottom lip between her teeth before grabbing my face and bringing her lips down onto mine.
She kisses me passionately, quickly separating my lips with the tip of her tongue. Our lips meld together, and she sears her name on my heart with her kiss.
As our lips part, her eyes meet mine. Where I expect to find raging lust and desire lies an emotion that no one has ever shown me. I have seen it, of course, in the eyes of others, but it was never mine.
Everyone else was always meant for someone else. But I think Noelle might be meant for me.
The front door opens with force, and Ben is standing there with a glare in his eyes. When he spots us, his demeanor immediately softens, and he looks away, seemingly embarrassed.
“Oh, um, sorry for interrupting. I was just coming to yell at Noelle to hurry up.” He laughs. “But I can see you guys are busy. So, I’ll just, um, wait in the car.”
Ben excuses himself. If I didn’t like Ben, he would be the absolute biggest pain in my ass. He has a sixth sense of when to interrupt us to ruin the mood.
Ben shuts the door behind him, and Noelle pulls away. My body cools where her touch no longer is, and I immediately miss her warmth.
“I should go. I’ll be back soon. Miss you already.” She grins.
Chuckling, I wave her out the door and feel a pit form in my stomach as she leaves.
Suddenly, my phone vibrates, and I pull it out of my back pocket to seeNicon my screen.
