I’m not sure I want him to finish that sentence. He can only be mentioning it for one reason, and I don't think it's a good one. He's going to say he’s sorry for kissing me or some bull crap. This is my first real kiss, and I really don’t want him to apologize for it. No thanks. I want to completely avoid talking about it.
I might be able to ramble on, but it’s about topics that I deem safe. When the world has tossed you around, leaving bruises, you do your best to try and avoid getting any more.
"All right. Then talk about what sent you walking quickly from the room." He stops cleaning to turn and fully face me. For a man of few words, once his mind is set on a topic, he can’t seem to let it go. “It was?—”
A knock sounds loudly at the door, followed by my doorbell chiming twenty million times.
“That’s Tilly,” I blurt out, and I’m grateful for her timing.
I bolt from the kitchen to the front door. It could be wide open and she'd still ring the bell.
"Is that you walking quickly?" I hear Noah shout from behind me. Did he crack a joke?
"I know you're in there!" Tilly shouts as I yank the door open.
"First off, you have a key, and second, it wasn't locked."
"It was locked, and I would rather not catch you with your booty in the air," Tilly responds as she tries to look over my shoulder. It’s relatively easy for her tall ass.
"You did not say that," I hiss at her, my face flushing. I know Tilly’s voice is going to carry back to Noah.
Paxton is standing behind her, and he gives me a small wave. There’s a knowing expression on his face that says there was no stopping Tilly and he wasn’t going to even try.
"So it's true,” Tilly says, wiggling past me to get into the house. "The not-so-Jolly Giant is here."
"I thought it was Lankenstein," I mutter.
"Evening," Noah says, and everyone's attention swings to him.
"So this is the cake-destroyer that’s stalking you?" Tilly asks, but she already knows the answer to her own question.
"I think I like that nickname better than Lankenstein."
"Seriously?" Tilly cocks her head to the side, and her curls bounce around, as wild as she is. "You don't get to pick your nickname. That's not how that works." Noah doesn't respond; he simply stands there. It seems to annoy Tilly further. "Hello?"
"Hi," he responds calmly, and I think he knows exactly what he's doing. I bite back a laugh.
"You're fucking with me, aren't you?" Tilly says.
"I'm just standing here,” Noah says before shrugging.
"Watch it or you'll be lying there,” Tilly threatens even though Noah is easily twice her size. It does not faze her in the least. "I'm scrappy, and he"—she points her thumb over her shoulder—"can fight."
"Oh my god," I laugh.
"Do I smell garlic bread?" Tilly asks out of left field. Well, maybe it's not left field for Tilly. She’s always hungry.
"He made me dinner," I tell her.
"Oh, that's two dinners in a row. Interesting," Tilly says, mulling this new information over. "All right, I think we're good here." Tilly gives Noah a bright smile. "Welcome to Cheerful, but watch your back." She points with two fingers from her eyes to his. "I've got eyes and ears everywhere."
"Sounds like Cheerful’s got a real serial killer," Noah says dryly.
The room goes quiet for a beat before Tilly and I burst into laughter. When Tilly gets her laughter under control, I usher her out the door. When I turn around, Noah is right behind me, and I almost run into him.
"Molly," he says softly, and I tense. This is when the apology comes.
"Don't say you regret the kiss," I blurt out before he can speak.
