Page 24 of Before We Fell

“I really need to do more than yoga,” I mused as I threw my car in reverse. Before I put it in drive, my phone pinged with a text. My breathlessness turned thready as I pulled back into the parking spot and took my phone out of my cup holder.

I hadn’t saved Noah’s name in my contact list, but I had his number memorized.

To my surprise, I had three texts from him. They must have come in while I was in the store.

My thumb shook as I swiped the screen and read through them.

The first one was a simple,okay.

But it was the next two that made not just my thumb, but my entire body shiver as I read them. He must have downloaded the app and watched the video.

Damn. Thank you.

Then, the one that caused the tremors.Is it appropriate if I call?

That had just come in and I stared at it. Parents called me all the time. Of course, not usually direct to my cell phone but it happened. It was appropriate. But could I handle another conversation with him?

Suck it up. It’s your job.

It’d have to wait until I got home anyway, and that’d give me a few minutes to prepare myself for his voice. Rich and thick, I had no doubt it’d hold a trace of anger or frustration.

Yeah, he’d definitely have to wait until I got home.

I went to put my phone back in the cup holder when it dinged again.

Another text. A small laugh bubbled from me.To talk about Riley.

Of course it was. Who knew where my thoughts had gone, but of course that’s what the conversation would be about.

I dropped my phone in the holder and pulled back out of the spot and headed home, blaring my music and shouting my head off in the car to the lyrics.

It did nothing to banish the runaway thoughts my mind was attempting when it came to Noah.

Hot. Rude. Sexy. Vulnerable.

He was chaos and best to avoid at all cost. I grew up with chaos and settled in Carlton for a life of calm and peace. Noah’s mere presence threatened to up-end all of it.

I textedhim after I got home and had put my groceries away. The bright teal table looked perfect right off my entryway and I’d found a small ceramic bowl to set on top where my keys and purse currently rested. Noah didn’t call before I had to leave for yoga, so it was late when I returned home, fueled with exercise and a burrito from Chipotle. I was now relaxing on my couch with a glass of red wine and a stack of tests to grade at my side.

My eyes slid toward my phone, silent, far too many times. I had checked the volume on it way too many times to be normal as well.

It was after nine o’clock when my phone rang. I was in the middle of grading a test and dropped the pen when the shrill ringtone, set to the loudest setting, startled me.

Thank goodness I hadn’t been holding my wine at the time.

His number flashed on the screen. White numbers that might as well have been a flashing billboard for as much as it affected me.

Professional, Lauren.

“Right,” I muttered to myself and slid my thumb across the screen. “Hello, this is Lauren,” I said and flinched at the gravelly chuckle coming through the line.

“It’s Noah,” he said, and my heart skipped a beat. Or twelve. Good grief, he sounded sexier on the phone than he did in person and I could almost picture him, sprawled out on his leather couch, shirt getting dusty from the layer of drywall dust laying on it.

“Hi, Mr. —”

“Noah,” he corrected, and his laughter died.

“Noah. Yes. You wanted to talk?”

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