Page 42 of City of Love

I’m tempted to pursue him, to shout at him, to rage at him, but deep down I know it’s not worth it. It won’t help.

I feel tears pricking at my eyes, but I don’t let them fall. I just take a deep breath and let my head rest back against Noel. He wraps his arms around my waist from behind, pulling me more tightly to him, and I can feel the tension leave his body.

“I’m proud of you,chérie,” he says, his words low in my ear.

I turn my head and give him a tired smile. “For what?” I say. “I doubt it did any good.” It’s a tough thing to admit, but Marcus didn’t seem at all deterred when he walked away. I threatened to turn him in, but I was sort of hoping I wouldn’t have to.

Noel shrugs. “Maybe, maybe not. But you did it.”

I turn in his arms until I’m facing him, letting my forehead rest on his shoulder. “Do you think you could still throw him off the top?” I mutter, my words muffled as I speak into his shirt.

Noel laughs softly, one hand rubbing soothing circles on my back. “I’ll see what I can do,” he says.

I look up at him, shaking my head. “I hate every word out of his mouth. I hate the way he looks at me. I hate when he calls me ‘beautiful’ and ‘sexy.’ I hate it all.”

Noel exhales roughly. “I know. I do too. It was difficult not to cut in,” he admits softly.

“I could tell,” I say, finally smiling. “You were all tense. But you did well.”

He smiles, removing his arms from around my waist and tucking my hair behind my ears instead. “Don’t let him taint this,” he says, gesturing around us. “And don’t let him taint those words, either—‘beautiful’ or ‘sexy’ or anything else. Youarebeautiful. Don’t let him make you afraid of compliments like that.”

I speak before I can think better of it. “And sexy?” I ask, tilting my head.

Something flashes in Noel’s eyes, but it’s gone before I can identify it. I just watch as he nods slowly. “Sexy too, yes.”

His words send a thrill racing down my spine, and I have to tell my hormones to cut it out. He doesn’t mean anything by it, and does a compliment really count if you were fishing for it? Because it’s not like he would have said no. He’s too polite.

But my hormones don’t listen to me. Instead they focus on how close he’s standing, on the way his hand now cradles my cheek, on the way his eyes seem to see my soul.

See my soul and accept it without judgment. Accept it with nothing but kindness and support. All the qualities of the person I pictured as my best friend Noel, but now in an attractive, masculine, charmingly overprotective package.

And I realize, as we stand there at the top of the Eiffel Tower, that Noel Marchand might be a threat to my heart.

Chapter 14

Noel

I’m not a particularly violent man. But Marcus Whatever-his-last-name-is? He makes me want to punch a hole in the wall.

Hours after we’ve returned home from the Eiffel Tower, my mind is still stuck on the way Lydia trembled as she spoke to Marcus. I don’t even think she noticed it was happening.

But I noticed.

And, miracle of miracles, I managed to restrain myself. I restrained myself when he leered at her like the pig he is. I restrained myself when he spoke.

He has no right to tell her how beautiful or sexy or anything else she is. If anyone is going to tell her that, it should be someone who’s not so salacious. Someone who sees more in her than just a gorgeous face and an incredible body.

He has no right to look at her the way he did, either. No one should look at her like that—like she’s a piece of meat.

I grit my teeth. I’m suddenly feeling punchy again.

I rub my temples as I sit at my desk. I think Lydia needed a while alone, because she drifted off to her room without saying anything. I want to make sure she’s okay, but I’ll wait. I’ll wait and take deep, calming breaths to quell the anger I feel.

I do this for about ten minutes before my phone starts to ring. I know it’s Luc without looking; very few people have this number, and out of all of them, Luc calls the most.

I check to make sure I’m right before answering, and then say, “I’m listening.”

“How was the Eiffel Tower?” Luc says.

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