Page 33 of All Tied Up
“Yesss?” I drawled out.
“That is the smallest room in your apartment! You would really stick me in that tiny bedroom?! I thought we were best friends?”
“Hmm … we are, but my love only goes so far,” I replied, then took a sip of my coffee.
“You’re an evil woman. How are we friends?” she shot back at me.
“Because you love me and can’t live without me.”
She sighed heavily. “Yes, and the two people I love most suck. Unless you will buy me the sandcastle Jellycat.”
I chuckled and set my cup down on the counter before reaching for a gluten-free bagel that I’d bought from the deli yesterday.
“Why can’t you buy the thing?” I asked.
“Because I need a story to go with it!”
“A story?” I asked, confused.
“Yes, a story. All my Jellycats have a story. Who gave it to me and when. Like the Christmas tree one Mom sent me when she found out I didn’t have a tree up last year in my apartment. Or the to-go coffee one you gave me for my birthday last year. And when his ass ever gets around to proposing, I want the engagement ring Jellycat! If he forgets that, I am turning him down.”
I walked over to the fridge and got out the butter. “I say you let this one mistake slide. He’s a guy. He might have thought you had enough Jellycats and didn’t want any more.”
“I SENT HIM A PICTURE!” she yelled.
“And like I said, he’s a guy.”
“Whatever. I still may leave him and move in with you. Even if you are only giving me the tiny room.”
I knew she’d never do it. She loved Zeke and Boston.
“Sure you will,” I replied.
“So, how are you feeling?” she asked. “You were missed here. I think Birch bitched about it the most. If he said, ‘Noa would have loved this,’ one time, he said it a million. It was verging on weird. My brother may have a thing for you.”
I doubted it, but even if he did, that was never happening. Not just because Ransom had broken me, but Birch was part of the only family I had ever really had. I wasn’t messing that up.
“I’m feeling better. Tell me what all I missed,” I said, wanting to get the topic off me.
Taking my phone over to the sofa, I sat down and listened as she chatted on about the Watts family Christmas, thankful for something to fill the silence.
Fifteen
Noa
The overcast sky matched my mood. Tugging the belt of my navy Burberry nylon hooded raincoat tighter, I shivered. Hopefully, it didn’t rain, but if it did, I was prepared. I hated carrying umbrellas and much preferred a hooded jacket. However, they didn’t help much if it was a downpour. I might regret not taking an umbrella. The sky did not look promising. It wasn’t cold enough for snow—at least I could be thankful for that.
My editor had called this morning, and I should be inside, writing. She was getting stressed about my deadline. The offices were closed until the second week in January, but she was still working at home and anxious for me to send her more words.
This was our first time working together on a book, and I knew she wanted to make a good impression. I didn’t want to take that from her, but I was blocked, and if I stayed in that apartment one more minute, I was going to go crazy. I needed to get outand walk. Clear my head. Possibly get inspiration for the next chapter because, right now, I had no clue what was going to happen next.
“Noa Raines,” a female voice said, and I paused.
Normally, if anyone noticed me in the city, they called me Juliette Romeo. Not my real name. When I turned around, a sense of foreboding began to sink over me.
An older woman with silver streaks in her once-dark-brown bob—wearing round black-framed glasses, dressed in a pair of tan slacks and an oversize cream cable-knit sweater beneath her heavy wool coat—stood several feet away from me. She studied me as closely as I was her.
Who was she? Something about the woman was familiar, but I couldn’t place it.
