Page 43 of Love is a Harmony
For a moment, she wasn’t sure what to do, but then slowly, her body reacted to his, her arms raising to hug him back.
They stood in the silent embrace, neither of them moving or saying a word. Husband and wife. Client and publicist. Friends. So many titles defined them, but the last one was the one that mattered.
“Noah,” Melanie whispered. “Are you okay?”
He rested his chin on her shoulder. “Thank you, Mel.”
“For what?”
“I get it now. Why you did this. Before, I’d thought you just couldn’t say no or needed to please people. Now, I know the truth.”
She breathed in the woodsy scent of him, wishing she could stay in this moment. “And what truth is that?”
“You love her too.”
Did she? She replayed the words she’d said to Stella and the last couple weeks of waiting for the real world to begin again. “I do.” She’d do anything for that kid, even if it meant walking down an aisle for the second time.
Justin would have been proud of her for this. He’d been the best part of her, and when he died, she’d worried the good in her died too.
But this was good. So, maybe there was hope for her after all. Burying her face in Noah’s firm chest, she could almost imagine things were different between them, that she wasn’t a damaged woman and he didn’t have baggage a mile long.
Don’t forget this isn’t real. Not ever.
What if her own words were going to be what hurt her the most?
13
Noah
Saying goodbye to France was harder than Noah imagined it would be. He’d spent his last day with Mathieu, preparing. The house would be packed up and sold after they left, the money put in a trust for Stella.
And now, it was time to bring the two worlds together.
There was only one person in Rockstars Anonymous who wouldn’t ask questions if he called, and he was glad it was the guy with access to a plane.
Dax didn’t own the jet, or so he said, but he owned some kind of time-share on one. Noah wasn’t sure how that went. He usually flew commercial, but this time, he needed to avoid being seen.
The world hadn’t seen anything of Noah since his pictures with Ava hit social media. He’d have to answer for that.
After the cold in England and France, the L.A. sun was blinding as Noah led Stella and Melanie across the private tarmac to where a black town car awaited them.
“Did you call for cars?” Melanie looked sideways at Noah.
He shrugged. “I mean… I was planning to call for an Uber. Probably not the best idea if I want to lay low. Apparently, someone else agreed.”
“Dax.” Melanie shook her head. “Will we ever understand him?”
“Probably not.”
A driver stepped out of the front seat while someone from the plane rolled the cart with their luggage toward them.
The driver opened a door. “Welcome, sir and madams. Take a seat, and I’ll handle your bags.”
Melanie shared a confused look with Noah. Sure, he was a rock star who got special treatment wherever he went, but he never sought out special treatment. He didn’t hire drivers or demand people call him sir.
In fact, he’d done everything he could to distance himself from that kind of world, the one he grew up in.
He let Melanie slide across the black leather seats first before guiding Stella in and sitting on her other side. As soon as the door closed, he took Stella’s hand. She’d had a nervous energy about her since setting foot on the plane—her first ever plane ride since she was a baby. Her leg bounced on the seat as she took in the car.
