Page 18 of Risky Taste
“Seriously? You’ve been smitten with him, and Logan and I can’t forget the time we spent together. Noah doesn’t seem put off with the idea and I don’t want him to think he has to choose.I also don’t want him to be overwhelmed, thinking that we’re not all on the same page.”
At this point, they’re both laughing at me but I’m not wrong because I have plans should Noah accept what we’re offering. More than anything, I want to be there for him but if he says yes. A smile spreads across my lips, exposing my intentions.
“You’re taking him to Raven’s Cove?” Logan’s voice lifts, a spark of recognition flickering in his eyes.
“No.We are.” I turn to Sebastian, the memory stirring. “I know that’s one of the places you two hung out away from everything else. If he says yes tomorrow, we’re going there.” Maybe it’s crazy but I think a moment for him to breathe is what he needs. For him to let his mind rest, to let us hold him and talk about literally anything else other than reality.
Then we can return to the clinic and soldiers and the funeral looming in the distance.
The confused expression on Sebastian’s face makes me laugh because Raven’s Cove is hardly paradise as the name suggests. It’s merely a jagged slab of stone, a tunnel burrowed deep within, angled away from the shore’s beauty. It’s one of the many places Noah would escape to—adding to the reasoning why we called him Bunny. Sebastian found him there first and while Logan and I never spent time there with Noah, we knew about it.
After Noah met Heath, he stopped going. And then I watched Heath lord his emotions over the man I was secretly in love with and I refused to let myself act on the thoughts in my head. Now, though, I’m not stepping back again.
“It’s time to bring him back to the happiness he left behind,” I offer. “I just hope we’re not too late.”
Sebastian leans back, his scarred hands flexing, his gaze distant. “What if he says no? Declan, I know you want this to work. But what if Noah decides this isn’t for him?”
I picture Noah’s face—pale, trembling, eyes shut tight as Kurt loomed over him, the panic seizing his frame. The way he chased my kiss, desperate and broken, a man grasping for something to hold onto. “He won’t.” My voice hardens, a conviction I cling to. “He wants this. We just have to make sure he knows it’s worth it. Make sure he knowshe’sworth it.”
Sebastian pushes, playing the devil’s advocate. “And if he doesn’t want this?” This time he looks me straight in the eye, trying to gauge my reaction. “I’m dead serious. Last night was… everything. But if he’s not ready or he doesn’t want this, please tell me that you’re not going to force this.”
“And you know me better than that. Promise me the same. That if Noah needs only our strength…”
“Then that’s what I’ll give him.”
I know it hurts Sebastian to say those words. He has a connection with Noah that I’m envious of so it’s completely selfish of me to hope Noah wants more.
Chapter eleven
NOAH
The entirety of yesterday was intense as I stayed in my room, avoiding my brother, cooking up several different ways to approach the issue. There was no doubt in my mind he knew exactly what was going on and that the way he stormed out of the house had been to confront his buddies. Maybe I should be more careful about following my desires but the way Declan protected me from my own brother kind of cinched everything.
I alsoreallyneed not to think about all the other chaos in my life and this is the perfect distraction. Except, it’s not really a distraction, is it? Spending a night with Sebastian felt like starting something new and now I’ve got two more protectors in my corner.
Blowing out a heavy breath, I wrap my arms around my chest, eyes focused on the fancy letters across the top of the café.Chocolate Dreams.I’ve been here once or twice but there wasnever a reason to come through here when the coffee from my pot was just as nice. Quick, easy, and didn’t involve people.
I push inside, the smell of hazelnut and coffee hitting my nose. I scan the room, my eyes darting over strangers hunched over laptops and then I see him. Declan waves me over from a booth in the corner but I’m frozen where I stand. He looks rested, his dark curls tousled but soft, his eyes bright in a way that makes my chest ache.
Like he slept a full night, unburdened, while I tossed and turned, haunted by shadows I can’t name. I force myself to move and slide into the seat across from him. An espresso sits in front of me, steam curling up from the tiny cup. I stare at it, my mind stumbling over itself.What the hell is this?
Declan leans back, watching me with those piercing eyes. “I can’t begin to know what’s going on in that head of yours. But I do know you need a break. Some coffee and a—”
“Is this a date? Did you ask me out?” It kind of dawned on me yesterday but now it’s so obvious. The ambiance of this place, the fact that we’renotstudying math… and now I’m just confused on how to take this when he looks like a dream and I look like I fought a bear and then took a shower to cover it up.
He scoots closer, hand brushing my knee but not fully touching. “Noah, we absolutely will need help with math. But I wanted to give you a moment out of that house, away from your brother. And hell, if you’d like to call this a date, I’m not complaining.”
I frown, my gaze flicking to the espresso, then back to him. “And the coffee?”
“I’m being nice. Or trying to.” He shrugs, a lazy roll of his shoulders as his grin softens. “Do you prefer tea? Hot chocolate?Milk?”
A snort escapes me as some of the tension bleeds from my shoulders. “Thanks,” I mutter as Declan’s hand finds my thighunder the table again, squeezing gently, and my breath catches. “This… well, Bast…” I knew the issue would come up eventually but better to get it out of the way, right?
He smiles, his hand staying put. “Hey. I get it. I wouldn’t have brought you out here if Sebastian didn’t know.”
I frown deeper, my brows knitting together, the espresso cooling untouched in front of me. “Wait… he’s really okay with this?”
“We’re all adults, Noah. Why do you have to choose?” Declan pulls away and I realize how much I hate that. “Bunny. What was a few nights to you was so much more to me. Because I’ve thought about you every day after. I’m ashamed to say Kurt finding out terrified me a little. Made me back off. And then in a blink of an eye, you were with Sebastian. You weren’t ready for more than that. Then came Heath and I was sure we had lost our chance. But I’m hoping that time has given me another one. That maybe you’ll look at me the same way you do Sebastian. That maybe you have room in your heart for one more, maybe three.”
