Page 48 of The One Night Dash
I step in before she does something that’ll follow her around forever, take her little balled fists in my hands, and ground her to me. “You wanna take off?”
“Yeah. Before I do something I won’t regret.” Her eyes slide to the left, where the audience Lauren wanted has gathered.
“You two need to leave,” Lauren announces, louder now. “I will not be treated like this onmy day.”
Noelle blinks, half-shocked, half-amused. “Did she just kick us out of her wedding after we already said we were leaving?”
I release her fists and press a steady palm to her back, steering her away from the gawkers. “After you.”
We walk, heads turning as we pass by, whispers following. Her chin is high, but I see it—the shine in her eyes, the red creeping at the corners. I slide my arm around her and pull her into my side, knowing everyone is watching and not giving a damn.
Outside, Joel spots me from the SUV and starts creeping toward us. He pulls to a stop just ahead of us, and I open the door and guide her in with a hand at her waist. She slips onto the leather seat and slides over. I slide in right after, close enough that our shoulders touch, close enough that she knows I’m not going anywhere. The door thuds shut, sealing us off from the glittering mess behind us. Her hands are folded tight in her lap, and I want to take every bit of that tension and make it mine.
“Hey,” I murmur, leaning close. “You don’t ever have to put up with that kind of shit again.”
She nods, and a tear trickles down her soft, pale, perfect skin.
I cup the side of her face and thumb it away. “That’s all she gets.”
She nods, and another falls.
“Okay, that one, too. But, for real, that’s all.”
Her bottom lip quivers, and I pull her into a hug.
“So stupid,” she sniffs.
“Not stupid. You don’t have to pretend right now,” I tell her softly. “You’re allowed to be upset. You’re allowed to be hurt and pissed. Hell, youshouldbe pissed. Anyone else would’ve lost it back there, but you …” I shake my head, marveling at her. “Youdid the right thing. That’s strength, Noelle. That’s you being good even when she doesn’t deserve it.”
Her eyes shine, but she bites her lip like she’s trying to swallow it all down.
I tilt my head, making sure she sees I mean it. “But you gotta listen up. You’re not going to do the hard stuff alone anymore. If you don’t want to lean on your girls, fine. That’s your choice. But I’m not them. I won’t wait for permission. I’ll show up, whether you ask or not.”
“They show up. They show up all the time. They weren’t invited, and I told them I needed to do this alone.” She blinks fast, a couple of tears slipping free, and I brush them away before she can.
“In case you haven’t been picking up what I’ve been putting down, I didn’t come for the Lauren show. You’re just a better person than me, and you needed closure. I came because I fucked up back then, and I won’t do it again.”
She doesn’t pull back, her lips twitching in that cute as fuck way that is sexier than any half-dressed model.
“From my whole chest, Noelle Pembrooke, had that twat …” I pause when she gasps and watch Noelle try to make herself look taken aback while fighting a grin. When she covers her face with her hands, I know she can’t fight it anymore, which means I’m in striking distance of the goal.
“Back in lit class, remember Biddy? Sweet, steady, overlooked while Pip chased after Estella?” I shake my head, staring straight at her because I need her to hear this. “You were never Biddy, Noelle. You were always the one everyone should’ve been paying attention to. The one with the strength, the heart, the story that I wanted to read. I saw it then, and I sure as hell see it now.”
“Don’t.” She shakes her head, squeezing her eyes shut like she can block me out. “Don’t you talk nerdy to me, Dash Sterling.”
A grin breaks across my face because I’m a lucky man, because the girl I’m going to make fall for me is not only sweet, she’s a naughty little thing, too.
“Oh, I’ll talk nerdy to you, sweetheart.” I slide closer and drop my voice to a low rumble meant only for her. “I’ll court you like one of those heroes in your fade-to-black books. Make you drip for me like that coffee shop fantasy you scribbled about once. But when it’s you and me between the sheets?” I brush my thumb across her knuckles, slow and certain. “I’m going to make you come so hard, so often, you’ll forget every page that ever made you blush.”
Her lips part, a sharp inhale, and for a second, I wonder if I pushed her too far. But then she rolls her eyes, muttering something under her breath that sounds a whole lot likeinsufferable.
I chuckle, leaning forward toward the partition. “Need to hit up that bakery on 9th,” I tell Joel. “The one with the little cakes in the window.”
Joel nods without missing a beat, flicking on the turn signal.
I settle back beside Noelle, her hand still trapped in mine. “What?” I grin at her. “You thought I was going to let you leave a wedding without dessert? That’s bad luck. Practically a crime.”
She leans forward. “Could we hit a liquor store, too? I think I’m going to need a little more champagne.”
