Page 69 of The Pumpkin Spice Romance
“I’m glad you think so,” he replied.
The raw timbre of his voice alerted Noah that he’d stepped into quicksand. Again.
He dropped the tendril of hair from between his fingers. But of its own volition, his hand returned to brush the hair from her temple and tuck it behind her ear.
Then he dropped his hand to his side.
Space! She deserves space. And time.
Refocusing on his intention to stay at a safe distance until she felt the same way he did, Noah moved to reach behind her to grab the tools he needed.
“Wait!” Scarlett planted her palm against Noah’s heart.
He froze, although she seemed more startled by her abrupt outburst than did Noah.
“Look, I’ve given this a lot of thought,” she said. “You’ve got this hunky handyman meets sexy professor thing going on, and it’s tempting.You’retempting — but I just can’t.”
“Can’t. . .what?” Noah asked.
“Can’t do this.” She lifted her hand from his chest, fluttering it between them like the tail on a kite rippling in the crisp fall breeze. “I can’t get distracted,” she stressed. “I have a real opportunity here — with M’Kenzee. . .and my photography. It comes with a place to live. A nice one! I didn’t do a thing to earn or deserve this break, but itisa break. . .a big one for me. And I have to make the most of it. I can’t go kissing the first cute boy I see and screw something up. I’m sorry. . . I justcan’t.”
Scarlett’s arms fell limp by her sides — for about half a second. She studied her shoes and fidgeted with the auburn waves refusing to stay tucked behind her ears.
Noah remained quiet, waiting to be sure she’d worked through the tug-of-war she seemed to fight.
When, a full sixty seconds later, Scarlett deigned to lift her eyes to meet his, the axis on which Noah’s world balanced faltered. The hitch — a physical tear in time’s continuity — sent a tremor through his gut. . .a zero moment, the break between negative and positive values. For the rest of his days, that instant would mark the before and after of when his life —his future — snapped into focus.
Scarlett couldn’t know how vividly she broadcasted her thoughts and emotions. If she had any idea, she’d buy sunglasses with the world’s darkest lenses and never take them off.
That she was an open book called to Noah as a lighthouse calls a ship home.
Her expression begged for his understanding while pleading for his forgiveness.
There was nothing to forgive. And yet, Scarlett seemed afraid to push him away.
As if she could.
Noah’s first instinct was to pull her close, wrap her in his arms to shelter and protect her. . .to do whatever she needed from him to erase the uncertainty and fear from her features. He’d tell her she had nothing to fear because he was equally tempted and completely positive he’d fallen for her.
But her objections were real. At least in her mind, they were valid reasons she and Noah couldn’t work. Scarlett needed time to realize she could have it all: the job, the house,andthe guy.
Instead of acting on every impulse that screamedGrab the girl and run for the hills, Noah elected to lighten the mood, to give her the space she needed to acclimate to her new life.
“Sexy professor, huh?” Noah asked with a sly, teasing grin.
“No! Well, yes. . . I mean— I guess. . .in a nerdy, sweater vest kind of way,” Scarlett allowed, grimacing as she lifted an eyebrow toward his attire.
Noah’s hand flattened over his heart, pretending to be offended on behalf of the forest green, cashmere and wool blendV-neck he wore weekly, if not once every four or five days. A Christmas gift from his parents a few years earlier, his go-to, most favorite item in the closet had reached peak softness and absolute perfection.
“My mom gave me this sweater,” he objected, as though Scarlett’s accusation wounded him with a fatal blow.
“And then it shrank?”
Fighting back a laugh, Noah slid his hands across his chest and down his flat abs, smoothing the fabric as he went. His mom could’ve bought a size up, but as a workout junkie, Noah didn’t mind the snug fit. “I think it looks okay,” he argued, striving to sound like a downtrodden puppy to tug on her heartstrings.
Judging by the look of disdain Scarlett shot him, his attempt didn’t work, and the chuckle Noah fought to contain escaped.
“If you’ll excuse me. . .” he said in a gentle tone, and past a smile, while reaching a hand forward to gesture toward the tools behind Scarlett. He picked up what he needed to retrieve. “. . .just need to grab this hammer.”
