“Hey. You’re back.”
He took her in, the coiled tension in his chest slowly releasing like a pressure valve.
The pink in her cheeks—she was here and healthy.
The smile on her face—she was happy to see him, and he reveled in the intoxicating satisfaction that brought him. Even if he had no right to it.
The cascade of dark hair around her shoulders, framing her face and neck—she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. He’d give anything to be able to lay her down on that couch and make her as breathless as he felt just looking at her.
The pressure spread lower, doing the opposite of relaxing, and he dragged his eyes away from her. “Yeah.”
“How was it?”
“Good.” He glanced at his watch. “I’m gonna grab a shower, then we can head over to my parents’. Sound okay?”
“Sure.”
He went to the bathroom and smiled when he found the light on. He shut the door and turned on the water as cold as it would go.
The party at his mom’s went okay at first. The May weather was perfect, and people spilled from the house onto the large back patio. His parents had spent years perfecting the outdoor entertainment space and used it at every opportunity.
When Mia’s parents lived next door it had been nothing but a concrete square with an aged iron table and chairs, but it hadn’t stopped them from spending summer evenings out here. His mom’s penchant to chat for hours had driven him crazy most of the time, but those nights? It meant he and Mia could hang out in the tree house well after curfew while their parents talked for hours about travel and politics.
Those nights were long gone, though. Her parents had downsized several years ago and moved across town, and if his parents had kept in touch with them, he didn’t know about it.
Tonight the space was filled with aunts, uncles, and several of his parents’ friends and colleagues, and he and Mia mingled among them, repeating their rehearsed story of their impromptu marriage several times over. A few of the principals from the firm were there as well, and Noah either held Mia’s hand or had his arm around her most of the party, conscious of the eyes watching them.
Especially his dad’s.
He hoped the other men’s gazes were simply curious about his new, unexpected wife, and had nothing to do with how gorgeous she was in a white tank top and long blue skirt wrapped around her slender waist. That may have been another reason he didn’t stop touching her, possessive bastard that he apparently was. At times he worried his touch might burn her, hot as he felt. But she didn’t seem to notice, or mind his hands on her.
He wasn’t stupid enough to read anything into it. She knew what was necessary here.
About an hour after they arrived, his mom tapped her glass. The conversation died down and everyone turned their attention to her.
“I just wanted to thank everyone for coming. Twenty-five is such a big birthday—” chuckles went around the yard “—and I’m so blessed to have you all here to celebrate it with me. I also want to extend congratulations to my son, Noah, on his recent marriage. Even if they didn’t invite me to the ceremony.”
Noah forced a wide smile as everyone looked at him and Mia, clapping and whistling.
His mom smiled and pressed her fingers to her lips, tears welling in her eyes. “I’m just so happy you two ended up together. I always hoped for it.”
The lump in Noah’s throat tripled in size. Mia’s hand felt warm in his, and she blinked up at him, smiling belatedly, like she remembered performance was required here.
“Me too,” Mia said. She leaned into him, her face tilted up, and Noah acted on impulse.
He lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. The second he made contact, he pressed closer, unable to stop himself. Her grip on his hand tightened, and his eyes popped open to find her dark eyes looking right at him. He fought the urge to jerk back and separated from her mouth slowly. He cleared his throat.
“Clearly, I’m in agreement,” he croaked out.
Everyone laughed, shattering the external tension he felt pressing against them, though the turmoil roiling in his abdomen didn’t abate. Not even a little.
Everyone eventually drifted to the kitchen for the catered dinner and dessert. Noah excused himself and slipped outside, his long silent strides taking him through the grass to the tree house in the corner of the yard.
He climbed inside, thankful for his father’s foresight to build something sturdy enough for adults. He and Mia had spent hours here through middle and high school. Hours, days, years.
A lifetime.
Settling his back along the exposed tree trunk, he stretched his legs out and slid his phone from his pocket. He searched his music library for Snow Patrol, found “Chasing Cars,” and put it on repeat.