His jaw tightened as he looked out over the ocean. "Why did you lie to me about your phone call?"
"I didn't lie."
"You were talking to Bran, but when I asked you about it, you didn’t tell me the truth."
I gaped at him. Had he been listening to my conversation? "Not telling you who I was talking to isn't lying. It's deciding that you'd probably get your panties in a bunch if you knew I was talking to Bran and deciding not to share."
"My panties in a bunch?"
I glanced up at him, seeing a slight upward twitch of his lips. He found that amusing? “Is that the same as boxers in a bunch?”
"Yeah. And I guess since you were eavesdropping into a private conversation —"
"It’s my house."
I closed my eyes wanting him to know I wasn’t into this conversation. "Oh, that's so mature. The point is, you knew who I was talking to when I declined to tell you, but instead of asking me, you decided that I lied. Why? Are you afraid of me? For a big bad mercenary, you sure are a coward. Or maybe you just needed an excuse to push me away again.” Deciding I was down, I rose, slipping on my swim coverup and grabbing my towel. I wanted to shake it to get sand all over Noel, except he was holding Mo.
He rose with me. "Why is talking to Bran such a big secret?"
"I told you. You always get your panties in a bunch when Bran’s name is mentioned. If you really want to know, why don't you just ask?"
"Because I'm not sure that you'll tell me the truth. That story you told —"
I glared at him as I rolled up my towel and shoved it in my beach bag. "It wasn't a story. What I told you at lunch yesterday is the truth. Whether you believe it or not, I don't really care anymore. As for the phone call yesterday, Bran wanted my input for some business he wants to buy. There. Happy?"
Noel's eyes hardened. "Saint Security?"
I gaped at him completely confused. "What?"
"He wants to buy Saint Security. Now that you've been my neighbor for a while, I suppose you would have some input."
I continued to stare at him completely confused. Bran didn’t tell me the business and I didn't ask, although it seemed unlikely he wanted to buy a security business.
"Paranoid much? I don't know what business Bran is looking at buying but I doubt it’s yours. Then again, you’re retired, so what do you care? Never mind. I don’t want to know." I started up toward my house.
"It’s not paranoia. I know you and Bran have been testing out your surveillance skills. You suck at it."
I stopped whirling around on him. "What are you talking about?" Then I waved my hand and turned back to the house. "Never mind. I don't care. Just go home Noel. I’ll stay in my home and we won't have to interact ever again."
"Yesterday you were throwing yourself at me."
His words burned in my gut. I was such a fool and now he was rubbing it in. Sometimes he could be so cruel.
"Yeah, well, I'm over it now. You had your few hurrahs with me, which is clearly all that you wanted. So maybe you could leave me alone now." I couldn't reach my back fence fast enough.
When there was silence behind me, I thought maybe he’d gotten the clue and left me alone. I reached up to open the gate and his hand came over mine. I tugged it away and turned to him glaring at him, angry and hurt that he would continue to toy with me like he was a cat and I was a mouse.
"What?" I demanded, hoping the tears pooling in my eyes didn't fall. "Are you trying to punish me? Do you hate me?"
He flinched. "No. Not at all."
"Just leave me alone, Noel. Go work things out with Mo's mother."
He arched a brow. "Now who's eavesdropping?"
"I was still in your house when you picked up that call to beg Mo's mother to come back." I narrowed my eyes at him. "Does she know that you've been sleeping with your neighbor?"
He leaned closer to me, his face darkening fiercely. "There's a lot of things the women in my life don't know about me."