Noah's Journey (Sawyer Brothers #3) (13 page)

Chapter Twenty-Six

Noah

“The girls are meeting us, right?” I asked as we pulled up in front of Roger’s.

Jackson had decided a night out as a group was better than two individual parties celebrating their last days before the wedding. So we settled on meeting at Roger’s Bar, one of our regular hangouts.

Ryan climbed out of his truck just as Jackson pulled up alongside my truck. “Yeah, they’re all at my place getting fixed up. They should be here within the hour,” he said.

Jackson waved, motioning to a couple guys he knew, and they started walking in our direction. I noticed Booker in the group and immediately hung my head with an annoyed groan. The guy was a jackass. He got under everyone’s skin.

“Just look at it this way, we’ll have someone to push around all night,” Ryan said quietly just as they joined us, and it made me chuckle. I guess there was one good thing about Booker showing up.

The bar was packed tonight. Some band from Billings was in town for the weekend, and Jackson thought seeing them play would add fun to our group night. Hell, I would have settled for a fire out on the ranch followed by a party of my own with Alena. But Jackson was the man of the hour, this was for him and Bailey, so I would grin and bear it.

“Well, would you look at that,” Ryan said in an irritated tone. “And she looks like she’s already had a few.”

I looked up just as Stacey stumbled into Booker and he wrapped his arms around her waist to steady her. She giggled and looked up at him with those seductive eyes of hers.

The love I had once felt toward Stacey had long faded, but the idea of that fuckwad having any involvement in my son’s life left a bad taste in my mouth.

“It would appear she’s sunk her claws into another willing soul,” Jackson added as the three of us watched the sick display of lust.

“Booker was always willing. She was the one that used to have standards.” I wrinkled my nose in disgust as he leaned forward and placed his lips against hers.

And with that, we all turned our backs and walked toward the bar. Stacey had told me her parents were keeping Austin tonight because she was going out with friends. But I guess those so-called friends were either an excuse she fed her parents or they were now an afterthought.

“Just let it ride. You know it ain’t gonna last,” Ryan said as he stepped up to the bar beside me. “He’ll be moving on by this time next week to another lonely girl.”

“I don’t give a shit if they screw around or not. I just don’t want his fucked-up shit anywhere near Austin.” I looked back over my shoulder when the two of them stumbled toward the bar all wrapped around one another. Apparently she had no fucking class anymore, either.

Her eyes met mine, and for a moment she appeared ashamed until Booker slid his hand around to cup her ass and she was once again lost in his advances.

“Line ’em up,” Jackson hollered. “And keep ’em coming.” He slapped five one-hundred-dollar bills on the bar and grinned over and Ryan and me. Apparently, he planned on taking full advantage of the fact his fiancée couldn’t drink. He had a designated driver, which meant he was getting fucking loaded.

And who were Ryan and I to decline a night on our younger brother? After all, if we refused, we may hurt his pride.

When the bartender set out a line of shots before the three of us, Ryan shrugged and took one in each hand. “To Jackson,” he stated loudly. “May you and Bailey live a life full of great sex and unforgettable love.”

“Well, the sex is fucking out of this world, so we’re all good there.” Jackson chuckled as he tipped back his first shot and hissed after he swallowed. “And the unforgettable love, we got that too. Never in my life have I felt anything like it.” He shook his head as if to clear it before tipping back the next shot.

Ryan and I followed, and the burn in my chest from the whiskey had me closing my eyes tightly, waiting for the soothing effect of the beer I chased it with.

“Fuck me, look what just walked in,” Ryan yelled, surprising us all. He was normally the quieter of us three. “Fucking sexiest damn women in Livingston.”

My eyes met Alena’s, and she tucked her chin toward her chest, hiding her flushed cheeks. Amber’s eyes widened a bit in surprise, and Bailey laughed loudly, followed by an obnoxious snort.

Apparently alcohol made Ryan vocal. I had a feeling tonight was gonna be funny as hell.

I sauntered over to Alena, and she lifted her head, looking up just as I stopped in front of her. “You look good enough to eat, sweetheart.” She had on such a short skirt that when I reached down, I could feel her bare thigh. I lightly trailed my fingertip along the hem and watched as she bit down on her lower lip. “Not sure I’ll be able to hold off until we get home. I may have to drag you off someplace dark and have my way with you.”

And apparently drinking made my ass hornier than usual. I suddenly felt as if I hadn’t had her in weeks.

“Don’t go teasing me now,” she taunted, and I knew she was baiting me. But she needed to understand there was absolutely no reason to push. I already felt myself growing hard at the idea of bending her over the barstool and nailing her hard. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly and tried to talk down the raging hard-on that was now pressing against my zipper. Fucking shit was painful.

She giggled, and my eyes shot open to meet hers.

“Have you already been drinking?” she asked, reaching out to press her palm against my chest. I nodded as I held my breath, waiting for her next move. “You’re acting a little out of character. I think I’m gonna enjoy this side of you.”

She rose onto the tips of her toes and brought her lips closer to mine. “I’m pretty sure at this point I could convince you to do just about anything.” Her soft breath tickled my face, and I nodded. There was no question about it, I would have given her whatever she asked without hesitation. I was so fucking wired.

As she leaned in closer, I thought she was going to kiss me, but she only brushed her lips over mine and pulled back entire too quickly. I could feel myself leaning farther into her, chasing her for the kiss I wanted.

“Come on, handsome, buy me a drink,” Alena hollered over her shoulder at me as she strolled toward the bar. My gaze fell down, focusing on her ass. That damn shake of her hips was taunting me, teasing me.

“Just a little warning, she did a few shots of her own before we left,” Amber said through her laughter, and I knew what that meant. Tonight was going to be explosive, because my girl got a little wild when she drank too.

***

“Stacey is still the same attention whore she once was,” Ryan said as he took a seat on my left at the bar. “And I hate to say it, but she’s doing it to get to Alena. I don’t see this shit ending well.”

I had been thinking the same thing for the last hour. Stacey had been doing anything she could to gain my attention, included dry-humping Booker over and over while looking directly at me. I wasn’t biting, and that only made her attempts more obvious.

“She’s shooting daggers at your woman,” Ryan added, and I turned in the stool to get a look at what he was referring to.

He was right. Stacey stood only a few feet from Alena with her eyes narrowed in a pissed-off glare. Alena, of course, was oblivious to her attitude, because she was feeling entirely too good to notice Stacey.

“Do I go over there and set her straight, or do I just grab Alena and drag her ass out of here?” I feared either way I would upset Alena. She looked so relaxed and happy. At that moment, she chose to look up, and her eyes met mine. A sweet smile pulled at the corner of her mouth as she motioned for me to join her on the dance floor.

I shook my head while remaining in place, and she smiled bigger and nodded as she crooked her fingers and swiveled her hips seductively. I knew any moment I would be leaving the bar to join her, but it was fun to pretend I could resist her. The problem was that judging by the look on her face, she knew I couldn’t.

Alena was definitely my match. She played just as must as she surrendered, and I fucking loved our games. When she ran her hands up her thighs and over her stomach before gently cupping the sides of her breasts, I had reached the end of my resistance. I stood and stalked toward her like a man on a mission.

She let out a little
hmph
as my body collided with hers and I took her mouth in a hungry kiss.

“When are you gonna be ready to get out of here? I need to get you alone.” It came out resembling more of a growl than actual words.

“And what exactly do you plan on doing with me once you get me alone?” she asked in a husky whisper.

I didn’t answer her with words. Instead, I pushed my hardness against her, and she gasped.

The sound of squealing caught our attention. We both looked to our left and found Stacey up in the face of some brunette. Booker stood off to the side, watching the two women like some fucking idiot. I would have bet my left nut this catfight was his doing.

Before I could stop myself, I had tucked Alena behind me and was rushing off to save the fucking day. If not for Austin’s sake, I should have let Stacey get her ass beaten.

I grabbed Stacey around the waist and pulled her back as she wiggled in my arms. Everything happened so fast. She spun in my arms and threw herself at me, gripping the back of my neck so hard, her fingernails dug into my skin.

“What the fu—?”

Her mouth covered mine in the most demanding kiss I’d ever been a part of.

I gripped her arms tight and pushed her back. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

She looked up at me with a blank stare, and I could tell she was completely inebriated.

“Sorry,” she slurred. “Looks like I pissed off your girlfriend.” She gave a sadistic laugh, and my stomach felt like it hit the floor. I looked toward the place I had left Alena and found she was no longer there. As I scanned the bar, I caught the back of her head as she walked out the front door of Roger’s, Bailey and Amber following closely behind.

I was now beyond pissed off, both at myself and at Stacey. “Ry,” I hollered out over the noise of the bar, “call her ass a cab.”

“Hey, Noah, I got her, man,” Booker said as he took a step in my direction.

“You ain’t got shit. And if your ass knew what was good for you, you’d back the fuck away.” I didn’t have the time or the restraint to deal with this dick right now.

He held his hands up in surrender, and I was torn over what to do. I knew Alena would be fucking pissed, but I had to get Stacey in a cab. After that, I would call her dad to warn him what he was about to face, and then I could fix this shit with Alena.

I led Stacey to the bar and forced her to take a seat at the end. “Stay,” I demanded, and she glared up at me.

“I’m not a dog, you asshole,” she slurred.

“No, you’re not, but you are a woman who stepped over a fucking line, and I’m holding on by a thread here. So shut the fuck up and wait for your damn cab.” I ground my teeth in anger.

“You don’t have the right to tell me what to do.” But I sensed the hesitation in her words. She knew she was digging a deeper hole.

“I may not have the right, but I will assure you that if you continue to fucking push me, I’ll have your ass arrested for public intoxication and assault.” I got within inches of her face, and my nostrils flared. “So keep fucking with me, and you’ll be spending your night in a dirty jail cell.”

I waited for her to counter, but this time she chose to listen.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Alena

I had sent a text to Trinity practically begging her to come and pick me up. My heart was racing, though if I was being honest, it was aching.

“Len.” I jumped at the sound of Amber’s voice and turned to find her and Bailey approaching me. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I insisted. The lie made my throat burn.

“Come back inside.” Bailey reached out for me, and I shook my head.

“No, I’m tired and drunk.” I forced a laugh. My head was spinning and things were a little fuzzy. I also just needed some space.

“We all know that kiss was one-sided,” Amber said, and I closed my eyes tightly, taking a moment to fight back the tears.

“Yeah, I know.” I knew Noah didn’t intentionally go to Stacey so she could kiss him. However, he did push me aside to rush to her aid. That’s what had upset me. There was bar full of people, bouncers included, yet he had to be her hero.

I was just about to explain why I was upset when a cab pulled up in front of the bar. Movement in the bar’s doorway caught my attention. I watched as Noah led Stacey outside and carefully placed her inside the backseat of the cab. After he shut the door, Noah walked around to the driver and pulled out his wallet, offering the man money. I watched this entire thing with a knot lodged in my throat.

“No matter what, I think he’ll always take care of her. They have a bond that I think he feels obligated to,” I whispered.

I looked behind me at the sound of tires crunched against the gravel of the parking lot and saw Trinity driving up in my car.

“Alena, don’t leave without talking to him first.” I could hear the panic in Bailey’s voice.

“I think I need to clear my head. Being drunk and trying to have a serious conversation don’t mix.” I opened the passenger-side door just as my name was yelled out across the parking lot. I didn’t have to turn to know it was Noah. I crawled inside the car and shut the door.

“Are you okay?” Trinity asked in concern.

“No, but can you just drive?” I said without taking my eyes off my hands in my lap. A loud slap on the window made me jump, but I remained looking downward. “Please, just take me home.”

She pulled away slowly, and I ignored him as he yelled after us.

“You do know he’s not gonna stay away.” Trinity’s whisper filled the darkened car.

“I know,” I replied.

And she was right. The phone calls started almost immediately, followed by text messages and voice mails.

Within minutes after I arrived home, he was beating on my door. I sat at the top of the steps holding my phone tightly. I didn’t want to have this conversation with him when we had both been drinking. People say things they can’t take back when alcohol is involved, and I didn’t want this to be a yelling match.

Me: Just please give me tonight. We can talk tomorrow.

I sent the text, hoping it would make a difference. The knocking silenced only for a few seconds before it began once again.

“Open the door, Alena,” he demanded, and I buried my head in my hands. “I’m not leaving until I see your face.”

What the hell did that mean, anyway? Why did he insist on seeing me?

His knocking grew more impatient, and I became more anxious. I carefully slid down the stairs until I was on the last step, close enough to see his shadow through the curtain-covered window.

“Open the door, sweetheart.” The sad way he said it hit me dead center in my stomach, making me feel sick. My chest tightened and my throat burned. “Please, baby,” he begged, and I caved.

I stood and twisted the lock. Before I could turn the knob, he was pushing open the door and rushing to me. Taking me in his arms, he squeezed me almost too tight. I could feel the desperation in his grip.

“I’m sorry, fuck, Alena,” he breathed into my neck. “It wasn’t because I felt the need to protect her. I know that’s how it looked. I felt like I was protecting Austin by stopping it. I didn’t want to have to hear my son ask why his mother was in jail. I acted out of impulse.”

I stood frozen as Noah held me tightly, explaining something I hadn’t even asked him to.

“Never once did I feel protective of her, or however the fuck it appeared. I should have just walked away and let her get her ass handed to her. I wish I had now, because I never expected her to pull a stunt like she did.” He still hadn’t let me go. “Just say something, because your silence is killing me.” He leaned back and looked at me.

“I don’t know what to say,” I confessed. I’d had all these reasons why I should be mad, a list of reasons why the way he rushed to her was wrong, but now I had nothing. The moment he confessed why he went to her, all my anger left me.

Yes, I was hurt. I mean, watching another woman kiss the man you love was something no woman ever wanted to see. Especially when that woman was his ex-fiancée. But being mad at Noah felt sort of childish now. I had sobered up a little too, and now I was thinking more clearly.

“Yell at me. Whatever it takes for us to move past this together, do it,” Noah said in a strained whisper.

“I don’t want to yell at you.” I shrugged as my lower lip trembled. “I’m not mad.”

“You’re mad,” he insisted.

“I was,” I added before I took in a calming breath. “I was pissed and hurt. I wanted to say that if she meant so much to you that you had to leave me to save her, then we shouldn’t be together.” His eyes widened as he squeezed me tighter. “But now I don’t feel that way.” His features relaxed, yet he never released me, not even a little.

“Now the only thing I have running through my mind is fear.” My voice vibrated as I spoke. “Fear that my crazy actions could have pushed us apart. I should have stayed and listened to your reasoning, but I ran.”

“You were hurt,” he replied as if that made my reaction okay.

“I shouldn’t have run. It was a stupid reaction.” Now that I was thinking clearly, I realized just how immature I’d been. I knew Noah loved me, and he had told me so many times that what we had was real. Stacey was his first love, yes, but that love had long since faded. It was something I had to let go of. They would always be connected because of Austin, but that was the only reason.

“I love you, Alena.” He rested his forehead against mine. “No one could ever change that.”

“I needed to hear that,” I said in return as the tightness in my chest slowly faded.

“I’ll never stop saying it.”

A single tear escaped down my cheek. Silence set in as we continued to stand in the open doorway holding one another, the last hour slowly becoming a fleeting irritation that no longer felt important.

“Do you want me to leave?” His question filled the silence, and I whispered a no in return. “Good, because had you said yes, I would have had a long walk home. Jackson wouldn’t let Bailey leave my truck. He said if I needed a ride to call, and being the stubborn ass that I am, I would have just walked home.”

I smiled because I knew he wasn’t lying, then reached down and took his hand. I pushed the door closed with my other hand, locked it, and led him up the stairs.

As we walked past the living room, Trinity waved at us with a knowing smile. “Good night,” she said as we went down the hallway.

“Night,” Noah said with a soft chuckle. “She really is a sweet girl. I’m glad she has you.”

I closed my bedroom door behind him and began removing the clothes I had yet to change out of.

“I’m actually really glad I have her,” I confessed. “She’s become a really great friend.”

Noah sat down on the end of my bed, watching me as if what I was doing was fascinating. He had a way of making me feel like I was the center of his world when I was doing the simplest of things. As I slipped a nightshirt over my head, I turned to face him, and he held out his hand. “Come here.”

And I went to him without hesitation. I was sure I needed his touch just as much as he needed mine. As he wrapped his arms around my waist, he rested his head against my stomach and took in a deep breath.

“I don’t like when we’re apart.” He sounded sad, and because his face was snuggled against me so tightly, his words came out muffled. “I hate when we fight. And I hated the look in your eyes when you opened the door tonight. I don’t like the idea of you hurting.” He looked up at me, and I combed my fingers through his hair.

“I’m sorry about earlier.”

I placed my finger against his lips to stop him from apologizing any further. “Don’t,” I said. “It’s over and we learned from it.”

I waited to remove my finger from his lips until he nodded in agreement. Lowering my hand, I placed my lips against his. Slowly, he rolled back onto the mattress, taking me right along with him.