I’d been walking for about ten minutes when I heard a car behind me. It started to slow, and some of the tension in my shoulders released as I realized Wes must have come after me. But when I turned, I didn’t see Wes’s car pulled up by the curb. Instead, it was the black truck that had been parked at Luther’s house, and Noah was jumping out of the driver’s seat.
I turned and kept walking. “I don’t want to talk to you,” I called over my shoulder.
“Okay, then don’t talk,” Noah replied. “Just get in the car. You’re going to freeze if you stay out here dressed like that.”
“I’m fine.”
Noah caught up with me and grabbed hold of my arm, spinning me around to face him. “You’re not fine. Stop being so damn stubborn.”
“I’m not stubborn.”
He ran a hand through his dark, messy hair. “We’ve been over this before. You are.” His frustration seemed to fade as he looked into my eyes. It was probably because he could see they were moist with the tears I’d been fighting back since I’d fled from Wes’s house.
“I’m sorry if I made things worse with Wes, but I couldn’t stand back and watch him accuse you of something you would never do,” he said. “Why are you out here? What happened with him?”
“Nothing happened.”
“I beg to differ. Cress and Anna went after you, but you weren’t at the twins’ house. They came rushing back to see if you’d returned to Luther’s, but you weren’t there either. Everyone is worried.”
“Well, if everyone is worried, perhaps everyone should have come after me.” It wasn’t hard to tell I was only talking about Wes.
“Seriously, Isobel, what happened?”
“I told you nothing happened. Everything is just fine and dandy. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get back to my walk.”
I tried to leave, but Noah didn’t let go of my arm.
“I’m not letting you walk away right now, Crash. You’re going to freeze.”
“Don’t call me that,” I said. “And don’t tell me what to do. I’m just clearing my head. I’ll come back when I’m ready.”
Noah folded his arms across his wide chest. “I didn’t want it to come to this, but you’ve left me no choice. If you don’t come with me, I’m going to have to insist you give me back my hoodie.”
I glanced down at the sweatshirt before looking up at Noah and scowling. If he thought his little threat could force me back to the house, he had another thing coming.
“Fine.” I whipped the sweatshirt over my head and tossed it at him. I didn’t want it anyway. It had already caused enough problems for me today. “Are you happy?”
I was left standing in nothing but my snow boots and my skimpy bikini, but I wasn’t getting in the car with Noah, and I wasn’t going back to either Luther’s or Wes’s. I probably wouldn’t last long outside without Noah’s sweatshirt, but I was fairly certain I’d seen a café not far down the road, so I’d just have to hang out there until my thoughts cleared. Until some of my anger dissipated. Sure, I’d be sitting there in nothing but a bikini, but at least it would be warmer than wandering out here in the snow.
Noah growled and gripped the sweatshirt tightly. He didn’t look happy, and he didn’t even seem to notice how revealing my bikini was. No, he was too busy glaring at me. “Well, I’m definitely not leaving you out here now,” he rumbled. “Will you please get in the car?”
“That’s not going to happen.”
“Get in the car, Isobel.”
“No.” I turned and continued down the road, trying my best not to think about the view Noah would have of my butt.
He came right after me though.
“I’m not taking no for an answer,” he said.
“I don’t care.”
“Well, you were warned…”
The next thing I knew, Noah was in front of me. He leaned down, wrapped his arms around my bare legs, and tossed me over his shoulder.
“What the hell, Noah?” I screamed as my butt went up in the air and all too close to his face.
“I tried to ask you nicely.”
“And I refused. Put me down.”
“Only if you come back to the house with me.”
“That’s not going to happen. I just want some space.”
“And you can have all the space you want when you’re not at risk of freezing to death.”
He probably had a point. And if he wasn’t pissing me off so much, perhaps I would have listened. I knew I was being stubborn, but fighting Noah was so much easier than giving in to him. For a moment, it distracted me. It helped me forget about the look in Wes’s eyes when he’d accused me of cheating. When he’d said I wasn’t worth fighting for.
But as I dangled in the air over Noah’s back, I realized this wasn’t a fight I would win. Noah was probably going to carry me the whole way home if that’s what it took. And it didn’t matter how much I bickered with Noah; eventually I was going to have to think about Wes. Maybe I needed to stop being so difficult and do as Noah asked.
“Okay, fine,” I huffed. “I’ll come with you. Just put me down.”
“Finally.” Noah grizzled as he came to a stop and he gently lowered me to the ground. I slid through his arms, and his hands flashed across my bare skin until they came to rest gently on my waist as he made sure I was steady on my feet. I tried to ignore how good it felt. How my whole body still tingled when he touched me.
As soon as I was standing, Noah handed me his hoodie. “Here, put this back on.”
I quickly did as he asked, not uttering a word of protest.
“Let’s go.”
I went to follow him, but my foot slipped on some ice, and suddenly I was sprawling forward. I probably would have fallen straight to the ground, but Noah was there in a second, grasping me tightly once again as he held me upright.
“Careful,” he said. “It’s icy. I—” He choked on his words as my feet slid out from under me again. Noah couldn’t seem to steady me this time, and we tumbled to the ground. Somehow, Noah was able to cage me within his arms as we fell, and my heart plummeted as I heard a resounding crack when I landed on top of him.
The world seemed to go silent, and I scrambled to my knees. “Oh my God, Noah.” He’d taken the brunt of the fall, just like he had in the woods when we first met. But this time, it wasn’t loamy soil we were falling on but hard ice.
His eyes were shut, and he was lying on his back. My heart raced as I looked him over. I reached out a hand to softly touch his face. “Noah, are you okay?”
He didn’t respond.
“Noah…”
He didn’t move an inch. He was so still, like he was sleeping peacefully, which only made me more concerned.
“Noah, wake up.” My voice became more urgent.
I squeezed his shoulders, desperate for a response, but still he lay motionless.
“Noah!” Tears stung my eyes, and emotion broke my voice as I tried to rouse him.
He needed to wake up.
I couldn’t handle it if he didn’t wake up.
“Noah, please.”
My tears were falling now, and I had no idea what to do. I needed to call an ambulance, but I didn’t have my phone on me. Perhaps Noah had one in the car.
I began to push myself up, but a soft wheezing noise made me freeze, and my eyes darted back to him. “Noah?”
I held my breath as I waited for him to respond, praying I hadn’t imagined the noise. Praying he would open his eyes.
He let out a low grown, and I thought that one small noise might just be the most beautiful thing I’d ever heard. I fell back to his side, placing my hands gently on his face.
“Noah, can you hear me?”
He slowly opened his eyes, and my whole body exhaled with relief. His expression was dazed, and his eyes looked dopey, but he smiled as he looked up at me. “If I’d known all I had to do to get your attention was fall and crack my head on the ice, I would have done it weeks ago.”
I released a laugh because it felt so good to hear his voice. “That’s not funny,” I said, but I was still smiling like an idiot. I’d never been more grateful to be able to look into his green eyes.
“Seriously, are you hurt?”
He lifted a hand to rub his head. “I banged my head, but I think I’m okay.”
He started to push himself up, and I wasn’t sure whether I should stop him. What if he’d really hurt himself?
“Should I call an ambulance?” I asked. “Maybe one of the guys? I’m not sure you should move after falling like that. I—”
“You’re stressing, Crash.” Noah waved me off. “I’m fine. Seriously, I…” He went to stand but stumbled and almost fell to the ground again.
I quickly moved to steady him. His eyes seemed unfocused, and he could barely keep his feet without my support.
“We need to get you to a doctor,” I said. “You were unconscious, Noah. Where are your keys?”
He looked like he might argue, but he must have felt worse than he was letting on because he nodded. “They’re in the truck.”
“Do you think you can make it back there if you lean on me?”
“I can walk.”
“I think you’ve just shown that you can’t. You nearly fell over again.”
With a sigh, he accepted my help. Noah was a big guy, and I was grateful we weren’t farther from the truck. I wrapped one arm firmly around his waist, and he rested his arm over my shoulder as we made our way back to the vehicle.
Any other time, I would have felt awkward being so close to him and my instincts would have resisted his proximity, but I was too worried about him to even consider how good he smelled or how nice it was to have his arm around me. I got him in the truck before I hurried round to the driver’s side and climbed in.
“Where’s the emergency room?” I asked as I fastened my seat belt.
“No idea.”
“Do you have your phone?”
He fished it out of the center console and passed it to me. I swallowed when I saw his background was a picture of the beach. It wasn’t just any beach though. It was the secluded beach in Rapid Bay where we’d shared our first kiss.
I did my best to ignore the idea that he looked at the picture every time he unlocked his phone, and I searched online for the nearest emergency room. As soon as I had the directions, I glanced at Noah. “It’s not far.”
But his eyes were shut, and my heart stuttered. “Noah!”
“I’m awake, I’m awake,” he groaned. “Just resting my eyes. My head hurts like hell.”
“Please just keep your eyes open.”
He slowly opened them once more and gave me a weak smile.
Seeing the pain in his eyes sparked me into action, and I started the truck. My hands were shaking as I slammed down on the accelerator, and we took off from the curb. I was so worried Noah was going to pass out again, and it was impossible to stay focused on the road.
I kept turning to look at Noah, checking he hadn’t closed his eyes again. Thankfully, he kept them open, but his face was tense, and he kept lightly touching his head and wincing in pain. It looked like he was feeling worse now that some of the initial shock had worn off.
It took us less than ten minutes to get to the emergency room. As soon as we pulled up outside, I jumped from the truck and ran around to the passenger side to help Noah out. I was in such a rush to get him inside the building it took me a moment to realize he was smiling at me as I was helping him from the vehicle.
“What?” I asked.
“You drove.” His smile became a little bigger.
“I…” I looked at the truck in surprise. He was right. I’d driven all the way here, and I hadn’t once hesitated, or frozen, or refused to pull out of the parking space. I’d been so worried about Noah I hadn’t even considered my driving fears, and the nerves that usually accompanied me whenever I got behind the wheel were nowhere to be seen. It had all happened so naturally. So easily.
“I told you,” Noah mumbled. “You were overthinking it.”
“You said that to tease me.”
“I said that to help you, actually,” he replied. “Now, can we get inside? I’d prefer not to pass out in front of you again.”
“Right.” I pulled my attention from the truck. “Of course.”
When I got him inside, I spoke to the nearest nurse, and they directed us to a packed waiting room. Noah was quickly assessed by another nurse, who confirmed he probably had a concussion. However, she wanted him to see a doctor so he could be assessed for any more serious injuries and side effects.
We were told to expect a long wait though. The icy conditions on the mountain seemed to have resulted in a lot of injuries today, and Noah’s fall appeared to be less urgent than the injuries of some of the other people in the emergency room.
Noah was patient though and didn’t once complain. It took over an hour before a bed freed up, and we had to wait longer still for a doctor. Noah’s eyes were far more focused now, but his lips remained tense. He kept trying to reassure me he wasn’t in any pain, but I was convinced he was only saying that to make sure I didn’t worry.
We talked constantly as we waited. I think we were both in need of a distraction. Noah from his pain and me from the memory of Noah passed out on the icy road. Whenever we grew silent, it left room for intrusive thoughts, and the image of him lying there overcame me. I didn’t want to analyze the emotions that had stirred inside me when I’d seen Noah unconscious and unmoving on the ground. How the sight of his eyes blinking open when I was so worried they wouldn’t had awoken something in my heart that I’d been desperately trying to bury.
“This trip can’t end soon enough,” I muttered as I checked the time and realized we’d been waiting for over two hours.
“When are you heading back to Rapid Bay?” Noah asked.
“In the morning.” It felt like a relief. This holiday had been one disaster after another, and now all I wanted to do was to get home to my mom.
“I’ll be heading back to New York then too,” Noah said.
“How are things with your grandfather?”
“I haven’t spoken to him since that night you overheard us,” Noah said. “He’s left me messages though. My voice mail is filled with his ranting and raving.”
“Is he still threatening to destroy your father’s memorial?”
“He is, but Matthew’s been a great help. Despite his threats, William can’t just build a parking lot there without getting certain approvals, and Matthew’s got a lot of contacts. We’ll stop him.”
“I’m really sorry, Noah.”
“Don’t be.” He shook his head. “He was always going to fight back, but taking him down was worth it. Not least of all because I don’t have to pretend around him anymore. It was exhausting.”
Noah seemed freer since everything that happened in New York. It was as if he was finally able to act like his true self now he wasn’t under his grandfather’s thumb. The person I’d previously seen in glimpses when it was just the two of us could now reveal himself to the world.
“So, what happened with Wes?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I’m not talking about that with you.”
“You seemed pretty upset with him,” he replied.
‘We just had an argument, that’s all.”
“It’s not just an argument when he throws unfair accusations at you and you end up trudging through the snow half dressed and freezing.”
“Noah…” I sighed, my tone a final warning that I couldn’t bring myself to discuss this with him.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “You probably think I’m cheering inside at the fact you and Wes had a fight, but, more than anything, I just hate seeing you upset.”
I glanced away from him, unable to hold his gaze for more than a few seconds.
“I’m not perfect,” he continued. “But, just so you know, I would never doubt you like that.”
I tried not to let his words get to me. I really did. But I suddenly found myself struggling not to cry. “I’ll be back in a moment,” I said, rising from my chair.
“Isobel…” Noah called after me, but I didn’t look back at him as I walked away. His words had wormed their way under my skin, and the tears I’d been keeping at bay threatened to fall.
I’d been trying my best not to think about my argument with Wes, but Noah was right. He had struggled to trust me since the start. And despite our best efforts to overcome that, he no longer felt I was worth it. He’d let me walk away and hadn’t come after me. What did that say about the way he felt about me? What did that say about our future together? I’d experienced too much heartbreak this year, and I wasn’t ready to face it again.
It felt like I’d been fighting for my relationship with Wes for weeks though, and I wasn’t sure I could keep going. I cared about him so much, but I felt like he wasn’t ever going to trust me the way I deserved. I didn’t want us to be over, and while Wes hadn’t said those exact words, the empty feeling in my gut warned me we probably already were.
By the time I returned to Noah’s room, the doctor had arrived to see him. Noah kept trying to catch my eye, but my focus remained on the doctor.
She inspected Noah thoroughly and confirmed his concussion. Thankfully though, Noah hadn’t done any serious damage to his head when he’d fallen, and the doctor was much less concerned than I had been when I’d heard his skull crack against the icy ground. She told him to make sure he got plenty of rest and was extra careful on the ice. Much to my relief, Noah was going to be fine.
Once I knew he was okay, I couldn’t wait to get out of the emergency room. My haste was partly because I needed some space from Noah so I could try to process everything that had happened that afternoon. But also, it was because I was still wearing nothing but a bikini and Noah’s sweatshirt. Not only was I uncomfortable, but I must have looked ridiculous.
“So, do you think we’ll ever stop falling for each other?” Noah said with a grin as we made our way to the car.
The question elicited memories of us tumbling to the ground in the woods of him wrapping his arms around my waist to save me as my skis hurled out of control, of him staring lovingly into my eyes on the beach, and all those little moments when he’d share a fleeting smile that only I ever got to see.
They were memories I didn’t want to think about right now. And I definitely wasn’t ready to joke about what had happened today when we’d fallen on the ice and knocked him unconscious. Now that I knew he wasn’t seriously injured, it felt like I could be angry with him again. That seemed like a far safer focus for my pent-up energy.
“You scared me half to death today,” I said. “You know that, right?”
“It was just a little fall.”
“Just a little fall? I had to rush you to hospital.”
“Maybe if you hadn’t been so stubborn and just got in the car like I asked, it wouldn’t have happened,” he said.
“Or maybe if you hadn’t insisted on forcing me into the car against my will, it wouldn’t have happened.”
“You were being too reckless,” he said.
“You were being too persistent.”
“God, I love you, Isobel.”
I fell silent, and the blood rushed from my skin. My heart seemed to both swell and shatter at the sound of that word. How easily he said it. How he looked at me like I was everything to him. How he could still feel that way about me when I’d spent weeks telling him he shouldn’t.
He gave me a sad smile, like he knew exactly what was going through my head. “I shouldn’t have said that.”
“No, you shouldn’t have…”
“But I’m not sorry that I did. Yes, it’s not fair of me, but I don’t really care. I love you, Isobel, and I would happily fall a million times over if it meant I got to hold you in my arms like I did today.”
I forced myself to glance away. “We should get home.”
He nodded, but as we climbed into the truck, he continued. “You can try to ignore this all you want, Crash. But that won’t change the way I feel about you. Nothing will ever change that.”
I refused to look at him. Refused to listen to him. Refused to let his words burrow their way into my soul. But it was growing harder to ignore how much he cared about me. And after seeing him hurt today, I was starting to realize there were feelings inside me that might also be too strong to ignore any longer.
