Total pages in book: 17
Estimated words: 16707 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 84(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 16707 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 84(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
“You were. Peter was just adept at being nosy.”
“Right? That was why my diaries had locks on them, and I kept the key around my neck!”
I try hard not to smile and pretend to be engrossed in the movie. Noelle notices immediately, and she turns me to the side so I’m facing her.
“Adrian, I need you to tell me the truth. Did Peter read my diary?”
“Yes.”
“Oh my God. That bastard. When I see him, I swear—”
“He didn’t read everything when he realized you were just obsessively recording the pupa you saw on your way to class and hatching a plan to put gum in your classmate’s hair.”
“Brie. That’s right. She was mean to me. And the pupa also didn’t become a butterfly. Something ate it.” Noelle realizes something, and she touches my forearm. I forgot how big she was on touching. “Was that why my entire pack of gum disappeared right before the weekend camp?”
“Yes. He gave it to me.”
“Oh, that. When I see him, I’m going to kill him.”
I smirk. “No, you won’t because you’ll be on the defensive.”
“Oh, right.” Noelle quiets, and I sense a shift in her mood. I mentally curse myself for reminding her of the elephant in the room. We had a good thing going, and I had to go ahead and destroy it with a few words.
Still, we can’t escape the confrontation. Sooner or later, Peter will know.
I take her hands in mine and kiss her lips softly. “It’s fine, Noelle. I’ll talk to him. Your brother can be annoying sometimes, but he listens to reason, and he genuinely cares about you. I got you, okay?”
“What if he doesn’t approve?” Noelle scrunches her forehead, and I kiss it away.
“We don’t need his approval, do we? As long as I don’t hurt you, then I’m good. I have nothing to worry about. And we’re both adults. He doesn’t ask for your permission who to date, so why would he demand the same from you?”
Noelle chuckles. “You know, I always admired your confidence. I always wanted to be like you when I grew up.”
“I’m not that old, Noelle.”
She makes a face, and I can’t help but pull her in for a kiss. It’s supposed to be a light, playful kiss. Just a tease. But in seconds, my body lights up, and it deepens. So deep she rakes her nails along my scalp and sucks my bottom lip between her teeth.
We spend the next few hours learning more about each other’s bodies, my universe whittling down to the constant need to please her and remind her of who she belongs to now.
That’s right.
Noelle belongs to me. And despite my earlier bravado about Peter understanding reason, I’m not a hundred percent sure he’ll get it. Then again, the moment Noelle and I touched last night, something changed in me. I should care about what Peter would think, but that requires more fucks than I’m currently willing to give.
4
NOELLE
Iused to think hating things was exhausting and unnecessary. You spend so much energy when you hate something. It’s best to just ignore it and move on. Well, at least that was how I felt before. I’ve never truly hated anything in my life. Not Brussels sprouts or pineapple on pizza, not waking up at an ungodly hour to take a math exam, not even PE classes.
But LEGO?
I loathe LEGO. With every fiber of my being. When I worked as a kindergarten teacher, I didn’t mind them at all … mostly because I had shoes on, so I had great defense against them. But here, in Adrian’s home, they are everywhere.
Those tiny, evil, indestructible bricks lurk in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment to destroy me and my sanity. They hide in the couch, behind the table leg, under the carpet, by the laundry basket. Basically in places no human hand has ever put them, I know because Thomas only ever plays with them on the LEGO table in his playroom. And yet, somehow, they magically appear in my path.
My soul leaves my body each time I step on one. My vision goes white, and a yelp gets stuck in my throat. I question every decision that has led me here and wonder if I steered an inch to the left, would I have avoided the cruel, unnecessary pain? I pick up the offending brick and glare at it.
I would burn every piece to the ground if they weren’t Thomas’s favorite toy.
That’s why I’m more than glad to take him to soccer practice. At least once there, I’m in no danger of losing my good mood because of LEGO. God, I feel so mature right now.
The afternoon sun beats down on the field as I watch Thomas sprint after the soccer ball, his little legs moving faster than I thought possible. He’s grinning, completely in his element, and I can’t help but smile too.