Page 142 of A Quick Buck

“Your gangster ways?” Noah laughed. “No, I’m sorry. Yourbusinessmanways?”

“Perhaps.”

“You’d really do that for me? Even if…” Noah didn’t want to say it.

“Yes. I will send you to school, but I expect you to keep your grades up. Do you understand me?”

“If I don’t, are you going to punish me?” Noah wanted to regain some levity in the conversation. He didn’t want to think about a future without Alistair, especially knowing what that would mean for Uncle Patrick.

“You’ll just have to wait and find out.” Alistair winked.

“Well, I always did well in school, so I’ll have to find some other way to mess with you.”

“Mm.” Alistair had finished his wine and set down the empty glass. “You’re a smart boy. I’m sure you’ll come up with something.”

“Yeah.” Noah swirled his wine around in his glass like he’d seen Alistair do. As much as he was trying to keep their chat light, a sliver of dread was working its way back into his stomach. “So, uh. We’re really just going to wait, huh?”

“Yes. Unfortunately, that is the only path available to us now.” Alistair got up and offered his hand to Noah. “We’ll rest tonight and see what tomorrow brings.”

After tipping back the last of his wine, Noah took Alistair’s hand and stood up. Whether it was the weight of their revealing conversation or simply having too much wine too quickly, Noah’s head got light. He immediately clung to Alistair to steady himself.

Alistair made no move to leave yet, wrapping his arms around Noah and cradling his head against his shoulder.

Noah hugged him tight, and he was suddenly overcome with a wave of uncertainty that made his heart thump unpleasantly. He closed his eyes, whispering, “And you’re gonna keep me safe, right?”

“I’m going to protect you,” Alistair promised as he held him tight. “Have no doubt about that.”

“Forever, right? You said you would keep me safe no matter what. That means like forever, yeah?”

“Yes.” Alistair kissed his hair. “And always.”

Chapter 20

The wine helped lull Noah to sleep quickly, but he woke up several times throughout the night. He couldn’t recall any specific nightmares, only waking with his heart pounding and an awful dip in his gut like he’d been falling. Alistair’s arms always found him, and he’d whisper reassuring words in Noah’s ear until he drifted back off.

When Noah woke up in the morning, he was alone in his bedroom. The door was cracked, and he heard someone moving around outside.

He got out of bed, used the bathroom, and changed into jeans and a nice polo shirt. He didn’t know what color Alistair would be wearing today or if he’d even care about them matching, but he decided to be bold and chose bright purple. He styled his hair the way Alistair liked and headed out to see who was guarding him.

It was Crybaby, and she nodded her head in greeting. “Good morning.”

“Morning. Where’s Alistair?”

“Bedroom.” She nodded her head again toward the master bedroom. “He wanted to let you sleep in.”

“What time is it?”

“Didn’t you get your phone back?”

“Shit. Right.” Noah ducked back into the bedroom to retrieve his phone from the bedside table. He was surprised he had forgotten it already.

Then again, he supposed, he hadn’t felt like he needed it.

He grabbed it and checked for any new notifications. There were none, though he noticed Landon had read his last text though he hadn’t chosen to respond.

Noah probably deserved that.

He stuck his phone in his pocket and rejoined Crybaby in the hallway. He could hear voices, and he turned to glance down the hallway toward the stairs. “Friends?”