Page 17

Chapter seventeen

Declan

M y date plans were atrocious.

I’d spent the morning neck-deep in something I hadn’t dealt with in years—updating my résumé. I’d started looking at job listings this week, seeing what positions were in the area, where I could focus more on aerospace. As much as I’d known other options might be out there, I’d assumed they were all far away. To my surprise, a large number of listings were local to me, even if the companies were involved in advancing aircrafts or other types of flight.

Except I’d gotten so fixated that the morning flew by and most of the afternoon.

A knock sounded at my door.

I glanced at the time on my laptop. Noah wasn’t due here for another few hours.

“Declan, open the goddamn door,” Cor boomed.

Oh, crap. He needed to pick up his wet/dry vac. I’d borrowed it after the whole basement flooding debacle, and I’d forgotten he’d be swinging by today to grab it. Well, I hadn’t forgotten. Time had just gotten away from me.

I peeled myself from my chair, my back stiff. The nerves had been fluttering with more intensity over the last hour in preparation for my date with Noah, and while my plan felt sensible for what he liked, I worried I’d pulled a me and misinterpreted what normal folks did on dates again. Was he expecting a dinner and a movie? The movies out right now were garbage—big dramatic pieces where people stared at each other for long spans of time.

I opened the door. “I could’ve brought it tomorrow.”

“I need it today for a project I’m working on in my basement,” Cor said. “Besides, you live five minutes away. It’s not like dropping by is a major hardship.”

“For you maybe.”

He rolled his eyes, but a grin lingered on his lips. “I gave you the forewarning. Not my fault you were in the middle of whatever project grabbed your fancy.”

“Is my date plan bad?” I asked.

Cor stopped on his way to my basement and glanced back at me. “You mean your typical meeting with a date at a restaurant? Public space is a good way to meet online dates, so I don’t think it’s a bad option.”

“No, my date tonight with my boyfriend.” My mind was still spinning on the concern that Noah would disappointed. After all the effort he’d gone through to make me feel comfortable and happy, I wanted to do the same for him.

Cor blinked and blinked again. “Give me a second to unpack all that.”

Ah, right. I wrinkled my nose. Did I need to go through the hassle of explaining this to everyone I knew? I figured I’d show up with Noah at Mom and Dad’s tomorrow, and my family could infer the rest. I sucked in a breath. “Noah and I are dating.”

“Noah, as in Noah Langston? The guy who’s had a crush on you for like a lifetime?”

I let out an annoyed huff. “I wasn’t aware.”

Cor shook his head. “I’d ask how you weren’t, but I’m also not surprised in the slightest. Does anyone else know?”

“I’m bringing him to brunch tomorrow, so no.”

“Oh god, I can’t wait to see this.”

My stomach flip-flopped. “It won’t be an issue, will it?”

Cor clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Not even a little bit. We all love you, Dec.”

Relief settled in me. I hadn’t even considered my family not accepting my sexuality shift. They’d always accepted my differences from an early age. Mom and Dad had me assessed for autism the moment they’d had the suspicion, and my family just viewed me as me.

“But I need your help on my date plan,” I said. “I was going to take Noah to an animal shelter, but what if that depresses him? Should I be figuring some sort of food arrangements? I just had the shelter and then sex planned for later.”

Cor scrubbed his face. “Bro, I don’t want to hear about your sex plans. If Noah likes animals, he’ll love going to an animal shelter. And if you’ve got other arrangements for later—”

“Sex.”

“Yeah, ugh. Then I can promise you Noah will not give a flying fuck if you’re going to a restaurant or not.”

I chewed on the inside of my cheek, pondering it over.

“I’m going to grab the wet/dry vac.” Cor walked to the basement. “I’ll be right back.” His footsteps receded and then echoed again as he returned. The quick trip barely gave me enough time to process his statement, but at the heart of things, Cor was experienced in dating guys and had a solid relationship with Felix. He was also one of the calmer members of my family, so if I could trust anyone for advice, it’d be him.

Rory’s advice, for example, would involve glitter, lube, and a trampoline.

“Hey, Dec,” Cor said. “Thanks for coming out to me. I’m glad you ended up with Noah. If anyone gets you, it’s him.”

I nodded, my chest squeezing tight. Cor wasn’t wrong in the slightest. Noah understood my humor, my reactions, and accepted them better than anyone.

“Just don’t try to cook for him tonight,” Cor teased. “Otherwise, he’ll be laid up in the hospital with food poisoning.”

I rolled my eyes. “Give the family food poisoning once…”

Cor snorted. “Only about five times until we wised up.”

“See you and Felix tomorrow?”

He grabbed the door handle and nodded. “Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Can’t wait to welcome Noah into the fold.” With that, he slipped out and closed the door behind him.

My heart thudded hard. I’d thought about it conceptually a few times, but none of the people I’d gone on dates with ever fit in the framework. People I’d be comfortable introducing to my family.

However, that was tomorrow’s issue.

Tonight, I had a date with my boyfriend.

When I pulled up in front of Noah’s house, a wave of comfort washed over me. How I could feel this somewhere beyond my parents’ house and my own mystified me, but Noah had once been a strong source of safety for me, and once we cleared up our miscommunications, the trust had snapped into place like it had never left.

If a month ago someone had told me I’d not only be dating someone but dating Noah Langston, I would’ve called them insane. However, I was grateful for the storm pushing us together. If we hadn’t gotten the concentrated time in the same space, who knew how much longer we would’ve circled each other?

I looked in the mirror and tweaked my hair again, wanting the strands to be even. Then I opened the car door and headed down the brick walkway. My heart thumped harder in anticipation of getting to see him again. My body had never reacted this strongly to anyone else.

Just him.

I knocked on the door, and it creaked open at once.

Noah stood in the entryway, and the breath left me.

The sun glowed on his blond strands, carefully swept to the side, and the stubble on his chin highlighted the cleft there. His warm blue eyes glittered, and his goofy smile had made its appearance. He wore a white tee that stretched over his defined pecs and a plaid button-down with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. I’d never noticed forearms much before, but his were dense and defined, and apparently those turned me on now too.

“Fuck, you’re so gorgeous.” He closed the distance between us in a few strides and wrapped his hand around my nape. His mouth descended on mine.

This kiss was electric and rewired my brain. We stood out in the open where all his nosy neighbors could see us, but the moment Noah touched me, every other distraction melted away. I sank into the kiss, into the intensity blooming in my chest, like sunlight coaxing a bud to open. Noah brought his other hand around my waist, and the way he consumed me, how he surrounded me body and soul, was transcendent.

Forget the date. I could spend the rest of my time losing myself in his body.

My heart thumped hard, and when he pulled back, the fevered look in his eyes matched the heat percolating through me.

“Right, we’re supposed to go on a date,” I said, needing to remind myself. “We’ll come back here to fuck later.”

“You’re making it hard not to just toss you over my shoulder and carry you to my bed,” Noah said.

The idea of him lifting me like that—damn. My cock perked to life, fast turning to a semi. “Mmph. Okay, so that’s getting added onto the later part of the plan.”

Noah’s grin turned dangerous, a banked heat in his gaze that flared through me. “Sounds perfect.” He stepped out of his house and locked up, then grabbed my hand. “So, where are you taking me?”

“Do you want the plan outlined, or do you want to be surprised?” I asked but already knew the answer.

“I’ll be happy anywhere you want.” The dopey grin on his face made my heart slam into double time.

“Well, hopefully, we can set the bar higher for our expectations.” I climbed into my car. He hopped into the passenger’s seat. “I don’t think you’d be saying that if I rolled up to a reptile show.”

“Look, I know they’re not bad, but snakes make my skin crawl.”

I settled my hands on the steering wheel. “You don’t need to justify to me. I’m just saying you’re human and not going to be fine with everything .”

“Is this where you make me define my preferences?” he teased.

“I’m not going to make you do anything, but you’ll get a lot more of what you want if you do. ”

Noah shrugged. “Most of the time, I’m just happy to be around people I care about.”

I shook my head, warmth welling in my chest. That was such a Noah answer. We were so different, but somehow, a sliver of hope had started to burn inside me that we could make this work.

The drive wasn’t far. Maybe I should’ve picked somewhere farther away to extend our date, but I thought the activity would fit as a way to spend the afternoon together. All too fast, I pulled up in front of one of the local dog shelters. I’d spoken to the volunteers and arranged time to take a few of the dogs out for a run at Barkingfield Park, so I hoped Noah wouldn’t be disappointed.

The second I parked, Noah laughed.

“No way.”

My brows drew together. “Did you not want to do this?” Fuck, what restaurants could we go to? Most of them were fairly noisy, and I preferred to get takeout or delivery instead.

The sign for Furever Homes glared down at us, and I glared back. I’d misinterpreted what normal people wanted for dates again.

“I volunteer here,” he said.

“Wait, what?” I scrubbed at my face. “I called and set up time for us to take a few dogs out for a run.”

Noah beamed at me, cupped my cheeks, and crushed his mouth to mine. I soaked in the kiss for a moment but pulled back. It would bother me until we cleared up whether this was a good or bad idea.

“Is this date idea okay?” I asked.

“More than.” His grin was pure sunshine. “I love how well you know me, Dec. You listen when I say things, and that means more than anything. Fuck, I…” Tension increased between us as if unsaid things hung heavily in the air. My pulse sped up, but the impetus, apart from him, was unknown .

“You what?” I asked.

Noah shook his head, a grin on his lips. “I’m just damn lucky, that’s all.”

“Luck has nothing to do with it. More like us actually communicating.”

Noah hopped out of the car. “Well, let’s communicate with some pups in tow.”

I stepped out of my car and remained there, watching for a moment. Noah raced up to the front door, his excitement as palpable as mine whenever I got to study the night sky.

When he glanced back at me, the look in his struck me silent.

God, he was blindingly beautiful, and he was mine.

I had no experience in falling in love, but I believed I already had.