Page 176 of Savage Suit

She nodded. “I could go on for hours about them but tell me a little about your parents from you, not from my research.”

Pleased by her interest in my life, I planted another kiss on her delectable lips. She sighed in contentment and a foreign feeling settled into me. Happiness. The moment brought more joy to me than words could describe. It was as shocking as it was unsettling. I pecked her forehead, and she nuzzled closer to me.

“Talk before we’re sidetracked, Noah.”

“Would that be a bad thing?” Her proximity to my hardening cock made a distraction a genuine possibility.

“No, but I want to hear about your parents.”

“Fine. I’ll start with my father.”

From an early age, he’d been more devoted to work than his children. If it didn’t involve my mother, he didn’t care much about familial matters and duties.

“My father met my mother when he and my grandfather went on a business trip to France, and she was a secretary for the Amage brothers’ business. Outside of his business, my mother was the only thing my father truly cared about,” I continued, sharper than necessary. “When she died, he locked himself inside of his office, a shell of his former self.”

Ryan took my hand in hers and lightly squeezed it. “I’m so sorry. It would’ve helped if had he been there for you.”

Lifting her hand, I kissed it.

“There’s so much I could say about my mother,” I said after a moment, deciding not to comment on my father.

“Yes. From everything I learned about her, she was a grand lady.”

“She was. She’d drop everything in an instant for her family. Especially me,” I admitted. Pulling away from Ryan, I shook my head. “She died because of that intense love. If I hadn’t gotten sick, she wouldn’t have gotten on that plane an—”

“Noah!” Ryan interrupted, incredulous.

A tear sliding down my cheek shocked me.

She thumbed it away and placed her hand on my shoulder, her look tender and concerned instead of judgmental and mocking.

“Don’t even go there. You’re capable of many things. Controlling the weather and a 200-ton machine isn’t on the list.”

“I know.” My mother’s death was the only thing able to bring me to tears, even after all these years.

“That’s why I can’t come up with a name for her fragrance. She was such an incredible woman. How do I choose something to show her elegance, her value, and how much I still miss her?”

“I understand. I couldn’t capture my parents’ lives with a simple word.”

“Talking about her fills me with so much nostalgia, Ryan. When she was alive, everything seemed so easy. My family was close, and one person in the world always had my back. Her death caused a seismic shift in our lives.” On the verge of tearing up again, I cleared my throat. “I’ve thought about calling the fragranceColle, or glue in French. She held us together, but I didn’t want something meant to honor her forever associated with an adhesive.”

She smiled. “I understand,” she repeated. “No matter how symbolic the reason. Besides, in today’s world, assholes would mock the name.”

“One of my thoughts,” I admitted. “If someone ridiculed anything dedicated to her, it would enrage me. To avoid that, I thought it best to choose another name.”

I hadn’t taken her into my arms again, so used to shutting everyone out to protect myself. But Ryan lifted my hand and ducked under my arm, settling into the crook, and forcing me to lean back. “Truly, I understand, especially the nostalgia part, Noah. I will always have a hole in my heart because my parents won’t see my important moments.”

Silence fell between us, each of us lost in our own memories. Yet, it was peaceful. Soothing, a balm to the brokenness I’d so long felt. Therapists had tried to heal me, but any strides I’d make would crumble under my family’s accusations.

“What’s nostalgia in French?” Ryan asked, breaking into my thoughts. “Nostalgie, right?”

I nodded. “Why?”

“Well, um…” she said, fidgeting with the buttons on my shirt and lowering her gaze. “You might think it’s silly, but, um, have you considered calling the perfume that?”

I froze. I was a fucking dumbass. Why hadn’t I ever considered such an obvious name? “It isn’t silly, Ryan. It’s perfect.La Nostalgie.”

Her anxiety fell away, and she smiled at me. “I’m happy to be of service.”