Page 70 of A Hard Habit to Break
“And I’d be standing in my bedroom with those General Store binoculars, waiting.”
“Yeah, you never missed a day.”
It was true. Even after their breakup in high school, he’d look north, searching the roof for his Rachel.
“Is that why you looked for me Saturday night?”
She dropped her head, as if his question embarrassed her. Noah knew better. He waited till she was ready to give him an answer.
“Yes,” she sighed. “Yes, I climbed out on that new roof looking for…” Looking for the boy she loved and the man who still loved the ground she floated above.
“Let’s go home.” She paused as if his words had a paralyzing effect. “Six?”
“You want me to come home with you again?’
“Saturday night doesn’t count.” He smirked. “You showed up under emergency circumstances.”
“You’re cheating, Mr. Calvary.”
“At least finish the tour of the house that I built… in our spot. No mud piles and construction paper. The house is real. How I feel is real.”
“Noah, don’t say stuff like that. It’s either going to fill my head with wild ideas or set me up for the biggest crash when it’s time to leave here.”
“You say ‘fill your head.’ What about your heart? ’Cause I want the place in your heart. And I know my grammar isn’t the best, but I’m talking your whole heart, not a piece. I want the whole nine. Make that ten.”
“Nine is enough,” Rachel corrected.
Ricky strutted up, releasing an indignant squawk, as if personally offended by Noah’s questionable math skills.
Rachel laughed. “See… even Ricky knows it’s ten is more than you can handle.”
“For you, I’d find a way.” Rachel swallowed at the intensity of his stare. He was serious. Words of protest escaped her, so she nodded. That seemed to satisfy him. “Tonight, you come home with me. Plan to stay.”
“Just one night.”
“For starters, yes.”
“Oh, don’t try to sweet-talk—”
He didn’t wait for her to finish. Instead, he covered her lips with his. When he pulled up for air, he asked, “What were you saying aboutdon’t…? ”
She tangled her fingers in his hair and tugged until his lips brushed hers. “I said,don’t stop.”
“Mooooo,” Bessie, Matt’s milking cow, lowed in the background, followed by something large stepping into something with a wet,splat.
“Bessie had awful timing.”
“Hmm.” Rachel shrugged. “I think she’s right on time.” And then Rachel Johnson pulled Noah in for the kiss he’d worked for all day.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“NOAH, WHAT ISall this?” Rachel gawked at a cleaned-up Noah standing on her front porch with a flower bouquet in one hand and his black Stetson in the other.
“Can’t a man surprise the woman he loves with flowers?”
Love?Should they risk love when her leaving was inevitable? Rachel had lost enough. Returning to Service, she’d realized how much she missed this sense of community, the relationships that had sustained her even in her absence. Distance hadn’t dimmed their concern for her well-being. But admitting aloud that she loved Noah could lead her to do something crazy… like maybe rethink her career, her choices.
She reached for the tropical mix of vibrant orange alstroemerias, pink carnations, snapdragons, and purples. “Thank you, Noah.” She brought the arrangement to her nose andinhaled. The sweet blossoms were a delicious dessert to a near-perfect day. “You didn’t have to—”
