“What did she tell you about me?”
He copies my pose, leaning back in the chair like he doesn’t have a care in the world, his expression turning cocky. “That you just got back to town and that the two of you are ancient history.”
“Kady, baby,” I coo, turning to look at her with a disappointed expression. “That’s not exactly true, is it?”
“Yes, it is,” she challenges, daring me with her gaze to continue. Adrenaline races through my veins and my cock aches. Fuck, I need this woman so bad.
“No, it’s not.” I turn back to Mason. “Let me give you the lowdown, Mason. You seem like a nice enough guy so I do feel a little bad about all this.” I motion to the three of us.
“Shut up, Noah,” Kady growls. I ignore her.
“But you’ve got to understand, I met this girl in sixth grade and from the moment I saw her, I knew she was the only girl in the world for me. We were together for nine years and we were engaged when I royally fucked up and got myself sent to prison. You with me so far?”
He nods and grits his teeth. “Yes.”
“Noah,” Kady whispers again, a threat clear in her voice.
“So, I get locked up and my girl here, she just disappears. We’re talkin’ no record of her anywhere and trust me, I looked but there’s only so much a guy can do behind bars.”
Mason’s gaze flicks to Kady and she sighs but I refuse to look back at her.
“I got released a little over a week ago and that’s when the search really began.”
Kady grips my arm and my entire body lights up like I’ve been tasered. It’s the first time she’s touched me in seven years and it’s fucking everything.
“That’s enough, Noah.”
I glance over my shoulder at her. “No, it’s not.”
“Look,” Mason cuts in and I turn back to him. “I think Kady has made it very clear how she feels about your reappearance in her life so I think it’s time for you to leave. And stay away from her.”
“See, you’re not understanding me, Mason. What you and Kady have…” I laugh. “It’s nothing. Less than nothing compared to the connection we’ve shared for most of our lives and if you think I’m just going to walk away from that, you’re dead wrong.”
He arches a brow. “Are you threatening me?”
“Shit, I really hate to be such a cliche but no, it’s not a threat, it’s a promise. Like I said, you seem like a nice guy but it’s not going to stop me from taking what belongs to me.”
“It’s like that, huh?” he asks, his gaze flicking to Kady. “Seems like a threat to me. Maybe we should go to the police and tell them you’re harassing my girl.”
No, motherfucker.
Big mistake.
I glance behind him and Kady’s gaze shifts to me as she chews her bottom lip.
Bingo!
Based on how well Kady has hidden herself over the years, I’ve come to the conclusion that she’s hiding from more than just me. I have no idea what happened to her to scare her so badly but she won’t go to the cops. And despite all her objections, I’m not convinced that she really wants me gone either. Sure, she says she’s moved on but that’s a crock of shit. All it takes is one look in her eyes to know that our connection hasn’t dimmed at all in the seven years I’ve been gone. Turning my focus back to Mason, I nod.
“That’s certainly your right.”
He studies me for a second before scoffing. “You’d really go back to prison for her?”
“I would die for her,” I growl, leaning forward like I might lunge across the table as I level a glare at him. I hope he sees just how serious I am. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for Kady and they should both realize that.
“It’s time for you to go,” Kady says, giving me a little shove but I ignore her, locked in a battle of wills with her new boyfriend and I won’t back down.
Not now.
Not ever.
“I’m not just going to roll over and give up.”
I smile and shrug. “Makes no difference to me. She’ll end up back where she belongs in the end either way.”
“Yeah, we’ll just see about that. The two of you may have had something real years ago but I’ve been the one here, taking care of her every need, not you.” His shot hits its mark and he smirks as I slam my fist on the table and shoot up. He stands also and we go toe-to-toe, ready to throw down as a hush falls over the crowd and every eye in the room turns to stare at us.
“It’s time for you to go, Noah,” Kady threatens under her breath and I continue staring at Mason for a second before nodding and turning back to her. Before she can stop me, I reach out and take her hand in mine. Her eyes widen and she sucks in a breath as our eyes meet.
Fucking victory, motherfucker.
“I’ll be seeing you, baby.”
A giant man dressed all in black, who can only be security, starts working his way through the dining room so I release her and hold my hands up as I back away from the table.
“Y’all enjoy your dinner,” I call before winking at my girl. The surprise on her gorgeous face melts away to reveal her glare and I flash her a wide grin.
Shit.
This is gonna be fun.
Chapter Seven
Kady
Noah fucking LeBlanc.
God.
I could kill that son of a bitch right now. Maybe that would finally wipe that smug ass smirk off his stupid face. Actually, no it wouldn’t. He loves me angry so it would only egg him on. Which just pisses me off even more.
Screw him.
Ever since he showed back up in my life - I keep asking myself the same thing: who the hell does he think he is? And just when I think we’ve reached the limit of how crazy he’ll get, he develops a new layer of insane and surprises me. Clenching my fists in my lap, I grit my teeth and try to take a deep breath as I stare out the window of Mason’s car, imagining several different ways I could kill him. I mean, showing up at my house is one thing but to follow me to dinner with my boyfriend and then crash it… the man has lost his ever-lovin’ mind! Not to mention that no matter how much I tell him to leave me alone, he just keeps showing up and ruining everything I’ve built in the void he left in my life. Allowing him back into my world is playing with fire and I’m not the only one that could get burned this time.
Mason has been silent since we left the restaurant and I glance over at him, wincing at his white knuckled grip on the steering wheel. God, what is he thinking right now? I wouldn’t have blamed him if he stood up and decked Noah but he surprised me by simply standing up to him and he looked so damn confident doing it. But I know him well enough to know it’s eating away at him.
“Mason?”
He spares a glance in my direction before turning back to the road in front of him. “Is he why you won’t move in with me?”
“No,” I whisper, shaking my head as I drop my gaze to my lap. Over the past few months, Mason has been trying to convince me to take our relationship to the next level but I’ve refused. It’s not because of Noah or because I don’t want to live with Mason but there’s so much about my life that he doesn’t know, things that could put him in danger, and I’m not ready to tell him all of that yet. Hell, he and I have never even had sex because of how screwed up I am.