Fucking Noah.
“If it’s all the same to you, just know that it was Noah’s idea!” I quickly blurt out, knowing damn well that I’m snitching on his ass. Bite me, Noah!
Christina bursts out laughing then and I almost gape at her, as her serious, maybe almost murderous, expression dissolves into a blissful ‘I-just-caught-you-red-handed-and-you-look-like-you-just-crapped-your-pants’ look.
Damn it.
“Oh you should have seen the look on your face! Still scared to get into trouble, huh?” She questions, still laughing.
I sigh. Now you see where Noah gets his lovely humor from.
I start walking towards her, my feet clad in soft socks that I stole from Noah’s closet as well as his grey sweatpants and a hoodie with the words ‘blue fairy’ printed on the back.
Really Noah?
I’m surprised it doesn’t have sequins and glitters on it, but it does smell like him. Like a mix between an expensive cologne and him, all male and seductive. Yeah, Noah had the whole seduction of the female senses down to a science. Too bad he was a loon.
“Yeah seems like trouble follows me no matter what I do or where I go.” I mumble under my breath, but she hears me and my miserable, self-pity mumbling.
“You have always been a fiery, sassy girl Astraea, but at the same time, you’re a perfect magnet for trouble.” She says with a small smile on her face.
“Not helping.” I grumble, watching her. “But I am sorry Christina. I meant to come visit you the other week but Noah told me that you wouldn’t be home.” I say, feeling guilty for some reason.
I did want to visit her in all honesty. Somehow, in all the craziness that is Westbrook Blues and the estates, Noah’s mother maintained an authentic gentleness about her that I wondered how it could survive the vindictive nature of the women that were her neighbors.
Sans Emmett’s mother of course. A mother who failed her son in the end. . . God I need to hunt Emmett down.
“So, blame Noah.” I finish, nailing the lying shithead to the cross.
“That boy is dense. I swear he is trying to keep me out of his life.” Christina complains as she moves from one station of her large kitchen to another, grabbing mugs and the makings of something that I can’t really see from where I’m standing, but the scent is mouthwatering.
“That’s not true.” I try to pacify.
It’s so totally true.
“I’m not a fool, Astraea” She snorts. “Which child in this entire world, puts in a security door, complete with a fancy clearance password, installed on his side of the house when his mother is out of town?” She demands and I remain mute thinking of how surprisingly easy it was for me to go to his room and get his clothes. Maybe that’s because I was already in the system. How? I have no idea.
“Uh, a spoiled brat?” I supply, left eyebrow raised.
“You’re damn right Astraea. That child is spoiled but for the life of me, I can’t seem to get over his big eyes and the way he pacifies me with his charming smirk when I’m angry.” She groans and sighs at the same time.
Oh to be Noah’s parent. Joy!
I’m not surprised at her wariness though. Noah and Christina have always been close, with Noah being overprotective of Christina since they lost Craig and his deadbeat father left them for another woman, leaving Christina in grief and misery to care for their remaining son. Nobody messed with Christina, not that she couldn’t handle anything and anyone by herself, it’s just that her son was a grade A alpha asshole when it came to his mother. And me.
But then there are certain questionable, rough elements of Noah’s life that he tries to keep away from his mother.
Mainly? His manwhoring ways and his secrets.
Secrets that if you look in his joyful, twinkling eyes a little closer, you can just about make out the deep swirling of tortured darkness in his gorgeous eyes that can melt any female from a mile away.
But whenever I tried to look deeper, he blinked, that smirk firmly back in place, like an armor.
“For God’s sake, who is he trying to hide in there? Or maybe he’s keeping his company away from me.” She questions, with a hand on her hip, watching me, daring me to lie.
“Uh, or maybe he doesn’t want to disturb you when he brings his lady friends home?” I try, cringing as the words leave my mouth but Christina doesn’t buy my bullshit. I can tell that she has had enough of Noah’s shit, I can see it in her eyes.
Well damn.
She snorts. “You have always had that boy’s back, lying for his narrow ass ever since you were little.” She tsks.
“I do know he loves you, though!” I hurry to pacify and she snorts again as she removes a pot from the stove. The stainless steel appliances in this kitchen, although over the top, show signs of daily use. Everything is homey, unlike my house.
“Hell, I know he loves me. Smothers me with hugs and compliments that are designed to disarm a parent when a child wants something.”
Sounds like your son, alright.
“I have no idea how he hasn’t ended up in jail.’
Oh just wait, the day is coming
“I think you need to cut him off.” I say, feeling a shiver going down my spine and feeling eyes on my back. Hmm, seems like we have an audience.
“Yes!” Christina says, watching me with a smile and then she shoots me a knowing wink. I guess she also knows that someone is eavesdropping. “And you know what, I just got an idea.”
“Does it have anything to do with bringing Noah’s designer and branded ass down from his high horse?” I question, doing my best to hold in my laughter.
“Oh yes, I need a new son.” Christina says with a serious tone of voice. She was an award-winning actress after all, she knows what she’s doing.
“That is a wonderful idea!” I gush. “If you get one, can he be my new best friend because I’m in dire need of one right now.” I say.
“Oh goodness, I always knew Noah was a shitty friend, I just didn’t know it had reached these levels of pathetic camaraderie and disloyalty.”
“Me neither.” I say solemnly but inside, I’m cracking the fuck up.
“I’m sorry to hear that, maybe I should just give Hank a chance.” She says, with a blissful smile on her face.
“His name will be Hank?” I question, batting my eyelashes as I glance to the kitchen door and then back to Christina.
“God no. Hank is the man who gives me multiple orgasms . . .” She sighs dreamily.
“Fuck no!” A deep, angry voice interrupts before Christina can finish.
“Who the fuck is Hank and where the hell is this asshole?” Noah steams, marching into the kitchen with fire and ice raging in his eyes.
Noah was a sweet boy but I knew better. That gorgeous exterior hid some angry rage that was barely contained at times. I need some serious one-on-one time with my best friend to get a feel of where he’s at in life because shit, right now this playboy is a ticking time bomb.
I had no idea if it had anything to do with Kim. But who am I kidding, it has everything to do with his palpable attraction to my badass friend who seems to always check Noah at every turn.
He marches over to his mother then, with steam and vigor. Completely pissed off. I guess it’s true what they say about eavesdropping. . .
“Noah!” Christina breathes, blinking her eyes as if she’s flustered and surprised to see him. Damn, she’s good. “I wasn’t aware that you were around.” Christina says without missing a beat, watching her son approach with a sweet ‘I-wasn’t-shitting-all-over-your-name' kind of smile.
I wonder if Christina was the mean girl in high school. You know, the one I saw myself being once upon a time with the influence of my good friend, Brittney. Good times, good times.
“I was just telling Astraea here that she needs a man who can make her see stars and has her feeling good. Much like. . .”
“I swear if you fucking say his name again!” Noah says, tossing me a look and then stares his mo
ther down.
At this point, I’m almost dying with laughter, but I bite my lip, holding it in.
“Language, Noah. You sound like you have a garbage can in your mouth.” Christina chides, moving past Noah flawlessly as she grabs a couple of mugs she had placed on the counter top.
“Hot chocolate Astraea? I made it just how you like it.” Christina says as she shoots me a knowing wink.
Noah is still fuming, with a shocked expression on his face. Probably due to his mother’s aloofness about the whole Hank thing and how he makes her feel.
I’m laughing so hard inside, I swear.
“Yes please. I missed your hot chocolate.” I say as I quickly walk over to her and accept the steamy, large mug of heaven.
“But you never make hot chocolate for me anymore.” Noah whines, now pouting.
Shit, I wish I could record this and upload it on TikTok for the whole world to see the great, playboy, joker Noah Montreal and his vulnerable, Mama’s boy side.
But something tells me he will only love all the attention. Guess I’ll have to settle on torturing him.
“Oh I’m sorry, did you lose your mother in the large store, dear?” Christina gushes mockingly, with a baby pout of her own to rival the one Noah has. “Because if my son ever bothered to stay at home and actually talk to his mother, then I wouldn’t feel like it’s Christmas morning just because I’m making hot chocolate for someone else.”
Damn.
Shots. Fired.
Noah opens his mouth and closes it like a fish out of water. Christina raises her eyebrow, waiting for him to say something but he doesn’t so she flips her hair like the superstar that she is, making sure that her hair hits Noah in the face and turns to look at me.
“How is it, my love?” She questions with a sweet smile.
Awe.
I think I’m in awe of this woman.
I take another sip and send her my happiest ‘I adore you and could-kiss-the-ground-you-walk-on-because-you’re-giving-him-hell’ smile.
“It’s so good, Christina.” I groan. “I love it, it’s exactly like how you used to make it. Right temperature, little marshmallows and everything.”
I chance a look at Noah knowing that he’s growing jealous as all hell right now. The guy is a sucker for marshmallows.
Time to switch it up a note.
“You know, I think your biological clock hasn’t stopped yet. Do you think you and Hank could. . .”
“For fuck’s sake, Baby Blue!” Noah’s voice booms.
Stretched you tight, didn’t I? Pure joy!
“She is my mother and my mother alone. She doesn’t need any more children!” Noah fumes as he cuts me off. His voice loud enough to scare the rabbits that Christina keeps in the backyard.
Christina and I look at each other, then at Noah as silence stretches in the kitchen for a hot, inflated second. Damn, he’s really worked up about this. His handsome face is red and everything! Noah could be hellish, I guess that’s why they were friends with Ace, Em and George.
Christina then looks back at me and we simultaneously burst out laughing, tears literally leak out of Christina’s eyes as she doubles over laughing, trying to hold on to the kitchen counter before she falls to the floor with loud, barely contained laughter.
I watch in pure joy as Noah’s jaw drops to the floor, disbelief flashing in his eyes.
“Got you! Tip-toeing around the house like a little gossiping mouse.” Christina says.
“It’s not funny, Mom!” Noah groans, his palms rubbing his face, exasperation written all over his face.
“You’re a shameless gossip, Noah. Mind your damn business.” I say, shooting him a look and he sighs, walking over to his mother.
“That was a good one.” He says to her with a smile, then presses a kiss to the crown of her head. “Hey Mom.”
“Don’t hey me. Where have you been?” Christina questions, looking up at her son, trying to be stern but losing the battle dismally.
“Uh.” He glances at me briefly, but I can’t for the life of me read the message in his eyes. “I was taking care of business. But I’m back now, can I have some of that?”
Christina raises an eyebrow, not at all moved.
“Okay, I was with the boys.” He says, raising his hands up in surrender.
“Getting ready to tell Astraea the truth or conspiring to keep more secrets?” She demands. I look up at Noah then, watching his body language, watching the way he tenses, then looks at me with something akin to guilt but also. . .pain.
“It’s not like that.” He says.
“What is it like then?” I question, my mug of hot chocolate all but forgotten on the counter-top.
“Baby Blue.” He starts but I cut him off.
“I can’t handle anymore lies, Noah.” I sigh, feeling tired all of a sudden. I feel drained right now and I guess he can see that. “Imagine realizing after seventeen years of your life that the entire thing was a lie? Imagine that?”
“I don’t have to, though.” He murmurs, walking over to me. Then without a word, he wraps me in his arms for a tight hug.
“You’re alright. It’s going to be fine, Baby Blue.” He says, whispering in my ear.
“It’s not fine right now though!” I try to scream and push him away but he just holds me tighter until the scream is muffled by his hard chest.
“We’re not lying to you.” He whispers.
“Yeah, just trying to protect me?” I mock, rolling my eyes and he pulls back and chucks my chin with a small smile on his face.
“Trying to gather as many facts as we can and set a new course of action in place.”
“Does this new course of action involve telling me the truth? Because it sure seemed like you didn’t mind having Denise have the honors on Friday.” I seethe, taking a step back and folding my arms.
“God, Denise King is a class-act, Baby Blue. You know this. Neither one of us saw it coming, I mean, one moment we were talking about asshole Richard with no balls to stand up for you and then the next thing, you asked what we were all thinking.”
If Denise ‘got rid’ of my brother.
“So it just kind of happened.” He explains, sincerity written all over his eyes.
“Why did you just stand there, then?” I question, my chest twisting, needing answers that have been plaguing me, driving me to drink for the first time in my life.
“You think we didn’t want to stop her? We did, Baby Blue but I don’t know what you demanded from King but as soon as you two locked gazes, I knew he was going to let his mother talk so you can get the answers you wanted.” Noah explains, now pacing.
Christina watches him and I know my jaw is on the floor.
“Besides that, there was another reason why we let Denise talk. We wanted to see her angle, to get a feel of where she would go with the story and if she was going to lie because for a moment there, it sounded like she was responsible for George’s death.”
Christina snorts then. “That woman is too clean and too self-righteous to ever get her hands dirty in that way.”
But she got rid of my sister though. . .
“Well, did she?” I question, after swallowing a ball of nervous tension down my throat. Please tell me she lied about everything. “Did she tell the truth?”
Noah and Christina look at each other and then back at me.
“Lets’ sit down over there, dear.” Christina says, as she grows serious, the laughter and jokes from just seconds ago fading with the growing tension in me.
I can’t help but feel like she was stalling the conversation before and she needed me to lighten up. Her humor and Noah’s interference also seems like. . .
“You called him, didn’t you?” I question Christina who doesn’t blink, flinch or bother to lie about it.
“Yes, while you were in the shower.” She says with a warm smile and I follow her, feeling dazed as we walk over to the kitchen nook.
“Yeah Baby Blue, you needed a laugh for what�
�s about to come.” Noah says with a small, cautious smile on his face. “By the way, if you need my hair stylist’s number, just let me know.” He says, scanning my now short, still wet, I have no idea what it looks like now since I avoided the mirrors again in that bathroom—hair.
“Whatever. Tell me the truth right now.” I question as soon as my butt meets the soft cushion of the bench. I look between both of them. Christina who is seated across from me and Noah who chooses to remain standing.
I can feel the restless energy from him and that alone makes me all sorts of nervous. Am I ready for this?
“Amanda and Denise have a long history between them.” Christina starts after she takes a sip of her own hot chocolate. Grimaces then, chances a look at me.
I try my best not to freeze as soon as the words come out of her mouth, but I can’t help the cold shiver that moves through my body as my worst nightmare comes to life.
“I figured as much.” I say cautiously, wondering where this is going. “I mean, the way she looked at my mother, the way she spoke, I knew there was history there but in what world?” I question Christina who takes a silver flask from out of nowhere—just like her son—and pours two dashes of scotch in her hot chocolate.
Yeah, she’s that kind of woman.
“Do you want some? This is about to be heavy.” She offers the silver flask with her initials on it my way.
Rich people do the strangest things.
“Uh, I’m underage.” I start cautiously but she snorts and Noah laughs.
“You sure didn’t look it on Friday night.” He says, and then he walks over to the fridge and starts taking out food items to make a sandwich. “Looking like you’ve been partying all your life. Hell, you had a better time than the rest of us.”
Yeah, before two boys that mean the world to me decided to deck the loving lights out of each other.
“You are underage but the way the adults around here have dragged you through some nasty situations, completely neglected you when you needed them the most—myself included.” She stops then, as if she’s just been choked up by her own words and I shut my eyes. “Because God knows I made it all about me and couldn’t get out of my own funk to check on you or be there for you. You must hate me.”
Vicious Hate (Westbrook Blues Book 2) Page 15