“Because, I just got you. I don’t want to lose you to him,” he confessed.
I have to admit; I wasn’t expecting him to be so upfront. The boys I’ve been involved with have been just that: boys. Not a one of my ex-boyfriends ever made me feel like I was something they didn’t want to lose or important enough to worry about another guy. Noah, on the other hand, wasn’t a boy. And so, he wasn’t behaving like a boy would, I suppose. He was treating me like a man should treat a woman by being open about how he felt. I guessed I had his mother to thank for that. Maybe his being a mama’s boy wasn’t so bad, after all because he really did behave like a Southern gentleman. I smiled at the comment. I couldn’t help it, it made me feel good.
“If it makes you feel better, you can hold my hand the whole time he’s here.”
Noah’s eyes darted to me three or four times while he tried to keep an eye on the road, too. “What if I keep my arm around you? What are you gonna do then?”
I sighed. “I suppose I’ll manage,” I declared sarcastically which elicited a crooked half-grin from the mama’s boy.
For the next ten minutes or so, we drove in comfortable silence, just enjoying each other’s presence and the sight of the trees whipping past. By the time the truck tires crunched to a halt on the gravel in Aunt Sara’s driveway, Mark was standing beside her on the porch, practically bouncing with excitement. I couldn’t deny that I was excited to see him, too, but I hoped, for Noah’s sake I wasn’t showing it more than was appropriate. I also found myself hoping that Mark would keep a lid on the whole “I’m in love with you” thing.
Noah turned off the truck and the moment I stepped out I was swept up in one of Mark’s famous pick-you-up-and-spin-you-around hugs. When he let me down, he just looked at me for a moment until Noah cleared his throat, catching Mark’s attention. Mark walked over to Noah on the other side of the truck and stuck out his hand. Noah eyed it. For a second, I thought he might not take it, but then he broke out into a huge grin and shook Mark’s hand and then pulled him into a hug.
“I guess they really mean it when they say Southern hospitality, don’t they?” Mark chuckled.
The tightness in Noah’s jaw told me he was still slightly suspicious of Mark, but he wasn’t going to show it, for my sake, I think. It was sweet, really. It was almost as if he didn’t want to make this weird for me, even though, if I was reading his body language right, he was incredibly jealous—something I must concede I was finding to be unbelievably adorable.
“So, you’re the famous Mark Hannon, are ya?” Noah said as he stepped up close beside me.
“Last I checked, I was!” Mark replied with a wink. “And you are?”
“Noah. Noah Tucker.”
“Bull rider extraordinaire,” Aunt Sara added from the steps of the porch.
Taking off his hat, Noah swept it in front of him in a grand bow.
“Ah, well then, how extraordinary to meet you, good sir!” Mark countered with a bit of amusement. He then turned his attention back to me. “Lace, did you see the sunrise? It was almost as beautiful as you are.”
“D’awh, stop it, you!” I cooed. “Yeah, we saw it on the way back from the mountain,” I began just as Noah slipped his hand in mine. Mark’s eyes flickered down to our hands for a minute, and his smile faded, then quickly returned upon him bringing his eyes back up to our faces. A pang of guilt settled in my gut. It was harder for me to see that sadness in his eyes than I had thought it might be, even if it only lasted for a second. Knowing him as well as I did, I could tell that the sincere joy that had been present five seconds before wasn’t there anymore, but he shook it off and continued his façade.
“So, do I get the grand tour or what?” he chirped.
“Yeah, of course!” I beamed. “How long are you gonna be here?”
“Just today and tomorrow; I start filming a movie on Sunday in Atlanta, so I figured I might as well fly in a few days early and come see you. I wanted to make sure I could keep that promise of spending time together this summer. I never want to break a promise to you, ya know. I’ll be filming until August, and that’s when you start your movie, so this was our only shot. Surprise!”
Just then, Jack bounded outside. The moment he laid eyes on Noah, it was all over. “Noah, I was on my way over! Come on! I was practicing my balance yesterday, and I wanna show you what I can do now!”
“Uh, umm, okay, I guess I’m going this way!” Noah said as Jack dragged him away by the arm. “It was nice to meet ya, Mark!” he called, flicking his wrist in a quick wave.
“You, too!” Mark shouted back. “Alright, I guess this means you can show me around now!” he grinned.
“I’m just going to be in the kitchen making my famous lasagna,” Aunt Sara spouted our way. “If you two need anything, just give me a shout. Lunch should be ready around noon.”
I gave her a quick nod before Mark and I proceeded into the house. I took him through the downstairs, which was pretty self-explanatory, then we went upstairs and after I had shown him Aunt Sara’s, Jack’s, and my bedrooms, I took him to the guest room that he’d be sleeping in which he’d actually already seen since his bags were sitting just inside the door. He took a seat on the bed and patted the spot next to him, so I sat down. He leaned into me and bumped his shoulder to mine playfully.
“Soooo, what’s new? We haven’t really had much of a chance to have a good chat since you got here.”
I could tell he was hinting at the new relationship between Noah and me, but I skirted the subject as best I could in my reply.
“Not much, really. I’ve been riding a lot. It was really difficult to do at first because it made me think of Mom, but I’m glad I managed to get back on a horse. It’s nice now, relaxing. Makes me feel closer to her.”
“I’m glad you get to do what you love,” he said, smiling and gazing at me in an expectant manner.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You aren’t going to tell me about Noah?”
“What about him?”
“Oh, come on, Lace. He grabbed your hand and Sara told me you guys spent the night at the top of a mountain together. I’m not a moron.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
“I know you didn’t. I’m just saying that I can tell something’s going on, so tell me about it.”
“We’re together,” I said quickly. Maybe he expected me to lie or hoped that what he saw was nothing but a friendly hand squeeze; whatever he was expecting, it wasn’t that.
“That happened fast.”
“Yeah, it did. In the last few days, actually. If it helps, we hated each other at first.”
“Honestly, that makes me feel a little worse. But as long as he makes you happy, beautiful. I don’t want to make this visit awkward for you…or for Noah.”
“I think it already kind of is,” I chuckled. “You might not have noticed, but Noah’s insanely jealous of you. You should’ve seen the face he made when you called and said you were here. Honestly, I think he feels intimidated. He thinks he’s going to lose me to you since we’ve known each other for so long and we’re already so close.”
“Well, I’m not planning on trying to insert myself where I don’t belong,” he said simply. “As much as I wish that were me, like I said, I just want you to be happy. You are happy, aren’t you?”
“Yeah, I am.”
He studied my face for a few seconds and then clapped his hands against his thighs. “Well, then. I guess that’s that! Why did Jack just drag him away like that?”
“When Aunt Sara said that Noah was a ‘bull rider extraordinaire,’ she meant it. He’s like, one of the best in the biz, apparently, so Sara hired him to give Jack lessons.”
“How the hell is he going to teach Jack how to ride a bull when you don’t own any bulls?”
“I don’t have the slightest idea, so don’t ask me. So far, it’s all been a bunch of mundane little exercises and tests that are supposed to teach him skills like balance
and control and stuff.”
“Alright, fair enough.” His gaze caught mine for a quick moment and he shifted his weight a little. I could tell he still had something on his mind.
“Spit it out,” I instructed.
“What?” he tried to look clueless, but I knew better.
“I know you have something else you want to say.”
He shook his head and smiled. “You can read me as well as I can read you,” he stated. “I just… Can you tell me your real story? Like, how you guys got involved?”
The earnest look in his eyes was more than I had ever been able to say no to. And as well as Mark could read me, I knew it would be best not to lie or even withhold part of the story.
“Well, Potter—the dog, in case you haven’t met him yet—swallowed something less than normal and had to go to the vet the day my flight got in. So, Aunt Sara sent Noah to pick me up at the airport. I have to say, my first impression was less than stellar. I thought he was an annoying, pompous ass at first. He’s not always particularly delicate, and his bluntness kind of pissed me off initially. He made a few cracks about the fact that I was wearing heels and makeup to go to a ranch, and with my frame of mind when I arrived, I was pretty much a bitch to him in return.
“The first week or so I was here, I refused to get on a horse. I would barely go near them, much less ride because it made me think of Mom. Because of that, Noah jumped to the conclusion that I was a spoiled city girl, which he isn’t particularly fond of. And since I wasn’t giving him the chance to prove my theory that he was just a stubborn hick, I wasn’t particularly fond of him, either. There were a few moments here and there where I saw a different side of him, but I was a little too stubborn to admit I might have been wrong and done the same thing he did, jumped to conclusions.
“Then, last week, Jack got stuck in a tree and was surrounded by a pack of coyotes; I jumped on a horse to scare them away, and Noah immediately followed to help. It was kind of intense. Made me see that there was more to Noah than I had given him credit for. I apologized for how I’d been behaving and treating him. He swore that he was the one who should be apologizing, and ever since then, I think we just saw each other in a different light. We started talking more and more after that. It didn’t take too long to clear the air. Next thing I know there’s this chemistry, he kissed me, and as they say, the rest is history.”
Mark just sat there for a long moment, as though he were processing the story. Then, with a long, deep sigh, he broke the silence. “Wow. Sounds kind of intense.”
“Yeah, I guess when I think about it, it kind of was.”
Mark took my hand in his and offered me a soft, half-hearted smile. “I told you before, I’m not going to get in the way. Besides, I’ve always heard it said that relationships formed in times of crisis can be pretty formidable, and we all know how that love hate thing can go,” he said with a wink. “But just know that I’m still here if things ever go awry. I meant it when I said my feelings for you aren’t just going to go away. If it came down to it and I thought he wasn’t good to you or for you, I’d be willing to fight for you, Lace. I would fight for you. But unless Noah shows me that he isn’t treating you right, I’m not going to put all of that on you. As long as you’re happy, I’m happy.”
That’s when I realized that, even though he’s a couple of years younger, Mark is just as much of a man as Noah. He’s the kind of person who is mature enough to step back from a situation and see it rationally. His words and his actions not only made me realize he was such a strong man, but also showed me just how much he really loves me. They say that loving someone means you want them to be happy no matter the cost, and he had just told me that he wanted me to be with Noah if it made me happy, even if it shattered his own heart. Hearing those words come out of him simultaneously made my heart happy and crushed it.
“You can’t possibly know how amazing you are, Mark Hannon. You have a heart of gold; you know that, right?”
He smiled that dazzling, better-than-Hemsworth smile of his. “Nah, I wouldn’t say that. I’m just looking out for my best friend.” He stood up, pulling me up with him. “Now, I want to meet these life-saving horses you speak of.”
Relieved that he wanted to change the subject, I gratefully agreed and pulled on his arm as I led him out of the room. “Come on, I’ll take you to the barn. We can continue our tour there.”
We walked into the stables and approached the horse’s stalls. “Hey, Lisa! How’s it going, girl?” I greeted the filly as I ambled up. I began to stroke her neck and continue my conversation with her as I usually had, like she was a person.
“Are you really talking to a horse?” Mark asked, laughing lightly. I smiled over at him, feeling a little less awful about the whole situation with me and Noah. One of the things that had drawn me to Noah was the fact that he talks to horses, too. And while I know Mark didn’t mean anything disrespectful by his question, the fact still remained that he didn’t understand horses the way Noah did, the way I did. Because of that, it meant Mark didn’t understand a part of me. The moment reassured me that I was doing what made me happy and I was with someone who understood me in a way many people never had.
For some odd reason, I could suddenly almost hear Emily’s sassy tone in my head saying, “Girl, do your thang!” in her best impersonation of Rosie Perez. Then, it dawned on me that I hadn’t actually told her about all of this yet. The last time I had talked to her was the day before the whole saving Jack from coyotes situation had happened. One of the great things about my relationship with Emily is that we can spend every waking second together or not talk for a week and things will always be the same between us. I made a mental note to call her so I could get her caught up on the latest happenings. My thoughts jumped back to Mark and his questions, so I gave him “the look.”
“Yes, I’m talking to a horse; got a problem with that?”
He eyed me like he was just seeing me for the first time and threw his hands up as though he were going to back off. “No. No problem. I guess I just think it’s a little odd, that’s all.”
“You used to talk to your dog all the time. How is talking to a horse any different?”
He shook his head. “Well, my dog was there all day, every day. He was a regular part of my life. These horses, on the other hand, I mean… You’ve only been here a few weeks. They’re just horses.”
“They may be ‘just horses,’ but they’ve been here all day, every day for me. And they’re better listeners than dogs. Dogs just run off and leave you talking to yourself when a car or cat comes along,” I joked.
“Alright, fair enough. So, can we ride them?”
“These two, sure,” I said, pointing to Greg and Stella. “But Rosie just gave birth to little Lisa there like a week and a half ago, so obviously neither of them can be ridden yet.”
He smiled. “Lisa, huh? That your idea?”
“Nope. Jack’s, actually. But suffice it to say, I was pretty happy he suggested it.”
“I don’t blame you; I would be, too.” He paused for a brief moment before his eyes caught mine. “How are you holding up? I know I’ve asked on the phone, but now I can see for myself when you answer.”
I shuffled my feet a little. “Better.”
“Better? Is that all you’re gonna give me? Your best friend of eleven years and all I get to an emotional question is a single word answer?” he teased.
“Actually, Em’s my best friend, but you’ll do in a pinch, I guess.” I winked before continuing. “I guess I just don’t know what to say. It’s still not easy. I still cry sometimes. But things have gotten easier over the last couple of weeks. But what can I expect? I lost my parents. It’s not like I’m going to ever fully get over it. Riding helps.”
“Well, then, I say we saddle up!”
“Aww, you guys are gonna ride?” We both turned to the voice behind us and saw Noah and Jackson walking toward us. “We wanted to ride,” Jackson pouted.
“Well, it’s n
ot like we can’t still ride, Bud. Let’s just go get Simon and Ella,” Noah suggested.
“Or, we could double up,” Mark suggested. “Me and Lace can take one and you and Jack can ride the other.”
Noah’s jaw tightened again, so hard I was shocked he didn’t crack something. But he held it together and put on a strained smile. “No, that’s alright. Simon’s probably itching to stretch his legs; he hasn’t been ridden in a couple of days.” He looked at me for what I assumed was confirmation, so I jumped right on that bandwagon.
“Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Greg’s probably not ready to be doubled up on, anyway,” I offered.
“We’ll head over to get Simon and Ella. Meet us there?” Noah asked.
“Yeah, sounds good,” I replied. Noah stepped forward, cupped his hands around my face, and kissed me—gently, but with enough passion to get the point I was certain he was trying to make across. Jack let out a snicker. When Noah was done turning my legs to jelly, he turned and started to walk away, then paused and motioned for Jack to follow him. Jack glanced back and forth between us, then snickered again and trotted away after Noah.
As we watched their retreat, I could feel Mark glaring at me with a sideways stare.
“What?” I questioned, looking at him.
“What the hell was that all about?”
“What, the kiss?”
“Uhh. Yeah.”
“I guess he just wanted to kiss me. Don’t read into it so much.” I knew well and good it was more than that, but I didn’t really want to get into the underlying reasons.
“I take it you missed the look he gave me after he kissed you? Before he walked away?”
“What look?”
“He gave me a ‘she is definitely mine and don’t you forget it’ kind of look. I just feel like it was pretty passive-aggressive, that’s all I’m saying.”
I rolled my eyes and headed over to grab the saddles. “Okay, maybe it was a little. But try putting yourself in his shoes. Imagine how you’d feel. Say you just met this girl,” I started, handing him Stella’s saddle. “Things were a little uneasy at first, then something happens and you start to click and it all seems to start falling into place. But right as that happens, in walks her best friend of eleven years-”
Dirty SEAL (A Navy SEAL Romance) (The Maxwell Family) Page 110