A Talk
1210 Words
[Nick’s POV]
I stand silently, watching as Noel takes a seat on a bench and lets out a long breath. I wasn’t quite sure why she brought me out here, but I felt that it probably had something to do with what she and Anna were discussing.
Was she going to tell me what happened for real now that we were alone? Or was she going to continue to lie to me? But I guess we were both lying to one another since I too was lying to her. Even though I asked what was going on between the two women earlier on, I already knew because I could hear Anna’s thoughts loud and clear. However, Noel didn’t know that.
“Tell me,” the woman in question finally says, snapping me out of my head.
“Tell you what, angel?” I ask, smirking. “Whatever it is you want to know, I’ll say it truthfully.”
Nodding, Noel considers what I’ve said as her gaze travels across my face looking for some sign that I’m lying.
“What’s your relationship with Anna?”
For a moment, I don’t speak as her question settles over me. I have to admit, it isn’t what I was expecting, but I guess she would be curious about that since Anna tried to cause trouble.
“What do you think our relationship is?” I ask instead.
“Me?” She squeaks, eyes widening. “Why would it matter what I think?”
“Because your opinion and thoughts are most important.”
At my words, her face falls ever so slightly. I can’t help but wonder if I’ve said something wrong.
“Don’t do that,” she says quietly, her lips twitching into a frown. “Please.”
“Don’t do what?”
Never in my life have I ever found myself wishing that I could hear the thoughts of someone, but now, I truly wished I could hear Noel’s so I knew just what ridiculous things she was coming up with.
“Don’t put my needs above your own.”
Remaining silent, I consider what she is saying and realize that what Anna said to her must have triggered her more than I thought. But wasn’t this a good thing? Didn’t it mean that she cared about me to some extent?
“Are you caring about me, Angel?” I ask, unable to stop myself from picking on her a bit. “Does that mean that you’ve already fallen for me?”
“N-no!” She gasps much too strongly. “It isn’t that. It’s just…”
“I know, I know,” I sigh, my disappointment flaring. “I was just joking, but I guess that it wasn’t the best idea.”
“Nick,” Noel sighs, her gaze narrowing. “Are you trying to avoid my question?”
“No,” I immediately respond. “I’m not trying to avoid it. I’m more or less feeling you out.”
“Feeling me out,” she repeats, furrowing her brows. “Why would you do that?”
“Why?” I chuckle. “Because I’m wondering if you’re asking me that question because you’re jealous or if you’re thinking of backing out of our marriage.”
“I’m not.” She assures me. “I’m just genuinely curious. You’ve been gone for all these years, and it wouldn’t be too farfetched for you to have had a relationship here or there.”
“I haven’t.”
It wasn’t a lie. I didn’t have any serious relationships with anyone, but that didn’t mean that I didn’t have a few physical encounters with women. However, my angel didn’t need to know that, not when she was still guarded when it came to me.
“So you never dated Anna?” She pushes, her voice filled with relief. “You never slept with her?”
“I…”
“Actually,” Noel says quickly, cutting me off before I can answer. “You don’t have to tell me that. I know that I’m prying, and I shouldn’t be doing that.”
“Noel,” I sigh, reaching out and grabbing her hand as I see her trying to retract from the conversation when we were finally being a little open. “Please, don’t do that.”
“Do what?” She asks in confusion. “I don’t understand.”
“Don’t try to take a step forward and then backtrack.”
I was certain that she was acting like this because of her getting hurt and betrayed by my brother and treated like s**t by her family, but I didn’t want her to lump me in with them. I wanted her to trust me and confide in me completely. And one day, I could only hope that she would accept me.
“I told you, you can ask me whatever you want, and I’ll answer it truthfully. No matter what it is, I’ll answer it. I’ll tell you whatever you want, but I only ask that in return you don’t try to block me out. Remember, from this moment onwards we are partners, and as such we need to work with each other instead of against each other.”
Growing quiet, I wait while she takes in what I have said, and when a look of pity flashes in her eyes, I once again wish I could hear what she was thinking.
“What?” I ask, deciding to test my luck. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Because I feel bad for taking advantage of your kindness.” She says, her gaze dropping to our hands that are still clasped. “I agreed to marry you for my own reasons while knowing that you also wanted something in return, but even now, I’m not sure if I can give you a baby. Doesn’t that make me a bad person?”
“Never,” I respond. “And you aren’t taking advantage. I have my own selfish reasons for agreeing to this without getting a verbal agreement that we would have a child, so please, get that ridiculous notion out of your head.”
“Selfish reasons,” she repeats, raising a brow. “And what are those?”
“Those,” I say, giving a rueful smile. “Are for me to know and you to find out.”
As I speak, I pull Noel toward me and ruffle her hair, earning myself an adorable growl.
“Now,” I announce, stepping back and watching her work to fix her hair. “If that was all that you wanted, we should head out. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow, so you’re going to need some rest.”
“What’s happening tomorrow?” She asks in confusion. “What else do you have planned?”
“Visiting your pack.” I respond, pulling our marriage certificate out of my back pocket. “We have to present this to the pack lawyer, no?”
“How?” She gasps. “We just signed the paperwork, so how?”
“My people work fast.” I chuckle. “Especially when something important is on the line.”
- Writer
