3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Noelle

Completely caught off guard, with no warning, I'm still shaking from the emotions rushing through my body at seeing Cole for the first time in six years. His smile alone could melt an ice queen, not to mention the sparkle in his eyes that almost had my knees buckle from under me.

It should be illegal for a man to be that handsome. My cheeks flush as I remember how my eyes roamed over his six-foot frame, broad shoulders covered in a red flannel that fit him like a glove. How is it that he can affect me this way?

I fall onto my bed, rub my face, and growl. "I'm going to kill Mel! I'm her best friend. I deserved a warning that he would be here!"

I throw a pillow over my head and scream. Frustration vibrates in every inch of my being.

I know why she didn't mention it, but I'm still not happy about it. You see, Cole has been an off-limits topic since Mel and Mike's wedding.

Cole and I introduced Mel and Mike, knowing they would hit it off. We were like four peas in a pod, and it wasn't a surprise when they got engaged. Me being the maid of honor and Cole being the best man was expected. Except by then, Cole and I had broken up.

I grab my phone and open the door to listen for any noises indicating that Cole is inside. I hear a thud outside the kitchen and head to the window to find him chopping more wood.

I peek through the window. He lifts his arms over his head and brings the ax down. I can hear the crack of wood just as it flies off the base. Cole bends over to pick up the stray piece, putting him in direct sight of the window.

My breath catches as his gaze meets mine, and my face flushes…again. I freeze, feeling caught red-handed. I rip my gaze from his and whip my body around heading to the hallway.

I pull up Mel's contact and hit call. I hear the first ring just as the front door closes with a thud and I hear boots stomping on the floor.

"Hey. Are you settled in yet?" Mel asks, sounding all innocent.

I'm gonna wring her neck.

"I'll call you right back," I snap and hang up.

My heart is pounding and my hands are sweaty as I head to the living room. I'm not looking up, and I find myself bumping into a hard chest.

"Woah, Bug." Heat radiates where Cole's hands are on my arms, steadying me. "Are you okay?"

I lift my eyes to his and glare at him. "Peachy. Just peachy."

The corner of his lips lift and his eyes sparkle with humor, but he drops his hands from my arms and steps out of my way.

I squeeze my body as close to the wall as possible to ensure no accidental contact. But no matter how close to the wall I scooch, I can't get away from the woodsy scent that is purely Cole. I breathe him in involuntarily and then let out a muffled groan, annoyed with my lack of self control.

I reach my coat, shove my feet into my boots, all the while listening to the man driving me crazy move around in the kitchen.

How is it that he's so calm and collected , and I'm a mess?

I open Mel's contact information and call her again. She answers just as I slam the door.

"Well I guess it's safe to say that you're not happy about finding Cole at the cabin?"

"What would make you think that?" I growl between clenched teeth.

"First, I don't think I've ever heard you slam a door," she says calmly. "Not even when you found out Dean was cheating on you."

I take a deep breath and slowly blow it out, trying to get ahold of my emotions, which are running rampant. I knew I would see Cole again when I came back to New York. I just thought I'd have time to get used to the idea first…I didn't expect to have to rip the Band-Aid off immediately.

I run a hand through my hair and sigh.

"Noe, just give him a chance to explain—"

"Explain why he was a complete and utter dolt at your wedding? It was pretty clear that he didn't want anything more to do with me."

Suddenly, I'm pulled back to Mel and Mike's wedding rehearsal.

My stomach was in knots, knowing I was going to see Cole for the first time in years. My heart was racing, and I regretted bringing Dean with me.

When I met Dean, everything was upside down. Gran's death had devastated me in a way I didn't believe possible. It didn't matter that I knew she was dying for years; when she died, I fell apart. Dean was there to pick up the pieces, and I let him.

I wasn't in love with him. I wasn't even sure I liked him, but it was easier to have him around than feel all the emotions I had stuffed repeatedly over the previous four years.

My heart slams against my chest, and my mouth goes dry when my eyes find Cole the moment I walk in. When he turns his gaze to me, his lips immediately split into a wide smile. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding, and feel my lips curve up in return.

He just started walking toward me when I feel a hand slide across my back and a kiss lands on my cheek. Cole stops dead in his tracks. The intensity in his eyes turns to a deep freeze, sending chills throughout my body.

"Noelle, are you listening to me?" Mel's voice brings me back to the present, and I shiver as a chill hits me. This time, it's from the cold air.

"Of course!" I bristle, unwilling to admit I didn't hear a word she just said.

"Then what did I say?" I can hear laughter in her voice.

I sigh, rubbing my hand up and down my face while she laughs out loud.

"Look, I know Cole being there is a shock—"

"That's putting it mildly," I mumble.

"BUT—" Melanie interrupts. "He begged us to give him a bit of time with you. He's regretted how things went down at the wedding forever."

"Sure he did," I grumble, pacing back and forth from the house to Belle.

"He did! Truly. I tried to tell you, but you didn't want to discuss it. So I stopped bringing it up." Melanie's voice is firm. "He had a lot going on at the time and wasn't in the—"

"I swear if you tell me he wasn't in the best frame of mind at your wedding, I will hang up on you."

"Okay, I won't say that then," she quips.

I take a deep breath and lean against Belle, feeling deflated. What if she's telling me the truth, and he did regret it?

No! He was the one who wouldn't talk to me at the wedding, who told me to move on. He was very clear about that. So I did.

"Is Mike really covering for one of the other firefighters?" Skepticism laces my tone, and I try to rub the tension from my neck. Cole said it was true, but I don't know what to believe.

"Yes. Cross my heart and hope to die. Stick a needle in my eye." I giggle at her using the expression we used as kids. "We were only going to leave you alone with Cole for a few hours max before heading to the cabin, but then Brian's wife went into labor."

A gust of winter air blows in my face, and I take a deep breath hoping the cool air will soothe my nerves but all it does is make me shiver.

"Don't be too mad at me, Noe." Mel's voice is pleading. "Mike and I just wanted to help our best friends. Navigating between you and Cole has been difficult for us. We love you both so much."

I shake my head not having any words of comfort to offer her at the moment. Emotions I stuffed away years ago are swirling inside like a cyclone and I don't know how to sort through them. Heck, I'm having a hard time even identifying them.

"Noelle?" Melanie's voice holds a tinge of worry.

"I'll be okay." I try my best to convince her. And me. "I'm just upset right now."

"I know," she whispers. "You've just been unhappy for so long—"

"That's not true!" I snap.

I can hear her sigh through the phone.

She's right, I have been unhappy. So long in fact, I think I forgot what it's like to actually feel joy. Not that I never feel it, but it's not like when…

No, I'm not letting myself go there.

I shake my head and take another deep breath. I remember how my heart lifted when I saw Cole standing in front of me today. It was like the first time he walked toward my tutoring desk back in college. Every cell in my body seemed to come alive and my heart did a little dance.

I shake my head again and let out a snort.

"Noelle?" Melanie says in that soft voice of hers. The voice that comes out whenever she's going to say something that will strike a cord. "After you lost your gran, life seemed to get really tough for you. And then you met Dean, but it was never much easier with him."

My heart clenches, and my stomach drops. Once again, Mel gets to the heart of the matter. She does not pull any punches.

"It's been really hard for me to watch from a distance knowing you were struggling to keep everything together. On more than one occasion I wanted to deck Dean with how he would talk to you." I feel pressure at the back of my eyes. "And so did Mike, but we kept our mouths shut…for you. When you called and told me you were leaving him because he cheated on you I did a jig."

I gasp and my mouth all but falls to the ground.

"Seriously! Mike recorded it."

"What?!" I laugh out loud. "He didn't!"

"Oh, yes he did! And then he laughed at it for hours."

"I need to see that!" A wide smile crosses my face as I imagine Mel doing that silly dance of hers. Another small laugh escapes me.

"My point is Noe, I knew that you wouldn't leave him even though you were miserable. I knew you'd stay. I also knew that your line would be infidelity." I slowly nod my head at her words because she's right. I wouldn't stay with a man who cheated on me. "So when he did, I knew you would be getting out and I was so happy for you!"

My stomach swirls like a volcano at how much I tried to hide, and yet my best friend knew the truth all along. I wasn't hiding from anyone, including myself.

"He did me a huge favor." I whisper. "Oh did I tell you he called me today?"

"He didn't?!" Melanie squeaks.

"Yup. I didn't answer."

"You need to just block his number. You don't owe him anything." Mel's voice gets hard and my chest fills with love, right before another gust of wind blows.

"I'm gonna head back in." I say hugging myself and rubbing my hand up and down my arm. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh hey Noe…"

"Yeah?" I shiver as the cold starts to seep in.

"Tell Cole I said ‘hi'."

I purse my lips and snort out a laugh. "Don't push your luck!"

Melanie's laughter rings in my ears, and a small smile creeps on my lips.

"Just make sure that you and Mike are here tomorrow. I can't guarantee Cole's safety past then. "

"There's the Noelle I know and love," she gushes. "I'm sure he'll be the perfect gentleman."

"Hah!"

I look over at the house and see a curtain fall back into place but I don't miss the hand that was holding it. My heart gives a small jump.

"Be nice," Mel chuckles. "And remember to bake some cookies!"

"I'll do my best, but no promises." I can hear Mel giggle. "On the being nice that is. The cookies are easy."