Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

NOAH

B randon and I had stayed far away from any stores on Black Friday. Gemma had gone on some epic shopping trip with her girls, but I never ventured anywhere near the sales. No discount was good enough to brace those crowds and risk getting swarmed by fans. Besides, I didn’t need much.

I was rarely ever at my house in California, and I had long-term condo suites in hotels in Tennessee and New York. When I was on the road, I preferred to travel light. The hotel suites were already furnished and my house had come with the basics. One of those fancy decorator people had come in to take care of making it look homey, so I didn’t have much use for more stuff anyway.

Most of my clothes and accessories had been gifted to me by companies trying to get me into their brands, or they were items my stylist had picked out for me so I could dress the part. Outside of that, I already had the luggage I needed to lug the necessities from one place to the next, and I had the electronics required to keep me connected and entertained wherever I was.

Some days, it paid to live simply, and as far as I was concerned, Black Friday was one of those days.

Instead of even leaving his house, Brandon and I had spent the entire day playing video games, lazing around, and eating all the leftovers that had been sent by his mom and Laurel’s. On Saturday though, we’d started feeling pretty cabin-bound and finally decided to venture out to grab some lunch.

Brandon grinned at me from across a table laden with more food than we would ever be able to eat. He’d brought me to a Texas barbecue restaurant, a quiet, off-the-beaten track place where his family had always been regulars.

I had come here with him before, and what was great about it was that no one cared who we were. They’d known Brandon since he was a kid, and despite his recent fame, he was still just the Hill kid to them.

“You still haven’t said anything about Thanksgiving with your mystery girl,” he said as he picked up another piece of brisket. “How was it? What’s Deb like in real life? And why the hell are you being so tight-lipped about it all?”

I shrugged. “I just don’t want to jinx it.”

His eyebrows swept up. “Jinx what, bro? You told me she was just a friend. Are you saying something different now?”

I sighed, swiping my tongue across my lips before I took another sip of my beer. Brandon and I had been friends for a long time. We’d met even before we’d been put into City Lights together, both of us having been invited to some of the same events and festivals once we’d started getting discovered .

For the last few years, he’d been there for me every step of the way, and honestly, I wasn’t sure either of us would’ve made it into City Lights if it hadn’t been for the other. We’d gotten up onstage together once for an impromptu performance of a popular country song and that, too, had gone viral.

The next thing we knew, we’d both been contacted by our current label. The guy had stuck by me through thick and thin in ways no one else ever had, even going so far as to let me live with him once I’d left my mother’s house for good. If the guys were like brothers to me, he was more like my twin.

Fraternal, thankfully, but still.

“She’s a friend,” I said finally after I’d gathered my thoughts. “It’s just that she’s also becoming more than that.”

His eyes narrowed. “Explain.”

“I don’t know how to, man. That’s why I haven’t said much about her before. I’m not being deliberately mysterious or anything. I just don’t really know how to explain it.”

“You could try.”

I chuckled. “That’s what I’m doing.”

“Do better.” He arched an eyebrow at me, amusement glimmering in his eyes. “You’re really not doing a very good job right now.”

“Yeah, I know, but I’ve never felt anything like this before,” I said slowly, still trying to get my own head wrapped around it all. “Here’s the thing, right? Thousands of women want me. You too, obviously, but none of them have ever gotten to me this way.”

His features contorted into a half-frown, half-grimace. “What way? You’re really confusing me right now.”

“I’ve never been genuinely all-in on someone until now.” I surprised even myself when I said the words, but as soon as they were out, I knew I’d finally managed to explain it. “I feel connected to her, which is totally new for me. And weird. But it’s just like I know her somehow. I mean, I do know her and I also don’t, but it feels like I’ve known her forever. Does that make sense?”

“No.” He suddenly grinned at me. “It’s about time though, bro. I’m happy for you. This is what you wanted, right? You wanted to find someone that you have a real connection with instead of just working on your body count. So I say go for it.”

“Go for it?” I stared at him for a long moment, the wild-haired, loudmouthed hooligan I called my best friend. “She lives here , Brandon. She has a business here. It’s not like she can just pack it all in and follow me around the country.”

“Sure, but she doesn’t have to,” he said. “You’re here with me most of the time that we’re not on tour anyway, and if you make an effort, you could be here even more often. Or are you saying that you’re all-in on her, but also not really?”

I groaned. “No, I am all-in on her. I even told her about my folks and some of that shit, but I’m not sure where it goes from here.”

“You have a hard time letting people in because your parents disappointed you every damn day of your youth.”

“What are you, Dr Phil?”

He snorted before he smirked. “Nah, I’m Brandon. That’s even better. My advice is actually helpful.”

I laughed. “Yeah. Okay, but so what if I have a hard time letting people in? Pointing it out doesn’t solve anything.”

“There’s nothing to solve ,” he said, exasperation suddenly dripping from his tone as he shook his head. “You already let her in, Parks. You. Let. Her. In. Despite how out of character that is for you and how hard, you did it. If you ask me, that means you shouldn’t let her go. It sounds like you’ve found the person you’ve been looking for, so again, go for it. Buy the ticket. Take the ride.”

As I listened to him, I realized he might be onto something. Brandon had been encouraging me to let my guard down for years, yet Gemma was the first person I’d actually done it with. My friend wore his heart on his sleeve, and despite his bad boy persona, he was the most hardcore supporter and loyal cheerleader a person could ask for.

While he didn’t want a relationship right now, he’d always told me that he hoped I found what I was looking for. And maybe he was right.

Maybe I had found it.

A sense of marvel and awe crept up on me, washing over me in a weird wave of realization and determination. I felt a grin spreading on my lips as I started nodding my agreement.

“You’re right. I’m going to ask her out to dinner tonight.”

“Good,” he said. “Bring her here or take her to Pablo’s. Unless, of course, you want to risk getting mobbed, in which case, take her anywhere.”

I eyed the mountain of meat between us. “I think I might need to go vegetarian for a while after this.”

He pretended to gag. “Just order the chicken, then. It’s the only edible vegetable out there.”

I laughed, pulling my phone out of my pocket and firing off a quick text. Not a minute later, her reply came in, agreeing to go out with me. My chest gave a squeeze as I stared down at my screen, my heart rate kicking into a higher gear.

Brandon chuckled and he nodded slowly while he swallowed another huge mouthful of food. After washing it down with some beer, he grinned. “Good luck, brother. I really hope this works out for you.”

So do I.

Six hours later, sitting across from her in the other restaurant he’d suggested, I realized that although we hadn’t known each other that long, I was already starting to wonder if anyone would ever measure up to her if it didn’t work out.

Gemma was just different from any other woman I’d ever been involved with.

Free-spirited and carefree, she chatted to the servers at Pablo’s as if they were close, personal friends of hers, and every so often, I caught her humming or singing under her breath again. When it happened once more as our drinks were served, I smiled.

“You do that a lot,” I said, looking into her incredibly bright, shiny, happy greens from across our table for two. “I like it. It’s makes you seem so joyful and bubbly.”

She laughed. “I am joyful and bubbly. When I’m not being snarky or sassy, that is.”

Staring back at me, she looked radiant in a vivid, purplish-blue dress that hugged the curves of her upper body and flared out from her hips. Once again, her makeup was natural and her short blonde hair was being held off her face by a sparkly headband.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you being snarky.” I smirked as I leaned back in my chair. “I’d like to see you try, though. Go for it. Give me your best shot.”

Her cheeks turned faintly rosy as she shook her head. “Nah. You’re about to become one of my best clients. I can’t afford to be mean to you.”

“Just because I’m a client, huh? Ouch.”

She chuckled. “Well, a client and a friend. How was your Black Friday? Get any good deals?”

“Nope.” I took a sip of my beer, frowning when I noticed that she was eyeing the drink like it’d offended her. “What is it?”

She jerked her gaze back to mine, clearing her throat before finally sighing and wrinkling her nose. “You know what? I was going to make something up, but I’d rather just ask. How old are you?”

“Twenty-one. Why?”

She groaned. “I’m twenty-eight.”

I blinked a few times, a little shocked that she was a day over twenty-five, but it honestly didn’t bother me. “So what?”

“That’s a seven-year age gap, Noah.” She looked right into my eyes, suddenly a lot more hesitant than just a minute ago. “Don’t get me wrong, I always have an incredible time with you, but do you think that’s a bit much? Should we maybe stick to just being friends?”

“Friends who kiss?”

“No.”

“Then no.” I reached across the table for her hand, hoping like hell that Brandon had been right about this place when he’d told me we would be safe here and that no one would take pictures of us to sell to the highest bidder. “Age is just a matter of the mind, Gemma.”

“What? If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter?” She paused for a beat before she exhaled, turning her palm to wrap her fingers around mine. “I’m not so sure that’s true, but if you’re sure you don’t mind that I’m so much older, then I suppose we don’t have to let it matter too much.”

“I really don’t think it’s a big deal.” Absolutely true . “I knew you were a little older and you knew I was younger. Besides, it’s only seven years. That’s nothing.”

Her head tilted, those eyes boring deep into mine. There was a brief flash of vulnerability in them, but she blinked it away, seemingly shaking off her worries. “It’s not nothing, but it doesn’t have to be everything either, I suppose.”

“It’s definitely not everything.” I squeezed her hand, hoping that she could see how serious I was about this. All that mattered to me was how I felt about her, and that had nothing to do with her age and everything to do with her heart. “Just give this a chance, Gemma. Age has nothing to do with it. Why does it even matter? We get along just fine. We don’t annoy each other. You understand all my florping slang.”

Her eyes narrowed and she chuckled. “That’s not real slang.”

I nodded and grinned. “See? We understand each other.”

Her gaze moved from one of my eyes to the other, and for a moment, I thought she might disagree, but then she let out a deep breath. “You’re right. It’s only seven years. I’ll do my best to keep not annoying you, but if this ever starts bothering you, you need to tell me.”

“I will,” I said, laughing. “But the same goes for you.”

A slow smile spread on her lips as she squeezed my hand in turn. “Alright then, Noah Parks. We’re not going to let this get in our way. Now, where did Al go? If you’re legally allowed to drink alcohol, they make a cocktail here that you absolutely have to try.”