I start walking away from him.
He grabs my hand, pulling me back. "I love you."
I rise up on my toes, kissing him until I feel like I'm losing myself. "I love you too. Now, I really have to go."
He grins and shoots me a wink before turning and following the people filtering into the stadium. I let out a deep breath, heading in the direction of the rest of the students.
\\\*
"Summer Lynde." The dean smiles and stands to the side as I make my way across the stage.
Noah's cheers are the loudest, making me feel like I'm walking through fire as I take my diploma and turn to face the crowd.
I search for him and find him sitting beside Skyla and Joshua. It's unexpected, but at least they're all getting along.
My cheeks ache from smiling as the cheers get louder.
I walk to the other end of the stage, and as I stride down the stairs, all I can think about is going home and getting to spend time with my family.
I make my way back to my seat, listening as the rest of the names are called, more people walking across the stage.
The last person walks to their seat, and we all stand, moving the tassel from one side to the other. Words I barely register are said, and then we're throwing our caps in the air, celebrating what I can only hope will be my last day of school.
As I'm stooping to pick up my cap, glossy dress shoes appear in front of me.
I grab my cap and straighten up, and the moment I do, I'm in Noah's arms, and he's spinning me around before setting me on the ground.
I grin up at him. "You're not supposed to be down here."
"I sure as fuck wasn't going to wait for you to come find me." He reaches into the inner pocket of his suit jacket, pulling out a flask. "And I thought you could use a little prepping before we all go back to the house."
Laughing, I twist off the top of the flask, taking a long swig of what tastes like vanilla whiskey.
Noah grins and takes the flask back, taking a sip of his own.
He reaches for my hand, lacing my fingers with his. "I think we're ready now. Time to go walk into the den of hungry lions and hope I come out on the other side."
"They're not that bad."
Noah smirks over his shoulder, giving me a playful eye roll. "You weren't the one sitting beside Skyla. That woman is scary, and I'm pretty sure she's already planning ways to piss off everyone. She said, and I quote, 'Aiden is being a little bitch,' which doesn't sound good."
I snort and shake my head, following him out to the car. "Look, it's not going to be pretty. With Zoe pregnant again and him dealing with some shit going on in New York, things aren't going to be good."
We stop at the car, and Noah turns to me, raking his fingers through his short beard. "I'm glad I left all of that behind."
"I'm glad too. I like the life we've been building here, and I don't want to give it up for anything."
He turns and pins me between his body and the car, his erection already pressing against me. "We could take a little time to ourselves before we go back to the shitshow that's going to be waiting for us."
Laughing, I put my hands on his chest and push him back a step. "Come on, if we spend too much time fucking around, they're going to come find us, and the last thing we need is for any siblings to find you balls deep in me."
Noah gives me a boyish smile. "Fine, but once I have you alone, all bets are off."
Aiden flips the burgers while children dash around, racing each other to the playground Noah built last summer when the family started visiting us.
I sidle over to him, sipping from my cider. "You know, I didn't know if all of you were going to come out here for this."
Aiden flips more of the burgers, closing the lid as Gia chases Bianca and Dominic through the yard to the blanket where Zoe is feeding Taylor. "Why wouldn't we? I spent too much time away from you in the last couple of years, and putting up with Noah isn't that bad."
