‘Erm, well...’ She trails off and I have to bite my tongue to keep a gasp from rolling out of my mouth. Sara isneverspeechless, but Noah seems to have stumped her. She opens and closes her mouth, grappling for a response.
Noah continues. ‘Well, if it helps, I’m twenty-six years old, also from London – although west-based so not quite near you guys. I am DBS checked – I volunteer at a hospice, so I have to be – have no criminal convictions and have never even got a speeding ticket. Also, I can assure you that my intentions with your sisterareentirelypure. In fact, she is helping me find “the one”, while I help her fulfil her eighty-date contract.’
Something shifts on Sara’s face. I peer closer at the screen to make sure I did in fact see what I thought, and it’s true... she is smiling. Smiling at Noah and his bold, pointed chatter. Granted it’s only small and you can actively see spasms in her cheek as she tries to stop herself, but it’sthere. She issmiling. Noah made hersmile. I never once saw that as a viable outcome.
‘Thank you, Noah,’ she says.
She’s still tight-lipped, but there’s a new softness to her tone that she’s struggling to hide.
‘That was wild,’ Paige says. ‘You’re like... the Sara Whisperer.’
‘Paige, enough,’ Sara huffs, rolling her eyes.
‘What? It’s impressive,’ Paige replies, giggling to herself. ‘I’ve never seen anyone do that so fast! Amorie, you might have to keep this one.’
‘Paige!’ It’s my turn to exclaim.
‘I’m just kidding! Pure intentions and all that.’ She throws a wink Noah’s way. He winks back and the pair share a smile at my expense before Noah directs his grin back to me.
‘I like her,’ he says.
‘I like you too!’ Paige says. ‘Yousurethere’s nothing between you two? You’d make a great brother-in-law.’
‘Paige, I’ll hang up!’ This leaves my mouth as a flustered growl that shocks all three of my participants. They’re all evidently amused as I quickly become the butt of a group joke.
‘Anything else you wanna know?’ Noah asks, granting me mercy as they bring their attention back to him.
‘Are you naked?’
I shriek. ‘PAIGE!’
But she doesn’t back down.
‘You’re sitting next to a wet set of abs andI’mthe weird one for asking?’ she says.
‘In front of your sister? No way!’ Noah says, unperturbed. ‘Let us not forget the pure intentions.’
Paige stifles a laugh while Sara looks on with pursed lips, attempting to keep her stern resolve together.
‘Okay, that’s all, thank you, Noah. We won’t keep you any longer – you keep sitting there shirtless and you may catch a cold. Amorie, texts and calls from now on, okay?’ Sara says politely, wrapping it up.
‘Yeah, of course,’ I sigh.
I feel my spine slowly unfurl as I start to comprehend what has just happened.
‘Bye, Squeak, love you!’ Paige says, ready to hang up. ‘Nice to meet you, Noah.’
‘The pleasure is all mine!’ he says back.
Then my phone snaps to black, the two of them gone and half-naked Noah still sitting next to me.
‘Why do your sisters call you Squeak?’ he asks.
I still can’t look his way. Not while he is wet and shirtless andwet.
He continues anyway, relaxing further into my bed. ‘Is it because you get all cute and squeaky when you’re uncomfortable?’
The droplets on his arm brush against mine before they hit the top of my duvet. I feel a chill wash over me as he lies back none the wiser, bringing his hands under his head and closing his eyes to take a deep, relaxed breath.
