a strength he didn’t know he possessed, Noah wrenched his mouth from hers, rose above her on all fours, and squeezed his eyes shut. “Honey, wait.”
* * *
* * *
Suddenly, it was over.
One moment she was working the button of his jeans, desperate to touch him and feel him inside her. And in the next, he let out an agonized noise and told her to stop.
Her whole body went cold at the sight of his closed eyes. “Wh-What’s wrong?”
Noah straightened and sat back on his haunches. He covered his face with his hands. “This . . . We can’t.”
“Why not? What’s wrong?”
Noah turned and sank against the other arm of the couch. With a tortured noise, he dropped his head and breathed in and out through his nose as if trying not to puke.
The final, lingering hum of desire evaporated like the last puff of mist from her essential oils diffuser. He . . . He was rejecting her. Oh, God. What had she done? Alexis scooted to sit up and brushed her wild hair from her face. Noah opened his eyes and looked up with an expression that could only be described as abject horror. As if he’d just woken up from a blackout to find a stranger naked in bed with him.
She was the naked stranger.
Naked and exposed and totally, one hundred percent regretted.
Alexis tried to scramble off the couch but got caught in the blanket and only managed to roll onto the floor. She fell ungracefully on her knees.
Noah shot up straight. “Are you okay?”
Alexis scrambled to her feet. “I’m sorry.”
“Lexa, what are you doing?”
“I’m sorry. I—I shouldn’t have . . .” She turned away from him—from that look on his face—and walked as fast as she could without full-out running.
Behind her, Noah stood so quickly that a bottle fell over and began to glub-glub-glub its contents onto the floor. “Lexa, wait.”
She felt sick. Alexis wrenched open the back door. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I have to go.”
Noah managed to grab her hand and tug her back. “Don’t. Not like this. Alexis, please. Listen to me. This isn’t—”
She yanked free and began to run through the house so she wouldn’t have to hear the end of that sentence. Isn’t what you think. Isn’t what you want. Isn’t what I want.
Noah chased after her. Through the hallway. Out the door. Down the porch steps. Pleading the entire way for her to stop. “Alexis, wait.”
“I have to go. I’m sorry, Noah. I shouldn’t have done this.” She got in her car and started it without looking at him. Seconds later, she left him standing in the driveway, hands stacked on top of his head.
She made it all of two blocks before her phone rang on the passenger seat.
It was two a.m. before the ringing finally stopped.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Wow. Are you okay?”
Alexis averted her gaze from Jessica’s when she walked into the café the next morning a half hour late. She set down Beefcake’s cat carrier, let him out, and then hung up her coat. “Fine.”
“You look like you’ve been crying.”
“Allergies,” Alexis lied.
Because, yes, she’d been crying. She’d cried all night. Big, fat sobs into her pillow and sometimes her cat. It probably wasn’t fair to ignore Noah’s calls and texts, but fairness wasn’t going to wash away the dark stain of shame and humiliation that colored every memory of last night in her mind. And did it even matter what he said? She’d thrown herself at him, and he’d rejected her. Just like she’d feared he would. She couldn’t talk to him. Couldn’t face him. No matter what he said, the truth had been written all over his face when he pulled away from her last night.
He’d been horrified. There was no other word for it.
Maybe that’s what stung the worst. He’d looked suddenly like a stranger to her.
Jessica hovered nearby as Alexis grabbed her apron and looped it over her head. “Are you sure—”
“I’m fine, Jessica. Let’s just go to work.”
Jessica reacted as if Alexis had yelled at her.
“I’m sorry,” Alexis said, reaching over to squeeze her arm. “I’m not fine, to be honest, but I can’t talk about it right now. Okay?”
Jessica nodded, her features relaxing again. “I’m here if you need to, though.”
“I appreciate it.”
Alexis wished she’d thought to grab a ball cap to wear today. Maybe it would shade the worst of her dark circles and red eyes.
Jessica gave her one last look before nodding and heading out of the kitchen. Alexis tried to lose