Page 10 of Romancing Melanie
“What the fuck?” Ryan shouted, then immediately turned to the baby in Anna’s arms and winced. “Sorry. I mean, what the hell are you talking about? Engaged? You lied?” Disappointment and shock were evident in Ryan’s voice and on his face. Noah was not used to seeing that from his brother, and it took him by surprise. But it made sense, after all. Noah wasn’t known for lying. Even as a child, he was the first to come clean if the two of them did something wrong.
He ran his hands over his face tiredly. “Yeah, man, I lied, and Mel went along with it. Look, it was either this, or Connor would go home with a stranger. I couldn’t let that happen. Look at him, Ry, tell me he isn’t a Carlisle. There was no fucking way I was going to leave my baby in the hospital or with another family. He’s mine, he needs to be here with me.”
Anna reached out a calming hand onto Ryan’s knee, and shot him a glance that was filled with love and admonition. Noah felt a pang of jealousy. His brother, who had sworn he would never settle down, had a woman who adored him, who completed him in ways Ryan had never expected. Then there was Noah, stuck in a pretend engagement, with a new baby who was abandoned by a woman he could barely remember. It was hard to believe, even for Noah, that he was supposedly the romantic brother.
Ryan sighed and relaxed back against the couch, then turned to stare down at the baby Anna still held. Noah watched as Ryan looked at Connor, and slowly reached out one finger to stroke his cheek, and down the bridge of his nose.
“You’re right, he’s your son. Which makes him my nephew. I just met the little dude and I know I would do anything for him, so I guess I can’t exactly blame you for doing what you had to, to keep him safe.” He looked up at Noah skeptically. “But how the hell did you get Mel to agree to this?”
Noah let out his breath in a whoosh of relief. He hadn’t realized how much he needed Ryan to understand what he had done. Seeing his brother accept his son into the family was everything Noah had hoped for.
“Melanie Haynes is my and Connor’s guardian angel. She went along with this insanity right from the start, and I honestly don’t know how I’ll ever repay her.”
His words rang with sincerity and, from the way Anna and Ryan were looking at him, with smug but happy looks of satisfaction, made him wonder if there had been a little too much adoration and emotion in what he said.
“I know one way you can repay her…” Ryan said suggestively, waggling his eyebrows and earning a smack from Anna.
“Ryan! Stop teasing him,” she chided, then turned back to Noah and said, “I think it’s sweet that Mel is willing to help you like this. She obviously cares about you and about Connor.”
“Come on, sweetheart, I think it’s safe to say Mel more than cares. She’s letting my brother and his baby live here. They’ll have late nights together, plenty of bonding time, she might see him get out of the shower one day and BAM suddenly our commitment-phobe Melanie is going to fall for Mr. Romantic.” Ryan embellished what he said with his hands as Anna shook her head and Noah tried not to let himself envision just that happening.
Connor made a small fussing noise, but before Noah could reach for him, Anna had stood up, adjusted his position and begun to rock back and forth. The baby quickly settled down, and Noah made a mental note to try that himself next time.
“Oh, come on, Ryan. Noah doesn’t feel that way about her.” Anna’s head whipped up to stare at Noah. “Or wait… do you? Oh my god! Noah, do you like Mel?”
Noah grinned sheepishly, there was no way he could lie to Anna’s face. “Do you blame me? She’s amazing.” His face turned serious. “But listen, guys, you can’t say anything. Not to Mel, not to anyone. She’s not interested in anything more than friendship right now, and for the sake of Connor I have to be okay with that. I can’t risk her getting mad or scared and kicking us out, so please, promise me you won’t tease her or say anything.”
“Of course we won’t, bro. For what it’s worth, I hope she realizes how awesome you are.” Ryan’s words were a rare moment of sentimentality, and Noah shot him a smile in response.
“Thanks. Now, I need to get ready to go and see Mom.”
Ryan grinned and looked him up and down. “You might want to finish getting dressed first.”
Noah glanced down, and realized he was still wearing sweatpants and nothing else. “Right. Ummm, well, Anna, can you handle holding Connor for a few more minutes?”
Anna wrinkled her nose. “I can, but you’re going to have to deal with something else before you go. This kid dropped a load a couple of minutes ago.”
Noah tossed a diaper and packet of wipes at his brother, who caught them without realizing what they were. “Nah, let his uncle have a go.”
Noah strode down to the spare bedroom, laughing as he went, feeling lighter than he had in a while, knowing he had the support of his brother and friends. Life might have thrown him the ultimate curveball, but Noah Carlisle would rise to the occasion. This curveball could be everything he had ever dreamed of. Talk about a home run.
Chapter 6
When Melanie left her apartment, the dazed exhaustion that filled her felt the same as coming off the most challenging night shift in the ER. The roller coaster of the past twenty-four hours had left her spinning. On the one hand, she was drawn to baby Connor far deeper than she ever could have expected. On the other, she was terrified of how good it had felt to wake up in Noah’s arms. Those two, together, were a lethal combination, capable of destroying the carefully erected walls around her heart.
Mel had been divorced for several years, and in that time, she had enjoyed several short flings with men who understood and appreciated her no-strings-attached stance. Physical release was all she needed, or so she thought. When she had begun spending time with Noah, the initial spark had surprised her, but she had always managed to tamp it down and be around him in a purely platonic way. Sure, they flirted, he would say something suggestive and she would shoot him down, but it worked. Now she had him living in her apartment, with his baby, and saying things like he did this morning.
Because I’ve only been attracted to one woman in over a year, and she happens to be my best friend and completely uninterested in anything more.
How the hell was she meant to handle that? She wasn’t blind, she knew Noah was attracted to her, but she had always thought he understood where the line was drawn in their relationship. The line of friendship, and nothing else. That line was beyond blurred now, and Mel wasn’t entirely sure how to handle it.
She pushed open the door to her favorite yoga studio, in hopes that a long Hatha flow class would help center her mind. She smiled at the receptionist as she signed in and went into the room where the class would be held. She tried to let the calming aroma of eucalyptus and lavender soothe her as it wafted from the essential oil diffuser in the corner, but that wasn’t working. Moving on autopilot, she unrolled her mat in a spot near the back, stretched her arms over her head, and sank down into a child’s pose to begin tuning in with her breath. Next to cycling, yoga was Mel’s favorite activity and it was common for her and Callie to attend a class together on their days off. Sometimes Reagan and Anna joined them, and they would head out for lunch after. Today, she was relieved to see none of her friends were there. She wasn’t ready to face them, in case they saw the turmoil she was certain was written on her face.
When the instructor walked to the front of the room and clapped her hands to begin the class, Mel sighed in relief. Hopefully she would be able to put her thoughts aside and restore some calm in her heart and mind, before she had to go back home to Noah and Connor.
* * *
Just over an hour later, Mel walked out of the studio feeling no more settled than she had before. She stomped over to her car and threw her yoga mat in the back seat with a huff. If yoga couldn’t help her center herself, what the hell would?Sex would… She snorted at the thought. As if she could go and get busy with someone, with Noah in her apartment looking all sexy cuddling that baby to his chest.Could always get busy WITH Noah…Oh god that was a terrible idea. Yet, Mel didn’t miss the rush of heat that went straight through her at the brief thought of sex with Noah. His strong arms holding her down as he pushed into her, touching her inside and lighting her up…Damnit, stop.Now, not only was she in turmoil about the situation with Noah and baby Connor, but she was turned on as well. No way could she go home until that was under control.
