“My parents bought it when Loch was ready to live in an apartment. Noah will probably move in next summer when he turns twenty-one. After he graduates, they’ll save it for Marina. Of course that depends if she stays to attend Beacon U. to continue the tradition or breaks the mold.”

Must be nice to have options like that. I catch myself before my thoughts turn sour. I can be jealous of how life seems to have no hurdles for him or his family, but how will that leave me? Alone and feeling like I judged him the way I would never want to be judged myself for barely scraping by. I’m grateful that I have a job that pays well enough for my priority to stay focused on school. “With four kids, it was probably a wise investment.”

The doors open and we walk to the end of the hall, opposite of the other front door on the floor. He opens the door and waits with his back to it while I walk in. My mouth falls open, but I can’t stop staring.

Now I understand why he was keeping it a secret.

22

Harbor

“Are you fucking serious, Noah?”

I slam the door, but it has a soft close mechanism, so I get no satisfaction from it. Lark is still standing in the entry like she’s not sure what to do. I’m not sure what to do either, except I know I’m about to kick my little brothers’ ass.

Noah stands, tossing his napkin to the table and stretching his arms in front of him like he’s somehow going to stop me from coming for him full speed ahead. “Slow down, bro. Let me explain.”

I don’t know why I even entertain the idea, but I stand in the living room ready to tear him apart. The words rush from his mouth, “Trish and I showed up and noticed you weren’t around.” He glances at the couch and then at me again. “One thing led to another. The food was getting cold, so we decided to do you a favor.”

My anger reaches my head, which feels like it’s going to explode when I see the couch cushions are not how I left them. Little fucker.

The blonde still sitting at the table sets her fork down but stays seated. Since she doesn’t appear to have any pants on, I understand why. Fuck.

I just wanted it to be special. I don’t care about the food. I got it in case she was hungry. I care about everything else being ruined. The long-stemmed roses are all over the coffee table and floor by the couch instead of being in the box with the bow how I left them. At least the other box is still wrapped.

I turn back to catch a glimpse of Lark, who seems perfectly content to stay out of the fray. I do my best to apologize silently. This is not how tonight should have been. I wanted her to have romance without being over-the-top hearts and flowers. Lark’s not that girl, but I got to thinking that maybe she never wanted it because she’d never received flowers from a guy before. I’m guessing no guy has allowed her to raise the bar of what she expects out of a boyfriend.