My heart melted at his words. “You did that tonight. You took care of me and got me exactly what I needed. You’re always doing that. Taking care of me.”

“You take care of me, too. In ways you don’t even realize,” he said, holding my hands in his.

Why was this so hard? It was so much more difficult than I’d thought it would be. Maybe I should find a way to ease into it. “Tonight . . . I can’t even tell you what this meant to me. You finding a stranger to drive me here to see my best friend. And I—I—”

I was such a coward. Such a coward.

But still I kept talking, trying to find the words I could actually say. “I don’t know how you feel about things and if you only want to be friends I understand, because those were the rules, right? Just friends? But at some point everything changed for me and I don’t know when that moment was, but I . . . I want more. I want to be in a relationship with you. I kind of feel like I have been in one and just didn’t register it.”

He didn’t say anything, so I just kept talking. “I thought I was happy with my life. I had my mom and my best friend and my business and I didn’t need or want anything else. I can’t believe how wrong I was, how I was missing you before I ever even met you. We click. You get me. Hanging out with you is my favorite thing. You’re so strong, smart, funny, kind, generous, talented, and a million other things that make you one of the best people I’ve ever met. You’re my person and I want you in my life. If you don’t, I understand, and this is a lot to spring on you and I’m sorry about that and if you want to stay friends I’ll do that, because you’re so important to me and—”

Noah squeezed my hands and said, “My turn. I want that, too. Have wanted it for a while.”

My heart soared at his words, sending happy, flappy flutters through my whole body. “You do? Why didn’t you say anything earlier?”

“Because you said no and I wanted to respect your feelings and your boundaries. I secretly hoped they would change, but if they hadn’t and you’d just ended things and walked away, I still always would have been glad that I’d met you. Even if I was nursing a broken heart.”

“A broken heart?” I repeated, those happiness bubbles still fizzing away inside me.