Chapter 103

Hannah

I glared daggers at Noah as I yanked him closer, my fingers still twisted in the fabric of his shirt. His eyes widened in surprise, but I didn’t care—he had just been caught red-handed, watching us like some kind of detective on a case.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I hissed, twisting my hand even harder around the front of his shirt.

Before Noah could respond, Drake was at my side, placing a gentle hand on my arm as he regarded my husband with an amused grin.

“Relax, Hannah,” he said easily. “Your husband was just enjoying a bit of entertainment, that’s all. Isn’t that right, Noah?”

Noah’s jaw clenched, but he gave a terse nod. “I was just in the area and happened to glimpse you two together. That’s it.”

The blatant lie made my blood boil, and I opened my mouth to call him out with a scathing retort, but Drake beat me to it.

“Come now, Noah, there’s no need for deception,” he chided. “If you wanted to join us, you could have just asked. Hannah and I are just friends, despite what you think—I’m not trying to steal her away, I assure you.”

A flicker of shame crossed Noah’s stony features, but he quickly schooled his expression into one of indifference. “I wasn’t trying to join you,” he muttered. “I was just passing through.”

“Bullshit,” I growled. “I saw you lurking like this was some kind of spy movie. Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t have binoculars.”

“Noah? Where did you go?”

The all-too-familiar sound of a female voice caused both me and Drake to whip our heads up in shock. No, I thought to myself. It couldn’t be…

My heart plummeted as Zoe sauntered into view, her face stretched into a sickly-sweet smile as she clutched a fistful of game tickets in her perfectly manicured hand. Of course Noah wouldn’t be alone—he had brought Zoe along with him.

Had we just walked into a secret date between the two of them, or was Noah actually trying to get under my skin?

“Zoe,” Drake said first, his voice tight. “I didn’t realize you would be here as well.”

Zoe waved a dismissive hand and flipped a blonde curl over her shoulder. “Yes, well, Noah was so kind as to come and cheer me up after my surgery,” she said in that sing-song voice of hers, practically batting her lashes at him. “I was feeling a bit down, and he just showed up at my door, telling me to get ready to go out and have some fun with him.”

I felt like I might be sick. Suddenly, that burger wasn’t sitting very well. My hand instinctively fluttered over my belly, that urge to cover the small food bump beneath Zoe’s discerning gaze suddenly becoming all too strong.

Noah’s gaze flickered to me at that moment, but I quickly averted my eyes and dropped my hand back to my side, my chest caving in on itself. Of course he would parade Zoe around in front of me—just another twist of the knife.

Drake must have sensed my discomfort, because he stepped closer, wrapping a protective arm around my waist and pulling me against his side.

“Well, in that case, perhaps we should make this a double date,” he said. “Hannah and I were just getting ready to stroll down the boardwalk and play some games. You two are welcome to join us.”

Noah opened his mouth, no doubt to protest, but Zoe cut him off with a smile as she held up the tickets in her hand.

“That sounds nice,” she said. “We were just about to play some games as well.”

With that, she gestured for us to follow and began to lead the way, leaving Drake and me little choice but to follow. As we fell into step behind them, Drake leaned in close, his breath warm against my ear.

“Are you alright?” he murmured.

I swallowed hard, forcing a tight smile as I nodded. “I’m fine,” I lied.

In truth, I felt anything but fine. Every step along the boardwalk was agony, Zoe’s incessant chatter grating on my ears as she talked all about how kind and caring Noah had been in the wake of her surgery.

“It’s just so nice to get out of the house, you know?” she said. “Don’t get me wrong, I love Adam… But I’m more than just a ‘mom’. I like to have fun, too.”

I wanted to vomit. Clearly, Noah was treating Zoe like a downright princess—giving her a break from motherhood, taking her out, cooking her meals… sleeping in her bed.

“Where is Adam, by the way?” Drake asked, although he already knew the answer.

Zoe shot him a look, her gaze darkening a bit as she glanced at him. “He’s with my parents.”

“You didn’t think to ask if I might want to take him for a while? He’s my son.”

Zoe narrowed her eyes, and for a moment, the silence was so heavy I thought it might fall and crush all of us. Finally, with a shrug, she said, “I figured you’d be busy. You’re always busy.”

And with that, she kept walking down the boardwalk with Noah beside her.

Beside me, Drake’s jaw was ticking, his free hand clenched into a tight fist at his side. I could only imagine how uncomfortable this must be for him as well, being forced to watch his wife talk about how she needed a break from their son after she hadn’t even asked him to take care of Adam during her recovery.

I exchanged a silent, vengeful glance with Drake then, and he shot me a knowing look. His fingers tightened around my waist, his jaw setting hard, and I gave him a subtle nod as if to say that we were on the same page.

Make them jealous.

I knew it was hypocritical of me; I had been leading Noah to believe that Drake and I might have an interest in each other all along, and meanwhile, I was getting pissed over the two of them doing the same.

But Drake and I had no intentions of any such thing, despite his playboy reputation. Noah and Zoe on the other hand… Well, they had already shared a bed. And it was all the more obvious tonight.

Suddenly, Zoe stopped in her tracks.

“Oh, look!” she said, pointing at a stuffed animal on a shelf above a game booth—one of those shooting games where you’d try to hit moving cardboard ducks with foam bullets from a toy rifle. “That’s adorable.” She glanced up at Noah then, shooting him a curious look. “Do you think you could win it?”

I followed her gaze to see an oversized plush dolphin hanging among the prizes, its glassy eyes seeming to mock me. Of course Zoe would want Noah to win something for her.

Noah didn’t respond at first, his expression unreadable as he stared at the booth. For a fleeting moment, I allowed myself to hope that he might refuse, that he might put an end to this charade and leave Zoe to her own devices. I took a slow step forward out of instinct, my fingers itching to take his hand despite myself.

But then, without a word, he strode towards the game attendant and slapped a few dollar bills down on the counter. Drake pulled me back against his side and gave me a squeeze, subtly shaking his head as Noah picked up the toy gun.

“How much to win that stuffed dolphin up there?”