“Do your parents know you’re staying here?” Noah asked.
Glancing over to him, I wanted to ask if my parents had stopped by here. I wouldn’t have put it past my father at this point to check up on my story.
Giving Noah a nod, I said, “Yes. I sent my mother a text to let her know.”
Noah raised an eyebrow and said, “A text? Really?”
“Yep,” I said as I let out a quick breath. “Is Lisa sleeping?”
Noah stared at me for a few moments before snapping out of it and shaking his head. “No, I was just reading to her.”
My heart melted. The love Noah had for his mother was amazing. The way he had given everything up to care for her had me wanting to throw myself at him again and beg him to make love to me.
“What were you reading?” I asked as I followed Noah upstairs to his room.
“Emma,” Noah said barely above a whisper.
Grinning like a fool, I said, “Ah, Jane Austen. A true classic.”
Noah let out a chuckle. “Jane Austen is one of my mother’s favorite authors.”
“Mine too,” I said as I made my way into Noah’s room. Taking in a deep breath, I let the smell of the man I love invade my senses. My body quickly came to life as I took everything in. It wasn’t the first time I’d been in this room. I’d stayed in here one night alone, two nights with Noah. Two glorious romantic nights.
“I’m sure she’d love to have you read it to her. I’m afraid I don’t put much emotion into it. Or at least that’s what she told me earlier.”
Setting my purse on the bed, my eyes moved to the side table. Three bottles of pills where sitting there. Noah had walked into the bathroom that was attached to his room. Looking over my shoulder back at him, I walked toward the side table as I said, “I’d love to read to her.”
Picking up the first bottle, I read the name of the prescription. Ativan. Noah started to tell me how Emily thought she’d be back down for Thanksgiving, but her new job wasn’t going to let her off.
Setting the sleeping pills down, I picked up the next bottle. Valium. My heart began beating slightly faster. The third bottle was Klonopin. Setting the two other bottles down, I quickly walked away and headed toward the bathroom as I attempted not to over react. Noah had every reason to have each of those. I knew Ativan was a sleeping pill and the Klonopin was for panic attacks. The Valium must have also been for anxiety. Was he taking all three of them? How often did he take them?
Noah had started a bath and was filling it up with lavender. “You looked like you needed to relax.”
My stomach fluttered. This man was incredible. Here had been attending his mother non-stop and yet he was drawing me a bath. Smiling, I wrapped my arms around him and looked into his eyes. “Why don’t you soak in the tub and I’ll go say hi to your mom. Maybe even read a few chapters of Emma.”
Noah pinched his eyebrows and went to protest. Lifting my finger, I placed it on his lips. “Nope, no arguing. You soak; I’ll go let your mother know I’m here.”
Noah closed his eyes. It looked like he was attempting to control his emotions. He did it often and I was pretty sure he counted to ten or something. Opening his eyes, he gave me a sexy grin. “A hot bath does sound pretty relaxing.”
“Then strip yourself out of those clothes and climb your sexy ass into the bathtub. I’ll be back in a little bit and we will have a small reunion celebration.”
Wiggling my eyebrows, Noah laughed and quickly undressed. Watching him strip out of his clothes had my lower stomach tugging. Deciding I needed to leave before I changed my mind, I spun on my heels and called over my shoulder, “See you in a few.”
As I made my way down the stairs, I pulled out my phone and texted Meagan. I wasn’t going to be able to put the thoughts to rest until I talked to someone.
Me: Hey, I have a question.
It didn’t take Meagan long before she texted back.
Meg: Shoot!
Stopping outside the master bedroom, I asked the one question I was scared to death to know the answer to.
Me: Is it safe to take Ativan, Klonopin and Valium all together?
Meg: I think if you’re following your doctor’s advice. Valium though can become additive. Same with the Ativan and shouldn’t be taken for long periods of time. It is highly addictive.
Dropping my head back against the wall, I said a quick prayer Noah wasn’t taking either of them on a daily basis.
Me: Thanks, Meg. Are you still coming home for Thanksgiving?
Meg: Considering my father lectured the hell out of me the last time I was home. No.
