by Kaci Rose
I laugh. I don’t mean to, but I don’t know what other emotion to show right now.
“No, that’s not love. You see what I’ve made of myself, and you want to latch on for the ride. I never loved you, I know that now. What I have with Lexi is love. She was there in my worst moments and never turned her back on me. She gave me a reason to fight. What I feel with her is ten times more powerful than anything I ever felt with you. I don’t hold a grudge against you, but I’m not seeing us ever being on friendly terms either. I know this is a big publicity stunt because you love the limelight.” I get it all off my chest.
I guess Lexi was right, I did need the closure.
“Fuck you, Noah.” She says now pissed, jumping up from the bench.
“You already fucked me over, but it’s okay because it brought me my angel. Lexi is the light of my life, and she agreed to marry me, because she loves me for me, scars and all. You can leave now, Whitney, and don’t show your face here again. You aren’t welcome.”
Chapter 38
Lexi
I hate that Noah walked out of the house today mad. I hate that we didn’t work it out before we came over to Oakside for the day. And most of all, I hate that he’s now out there talking to that plastic Barbie wannabe.
As I stand in the Lobby and watch Noah in the courtyard with Whitney, Brooke walks up beside me.
“Who is that?”
I fill her in on Noah and Whitney’s brief history of that day in the hospital in Germany.
“So, what’s she doing here?”
“I don’t know, but stupid me encouraged him to go talk to her, making sure he got closure, but now I’m second guessing it all.” I begin spinning my engagement ring around on my finger.
“What do you have to doubt? We all know that man loves you beyond reason. If this girl is as horrible as you say she is, what do you have to worry about?”
“Honestly, first loves are intense and hard to get over. I’m worried she’ll want him back, and he might want to try again. They have a long history.”
“I will kick his ass myself. You were there for him every day. I can’t remember the last time I saw someone who devoted that much attention to the guys in the hospital. There are wives who didn’t spend near as much time with their husbands. He has to know that.”
I watch Whitney look at her hand, and her bottom lip trembles, before she looks back up at him.
“She’s sitting so close, yet, he hasn’t moved away. The only other person he lets that close to him is me.”
“I bet he doesn’t want to be rude.” She says, but her reasoning sounds flat.
“Maybe,” but when he laughs, my heart sinks.
Brooke must know I’m ready to bolt because she wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me to her side. It’s like a train wreck. I know what I’ll see is going to break my heart, but I can’t look away no matter how hard I try.
“I wanted to send her on her way and not tell him. I wanted to tell him no don’t talk to her, just make her go away, but this is a choice that he has to make.” I sigh, resting my head on her shoulder.
“Yeah, it is. But standing here can’t be good for you either.” Brooke tries to pull me away back towards the patient rooms, and just as I’m about to go, Whitney jumps up from the bench, and she looks all kinds of pissed. Like I’m being pulled by some invisible force, I’m at the door and cracking it open just enough to hear what’s being said. Brooke follows and stands right behind me.
Noah’s voice fills the air. “You already fucked me over, but it’s okay because it brought me my angel. Lexi is the light of my life, and she agreed to marry me, because she loves me for me, scars and all. You can leave now, Whitney, and don’t show your face here again. You aren’t welcome.”
Relief like I’ve never known washes over me, and I almost sag to the ground.
“You’re engaged again?” Whitney screeches, and how she makes the word again sound dirty, I have no idea.
“Well, you sure as fuck move on fast. Wonder how long your engagement will last this time.” She snaps.
“After several years, I proposed to you, because it felt like the next step. I proposed to Lexi after less than a year, because I know I can’t live without her, and there’s a huge difference.” Noah’s voice is even, and I know he’s restraining himself.
Something in his words kills the irritation, self-doubt, and anger from earlier today. This is my Noah, and I need to stop doubting him.
In the next moment, all I can think about is getting her out of here, because her yelling is the last thing the guys need. Looking around the lobby, the only person available to help me is Brooke.
“We have to kick her out,” I say, trying to formulate a plan.
“Lexi, call the cops. If nothing else, you’ll want it on record she isn’t allowed on these grounds.”
Trusting her advice, I pull out my phone and explain the situation and dispatch says a car is on its way. I tell her they can walk right in, as we aren’t a private residence anymore.
Then, I turn back to Noah and Whitney, who is still going on and on, but I haven’t heard anything she’s said, and judging by Noah’s eyes on me, he hasn’t either.
“Ready?” I say to Brooke.
“Yep, with any luck, we can get her out front.”
I step into the courtyard with Brooke behind me.
“It’s time for you to leave, Whitney. The guys here can be triggered by your hissy fit, and that will put you and everyone else here at risk,” I say my tone as flat as I can manage.
“I’m talking to Noah. This doesn’t concern you.” She spits out.
When her eyes land on my engagement ring, I know she realizes who I am.
“Actually, it does, because I own this place, as does Noah. He asked you to leave, and now I’m telling you to leave.”
“This doesn’t concern you. I am talking to Noah.” She tries talking to me like I’m a child, who doesn’t understand what she’s saying.
“It does concern her because she’s my fiancée,” Noah says, walking to my side and wrapping an arm around my waist, and just like that, everything feels right with us again.
“Cops are here,” Brooke says and heads to the lobby to meet them.
“You called the cops!” Whitney screeches.
Noah chuckles silently beside me.
“Yes, because like I said, you acting like this, can trigger some of the men, and I wasn’t going to chance it,” I say just as Brooke steps into the courtyard with the two uniformed officers.
We spend the next thirty minutes explaining who Whitney is, what Oakside is, and why her throwing a fit can cause problems. I explain how both Noah and I asked her to leave, and she just threw a bigger tantrum.
We were asked some questions, mostly about Oakside to get the place in the system in case we call again. Then, they’d have more information on what they were walking into.
Whitney is carted off and warned not to step foot on the property again.
Noah and I stand in the front yard, watching the cops leave, and Noah pulls me into his side. As we head back to the porch, I see Easton in the window. He nods his head as almost a thank you for the show, and I smile at him and wave. He doesn’t wave back, but I didn’t expect him, too.
“I kind of thought about snapping a video of her hissy fit and tagging her for all her ‘fans’ to see.” I laugh, as we make our way to the front porch.
“I don’t think I’d have stopped you. I do need to send her an official letter to take all my photos down and to stop using me as her military affiliation.” Noah sighs.
I turn to him then.
“I’m so sorry about this morning. I was so focused on this place that I stopped focusing on us, but something about seeing you with Whitney today,” I can’t find the words, so I just shake my head.
“Angel, we’re going to argue, and we aren’t always going to agree. That is what will keep things interesting. I love you and no fight changes that. I want this plac
e to succeed too, and it’s just a matter of balance. Easton actually had an idea of what I was coming to talk to you about when the whole Whitney thing happened.” He says, as he leads me over to one of the rocking chairs and sits down, before pulling me into his lap.
“Yeah?” I ask.
“It doesn’t always have to be me speaking at these events. There are a few local ones, so let’s ask your brother to speak. Then, I’ll go with you to Knoxville, and we can take a weekend there and have a mini vacation.”
“That sounds good,” I snuggle into him. “We really need to look at getting security on site.”
“Yeah, I was thinking that, too. Easton would be perfect if we can get through to him.” He says.
“If anyone can, it would be you, Noah. I know it. He’s already closer to you than anyone else.” I say pausing. “Noah, what if I don’t want to wait to get married?”
“What do you mean?”
“We’re so busy that planning something right now would be too hard. What if we flew my family out to your family for a weekend and just did a simple courthouse wedding? Then, once things have settled here, we can renew our vows and have a big event.” I say, but not lifting my head to look at him.
“I say let’s do it, but I do have one request.”
“What’s that?”
“I want you in a white dress. I have been dreaming of you walking down the aisle to me in a white dress.”
“I can make that happen.”
Chapter 39
Lexi
6 months later
I can’t believe Oakside has been in operation for over six months now. Time has flown by.
Noah’s sisters have taken over my food websites with the condition that 10% of the profits come back to Oakside, and they both still go to college. They have done some great things with it, and it’s growing faster than I was able to get it over the last year.
Johnny has done quite a few local fundraisers, giving Noah a break from them. He loves doing them, so that’s a plus. Noah went with me to the Knoxville fundraiser, and we met Owen and Ellie there.
Owen owns several major companies in the city, and I looked up his net worth, and it was over a billion dollars. My jaw dropped because he’s so down to earth. Ellie and I hit it off, and the donation we got from Owen alone was more than we received from all the last fundraisers we put on. It was enough to give us some breathing room and finish up the main building, fully staff the place, and get some plans drawn up for the barn.
Thanks to them we now have all twenty-one rooms open and ready. Eighteen of them are filled, and the last three are taken just waiting for the hospital to release the guys to us.
Ellie and Owen are here now, staying with us, along with their two little girls. They took the grand tour of the property yesterday, and Ellie wants to get hands on today, so she’s shadowing Brooke. Owen is going to work with Noah, and I have the girls who want to do some craft projects for the guys.
There hasn’t been a peep from Whitney, since the day the cops took her away. Just as we talked about that day, we flew my family out to Noah’s family and had a small courthouse wedding the weekend before we went to Knoxville, so we used Knoxville as our honeymoon.
“Daddy!” The girls squeal and jump up from the table, where they were making cards.
I didn’t notice Owen and Noah walk in, but Noah is smiling and makes his way over to sit down with me.
“Owen just wrote us another check. He said to put it aside and use it to sponsor someone who needs help, who the insurance won’t cover.”
“You told him?” I ask.
Last month, we had to turn away our first patient. They had been out of the military for a while, and the fight with insurance landed them in not being covered.
“Maybe, we can reach out and get them in the next open room we have,” I say, thinking out loud.
“Sounds good to me,” Noah says.
After a day of showing Owen and Ellie around, they head out to do some sightseeing, and Noah and I go home.
“You enjoyed being around those girls today,” Noah says more as a statement.
“Yeah, I did.”
“I don’t see Oakside slowing down anytime soon. We have a great staff, though.”
“What are you saying?”
“Why don’t we stop preventing pregnancy and just see what happens? There’s never going to be a perfect time, angel. But we can make it work.”
My heart races. This is the dream I gave up so long ago. For the longest time, I only imagined having kids with Tyler. Then, I settled on not having kids at all, or maybe even adopting. But lately, more and more of the dream is back, but this time with Noah.
I’ve sat up at night thinking of Noah as a father. He’s going to make a great one. I imagine a baby boy, looking just like his dad. The kids growing up being proud of their dad, knowing what a hero he is.
“Are you sure?” I ask him.
“I want kids with you, Lexi. A little girl running around with your blonde hair.”
“A little boy who looks just like his daddy,” I add.
“What do you say, angel. Ready for our next adventure?”
“Yeah, I am.” I smile.
This man brought me back to life, and then showed me I wasn’t living like I thought I was. He has made all my dreams come true, even the newest ones.
Now, he’s taken the last one and just handed it to me.
Yeah, I can’t wait to go on this adventure with him, too.
Epilogue
Easton
You tend to appreciate the warmth of the sun hitting your face after you spend an entire year without seeing even a hint of sunlight.
I have to give it to Noah this place is much nicer to look at than the hospital parking lot. The huge oak trees lining the driveway make a great view from my room. I have a prime view of those coming and going every day.
Oakside is smaller than the hospital, and I know most of the people here, so I feel safer. Everyone respects my boundaries, including the patients.
When you are kept in a damn cold, dark room and tortured by anyone who comes near you, well, you tend not to want people in your space. I’m getting better, slowly. Much more slowly than the fancy doctors here would like. But they still give me my space.
Noah is the one who has kept pushing. Pushing me to talk, which I do more of now. Pushing me outside of the hospital room, so now, I’m in a room that looks like a fancy bed-and-breakfast. For sure, a step up.
But I can’t seem to get myself out of this cage I feel like I’m in. As long as I’m here by the window with the sun in my face, it keeps the terror of that year away. Even rainy days help. because you forget how perfect rainy days truly are when you haven’t seen them in a year. I wouldn’t even mind the snow.
I’ve gotten used to all the sounds here, but I can’t seem to place the scratchy clack-clack sound, coming down the hall. It’s almost like light high heels, but four legs, and not two.
Before I can figure it out, a dog is in front of me and rests his or her head on my lap, and then looks up at me with these big old puppy dog eyes. He or she is a golden retriever, and while I don’t like people touching me, I find I don’t mind the dog.
Judging by the pink collar, I’m guessing it’s a her, so I reach down and pet her. That’s when I hear it.
“Molly, you can’t run off like that, girl.”
I know that voice. I’d recognize that voice anywhere.
It’s the voice that kept me going during my year in a dark room.
Paisley.
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You can read Easton and Paisley’s story in book two of the Oakside Military Heroes, Saving Easton. This is a brother’s best friend military romance.
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Want Ellie and Owen’s story? Read their fake relationship, age gap, steamy romance in Accidental Sugar Daddy.
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Want Johnny and Becky’s story? Get it free when you join my newsletter!
Get Johnny and Becky’s story now.
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Other Books By Kaci Rose
See all of Kaci Rose’s Books
Oakside Military Heroes Series
Saving Noah – Lexi and Noah
Saving Easton – Easton and Paisley
Saving Teddy – Teddy and Mia
Saving Levi – Levi and Mandy
Chasing the Sun Duet
Sunrise
Sunset
Rock Springs Texas Series
The Cowboy and His Runaway – Blaze and Riley
The Cowboy and His Best Friend – Sage and Colt
The Cowboy and His Obsession – Megan and Hunter
The Cowboy and His Sweetheart – Jason and Ella
The Cowboy and His Secret – Mac and Sarah
Rock Springs Weddings Novella
Rock Springs Box Set 1-5 + Bonus Content
The Cowboy and His Mistletoe Kiss – Lilly and Mike
The Cowboy and His Valentine – Maggie and Nick
The Cowboy and His Vegas Wedding – Royce and Anna
The Cowboy and His Angel – Abby and Greg
The Cowboy and His Christmas Rockstar – Savannah and Ford
The Cowboy and His Billionaire – Brice and Kayla
Mountain Men of Whiskey River
Take Me To The River
Take Me To The Cabin
Standalone Books
