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“God, I’m so nervous,” I whisper, pressing my hand to my belly like I can somehow calm myself. Hannah scoffs.

“What the hell are you nervous for? It’s Noah.”

“Exactly. It’s Noah… and I haven’t been on a date with him in seven years.”

“Aww,” she coos. “That’s so damn cute. I’m so happy y’all got back together.”

I take a few steps back and plop down on the bed. “Hey, no one said we’re back together.”

“Oh, come on, Kady. Who the hell are you trying to fool? The minute that man walked back into your life, you were his again.”

“Stop saying that like it’s a done deal,” I command, falling back onto the bed as I release a heavy breath. “You know it’s still a terrible idea and likely going to get one or both of us in a lot of trouble.”

She sighs. “I love you, Kady Jane Sinclair, but you’ve got to start living your life again. You’re not stuck in the basement anymore. You got out and that means you get to be happy now.”

“Oliver is still out there and he’s coming after me.”

“That may be true but you’re also not alone anymore. Noah is here and he’ll do whatever it takes to protect you.”

I open my mouth to argue when the motion sensor goes off. “Speak of the devil.”

“Oooh!” she squeals on the other end of the phone. “Have fun and call me to tell me all about it tomorrow.”

“Fine,” I grumble, fighting back a smile. Her excitement is contagious and it eases some of my nerves. “I love you.”

“Love you, too, babe. Now, go make your boobs look extra perky and knock that boy’s socks off.”

I laugh as we say good-bye and as soon as I hang up, he knocks on the door. Pushing off the bed, I inspect my outfit one more time as my stomach does that little flippy thing again. Brushing my hair back, I smack my lips together and leave the bedroom as Noah knocks again.

“Kady?” he yells, worry in his voice and I roll my eyes.

“One second.”

When I grab my purse off the counter, I grab a treat for Jack and hand it to him before walking to the front door and sucking in a breath as I open it. Noah smiles before his gaze slowly falls down the length of my body. His mouth goes slack as heat fills his eyes and I fidget in front of him, my heart pounding out of control.

“You look fucking incredible, baby,” he growls. Reaching out, I grab his shirt in my fist and pull him to me as he lets out a startled laugh.

“What do you say we stay in instead of going out?” I ask, skating my fingers down his chest and he studies me for a moment before slowly shaking his head as a smile stretches across his face.

“Sorry, darlin’. You’re not getting out of date night that easily.”

I meet his gaze and glare up at him for a second before stomping my foot and shoving him to the side so I can slip past him. His laughter bounces around the small confines of the porch and I roll my eyes as I stomp down to the truck. There are so many reasons why this is such a bad idea but of course, no one will listen to me.

“Hey,” Noah calls, catching up with me and spinning me around to face him. “What’s the deal, babe? You really don’t want to go out with me?”

There’s a touch of vulnerability in his voice, the first hint that he’s shown that maybe he’s not as confident as he always seems and it’s the one thing that breaks through all the armor I’ve built around my emotions these past seven years.

“No, it’s not that. I just…” I glance over my shoulder at the end of the driveway. Why does it always feel like, at any moment, someone is going to race up and grab me again?

“This is a really big deal for you, isn’t it?”

I nod, my gaze fixed on the button of his plaid shirt. “I’m so scared, Noah. I can’t end up back in that apartment.”

“And you never will,” he barks, his voice somehow soft and consoling at the same time as he cups my cheek in his hand. “I will die before I let him ever get his hands on you again and we have the entire club at our back this time.”

“The club? For real?”

Nodding, he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into his body. “It’s different than it was when I was locked up. They’re a real family now and any one of them would gladly take a bullet to protect me and you. Hell, a few of them even got married and Storm has a baby girl.”