Noah (The Mitchell/Healy Family #1)(7)
Author: Jennifer Foor

“I don’t think my mom would let that happen, Bells. If anyone can calm down my dad it’s her.”

“Just promise me one thing.” She looked right at me, as if her question was extremely important. “Promise me that if things get heated you’ll walk away and cool down. I don’t want to see what happened last time. This weekend is goin’ to be so special for your parents. I know you. When you get a plan churning in that head of yours, you take matters into your own hands. I know you’re not goin’ to wait until after everyone leaves. You rollin’ around in the dirt with Jake wasn’t cool. You could have avoided it.”

It annoyed me that she’d said that about me. If I’d ever been anything in my life it was devoted. “You have a good point, and I will respect it, this time. I won’t ruin their party. Contrary to what y’all might think, I do love my parents. It ain’t like I look for reasons to sabotage their happiness.”

She laughed. “You took that the wrong way, cuz.”

I nudged her, knocking her down in the grass. “Well then learn how to say it right, dammit. I don’t have time to decipher your English.”

With just a crack of sunlight left to see with, we gathered the horses and rode back to the barn. I noticed my little sister, Addy, and my cousins, Josh, and Callie standing behind one of the out buildings. At first glance they weren’t doing anything wrong. They were all close enough in age where it wasn’t like one was leading the other.

Bells put her hand up for me to stop walking toward them. “Did you see that?” She backed us up behind a large John Deere tractor that was sitting perfectly between the barn and other building. “I saw smoke.”

I started to move and she grabbed a hold of my arm. “Wait! Do you remember us smoking for the first time, on this very ranch?”

“That’s different.”

She pulled me back again. “How so? We were younger then they are, Noah. Stop actin’ all big and bad.”

That instance the hint of marijuana filled my nostrils. “Son of a bitch!” I easily pulled out of my cousin’s hold and headed in their direction. Though still far enough away, I could see my cousin, Josh dropping the joint on the ground and standing on it, hiding the evidence. He was the youngest out of all of the kids, so he definitely had no business sneaking around.

Their faces were priceless, all looking as if they were going to go to jail. Footsteps tromping behind me let me know that Bells was high on my tail. “What are you three doin’?”

Josh put his head down. My sister Addy spoke up, taking the lead like she always did. “We were hangin’ out. What’s it to you, Noah?” For a teenager, I had to give her points for having lady balls. That kid would stand up to anyone.

I pointed at her face. “Do you have any idea what dad would do if he caught you out here smokin’ pot?”

She motioned for me to walk back the way we came from. “Mind your own business, Noah. You ain’t dad.”

In that moment I felt overcome by anger. I grabbed a chunk of her hair and yanked her away from everyone else. “I may not be your father, but I’m as close to it as you can get. Get your ass back to the house before I tell everyone what you three are back here doin’.”

She pulled away from me, getting up in my face the best she could being a foot shorter. “You’ve got no proof, and besides, you wouldn’t dare be a dick like that.”

I leaned forward, almost touching her face with mine. “Little girl, don’t you dare lie to me. I’m goin’ to give you one more chance to walk away, or I’m goin’ to kick your little ass myself.”

My sister punched me in the gut, then huffed and puffed toward the house. Her fist had done nothing but knock the wind briefly out of me. “You better not let me catch you again, Addy.”

She turned with her hand on her hip. “Or what? You goin’ to tell on me? I’m so scared,” She said as she rolled her eyes.

“What is wrong with you? Are you still pissed about the party I wouldn’t let you have?”

“You’re the lamest brother on the planet. Get out of my face, Noah.” She motioned for me to walk away. “Seriously, give me a freakin’ break.”

I watched her walk up the porch steps and go into the house. I wasn’t a dick. Telling my parents wasn’t something I’d do, not unless I had to.

While I’d been privately dealing with my sister, Bells was handling our other cousins. She came back to join me once they’d all left. Afterwards she picked up the joint, brushed it off and smiled, I knew exactly what she was planning on doing.

She lifted it up to her lips and lit it with a lighter. “Where’d you get that?”

“I took it from them. If they don’t have a lighter they can’t smoke.”

She handed me the joint and let the smoke out of her mouth. “You’re evil.”

I’d always been anti drugs, but marijuana wasn’t exactly considered a drug, per se. Plus, I needed something to take the edge off of my stress. I took a hit and passed it back.

“Stop lookin’ around. We’re adults, Noah. We can do what we want.”

I started laughing loudly and coughing at the same time. “No, we really can’t.”

She hunched over, giggling even harder. We both knew we weren’t stoned yet, so this was just us blowing off steam, getting silly because we were both so annoyed with our lives. Suddenly, she stood up and looked at me. “Do you really want me to move in with you?”

I sighed and closed my eyes for a second, wondering what it would be like to live with a woman. I’d wondered about having a live-in girlfriend and never wanted it, but this was different. Bells was my family and I knew that out of anyone in the universe I’d want it to be her. Besides, she’d be cool if I didn’t come home, or even if I brought someone home with me. Sure, she’d be opinionated, and probably never like a single female that walked through the door, but that was what she did anyway. “Yeah, it would be cool.”

“What the f**k are you two doing?” I recognized both the look of horror on Bells face and the sound of her father’s voice. She handed me the joint inconspicuously, but it was obvious what we’d been doing.

“Hey, Dad. When’d you get here?”

My uncle Ty began to laugh. “I came out to bust Josh and his sister, and I find you two instead. We could smell that shit from the front porch. Noah, what the f**k did I tell you about pressuring my little girl into drugs and other illegal activities?”