Sobs bubbled up and I turned and bolted through the door, pushing a lady out of my way and barreling straight into Noah’s arms.

“Whoa,” he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around me to stabilize us both before looking to see who he’d caught. “Jules, what’s—”

I broke free without speaking and pushed past him.

“Jules, wait, what’s wrong,” he said, following me.

“Leave me alone, Noah.”

If I’d only had my purse with me, I would have headed straight for my car and drove home. In lieu of that, I yanked open the door to the bookstore and prayed he’d stop.

He didn’t, and the barrage of questions trailed behind me all the way to the break room, the swinging door bouncing in his wake. I whirled on him, adrenaline sending a new wave of hot tears over the edge.

“You’re not allowed back here,” I said, my voice shaking with anger.

“Deal with it,” he said, looking at me with exasperation. “What happened over there that’s got you so upset? Surely, Shayna didn’t—”

I laughed, a bitter sound I didn’t even recognize. “Are you kidding me? Shayna is like the nicest person on the planet. I didn’t think it was even possible to be that good.”

A tiny look of relief passed over his face. “What, then?” he demanded.

I scoffed, remembering the horrid words and trying to shove the burning sob down that wanted to split me in half.

She throws one kid away and never thinks of him again…

It won. A noise of pain escaped my throat, and I hissed in a breath to quell it.

“Ask your father,” I spit out, turning away.

I headed for the fridge, wanting to stick my head in the freezer, but the grip on my upper arm stopped me.

“I asked you,” he said roughly as he spun me around.

We both inhaled sharply as we landed together and found ourselves nearly nose to nose. I blinked tears free, bringing Noah’s face into perfect focus. His quickened breath felt warm on my face, and all the hard lines of his expression dissolved when he searched my eyes.

“Shit, Jules,” he said under his breath, so softly it was nearly inaudible.

One of his hands went to my face as if on autopilot, and I shut my eyes tight as the warmth of his hand against my cheek and hair nearly broke me. I could smell him, feel him, and I didn’t dare open my eyes to look at him. He’d see it.

“Noah, don’t,” I whispered through broken breaths. I reached up to pull his hand away, but then the other side of my head was cradled as well, and all my strength melted away. My grip on his hand stayed where it was, and I could feel the slight tremble. Or was that me?

I didn’t open my eyes until I felt his thumbs move across my cheeks, wiping away tears, and it hit me in the chest like a wrecking ball. He looked like someone had beaten the crap out of him from the inside. His eyelids were heavy, like a man who hadn’t slept in days. The turmoil radiating off of him was palpable.

That, plus the feel of his hands in my hair, the closeness of his body, so close I could feel him breathe, it was almost too much. His eyes went to my mouth, and for a second it was like ropes were pulling us together. I could nearly taste him.