She really needed to snap out of it, Mia decided, walking through the hallway at school a few months later. It was getting to be ridiculous, how much she missed Noah, and she wasn’t doing herself any good by not being able to concentrate on her studies.
Bree was on cloud nine these days, and she and Phil were getting together practically every weekend. Mia was definitely jealous, but she did her best not to show it. Bree deserved to be happy, and she spent the time she wasn’t with Phil with Mia, even staying overnight at the house.
Amanda was packing up her possessions in the cottage while beginning to distance herself from the family. She was dating someone, but Mia could tell it wasn’t serious.
Of course, that’s not what Mia told her dad, because Mia could see it bothered him that Amanda was dating. Monique was coming along with Dad to Wisconsin much more often, and Amanda wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to be around the house when she decided to show up.
Especially since Monique was beginning to show her claws to Mia, talking about all her vacation plans with Dad, and never once including Mia.
She had no idea if Dad knew, but Mia hadn’t even been included in the wedding.
Mia tried not to let it bother her. After all, Dad wasn’t the same person she’d grown up with.
Noah wrote her as often as he could, but apparently, they weren’t allowed communication during boot camp without permission. So even when Noah wrote her an email or tried to contact her via video, nine times out of ten she was at school or practicing at the conservatory, where Emily had invited Mia into the administrative fold, in the same type of position Noah had held.
Mia needed to keep busy, because she missed him so much.
Thanksgiving came and went, and Noah was out of boot camp, and apparently reassigned to an airbase in Atlanta. Now they were able to talk with each other more, and he was still planning on coming home sometime during the Christmas season, as long as he was allowed the time off.
Mia visited his grandparents several times, because she knew more about what was going on than they did, even though Noah called them every week and sent them letters as often as he could.
It was a week before Christmas and Mia was feeling blue on a Saturday night since Bree was on a date with Phil. Dad was off with Monique somewhere in Florida, apparently for business, and Amanda was out with her boyfriend. She’d tried to get Mia to go along with her and John, who seemed like a really nice guy, but Mia just felt like being alone.
They didn’t even have a Christmas tree this year, and Mia was sitting in the living room with the fireplace roaring, feeling sorry for herself when the doorbell rang.
Mia strolled through the living room and entryway, walking up to the front door. Peeking through the peephole, she squealed, yanking open the door. “Noah.”
He came walking through the doorway, looking larger than life. “God, Mia, how I’ve missed you,” he said, pulling her into his arms.
Mia began to cry. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
They kissed briefly, but Noah looked exhausted. “I arrived by bus in Eau Claire about ninety minutes ago. I had Brad pick me up, because I wanted to surprise you.”
“Come sit with me in the living room,” she said, pulling him inside.
But when Noah dropped onto the couch, he looked ready to lay down and fall asleep. In fact, he hadn’t even taken off his coat yet.
“Noah, come on. Let’s go upstairs to my room and we can both just sleep. I’m feeling tired tonight too. My dad’s in Florida, and Amanda’s out with her boyfriend, so she probably won’t be home tonight. I just want to be with you—alright?”
“If it won’t get you into trouble, then sure, let’s just sleep. Somehow, the idea of sleeping beside you makes me feel better. All I know is I had to come and see you first before going to my grandparents’.”
While Noah made his way up the staircase, Mia grabbed his duffel bag from the entryway and carried it upstairs behind him.
She helped him take off his jacket and boots and Noah stripped down to a pair of shorts he was wearing underneath his jeans.
“I’m surprised you’re not wearing a uniform,” she muttered.
“It’s not a good idea these days with all the violence and shootings happening,” he mumbled. “It can make you a target.”
“I think I’ve read that somewhere,” she said, pulling the sheet down on her bed.
“I feel guilty for not taking a shower. I’ve been on a bus for hours,” he said.
“Lay down. Go to sleep,” she said, tucking him in and pressing a kiss to his cheek when he followed her orders.
Moments later, he was sound asleep, and she studied him closely. He’d actually put on a little weight, and he looked tan and fit. It was strange to see him without the long hair and goatee.
Gee, he looked good.
Mia took a quick shower, putting on sweats and a t-shirt. She went downstairs, and after shutting off the gas fireplace, she made sure the doors were locked and the alarm set.
Running back upstairs, she slipped under the covers beside Noah, snuggling up beside him.
Noah awoke in the morning not knowing where he was, until he realized Mia’s head was burrowed beneath his chin. For several minutes, he just laid there, thinking about what it would be like to wake up every day beside her. How many nights had he gone to sleep these past few months just thinking about Mia and how much he missed her?
Mia was suddenly awake, and she smiled, looking into his eyes. “This sure feels nice.”
But Noah grimaced, wondering if she’d noticed just how wide awake he actually was. “Uhm. Maybe I’d better get up and get moving?”
“No. I like what I’m feeling. Don’t you dare move,” she murmured.
She rubbed against him just enough to make him groan. “Mia. Stop that.”
The damn woman actually giggled.
After a few more minutes, Mia kissed him quickly and then slipped from the bed. “I’ll leave you to take a shower, while I go downstairs and make us breakfast.”
He grinned. “Sounds good. I’ll be down in about fifteen minutes.”
Noah sat up in the bed, glancing at the pictures Mia had in the frames resting on her nightstand. There was one of the two of them dancing together the night his band had opened the summer season at the Dragonfly Pointe Inn, along with the one which had been shot by a reporter when’d they’d kissed after their performance at the Mistletoe Lodge. Their picture had made the national news and had been all over facebook.
Although they’d decided to disband since Noah was entering the Air Force and Brad was going away to school, Blue Moon would be giving a special performance at the Christmas charity event supporting the wounded warrior home and the local school for kids with disabilities next week.
Rounding up his clothes, Noah went into the bathroom and took a quick shower. While he was standing at the sink shaving, the other bedroom door for the Jack and Jill bathroom was suddenly thrown open by a stranger.
Noah glanced at the woman, who was wearing a flimsy robe, and nothing underneath.
Even though he had a towel wrapped around his waist, he didn’t like the way she was looking at him.
“Who are you?” she asked, her eyes roving over Noah.
She had the nerve to come closer.
This must be the fiancé. Noah could understand why Mia didn’t like her since she fit Noah’s definition of a predator perfectly.
“Does Mia know you’re here?” he growled. “You shouldn’t just show up without contacting her.”
She suddenly reached out to him, and Noah knew exactly what she meant to do.
Quickly, he spun her around and shoved her through the doorway, closing and locking the door behind her.
Hearing her laugh, he was furious.
Taking in a deep breath and bracing his palms atop the vanity, he stared at himself in the mirror until he’d calmed down and regained control of his emotions.
After he finished gathering his belongings from the bathroom, Noah got dressed, coming up with some plans to get Mia away from the house.
Rushing down the staircase with his duffle bag, Noah laid it in the entryway and headed toward the kitchen.
Mia was scooping eggs and bacon onto a plate when Noah approached her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and kissing her quickly on the cheek.
“Looks good,” he said, as she handed over the plate and Noah took a seat at the kitchen island.
After Mia spooned some eggs onto another plate for herself, she sat down beside him.
“I take it you met Monique?” she asked, looking sullen. “I guess Dad’s on his way home, and they’re planning on staying until after Christmas.”
“Yeah,” he muttered. “She walked in on me in the bathroom.”
“What the…?” Mia’s eyes went wide. “That bathroom opens up into a guest room where my friends usually stay.”
“Luckily, I had a towel wrapped around my waist, but I can see why you don’t trust her by the way she behaved with me. Let’s spend the day together, and go cut a fresh tree at the farm for my grandparents?” Noah suggested. “Maybe you can help them take it down after the New Year since I’ll be back on base?”
“Of course I will,” she answered. “Let’s eat quickly before Monique comes downstairs and expects me to make her something for breakfast? I hate that Amanda doesn’t know they’re going to be here for Christmas.”
“Alright. Go get dressed,” he said. “I’ll clean up the dishes.”
Mia had a brilliant idea about spending as much time as possible with Noah during the upcoming week. She’d called the Dragonfly Pointe Inn and was able to get a week’s reservation for a single, which had surprised her, because of the big charity event coming up a few days before Christmas. Apparently, they’d always set aside some extra rooms for military personnel, and since Noah was performing at the event, they’d accepted the reservation in his name.
He’d asked her to go as his date, and of course she’d accepted. But rather than listen to her father grumble, even though it was an afternoon event, she would have everything she needed for the day ready to go in the room she’d reserved. Plus, she and Noah would have somewhere they could be alone.
And then, after the concert, they would travel to the Mistletoe Lodge with Phil and Bree and stay overnight in the cabins Phil had rented for the night. Phil and Bree were an item and Phil was planning on asking her to marry him, even though they were young.
Mia had a feeling that Bree would accept, and surprisingly, her parents and brothers had no objections. Phil had impressed them that much.
But Mia and Noah would finally be alone for the night, and there was no way Mia would let Noah return to Atlanta without making love with her first.
The next few days went by quickly. After Mia had driven Noah to his grandparents’ home, so he could borrow their truck, they’d visited the tree farm and picked out a tree for Noah’s grandparents.
Several inches of snow had already fallen, and a lot of things had been neglected outdoors, so after they put up the tree and decorated with Noah’s grandparents, she and Noah had spent the next few days clearing snow from additional walkways and winterizing the screened in porch. Noah had been paying someone in town to take care of the snow in the driveway and the area around the back of the house.
Before long, it was the day of the charity event. Noah would be departing a few days later on Christmas day to return to base.
Mia couldn’t stand the idea of him leaving again without them making love, so she would do her best to try and convince him to go with her to the Mistletoe Lodge, because who knows how long it would be before they would see each other again.
She wanted—no she needed—the memory of that ultimate connection she’d been longing for with Noah to keep her grounded.