Blindside

Episode THREE

Roni

There's no way Noah could be serious. Even last night when he'd looked so annoyed by Mateo's texts, she knew a part of him was only being playfully, facetious. Only she'd seen this expression on her husband's face more than once in her lifetime, and she knew he was being anything but playful now. Still, his accusatory eyes bore into hers in a way they hadn't in years. It was completely uncalled for and she wasn't having it.

"You're kidding me, right?"

"I wasn't even out the garage, Roni, and you were already in the bedroom, having a conversation—"

"He called me," Roni said, standing up, but for Jack's sake refrained from raising her voice. "I'd just taken Jack out of his highchair when I heard my phone ringing in the bedroom. I thought maybe you'd forgotten something, so I rushed to answer it."

Noah put his own phone and paperwork down on the counter, still staring her down. "What'd he want?"

Despite knowing she'd done nothing wrong, just like when Noah had first walked into the bedroom, this completely unnerved her. "I never responded to his text about ESU," she explained, holding her ground, regardless of her thumping heart. "He said he'd begun to think maybe he sent it to the wrong person, so he called to make sure it was my number."

"Did it finally come to him or is it still driving him insane?"

"We didn't get that far." Roni lifting her chin, though she swallowed hard, not wanting Noah to pick up on her unease. "We'd only been on the phone a few minutes when you walked in."

"Do you remember him now?"

"No, I don't actually. But then ESU is a huge school. No way would I remember every student who attended when I worked there." She took the few steps to him and rubbed his arm. "What difference would it make if I did, baby? So, he's an alumnus of the university I worked at years ago." Roni shrugged with a smile, glad to see and feel Noah ease up. "I don't remember him. Obviously, he's not anyone that meant much or maybe I'd have some memory of him."

She nearly yelped when Noah pulled her to him, hugging her tightly and burying his face in her neck. "I'm sorry," he whispered against her neck before kissing it. "I didn't mean to be a dick." Roni dropped her head back when he kissed her neck again, giving him better access. "It's been one of those mornings," he said against her neck before pulling back and searching her eyes. "You just seemed weird when I first walked in." He shook his head with conviction, frowning in the process. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."

Roni cupped his face, kissing him softly as she swallowed back the tiniest niggle of guilt. "No need to apologize."

Leaning his body against hers, Noah groaned as evidence of a surprising erection—given the circumstances—pressed up against her. "I swear if I had time..."

The very thought, and the sound of Jack laughing at something on the TV, had Roni shaking her head with a chuckle. "And if someone wasn't wide awake..."

Sprinkling kisses on his arm, the one with the sleeve tattoo he'd gotten the year they got married, Roni smiled. Noah had been on the fence about it until overhearing her mention how sexy she thought those kinds of tattoos were. Like last night she'd been thoroughly punished that night when he demanded to know exactly who she'd been talking about, but she really had just meant in general. That week he'd begun the process of getting inked.

The confrontation had ended on a much better note than it started and a few minutes and kisses later Noah was gone—for real this time. Roni made sure of it, even going out to the balcony to catch of glimpse of his car leaving their gated community. The guilt she'd begun to feel earlier was for good reason. Noah had been too worked up when she'd glanced at her phone and told him the texts she'd gotten were from Nellie. It was half true, but she'd been able to see there were other texts. She didn't know it then but had purposely not confirmed her suspicions.