Heat in the Hamptons

Chapter 18

Noah sat at his desk and tapped his thumb against the wood. He didn't want to be here anymore. He had already had two meetings and was waiting for the third and final, but they were running late.

He sighed and pulled out his phone. 5:20. The meeting was supposed to start at 5. He hated tardiness. Especially today. This meeting would probably last a couple hours and then he had over a two hour drive home. He wanted to be back before ten. Before Addison went to sleep.

He could just stay at his place in the city, but the thought of Addison sleeping in the house alone bothered him.

He checked his texts, Addison still hadn't replied to his message earlier. A pang of concern filled him.

She was probably just caught up writing.

He sat his phone down as he reviewed his agenda for the meeting for the third time. His phone buzzed across the table.

I'll make sure to put that on my To Do list. Mrs. Hawke just stopped by, Rosie had puppies!

Noah smiled, he was about to message back when a knock sounded at his door.

Finally.

Addison shut her laptop after firing off that text to Noah. She knew she wouldn't get any more writing done today.

She stood up to grab a glass of water and heard a knock on the patio door again.

She smiled, hoping Mrs. Hawke decided to return with some of the puppies. She swung open the door and her smile disappeared.

James stood on the porch, hand still lifted in the air from his knock. His eyes widened as he saw Addison standing there.

Addison's body went cold, she didn't want to talk to him.

"Where's Noah?" James' voice was weary.

"Working in the city." She kept her voice clipped.

James walked in and shut the door behind him, Addison taking backward steps away from him.

"Why are you here?" She asked.

He scoffed. "Why am I here? Why the fuck are you here?"

Addison refused to take James' shit anymore. "Well, my ex-boyfriend," James winced at the word. "Convinced me to sell my home, while he was cheating on me. So now I'm homeless, and Noah was kind enough to offer me a room until I can buy my own place again."

James' eyes narrowed. "Are you fucking him?"

Now it was Addison's turn to scoff. She turned to walk away from him, but he grabbed her left wrist and pulled her toward him.

"Are you fucking him?" He repeated.

"Let go of me." She was stern. His grip on her wrist tightened.

"Answer me."

She pushed him with her free hand on his chest and wrenched her wrist away from him in one motion, backing away from him.

"Not that it would ever be any of your business, James." She started, "But no, I am not sleeping with Noah." James breathed a silent sigh of relief.

Addison stood there, trying to ignore the pain in her wrist.

"Get out."

"Addison, please come back home." His voice turned soft.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself.

"James, you are genuinely disgusting."

"What?"

She opened her eyes. "You are disgusting. It is appalling the lengths you will go to manipulate me." James clenched his jaw. "You cheated on me! You will never have the right to be upset with me, ever again." She was shouting. "Noah is my friend, he has been there for me when no one else has. In one day I lost my boyfriend and my best friend, and Noah knows what that feels like." James' blood was beginning to boil. "So if I ever decide to sleep with Noah, then it will be because yours and Megan's betrayal brought us closer together. And you will have no one but yourself to blame."

James started to take another step towards her. "I said get out!" She screamed.