The Next Door Boys (19 page)

“This is where I'm going to get married.” I stood still and firm in front of the temple, hands on hips and completely certain.

“Really?” Jaron asked, surprised.

“Yeah. It's laid back down here, you know. Not as many weddings and not as many people. I like it. Besides, this was my first temple, so it holds a special spot for me.”

“I like it too,” Brian said.

I looked down at Nathan, who had come to stand next to me. “Did you know that they didn't do the top the way Brigham Young said it needed to be done and then lightning struck the top and they had to rebuild it? The second time around, they did it right. It's taller now.” I thought Nathan would think that was cool.

“Lightning?” Nathan asked.

“Yep.” I took his hand.

“Cool.” I was right.

“I think so too.”

We pulled in our parents’ driveway to see a beautiful fourdoor Mercedes. We exchanged quick glances.

“Whose car is that?” Jaron asked.

“I have no idea. Must be friends of Mom and Dad, huh?” I looked over at him.

Jaron shrugged.

We came in the front door, and Noah sat in the living room with my mom and dad. I stopped in the doorway of the small room and stared, probably open-mouthed in shock.

“Noah?” I hadn't expected to see him. I'd only heard from him the one time. Talk about big gestures. What was he doing here?

“I thought I'd drop in and surprise a friend from school.” He smiled his beautiful smile at me.

“Wow. Well, this is definitely a surprise.” I was thrilled.

“I was hoping you'd like to grab a bite to eat?” he asked.

“Well, I know my mom was planning…” I wasn't sure how she'd feel about my skipping out on dinner again.

“Oh, Leigh, don't worry about it. You two go out and have fun. We'll see you when you make it back.” Mom winked. They'd obviously been talking for a while.

“Okay,” I said slowly. I wondered what kind of embarrassing Leigh stories had come out. At least he still looked genuinely pleased to see me.

“So, it looks like you've met my parents.” I laughed a little. I suddenly felt nervous and jittery, but in a good way, because I was filling with little butterflies as I talked. “And this is my big brother Jaron and his good friend, Brian, and my special little man, Nathan.”

“Nice to meet you, Noah.” Jaron stepped around me into the room, followed by Brian.

“Noah.” Brian shook his hand. He turned back out of the room quickly. “Hey, Nathan, let's get you a snack.”

Nathan pushed past me to follow his dad into the kitchen. Brian didn't always have a lot to say, but he was usually friendlier than that.

“So, are you ready to go eat?” Noah stepped toward me.

“I guess so.” I smiled widely at him as he opened the door for me.

“Have fun!” Mom waved from the living room.

Noah closed the door behind us and stepped toward the beautiful car in the driveway.

“I…” I had no idea what to say.

“Good surprise, or bad surprise?” He lifted one corner of his mouth up in a half smile as he opened the passenger door for me.

“Good surprise.” Our eyes caught for a moment as I stood on the opposite side of the door from him. And just like that, my chest tightened up, and I had to remind myself to breathe.

twenty

“Nice car.” I took in my surroundings as he started down the street. It smelled like leather and new car. I breathed in deeply.

“It's my dad's.” He ran his hands around the steering wheel. “I'm driving it to him in Vegas and then flying home.”

“Sounds like a terrible chore.” I laughed a little.

“Well, I wanted to drop into St. George to see a friend of mine anyway.” He glanced over at me, his smile still in place.

“I see.” I looked over at him. “So, what exactly are we doing?”

“We're taking my dad's car to Vegas.”

“Tonight?” My eyes widened in surprise.

“Yep.” He smiled. “I already talked to your folks. It's okay. I don't think our dads know each other, but your dad recognized my name. They were both lawyers in the same city for a while. Besides, it really doesn't take all that long, and there's a fun little spot I'd like to take you to dinner.”

“In Las Vegas.” I wondered if I'd be able to move. It felt like I froze in place, in a wonderful place that smelled like excitement, new car, and whatever subtle cologne Noah wore.

“Yes, in Las Vegas.”

“Oh my gosh.” I didn't know what to do with myself. I was the girl who just got picked up and taken out on a surprise date by a hot guy in a hot car.

“Don't expect this every time.” He leaned in toward me as he drove.

“What do you mean, every time?” I asked.

“You know, just in case I feel the need to surprise you again or we decide to avoid starvation together. That's all.” He tried to act relaxed and like this was all normal, but his hands clutched tight on the steering wheel, and I guessed he had about the same amount of nervous energy that I did. I could barely sit still.

“I see.” I knew I smiled like an idiot but I couldn't help myself. The whole thing was just so cool.

As we drove down the last hill near Vegas, the lights of the city and the strip glowed in the dark desert.

“So, where are you taking me? To dinner?”

“We're going to Paris.”

“Paris?”

“Eiffel Tower and everything.” He glanced over at me again.

He wasn't kidding. We pulled up underneath the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel.

“Ready?” He grinned across the car at me.

“I think so.” I had no idea if I was ready or not.

I let Noah lead me out of the car and through the doors of the hotel. I had no idea what happened to the car, where we were headed, or what we would eat for dinner, but I knew I was having fun, and I knew that, no matter what, I would never forget that night.

“We're not too far from the airport now.” Noah concentrated out the window. “I want to tell you now, this is not how I normally get to travel.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“You'll see.”

We pulled into the private airport. Noah handed over his ID, and I dug mine out of my purse. He had papers to show as well, some things from a folder on the floor of the car.

“Are you kidding me?” I stared at him as he pulled through the gate.

“No. Like I said, I don't travel like this often.”

“But you travel like this sometimes,” I urged. What kind of family had he grown up in?

“Sometimes.” He nodded. A faint smile played on the edge of his mouth.

We stopped the car and climbed out. Noah's dad climbed off the plane.

“My car. Great. Thanks, Noah. And you must be Leigh.” He shifted his briefcase so he could shake my hand. “I'm Richard.” Noah's father was like Noah, only older and a little more filled out. He had a friendly smile and warm hands.

“That's me.” I shook his hand. “I'm honestly a little overwhelmed here.” I looked at our surroundings.

“Yeah, but it's kinda nice, isn't it?” He leaned forward and whispered to me.

I nodded. It was pretty cool.

“Well, you two have fun on the flight. Behave yourselves, or I'll hear about it.” He pointed at Noah.

“No problem, Dad.” Noah shook his head.

“We'll see you soon, Noah.” He clapped his hand on Noah's back.

“Thanks.”

Noah stood at the bottom of the stairway of a small but sleek little jet and waited for me to climb up. I stepped in the door and took in my surroundings. Everything was a beautiful shade of creamy tan leather, the seats were large, and legroom was not a problem. The chairs sat in four large groups of four, tables in the center of each. A rounded sofa took up the back corner.

“Oh, this is nice,” he said behind me.

I turned around and almost ran into him. “Nice?” It was way more than nice.

“Yeah.” He nodded. “Nice.”

“So, do we just sit wherever we want?” I looked back around.

“Anywhere you want.” He gestured with his hand.

“Well, I'm sure I'd prefer not to sit backwards.” It was probably worse than riding backwards in a car.

A woman, probably about thirty or so with perfectly done-up hair and a simple navy suit walked in from the hallway in the back.

“We're up next, so you two need to find a seat.” She paused with an overly friendly smile. “Can I get you anything?”

“I'm good.” I sat in the chair closest to me, not wanting to be the one holding things up.

“Our flight to St. George will only take a few minutes. Let me know if you need anything. And,” she turned to Noah. “I am under strict instructions from Mr. Watson to report any inappropriate behavior.” She winked and then disappeared as quickly as she showed up.

I wondered how she'd report anything inappropriate if she wasn't in the same room, but I kept quiet.

Noah sat next to me and took my hand. My chest fluttered at his touch, and I looked over at him. I was definitely in deep like.

“Thanks, Leigh.” He squeezed my hand. “I hope you know I'm really not trying to show off here. I think most people would get the wrong impression.”

“I think you're probably right.” I looked at our surroundings again. “But it's really fun.”

“I'm glad you think so.”

When we landed, Noah kept my hand as I walked down the steps. A cab waited to take me home.

“I guess I'll see you at school.” I turned toward him.

“I'm not sending you home in a cab by yourself, Leigh.” He shook his head and climbed in with me.

I didn't have words. We sat in silence, our hands together for the ten-minute drive to my parents’ house. The only thoughts running through my head were, “I can't believe my night. I can't believe this night.”

“Thank you, Leigh.” He walked me to the door and gave me a hug. He smelled good that close, and I found myself leaning into him as he pulled away. “I'll see you back at school.”

“Okay.” I stood in front of my parents’ door and watched him as the cab drove down the street. The whole night had been over-whelming. Good, but overwhelming. I was amazed that he went to so much trouble for me. How much had the one evening cost? I probably didn't want to know. I wanted to dance a little happy dance when I came in the front door, but everyone still sat in the living room—except Nathan, of course.

“How was it?” Mom asked.

“Unbelievable.” I closed my eyes briefly and breathed in. “He said he talked it over with you?”

“How was the plane?” Dad smiled.

“Beautiful. Really, it was crazy.” I tried to relax my smile, but I couldn't.

“Did he kiss you good night?” Mom asked.

“Ew, Mom.” Jaron threw a pillow at her.

“Nope.” I smiled smugly. “Just gave me a hug and said he'd see me back at school.”

“I thought Leigh wasn't into big gestures,” Brian said. He glanced my direction briefly.

“I'm not.” I paused. “But that was really awesome!” How long would it take me to recover from excitement like that?

Mom laughed.

“I'm off to bed.” I gave everyone one last wave good night before I floated up the stairs to my room.

twenty-one

I put the last of my clothes and the pile of things I'd sewn over the break into the two large plastic bins I hoped would fit into Brian's trunk.