Chapter 5 Close enough to touch

Amelia couldn't sleep.Even hours after the fair, with the house finally quiet and Liam curled up beside his stuffed frog, her mind spun like the carousel they'd just ridden.

She kept seeing the way Noah had smiled at Liam, how easily he had carried him on his shoulders, how natural it all looked - like he'd always been there. And the worst part?

It felt good.

Too good.

And that terrified her.

She wasn't just afraid of getting hurt again. She was afraid of hoping.

---

The next morning, the sound of her phone buzzing on the counter pulled her out of her thoughts. It was a message from Noah:

"Hey. I was thinking... want to grab coffee? Just us?"

Amelia stared at the screen for a long time.

Just us.

It was innocent, sure. But also... not.

Her heart warred with her head.

Finally, she replied:

"Okay. 11? At Hollow Grounds?"

---

Hollow Grounds hadn't changed. The little café was still tucked between the bookstore and the old florist's shop, with a creaky sign that swung in the breeze and the smell of roasted beans lingering like memory.

Noah was already there when she arrived, sitting by the window, hands wrapped around a mug. He looked up as she stepped inside - and when he smiled, something in her stomach fluttered.

She hated that smile.

She missed that smile.

"Hey," he said, rising slightly.

"Hey."

She sat across from him, ordering a coffee before she could think too hard about what she was doing.

"Thanks for coming," Noah said.

She nodded. "I figured we had more to talk about."

They were quiet for a moment.

Then he said, "Last night felt... real. Didn't it?"

She looked up, surprised by the rawness in his voice.

"Yeah," she said softly. "It did."

He leaned forward. "I know we've both got baggage. But I meant what I said, Amelia. I'm not walking away from him. Or from this."

She swallowed hard. "You make it sound so easy."

"I didn't say it would be easy. I said I wouldn't leave."

Her fingers curled around her cup.

"Noah," she said, "there's something you should know."

He waited.

But before she could speak, a shadow passed over their table.

A woman - tall, poised, with perfectly tousled waves and designer sunglasses perched atop her head - stood there like she'd just walked off a magazine cover.

"Noah?"

His shoulders stiffened.

"Rachel," he said, standing slowly. "What are you doing here?"

Amelia blinked.

Rachel?

The woman smiled. "I was in the area. I heard you were back in town. Thought I'd say hi."

Amelia looked between them.

Rachel turned her gaze toward her, clearly assessing. "I don't think we've met."

"No," Amelia said coolly. "We haven't."

Rachel extended a hand. "I'm Rachel. Noah and I dated for a while... in Chicago."

Amelia tried to hide the flicker of emotion. "I'm Amelia. Liam's mother."

Rachel blinked, clearly not expecting that.

Noah stepped in quickly. "Rachel, I'm a little busy right now. Can we catch up later?"

She laughed lightly. "Of course. Call me."

With one last glance toward Amelia - unreadable - she walked away.

Silence.

Amelia looked at him, eyebrows raised.

"I was going to tell you," he said quietly. "We were... a thing, a few months ago. Before I came back."

"You still talking?"

"No. Not since I left the city. She didn't even want kids."

That gave Amelia pause. "And now?"

He looked straight at her. "Now I know exactly what I want."

Their eyes locked - and for a moment, the world narrowed down to just them.

"I should go," Amelia said, voice shaking.

"Amelia-"

She stood quickly. "I just... need space."

He watched her walk away, and this time, he didn't try to stop her.

---

That night, it rained.

Hard.

The kind of rain that turned streets into rivers and made memories come flooding back.

Amelia stood at the kitchen window, watching the downpour, arms wrapped around herself.

She remembered the last time she and Noah had stood in a storm like this. Right before she'd left. Right before everything changed.

She didn't hear the knock at first.

Then it came again - harder.

She opened the door and found him soaked, standing on her porch like a ghost from a memory.

"Noah, what are you-?"

"I couldn't let it sit like that," he said, rain dripping from his hair. "I couldn't let you walk away again without saying what I should've said years ago."

Her breath caught.

He stepped closer.

"I loved you, Amelia. I still love you. And I know everything's messy. But don't shut me out. Don't shut us out."

Tears blurred her vision.

"I'm scared," she whispered.

"So am I. But I want to do this. With you. With him."

Lightning flashed in the distance. Thunder rolled.

And then - before she could stop herself - she reached for him.

They kissed.

It wasn't soft. It wasn't slow.

It was desperate.

It was years of regret, love, longing, and anger crashing into a single moment that felt like coming home.

When they finally broke apart, breathless, he rested his forehead against hers.

"I'm not leaving," he said again.

This time, she believed him.

---