“Nah, it’s cool. I got the important stuff out fast enough.” He’d never even kept the real important stuff here to begin with—his boxing gear. All that stuff had always been kept in the comfort and security of the gym.

Abel walked into the garage. “So which totes are yours and which ones belong to the Fuentes?”

Noah pointed out which things were his and between the four of them, they had all his stuff in Abel’s truck just as the sky started to thunder. They hurried to cover everything with a tarp. “Shit, it’s gonna start coming down soon.” Abel said, tying down the tarp on one end. “We better get this outta here.”

“Are we all gonna fit in your truck?” Noah walked around the old truck.

“Hector’s not,” Abel said walking to the cab of the truck.

“Hey! Why me?” Hector stalked around the truck toward Abel. “I helped, too. I wanna check out Noah’s new place!”

“Then jump in the back if you wanna be nosey.” Abel opened the driver side door. “’Cause you don’t fit in the front.”

Hector thought about it for a moment then grudgingly jumped in the back. Great. Noah was hoping he’d pass on the possible soaking he’d be getting if the clouds burst like they seemed to be threatening to any minute now. None of his friends were known for being reserved or shy around women but Hector being the youngest and especially immature was known to be the loudest. The last thing he wanted was for him to say anything that would make Veronica anymore uneasy about their arrangement than he suspected she already was.

Fortunately, for Hector, the clouds had mercy on him. Though they looked like they were ready to burst, they made it to Roni’s house without so much as a sprinkle.

Roni walked out onto the porch, just as they all got out of the truck. “Do you need me to open the garage for you?”

Noah glanced up as the rest of the guys did too. She’d changed into a pair of jeans and a soft pink sweatshirt and she wore pink fuzzy matching pink boots. No way did she look even close to twenty-eight. She walked to the end of the porch, stopping at the railing and leaned on it.

“Yeah, actually. I’ll put most of my stuff in there for now. I can move it in later when it’s not threatening to come down like it is now.” Noah forced himself to look away from her and glance up at the dark clouds. Getting used to seeing her out of her workout clothes was one thing but that hair. The humidity had tightened the curls even more than they were this morning. Long tight ringlets of dark hair hung down the sides of her cheeks clashing against her pale skin, making that smile of hers even sweeter now. That gave Noah even more reason to question whether moving in with her was such a great idea.

“I’ll go open it for you then.” She walked back in the house.

“Whoa.” Abel said. “That can’t be the same lady from the gym, Noah.”

Noah’s jaw tightened as he walked toward the back of the truck. “Yeah, it is.”

When he looked up at Abel, he seemed to be still in shock. “Tell me you’re tapping that. Because if you’re not I could—”

Noah threw the rope he’d untied at him. “Dude!” He glanced back to make sure Roni wasn’t within listening distance anymore. “Will you shut up! And don’t go saying anything stupid in front of her either. Roni’s kind of reserved and she’s my roommate now so can you be cool?”

Abel laughed. “Relax. I’m just having a little fun.”

Gio was staring at Noah now. “Roni?”

“Veronica,” Noah said quickly.

“But you called her Roni,” Hector said.

“It’s Veronica.” Noah snapped, his patience thinning by the second. “Now stop worrying about her and grab something, will ya? It’s about to start pouring.”

They were able to get everything in the garage and a few totes that Noah would need immediately in the house before it really started coming down. They still stood in the garage talking.

Noah’s original plan had been to buy these guys lunch as a thanks for having helped him move his things, but with it pouring the way it was now that would mean Hector would be assed out and get soaked riding around in the back of Abel’s pick up. It didn’t seem fair when Noah could just stay home and let him take his place in the cab.

The back door to the house opened and Roni stuck her head out. “You boys want something to drink? I could make coffee or hot chocolate.”

Abel chuckled. Noah knew what he was thinking. Coffee or hot chocolate was probably the last choice of drink for any of them.. They could all go for a beer right about now—even Hector. So before any of them could say anything Noah spoke up. “Nah, they were just leaving.” They all turned and looked at him so he pulled a twenty and a five out of his pocket and handed it to Abel. “Thanks for helping me out today. Here go pick up a pizza and a six pack. Enjoy it—on me.”

Gio’s scrutinizing eyes didn’t go unnoticed. The way Noah was acting, they’d all be onto him soon but Gio was probably already thinking it. He knew him better than anyone else did.

“What? You’re not coming with?” Abel asked taking the money.

Noah shook his head. “I gotta lot of unpacking to do. Then I still gotta go into the gym tonight.” He flexed his arm. “Rain or shine, baby. Can’t stop training. Pretty soon I’ll be back in the ring.”

Abel smirked ignoring his comments about training and being back in the ring soon. “So how old is she?” He lifted his chin toward the back door Veronica had just closed. “She can’t be much older than us right? She doesn’t look nearly as old as I thought she was that first day at the gym and she’s sure as hell a lot cuter than I remember. That voice is sexier than shit, too. What is she twenty-one? Twenty-two?”