15. Noah
15
NOAH
I ’d been through the NFL draft too many times to count, yet I always got hyped up for the event. It was hard not to considering how it basically took over the Las Vegas Strip. Between the red carpet, strobe lights, and floating main stage the whole thing felt like a Hollywood premiere.
Obviously, I had a lot riding on draft selection. Getting my players on the right teams would impact future sponsorships, which could mean six figures or more in potential endorsement deals. It was always a rollercoaster of emotions, but it felt especially poignant this year with Matthew—and surprisingly, it was less about the money this time around. He’d planned on being here with his mother, but obviously that was out of the question since she was nowhere near being cleared for travel. I hoped I could be the support he needed during the momentous occasion. Having Maddy at my side helped, especially since she and Matthew had developed a sibling-like relationship. She could relate to him on a personal level, and it seemed to put him at ease. But I could tell the poor kid was nervous as hell. We all were.
“C’mon, Steelers,” Maddy repeated in a low voice, almost like it was a mantra. I tried not to focus on how incredible she looked, but it was damn near impossible. I stood close to her, glaring at any man who dared to stare at her for too long.
Matthew had a bunch of great options, but we’d agreed he was best suited for Pittsburgh. Not only was he a perfect fit for the team, but I also had connections that would ensure June got the best care possible once she was transferred there. We could make any team work, but we all wanted the Steelers.
I reached out and grasped his shoulder. “You good?”
He gave me a tight smile. “Holding steady.”
“Listen, you’re a day-one starter no matter where you end up, got it?”
Matthew nodded.
The opening fanfare passed in a blur, and the next thing we knew it was go-time. The NFL commissioner took his place at the podium. The other names called barely registered even though I knew every detail about every player mentioned. It felt like we collectively held our breath as the Steelers round began.
“For the next pick in the 2023 draft… the Pittsburgh Steelers select… Matthew Garrison, North Dakota State.”
The crowd exploded, and Matthew and I gave each other a palm-stinging high five. He leaned down and gave Maddy a huge hug, lifting her off the ground, before he stalked off to get ready for his first of many moments in this next-level spotlight. He had to get a congratulatory handshake from the commissioner, then take the ceremonial photos holding his new jersey up to his chest. He was swallowed up by security and led away from us, and I knew it would be the last we’d see of him for the rest of the night.
I glanced at Maddy and saw that she was swiping beneath her eyes.
“I know, I know,” she laughed. “I’m a happy-crier. I’m so excited for Matthew!”
I reached for her hand and gave it a quick squeeze, wishing I could sweep her into my arms instead. “And June. This is a win for both of them.”
“For all of us,” she said, squeezing me back. She leaned away to look up at me. “Congrats.”
Damn, how I wanted her. I was on a high and I wanted to celebrate. I was about to suggest retiring to my room when Maddy frowned at me.
“I’m absolutely starving. It just hit me. Can we eat? Like, everything? That French place we passed looks incredible.”
I didn’t want to come across as some sex-obsessed Neanderthal, so I agreed. Once I stopped to think about it, I realized I was actually hungry too.
Le Chat was teeming with people, but Marcel the ma?tre d’ spotted us and beckoned me over.
“Mr. Parker, welcome back. Your usual private room is already in use, but I do have table twenty-two available if that works for you.”
It was the best table in the house, a spot to see and be seen. Normally, I only took it when I was with someone who enjoyed the limelight, like a player I was trying to bring onto my roster. I’d planned on using the private room to my advantage in between courses, but I enjoyed her company regardless and was genuinely looking forward to hearing her reactions to the draft. She always had a fresh perspective that helped me see things in a new way.
“That would be fine, thank you.”
As expected, every eye in the place tracked Maddy as we followed Marcel to the table. She didn’t seem to notice the men who froze with their forks or drinks in the air as she glided past them. A few gave me appreciative nods, adhering to the bro-code by acknowledging that she was taken, but more of them watched her like she was prey they wanted to take down.
She slid into the booth with a sigh.
“I can’t wait to eat every single slice of bread in this restaurant. I feel like I haven’t had a meal since yesterday.”
I loved how much she enjoyed food. It was one of the many delights I’d discovered during our European tour. “You’re going to love the baguettes here.”
She craned her neck to look around the restaurant. “Let me at ‘em.”
The meal passed in a blur of good food and better conversation. As always, Maddy had her finger on the pulse of everything going down, filling me in on gossip about many of the players involved with the draft. We had such an easy banter at this point, our closeness cemented by the adventures we’d had together on the road. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have her in my life.
At the end of the meal, Maddy placed her empty wine glass on the table, her eyes at half-mast.
“Tired?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “Tipsy. Happy.” I felt her hand move to my thigh. “And still a little hungry.” She gave me a meaningful look.
I felt something tighten in my stomach, a clawing feeling I’d been fighting off all night. “Interesting. I am as well.”
I felt like we had to make it finally happen tonight, before we headed back to the real world tomorrow. I trailed my fingertips down the exposed skin on her back and she shivered. I glanced around the room and realized no one was watching us, so I snaked my hand down to the bare skin on the inside of her thigh. Maddy’s breath caught, and she shot me a look of delighted shock.
“Are you ready to go?” she asked breathlessly, glancing around the room as she leaned closer to me.
I didn’t answer as I pulled her to her feet then walked out of the restaurant like a man on a mission.
We managed to stay level-headed as we made our way to the elevator, but the moment the doors closed I pounced on Maddy, pinning her against the wall.
“I’ve been waiting for this all night,” I said, my lips hovering above hers.
“Same,” she whispered.
The way she was looking at me would have made me hard instantly if I wasn’t already most of the way there. There was a wild hunger in her eyes, and I couldn’t wait to experience all of Maddy.
I kissed her in a way that made it plain what was about to happen, claiming her lips as I wrapped my arms around her. We’d both been waiting for this for far too long. We weren’t going to sleep a wink tonight.
We tumbled out of the elevator, and I had to laugh when Maddy started speed walking to my door, pulling me along.
“Hurry, Noah.”
She was practically begging me. Any worry about taking our relationship to the next level was long gone.
I fumbled with the key card. Maddy took my free hand and brought my pointer finger to her mouth. She wrapped her tongue around it and sucked as she drew it out, her eyes fixed on me.
“You’re killing me,” I managed as I finally got the door opened and we fell inside.
“Just you wait,” she replied, placing her hand against the bulge in my pants.
The door shut behind us and I grabbed Maddy, throwing her over my shoulder like she was no heavier than a feather pillow. “No ma’am,” I said, giving her a smack on the ass. “Just you wait.”
She squealed and laughed as I carried her to the bed then placed her on top of it.
“I’ve been dying to taste you,” I murmured as I eased her dress up her thighs.
“Noah…” she squirmed a little.
I studied her face as I paused. “You don’t want me to?”
“I do.” Maddy sat up on her elbows. “It’s just that… I’m loud. Really loud.”
Jesus fucking Christ. This woman.
“And that’s a problem why, exactly?” I laughed. I didn’t give her a chance to answer, tugging off her panties and tossing them on the floor. I grabbed her ankles and pulled her to the edge of the bed, settling myself between her silky thighs.
Within a few minutes of teasing her with my mouth, Maddy was bucking against me, making whimpering noises that stoked my arousal higher and higher. I focused my efforts on the center of her pleasure and slid my finger inside of her. I could feel the tension building in her thighs as she fluttered against my tongue.
“Noah,” she moaned.
I increased the pressure of my mouth against her wet folds and slid two fingers inside of her. I was rock hard and ready, but I wasn’t about to miss the opportunity to make Maddy come on my tongue first.
And then it happened. A sound ripped out of her that was unlike anything I’d ever heard. It was a mix of a cry and shriek, so intense that if I hadn’t been the one who had coaxed it out of her I’d be worried she was in pain. She grabbed the back of my head and pulled me closer to her. Following her lead, I didn’t ease up, even as the moans quieted.
“I… I can’t move…” she whispered, still breathless from all that pleasure.
“That’s fine,” I said, sliding up her body. “Let me do all the work.”
I’d left a stash of condoms in the nightstand drawer, so I reached back to grab one. Maddy watched me as I got ready, smiling at me with half-closed eyes.
“You have the most beautiful cock I’ve ever seen.”
“Wait until you see what it can do.”
I positioned myself between her legs and paused, pushing against her with the slightest pressure, needing to check in one last time just to make certain she wanted this. She inhaled sharply, like I touched a live wire.
“Don’t make me beg, Noah,” she pleaded.
It was all I needed to hear. I pushed inside her and paused to savor the sensation. Maddy locked her legs behind me and pulled me even deeper.
I felt like I was about to burst. After wanting her for so long, the reality of fucking Maddy was even better than I’d imagined it could be. She undulated against me, matching my rhythm.
I wanted to have her every way possible but more than that, I wanted to unleash the wild passion that had been building up over the past few weeks. I pulled out of her, and she made a little frustrated noise, but I quickly flipped her over so she was face down on the bed, displaying her perfect ass in all its naked glory. I slid my hand down to massage between her legs for a couple minutes and brought her close to the edge, then plunged back inside her.
Maddy bucked against me as I gripped her hip and ground into her. It was almost impossible for me to hold on, but I wanted to make her come again before my own climax hit. I kept my focus on her, reaching down to stroke her nub until the noises sounded again and she clenched around me. I finally let go, giving into my orgasm with a roar nearly as loud as hers had been.
I had plenty of sex in my life. I’d fucked more beautiful women than I could count. But nothing, absolutely nothing, had ever felt as good as this.
I crawled to where she was slumped on the bed and took Maddy in my arms. All I could think about was the way she made me feel. Not just the sex. Everything.
It was unfamiliar, disconcerting… and I liked it.