Chapter 41 #2
Her eyes remained on him, cataloguing him.
The wrinkles at the sides of his eyes looked more pronounced recently.
She didn’t know if it was just that she noticed him more now, or that he was genuinely happier and his face wore the evidence.
She suddenly realised she wanted to bank every change from this point onward.
She didn’t want to miss any of it, or wonder when it happened.
She wanted to know exactly when his tan started to fade and the exact number of days it took for that five o’clock shadow to develop into something more.
She wanted to be there for every wrinkle, and know the source of every scar.
To be a part of all his big moments, and the small ones, too.
‘The two of you have wasted too much time, Noa. It’s time to be brave for the both of you,’ Tes voiced quietly, as if in response to Noa’s thoughts.
After their conversation moved on to less profound topics, they spent the rest of the night chatting in between Noa serving and clearing tables like she’d been supposed to all along.
When her shift was over, she grabbed a stool next to Tes and decided a few drinks with her best friend sounded like just what she needed.
It wasn’t unusual for men to flirt with her whilst she worked, and she had gotten quite good at either ignoring them or fighting them off.
Tonight, though, there was a new group of men in, on a stag night judging from their questionable shirt choices, and were very obviously from out of town.
They had clearly drunk too much and, as a blond-haired guy persistently vied for her attention, she became increasingly aware of his green eyes that kept flying in her direction.
The guy seemed harmless, though. So, choosing to ignore him and shrug off the feeling of having eyes burning the back of her head, she continued to put the world to rights over a gin or two with her best friend .
Her skin started to feel a little too tight with the feeling of being talked about, as the same man who’d been staring all night continued to do so, his chin lifting in her direction as he spoke to his friend.
The feeling was uncomfortable, but not wanting to make an unnecessary scene, she picked up her drink and refocussed on Tes, who spoke in detail about her most recent date fail with a girl from one town over.
Tes was a serial dater, on her quest to find ‘the one’, and this was just another one of many disappointing dates with the men and women she came across online.
She had a rule against dating people who lived in Freymoor, and Noa often had to bite her lip against saying that the Tinder pool didn’t appear to be much better.
An hour passed and, when the two of them were appropriately buzzed for a Friday night, Tes’s attention was soon stolen by a beautiful redhead at the other side of the bar. Typical. She was always one to be easily distracted by a pretty face.
With her friend’s barstool now empty, the blond-haired guy from earlier filled the spot and continued his blatant, unapologetic flirting. She was just about to shut him down when he reached out, resting his sweaty palm on her bare thigh, sending a shudder through her body with the contact.
Tingles spread up her legs, but not the good kind that she got whenever Alex touched her like that.
No, this didn’t feel right. She brushed him off, but that only caused him to lean in so that he was able to whisper in her ear.
His alcohol-soaked breath filling the tiny bit of space between them had her instantly recoiling.
She pulled back in time to hear Tes whisper-shout, ‘Hot and angry boss alert. Hold on to your panties. ’
Noa turned her head quickly to see what Tes was referring to, but there was no need.
Before she had a chance to even turn fully in her seat, Alex was there.
She swore that if they were in a cartoon sketch, he would have a bright red face and steam coming out of his ears, as he not-so-politely demanded the guy leave.
‘You… you can’t do that man.’
‘I can and, more importantly, I am. This is my bar. Get the fuck out before I kick all your buddies out with you. Wouldn’t want to spoil the party, would you?’
The drunk guy scoffed, muttering under his breath, ‘She wasn’t even worth it.’
Noa’s spine straightened, knowing that was not the right thing to say in front of a livid Alex who looked like he was about to explode any second.
The guy didn’t get far before Alex had his fist closed around his bicep, tugging him back.
The guy stumbled but managed to catch himself before he fell.
Not that she thought Alex would care much if he did.
‘Apologise,’ Alex warned with a snarl.
Noa could have sworn his eyes went black as night then, and she would have curled up in a ball if she was the other guy.
Despite the discomfort she’d felt only moments ago, there was something exciting about seeing Alex like this.
That protective side of him that once filled her with rage now sent arousal thrumming through her.
It was insanely attractive to see him sticking up for her like this.
Maybe it was how safe she felt around him, or the intense look in his eyes that had a fire burning in her core.
The blond guy didn’t seem to share the same sentiment as he scoffed, ‘You’ve got to be joking.’
He gaped at Alex.
Alex raised his eyebrow, almost daring the guy to test him .
‘You sure you want to find out? I’ve not had to swing my fists in a while, but there is always an exception.’
Looking at the ground, the guy muttered a hardly-noticeable, ‘Sorry.’
Alex pushed him toward the door, saying things to him that she couldn’t quite hear as they left.
When Alex returned, Noa went to speak, whether to apologise or to get angry she didn’t know.
She was currently in too much of a daze from how hot the man in front of her had been.
But before she could do either, he was flinging Noa over his shoulder and taking her to his office behind the bar.
To hell with whoever saw, apparently.
The carnivorous look in his eyes sent chills through her body, but this time it was the kind that set her body alight with anticipation.
Every place that his eyes touched felt hot, and her inner thighs grew damp with how aroused he made her feel with nothing but a look.
A look that felt like a gentle caress and a wicked promise all in one.
She wanted to squirm under the intensity of it.
It was as if he was undressing her with his eyes, like she’d noticed he’d been doing all night, but this time it felt like a warning of what was to come.
For a moment his expression turned soft.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked, cupping her cheek with his calloused hand.
She leaned into it, her lips gently brushing his pulse point.
‘I am now,’ she whispered.
And she meant it. As long as she was with him, she would be.
Alex’s eyes searched hers for a moment and, once he was satisfied with what he saw there—the truth, maybe—his eyes glazed over with lust once again.
He turned her around so that her cheek and chest were pressed against the office door and moved so his lips grazed against her ear.
His rough hands came around to pin her own to the door on either side of her head.
She looked at them, imagining those inked arms snaking lower, his fingers going to the place where she ached to feel him.
She was breathy, panting with her need for him, when he whispered, ‘You sound flustered, Noa. Who made you like this? Me, or him?’
His nostrils flared as he said it, and Noa arched into him in response.
‘You,’ she whined. ‘Always you.’
She heard a rumble from his chest, then he reached down as she pushed her hips back to meet his rock-hard bulge.
He slid his thumb along the inner seam of her leggings, not quite giving enough pressure to cause any pleasure.
It was frustrating, to say the least. She knew he could feel how wet she was, and that he was just testing her.
‘And this?’ he questioned. ‘Is this for me?’
‘Y… yes,’ she panted, as he cupped her.
She ground her hips against his palm, eliciting an eruption of shockwaves throughout her entire body until he ripped his hand away.
In the most demanding tone that she had ever heard from him he said, ‘Keep your hands there. Don’t move them, got it?’
She nodded. Words failed her right now. She was so turned-on as he prowled around her, taking her in. Her chest heaved and her legs trembled. She felt naked despite her clothes, and it was an effort to remain standing up straight.
‘I’m trying to be a better man, Noa. To be the man you deserve. A man who thinks first and uses his fists later. To let go of that angry boy I was and be the man you need and deserve. But it’s so hard when I see you with pricks like that. When all I want is for us to belong only to each other.’
‘Alex, I am…’
She wasn’t able to finish when his hands came up to cup her face and he inhaled her in a desperate, all-encompassing kiss that had her toes curling. He swallowed her moan as he devoured her, pouring so much emotion into what felt like one earth-shattering kiss.
He pulled away, resting his forehead to hers as they both caught their breath.
Then, his eyes met hers, as if in question, and it looked like his restraint was causing him physical pain.
She loved seeing him like this, knowing she caused it and that he felt every single bit of what she felt for him.
Despite all his possessive nature, that made her feel powerful. In control.
She nodded at him, electricity coursing through her body in anticipation.
The second she gave him the green-light, Alex’s lips found hers again.
His hands came to the front of her, pinching her already hard nipples through her top.
They’d felt so sensitive lately, but when he pinched and kneaded them, it made her feel wild.
She went to move her hands, to grab him whilst he played with her, but he clasped them against the door.
He’d done this before and knew she loved it. Knowing he had taken the effort to learn what made her feel good only turned her on more.
‘Does it make you crazy being unable to touch me like this?’
‘Yes.’
‘Good. Now stay still. This isn’t going to be slow or gentle. I’m going to fuck you hard enough so that you feel me there for days. And every time you do, you’ll remember who you belong to. ’
For the first time, she wanted to belong to someone other than herself, to surrender control and submit to him.
So, she did exactly that, enjoying every second as he fucked her relentlessly until her legs gave out and he had to hold her up.
Until the strength of both their orgasms crashing through her had her seeing stars and screaming out, his fist coming up to cover her mouth.
‘Save those pretty sounds only for me, Noa. I plan on being the only person who gets to hear them from now on, because you are mine.’
‘Yours.’