Chapter 12
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Zara
Noah had turned into a madman.
She”d never been more excited in her life.
The sex they”d shared had already been out of this world. Beyond out of this world. Out of the galaxy or universe or whatever else there was far out in the sky that scientists studied. But she had a feeling he was about to blow what they’d already done out of the water.
Something she wouldn”t have thought possible a few hours ago.
They were still several blocks away from his house but he was on a mission. He hadn’t let go of her hand once but he was still in front of her by a couple of steps. “Are you going to walk all the way up there?” she asked, still laughing because seeing him this wild made her laugh.
He was always so cool, calm, and collected.
She had the power to make him different and that was heavy.
“If I look at you,” he said, still looking forward and walking, “we will not make it home.”
“I already told you I was okay with that.” She knew teasing him was not a good idea but she just couldn”t help it.
“Zara,” he said, his voice strained, “I mean this in the nicest possible way. Don”t fucking say anything else until we get to my house.”
She held in a laugh, doing what he asked and staying quiet. When they got to his house, he bounded up the steps, her right behind him as he fumbled with the keys to his door.
“Problems?” she asked, this time letting the laughter out.
He finally got the key in the door, turned the knob, and pushed it open. “Inside. Now.” He held her gaze with an intense stare.
Her body tingled all over. She couldn”t wait for what was to come.
She stepped around him, grazing her fingers along his t-shirt-covered chest. “As you wish.” Teasing him was so fun—even more fun than arguing with him.
He slapped her ass hard before slamming the door behind them. When she turned back to face him, she found him already halfway undressed. His shoes were kicked off and his shirt was on the floor by his feet.
The man wasted no time.
She salivated.
This man was so hot and sexy and even more, he wanted her. It was mind-boggling.
“Clothes off,” he said in his deep voice. “Now.”
Shivers ran through her body at his demand, and for some reason, she wanted to defy him. “And if I don”t take my clothes off?” She cocked her head to the side. “What then?”
His eyes turned even blacker than usual and she saw his Adam”s apple bob as he swallowed. “Then your ass is going to be sore from how hard I”m going to smack it.”
An even bigger shiver rolled through her, and she was pretty sure she was on the verge of an orgasm from only his words. Moving as slow as possible, she kicked off her shoes, unbuttoned her shorts, sliding them ever so slowly down her legs, and then teased him by lifting her shirt deliberately, inch by inch, until it was finally off.
She was left in only her bra and panties.
She knew what her body looked like. She was tall and lean and her boobs were still perky. She’d been an athlete all her life and still liked to run and work out when she had the time. But the way Noah was staring at her made her feel like a goddess.
“God, you’re fucking sexy,” he swore, reaching out and pulling her towards him. Their bodies collided right before their mouths did, and then it was game on.
His large firm hands were gripping and kneading her backside, his fingers slipping underneath her underwear and delving into the crack between her legs where she was already wet and waiting. She moaned at his touch. He didn”t stop there, though. He held her tightly, grinding his erection into her core and moaning into her mouth.
“Can”t get enough of you,” he said against her ear as he bit down hard, eliciting a scream from her.
Her own hands were everywhere, scraping down the skin of his back and then up his sides and over his shoulders. “Noah, please,” she begged, not even sure what she was begging for. All she knew was that she needed him.
“I”ll give you what you want,” he said, flipping her around and quickly bending her over the back of the couch. In one swift move, he pulled her panties from her body, the cool air from the air conditioning hitting her bare ass. Then, like he’d done it a million times before, he unsnapped her bra using just one hand, the scrap of material falling from her body and to the floor.
The crack of his hand on her ass had her hissing out a breath, not in pain but in pleasure. She enjoyed a good spanking during sex, but never had she felt like begging for more.
“Fuck, I like my handprint on your ass,” he said, slapping her again. A little gentler this time.
She looked over her shoulder, locking eyes with him. “Fuck me now, Noah.”
His eyes held her gaze as he pressed his still-covered hard cock against her ass. “Are you on the pill?” he asked, his voice thick with lust.
She nodded. “Yes, and I get tested yearly.” Part of her wanted to make him get a condom because going without was a big step. But she was on the pill, and even more importantly, she trusted Noah.
Something she wasn’t sure she’d ever entirely done with any previous sexual partners.
“I do too and I’d never put you in danger.” He shoved his underwear down his legs, his cock bobbing free and hitting her in the ass.
Fuck, his cock was nice. Really that was too tame a word. She wasn’t even sure there was a good enough word.
“Last chance to back out,” he said, stroking his dick up and down before placing it at her entrance.
She shook her head firmly. “I need you.” That was as real and raw as it got.
Without another word, he gripped her hips and slammed into her body hard and fast. So hard and fast that she cried out, closing her eyes and hanging her head down between her shoulders.
“Yes, please.” It felt so good and when he pulled back out and slid back in again just as hard, it felt even better.
“Fuck, you’re driving me crazy,” he swore, slamming into her again and again, his fingers gripping her hips tightly.
She could hear the need in his voice. The pure animalistic need and it drove her wild.
“Yes, Noah, more.” She wanted him to know that she was right there with him. She wanted all the same things that he wanted. At least when it came to sex.
His hand cracked down on her ass again, making her scream out. His hand came back to her ass this time, soothing her skin as he continued to thrust inside her. Needing just a little bit more friction to make herself get there, she slipped her hand between her legs, stroking her clit as his cock moved in and out of her furiously.
“Yeah, baby,” he said, his breathing heavy, “stroke your clit. Show me how you get yourself off.”
Noah’s dirty talk always did her in, but this time it seemed to have her even more on edge than it had ever before.
After only a few strokes over her clit, she felt herself coming, her back bowing and her head shooting upward as she cried out. Her orgasm tumbled her over an edge she”d never wanted to go over.
Into fucking love with Noah Ashe.
There was no time to think about it or to wonder how she’d gotten to this point when she’d sworn love wasn’t for her. Noah continued to fuck her urgently and before she knew it, she was on the verge of another orgasm.
Which seemed par for the course. If she was in love with him, he better damn well be able to give her multiple orgasms. He lived up to that hype when her release slammed into her at the same time as his. Feeling him come inside her was new. Something she’d never felt before because she”d never gone without a condom. Technically that wasn’t true. She’d let one guy go without, but then promptly fixed her mistake when her mind wouldn’t shut up, and made him pull out.
With Noah, she relished in the feel of him.
Somehow they both ended up in a heap on the floor, her curled in Noah”s arms.
“You know, there”s a couch right here,” she said, happier than she”d been in such a long time.
“It”s your fault we didn”t make it there, you know.” He gave her ass a small pat. “You just had to go and mention ripping a shirt from your body. Once you said that, we were never making it to a bed or a couch. We”re lucky we made it home.”
Hearing him say he wanted her that badly—so badly that they could barely make it home— had her squeezing her legs together again. Shit, she just had two orgasms and she was already wanting him again.
“What was that?” he asked, running his hand up and down her arm.
“What was what?” she turned her head to look at him over her shoulder, feigning innocence.
“That little shiver that just went through your body.”
This man didn”t miss anything. “I don”t know what you”re talking about.”
He turned her in his arms until they were facing each other. “Are you still turned on?” There was definitely amusement in his voice. “Even after two orgasms?”
There was no use in denying it. “When you talk about ripping clothes off my body, it makes me hot.” She”d always been honest during sex with any guy she was seeing, but somehow, being honest with Noah was just slightly more challenging. Probably because her heart was involved and that had never happened before.
She’d never had feelings other than friendship and enjoying sex with any other guy.
“For the record, I always want to rip the clothes from your body and tomorrow night, it”s definitely happening.”
She sighed, content to lie there on the floor in his arms even though her back and hip were hurting. She wasn”t even 30 years old but that didn”t mean her body could handle cuddling on a hard floor.
She liked big fluffy beds with a million pillows and soft couches that you could sink into. Those were where you cuddled.
He stood, lifting out a hand and helping her to her feet. She took a few moments to admire his naked body, his cock already hardening as they stood there.
“What do you say to some food?” Noah asked. “There”s this cool place around the corner that I planned to take you to but then you sidetracked me with sex.”
“I sidetracked you?” She raised an eyebrow in question.
“Yes, with all your talk over wearing an Emperor”s shirt to the game tomorrow night. And for the record, the only thing that would make it better was if you were wearing a shirt with my name on the back. We’d never leave this house.”
She stopped walking, her back going stiff. She was at a loss for words, something that rarely happened. He wanted her to wear a shirt with his name on it. Could she do that? Go out in public wearing something with his name on it, declaring that they were together for the whole world. Before she even knew what she was doing or saying, she stepped away from him, shaking her head. “I can”t do that.” She knew her voice sounded stiff and cold but she couldn”t control it.
“Zara.” The way he said her name, sweet but also firm, made her want to wrap her arms around him, sink into his warmth and let everything else disappear. “I wasn”t asking you to wear a shirt with my name. I think I”m starting to know your limits by now and what you can and can”t handle. I know that wearing a shirt with my name would be a very big step for you. It would be a big step for me too. All I was saying is that I would like it. I was saying how it would make me feel. But that’s on me, not you. You are not responsible for the feelings that I have or the things that I want. I don”t expect you to wear a shirt with my name on it. I didn”t expect you to wear a shirt with my team on it and if you aren”t comfortable with doing that, you don”t have to.”
She heard everything he was saying. Every word. But that didn’t stop an image from appearing in her mind of her wearing a shirt with his name and his number on the back, with her cheering loudly for him as he played. She liked it a little too much.
But she was also afraid.
And this time, fear won out.
“You know, maybe this wasn”t such a good idea. I think I should probably just go.” And still, she stood in front of him, frozen in place. Her brain was telling her to get out but her heart wanted something completely different.
“Fuck,” he swore, the word angry, but not directed at her. He rubbed his hand over his forehead. “I’m sorry, don”t go. I take back everything I said. You don”t have to come to my game or wear my team’s shirt. We don”t even have to talk about any of this.”
“Noah,” she said his name quietly but resolutely. “I”m not saying I don”t want to do this,” she gestured between them. “I”m just saying that I need to go back home. I need to think about this. I need to think about what I want and what I”m capable of. I should have done more of that before I jumped on a plane on a whim and flew here.” The sadness on his face was almost too much to handle. “I’m not giving up on us, you need to know that, but I need a minute. I need to take a breath. Tell me you understand that.”
He nodded. “I understand. I don”t like it and I hate that my actions or words are what have provoked you into feeling like you need space. But, I think I’m starting to understand you.”
Placing a hand on his chest, she closed her eyes and tried not to get caught up in all the emotions she was feeling. She needed to think and decide what she could and couldn”t do. Her desire to see him and be with him had brought her to him without a second thought because that”s who she was. This moment called for something else. She needed time to make sure her heart and brain were aligned. “You deserve more than me being wishy-washy. I don”t want to have these feelings of doubt. This is new. All of it, not just you and me, but feeling this way for me. Don”t give up on me.”
He lowered his head, pressing his forehead against hers. “I don”t even think that”s possible.” He gave her the softest of kisses and she could so easily get lost in it, but knew if she did, she would never leave. So she pulled back even if it was difficult.
She tried for a smile. “Any chance I can get a ride to the airport?”
“Always,” he said. “And I mean that, Zara. Anytime you want to come see me, I will pick you up or drive you back. There”s never pressure to stay. I just want to see you whenever it”s good for you.”
She swallowed back tears, wondering where they were even coming from. She never cried.
Every ounce of her wanted to stay with him in his house, locked inside where the world couldn”t find them. But that wasn”t how life worked. They couldn’t stay in their bubble. She needed to figure her shit out and fast. Because as much as he said he’d wait, she couldn”t make him wait forever.
‘Shit or get off the pot’, as she’d heard Hannah’s dad say more than once.
She gathered her things, packing as quickly as possible. The drive to the airport was strained, the tension from them both palpable. When he pulled up to the drop-off, she got out of his car and turned to look at him one last time. There was a part of her that was scared shitless that this was the last time she’d ever see him.
He might want her but how long was he willing to put up with her neurotic issues and indecision?