Chapter 14
I look through the diary on the computer by the till. Noah has blocked out every Wednesday evening but opens up in the morning. It’s got to be something he’s doing at the gym.
I look over to him in his workspace. “Hey, Noah, what’s with Wednesday night?”
There are two pink spots on his cheeks when he looks up over his workstation, and he bites on the corner of his lip. “I…um, I’m going somewhere on Wednesday evenings for the next few weeks.”
“Oh, okay.” That hasn’t told me anything, yet the only thing that would make sense is a class at the gym.
What classes run on Wednesday evenings? It’s not a night I go there, I usually go to the club on Wednesdays.
Oh, shit! Don’t let that be where he’s going.
He’s far too inexperienced to hit up Bound, they’d eat him alive.
What the fuck did Tate and Roman say? Did they tell him where we went to play?
This is not the way he should go there. If he really wants to explore that part of his sexuality, then I can take him.
That way he’s protected from all the hard-core Doms. Fuck! Hard-core Doms like me.
The image of Noah spread out on a St Andrews cross or strapped to a spanking bench while I flog him. Or drip wax over his nipples and balls. Shit, my dick’s now rock hard and aching, because hello, yes, please. I want to do all of that.
That’s never going to happen unless I make the bloody effort to know him better, to find out what he likes to do outside work.
Pops says he’s quiet and spends his time either reading or sketching.
I’ll invite him out for a drink, maybe some dinner.
Because I can’t keep hiding how much I want to do dirty things to him.
I, at least, need to know if he’s in any way interested in me. The fun stuff can come after that.
Now that I’ve decided to get to know Noah better, the day slows down to a snail’s pace. Finally, we’ve finished, and Noah is cleaning his workstation. He stretches and a sliver of skin appears above his jeans. His back is inked. And now I want to see what it is.
“Do you fancy grabbing a drink and something to eat?”
He looks at me startled, then seems to seriously consider my offer before he nods and agrees.
“Where do you want to go?” he asks as I lock up the studio and pull the shutters down over the door.
“The King’s Head is good. The food’s nice, and they have craft beers on tap.” I gesture to down the street, and he nods.
We walk in silence, something that hadn’t happened before the whole going to the gym debacle.
It’s time to get to the bottom of this. I like him, not just because he’s great at his job, but because there’s something about him that I want to protect.
And strip naked and lick over every inch of his body then turn his arse bright red.
First job is to clear the air, to sort out what was said to him.
The pub isn’t too busy, there are people just like us—wanting a drink after work, although I do recognise more than a few from the club. Noah looks around and points out a booth in the corner by the window. “Shall we sit there?”
God, I love the way he asks a question. It’s like he’s seeking my approval. “Yeah, looks good. What do you want to drink?”
“Just a pint of lager, Stella’s good.” He weaves through the tables, and I notice the interesting looks on both the men and the women in here.
Despite being quite short, his looks are striking.
His dirty blond hair is messy from the number of times he’s run his fingers through it.
His body is slim, and he moves gracefully to get to the booth.
Of course, he’s totally oblivious to the attention and sits down and looks back at me.
I get the drinks, snag a couple of menus and tuck them under my arm. “I got these too.” I place the beer on the table and hand him one of the laminated sheets. I sit next to him rather than opposite, making it more intimate.
“Th…thanks.” Noah stumbles over the word, and rather than look at me, he takes a drink. I copy him, downing about a third of it. He chuckles. “You did need that.”
I lick the foam from my beer off my top lip, noticing him follow my tongue, then swallow heavily. “The burgers here are really good. They do something to them. I don’t know what, but they taste awesome.”
“Sold, I’ll have one of them.” Noah smiles and seems to relax a little.
I pick up the menus and go and place our order. When I get back, he’s chewing on the corner of his lip again, his bright blue eyes flicking from me to his drink to me again.
“You look like you’ve got something on your mind, you can talk to me or ask me anything.” I put my hand on his forearm, he looks at it for a second, I wait for him to pull away. But he doesn’t, his eyes lift to mine, and it’s like he’s searching for something. “Talk to me, Noah.”
“Your dad said that we’re like ostriches or something because we have our heads buried in the sand.”
I sit back. That is not what I expected to hear. I thought it would be about Tate and Roman, that he has questions about them and me.
He looks at me shrewdly, expertly reading my expressions. “You thought I was going to ask about the friendly conversation I had with your two fuck buddies? You’re all adults, and it’s nothing to do with me.”
I can tell that he’s brushing it aside. I can read body language. As a Dom, I know what’s not being spoken aloud, but I can come back to that. I need to work out what my dad is on about.
“I’m gonna come back to that later. I don’t understand what you mean by ostriches?”
Noah’s head tips back, and his eyes close as he takes a deep breath before straightening up and looking at me again.
“I’ve learnt in the time I’ve been living with your parents that they are open and honest about everything, and I mean everything.
And on Sunday Robin decided to tell me that I had to recognise the submissive in me and accept that you’re a Dominant, and that we should work our shit out.
Oh, and that we look at each other or something like that. ”
It’s my turn to close my eyes. Bloody great! That’s all I need, meddling dads. “Shit, I’m sorry, Noah. He shouldn’t have said anything like that to you.”
“Is it true, though?” he asks, and I’m not sure which part he’s asking me to clarify. The fact that I watch him, that I’m a Dom, or that we’re perfect for each other. “Do you watch me? Are you interested in me?”
Now there’s a loaded question. But before I can answer, our food arrives, and by the time we’ve got everything we want, Noah has looked away from me.
The interlude while we eat gives me time to think of an appropriate answer, and I think honesty is the only way to go.
I am interested in him, very interested, but he’s too innocent to be introduced to the BDSM scene.
After Noah has eaten about half his burger, he puts it down and looks at me again. “Are you going to answer me, or is it ostrich time again?”
“Where’s this coming from? I’m your boss, of course I watch you.” I know I’ve said a dumb thing and when Noah rolls his eyes, I know he knows too.
“You weren’t my boss when we were at the gym, and you couldn’t stop watching me. You were pissed off with your two shiny toys, so I was thinking that maybe you do like me. Am I right?”
Okay, here goes nothing.