Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“Dear me, how happy and good we be, if we had no worries!” ~Louisa May Alcott, Little Women
H allelujah! Six days in a row of waking up sated and breathing in the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. It was the last morning of their undisturbed romantic bubble at the Little Red Barn. Elle and Clayton returned today. Now they’d have to figure out how to see each other when she lived on her brother’s property and Noah’s house was around the corner from her parents.
“Small towns.” Nat sloshed a breath, slipping out of bed.
“Good morning.” Noah greeted her with a cup of coffee and a kiss when she walked into the kitchen.
“I see you’ve been busy this morning.” She motioned to the bowl of freshly cut melon and plates of pancakes and vegan sausage on the counter.
Looping his arms around her middle, he pulled her in close. “I also replaced your expired yogurt with fresh ones and picked you up some salads for the week. I don’t want you starving without me here to cook for you.”
She pouted about that. Tomorrow when she woke, there’d be no Noah in her kitchen. He’d be in his kitchen, and she’d be here eating the yogurt he’d bought her.
“Hey.” He dipped his head, capturing her bottom lip in a reassuring kiss. “We’ll figure it out. Although, if you want to?—”
“Nope,” she interrupted, knowing what he was going to suggest. “I still want to keep this between us…for now.”
“Alright. We’ll work it out.” He leaned back, nibbling on his lips. The sudden arch of his eyebrow was reminiscent of a light bulb turning on. “Are you working at the clinic next Saturday?”
“No. It’s Dad’s week for Saturday clinic.”
“I have to go to Syracuse to speak at a rural business conference?—”
“What?” Her bounce-filled exclamation cut him off. “That’s amazing! You really are the Mark Cuban of Western New York. Will it be videoed? Can I see it?”
A bemused grin flooded his face. “Even better. How would you like to see it in person? We could leave Friday night after you’re done at the clinic. Originally, I just planned on going up Friday and coming back Saturday after the conference, but we could come back Sunday. We could go out to dinner. We could?—”
“Have dirty hotel sex.” She wiggled her hips.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
“It’s a hell yes.” She beamed. “You just gave me an excuse to go shopping after I’m done at the clinic today.”
“Speaking of…” His eyes dropped to the microwave clock. “…You have to leave in an hour, which doesn’t give me much time to eat.”
“That’s plenty of…” Her words faltered as he untied her robe, allowing the fluffy fabric to hit the hardwood. Her breath caught. “Oh!”
Noah lifted her, setting her on the edge of the counter. “I need to get my fill. I’ll be on a diet for the next six days.” He lowered to his knees. The rough pads of his fingers skated along her thighs, guiding her legs open.
“I would never deny you a last meal,” she moaned with the first flick of his tongue across her sex.