16. Georgie
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
GEORGIE
If I thought Noah was an impossibly perfect person before, seeing him here and interacting with all the dogs confirms that even more.
This man is a gentle giant, like a little kid as he runs around and plays literal football with the rescues in the outdoor area.
Birdie and I watch from the sidelines in the shaded area like the classy ladies we are, and I realize just how connected I already feel to her.
He comes to settle in the shade after a while, and he lays across the platform where we’re sitting, settling his head in my lap.
Birdie leans down to give him a nose kiss and he smiles up at me. “So, what do you think of my favourite place?”
“You never told me you were bringing me to your favourite place.” I feel the blush creep into my cheeks.
“Well.” he shrugs, unsure what to say.
He closes his eyes and I take him in. His eyelashes are impossibly long and dark against his cheeks.
I look at Birdie, who looks at me with her sad little face, then rests her head back on Noah’s chest like this is how it’s meant to be.
I only realize I’ve been absentmindedly carding my fingers through his soft, fluffy golden bronze hair when the man makes the prettiest noise I have ever heard in my life, a cross between a gasp and a sigh and a whimper.
Not the painful kind either, the kind of whimper that flutters the butterflies in your belly and… other places.
When his eyes open, his pupils are huge and he’s blushing. “Sorry, I—”
“Why are you sorry?” I say with a laugh.
“I’m just—it feels good, and I normally don’t make those very manly noises out loud and—” He makes a similar noise when this time I use my nails to massage his scalp. His eyes roll back and the grin on his face grows.
“And?” I continue my motions.
He sighs, “And… Believe me I’d let you do it all day if I could but if you don’t stop, we’re going to have… an issue I cannot rectify.”
I don’t understand what he means until my fingers catch in a tangle, and he hisses, looking at me with that look that makes me wet in an instant, and his hands fumble to adjust the fanny pack.
“Oh.” I blush.
“Yeah. Oh.” He says with flaming hot cheeks.
Me. I did that. I can’t help but look, then quickly glance away. Birdie glances lazily between the two of us, huffing and walking towards the door to go back inside.
I nod in her direction, “Guess we should follow Birdie’s lead.”
“Guess so.” He groans when he has to get up, turns away no doubt to adjust the situation I caused, and I can’t help but feel slightly proud of myself.
We corral the dogs, Noah guiding each one to their respective kennels.
He doesn’t seem mad about the situation before this, which is good because it was an honest happy accident, literally.
But he’s quiet, possibly embarrassed, and covering himself with the fanny pack and his sweater for the foreseeable future.
The entire time, I can’t help but think about the noises he made, and the blown away look in his eyes.
I can’t help but wonder if it was because of what I was doing to accidentally make that happen, or because it was me who did it.
All I know is I want it again, to feel him relax into me again with parted lips and a gasp caught in his lungs.
It makes my mouth dry thinking about it.
“Thirsty?”
“I’m sorry what?” I choke, finding Noah holding out a drink bottle to me.
“Thirsty?” He says again with a smile, wiggling the blue bottle of what I think may be juice at me. I take it, the sweet elixir of blue raspberry filling my senses.
“What is this?”
“Blue raspberry lemonade Kool-Aid.”
“Wow.” I take a sip, and I’ll admit it’s really good. Like my childhood coming back in waves. I snort at his indignation, “How old are we?”
“Hey.” He pouts, trying to take back the bottle. “I only share my good stuff with people I like. But if you’re not worthy of the precious, I will revoke your privileges.”
I only share my good stuff with people I like.
“No!” I gulp the rest down before he can take it, flashing what I assume is a blue-stained teeth grin in his direction.
“Really mature.” He nods to himself but it’s all in playfulness.
I half expect us to part ways when we reach the craft store, but when I stop, and he keeps walking, Noah turns to me and says, “A true gentleman always walks the lady home after they’ve been playing with dogs all day,”
“Wow, you really know how to charm a woman,” I tease him slightly, but damn it I hate that I mean it too.
He really could charm the pants off anyone. Dogs, humans, aliens. The possibilities are endless. And he’d do it just by hitting them with that award-winning smile, just by being himself. It’s infuriating, and I love everything about it.