Chapter 14
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Noah
He hadn”t been lying when he’d told Zara that he would sleep with her underwear under his pillow. That”s exactly what he’d done for the last two nights.
It didn”t make him miss her any less, but it did give him a little bit of comfort. So did knowing she would be there in just a day.
They’d talked many times during the last couple of days. Texting, calls, and FaceTime. He always preferred FaceTime to anything else because then, at least, he got to see her face. He loved looking at her while talking. Her dark skin, her hair pulled up on her head haphazardly, and the smattering of freckles she had over her nose.
They hadn”t veered into anything sexual over the phone, and that was fine by him. He wanted to be touching her the next time he came. His dick was starting to get annoyed with him about that.
He understood her reluctance to want to get into a relationship and her fear of actually doing it. He knew she was used to being good at things, and she feared so badly being bad at this, but what she didn”t get was that she couldn”t possibly be bad at it. He didn”t care. He liked everything about her, from the way she rolled her eyes down to the fluorescent green nail polish on her toenails.
Green was his least favorite color, but on Zara, he loved it.
He tried not to push, not to prod, and not to beg her to come to visit him sooner whenever they talked. He knew, at some point, it was going to boil over, and he was going to say something that took him back ten steps. He was just hoping that by then, she”d know how he felt about her.
He hadn”t told her he loved her, even though he knew he did. Not only that, he was pretty sure she knew he did too. It was only a matter of time before those words slipped out of his mouth, especially once she was in his bed again.
His game had just ended, and he was returning to his house when a call came through over his car speaker. He answered it quickly, knowing it would be Zara. They”d gotten into a habit of sorts, where she called him on his way home from games at night.
She bypassed all hellos as soon as he answered and went straight into a rant.
“I swear to God, if Henderson does that again, I will drop him as a client. How dare he throw that ball at your head.”
He knew this would be her reaction the second the pitcher had almost hit him with the ball. He lucked out, ducking just in time, but it was still a scary moment. After the game, Henderson made sure he stopped by to tell him that it was not on purpose. The ball had just gotten away from him.
“He didn”t do it on purpose,” Noah told her.
“You don”t know that. People say things all the time, and I like Henderson, but sometimes he can be a real asshole, and I”m going to tell him that.”
He loved how hot and bothered she was. How protective she was of him. “You know I don”t need you to fight my battles for me, right?”
“Wrong. It is my job to fight your battles.”
“You”re not my agent, so no, it”s not your job.”
“I’m not talking about my job as your agent. I”m talking about my job as your girl—”
She stopped mid-word, and he couldn”t help but smile. “What was that you were about to say?”
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she swore, and it sounded like she walked away from her phone. “Can we maybe just forget I said that?” her voice was louder again, letting him know she’d moved back towards the phone.
“Since I didn”t actually hear anything, there”s nothing for me to forget.” If she could see the giant grin on his face, she would want to slap him. Nothing made him happier than hearing that she was about to call herself his girlfriend.
“Perfect. You didn”t hear anything, so there”s nothing to forget.”
“You know what, now that I think about it, I did hear something.” Goading her was at the top of his favorite things to do to her. It was directly under ‘lick her pussy’ and ‘fuck her silly’.
She groaned. “You know what, I take it back. Even if I was going to say what I almost said, I can not possibly be the girlfriend of a guy who annoys me this much.”
“Oh, you can”t, can you?” He was laughing out loud now, unable to control himself.
“You”re making fun of me.” He heard laughter in her voice.
“I”m not. I”m just over here relishing in the fact that you called yourself my girlfriend.” He paused for a second. “For the record, I think of myself as your boyfriend even though it”s a super weird word, and I”m not a boy.”
“It is a weird word. How has society not come up with a better phrase for what people are to each other when they”re dating.”
“I think they have. Partner, lover, those are both words with similar meetings.”
“Partner is just blah, and I get it if you were a woman and I was a woman. Then you could be my partner, but you can also be my girlfriend, and lover is just...well, it”s a Taylor Swift song, so it”s not that bad.”
“We”re back to song lyrics, I see.” In the last few days, he”d learned of her obsession with song lyrics and naming who the singer was. They couldn”t seem to get through one conversation without her finding one in his words.
“I changed my mind. We can call each other lovers. If it’s good enough for Taylor, it’s good enough for me.”
“If it”s alright with you, I”ll stick to girlfriend and boyfriend.” At least for now. In the future, he had another word that he definitely wanted to call her.
Wife.
He wasn’t afraid of the word. Not any longer. Not in a long time, really. He’d pretty much known she was it for him years ago. He was just happy that, somehow, she was his.
At least until she ran again.
He wasn’t worried. He’d chase her no matter where she went.
They went on to talk until he got home and well after. Her voice helped lull him to sleep, and when he woke up the following day, his phone was still beside his pillow, where he’d left it while talking to her.
Falling asleep without her voice in his ear was only going to get more difficult. He”d gotten so used to it the last few days that he was pretty sure he”d sacrifice a limb if she would forever talk to him while he fell asleep.
The day he’d been waiting for had finally come. The day he was going to get to see Zara again. But first, he had a routine to follow and a game to play, starting with a light run with Heath.
They met in a local park that was reasonably quiet where they could get a run in rather than be inundated with fans. He didn”t mind the fans. In fact, he enjoyed them most of the time. There were just some times when he wanted the peace and quiet of being without them.
He was already stretching when Heath sauntered up. “I hear Zara will be here tonight.” He raised his eyebrows in question.
“Keeping tabs on her?”
“Nah, Hannah told me, made me promise, actually, that if you and she got in another thing, I had to let her stay with me.”
“We”re not going to get into another thing.” God, please let them not get into another thing. He”d been looking forward to these two days all week. He wasn”t sure he could take it if she had another freak out and left.
“I”ve known Zara for a long time, and I have to say, I”m shocked it”s gotten this far between you two.”
They started their jog slowly, each of them warming up. “Did she never date?” he asked curiously, even though she”d told him it was always just sex before.
“Not that I know of. I mean, I’ve seen her out with guys over the years, dancing or having fun. But it was never anything more than that. And I definitely never heard her talk about a guy in normal conversation.”
That piqued his interest. “She talks about me?”
Heath groaned, throwing his head back. “What is this middle school? Yes, she”s talked about you to Hannah and Cecilia and probably to all the other ladies in Valley Falls. She’s even mentioned your name to me in conversation.”
He so badly wanted to ask what she said but didn’t want to come off needy, even if he was. Luckily for him, Heath was a talker.
“I don”t think she knows she”s talking about you when she does it. We’ll be talking about something random, and she”ll say something like, ‘well, Noah does this or Noah said that.’ It”s getting a little out of control.”
The smile on his face grew, and he knew he had to look like an idiot, but it made him so happy that she talked about him in her everyday conversations.
“What”s going on with you?” Noah asked as they picked up their pace.
“I”m just dreading this stupid auction tomorrow night. I do not want to go at all, and this woman from the shelter is a pain in my ass. She”s calling me all the time asking me dumb questions like do I have my tux, do I know the address of the hotel, and what my plan is for the date with the winner. I don”t fucking know what the plan is for the winner because I don”t even want to go on a date.”
Noah had never seen Heath so obviously agitated and angry. “It”s for charity and a pretty good one at that. I”m not sure why you”re so against it.”
“I do not want to do a bachelor auction. I’m not twenty-two anymore. I don”t want to be auctioned off to some woman who’s salivating over me.”
“It”s not like you”re required to date this woman or have sex with her. It”s an outing, a dinner, something simple. You go out, take a few pictures, thank her, and move on.”
“ You think it”s so easy. Why don”t you come do it?”
“No, thank you. I have plans that involve Zara and my bed. Not being hit on by someone I don’t even know.”
“First, can I just say barf?” He mimicked throwing up.” And second, you don”t like the idea either, so why the fuck are you giving me shit?”
“Dude, you”re single. What does it matter? If I were single, I would do it.”
“That”s how it is, then? It”s been a week, and you’re already saying you”re in a relationship with Zara. After a week. A freaking week.” He was shaking his head as he ran.
“How long is it supposed to take? Do you think I need a month? Two months? That”s not how it works.”
“How what works?” He stopped running, forcing Noah to come to a stop with him.
“Love. When you fall in love, there is no timetable.”
Heath cursed, leaning down and bracing his hands on his knees. “You”re in love with her? Like seriously in love with her? Why does everybody I know keep falling in love?”
“It”s not a disease.”
“Might as well be.”
“You know, if you”re going to be this negative, I’m going to stop running with you.”
“Good luck finding someone to put up with your bullshit.” Heath started running again, Noah falling into stride next to him. The rest of the run was pretty silent, both of them concentrating on their runs. After they’d finished their three miles, they parted ways, Noah heading directly to the gym. He liked to get in a small workout if he could before night games and then relax and chill before heading to the ballpark.
After his workout, he was leaving the gym and headed back to his home when his phone vibrated in his pocket. He smiled, thinking it was probably Zara, but when he pulled it from his pocket, he saw that it was, in fact, Hannah.
“Hey, Hannah, what”s up?” He pulled his ball cap lower, hoping not to be recognized as he walked down the street.
“I have an emergency, and I know you”re going to kill me, but I need you to do something for me.” She sounded frantic.
“You can ask me anything, you know that.” In the few months Hannah had been his agent, they’d become friends. He knew she wouldn’t ask him for anything unless it was important.
“You say that, but this will test your limits of what anything means.”
Fear crept in. “I guess you’ll never know if you don”t ask.”
“I need you to be in the animal shelter auction tomorrow night, and yes, I know, Zara is coming. I already talked to her, and she”s super annoyed but also completely on board because it”s one of her big things and I was going to stand in for her so that she could spend time with you, and now we had a guy who dropped out, and we really need another big name, and I need it to be you.”
She’d rambled for so long that she was out of breath. “Take a breather. Who dropped out?” Not that he would say yes, but it didn’t hurt to ask.
“Lamar Whitaker. He had a family emergency, and now he can”t do it, and seriously, I need you. You are the only person remotely high profile enough to fill in.”
He whistled into the phone. Lamar Whitaker was the biggest name in professional football. Finding a replacement would be hard. “I understand your dilemma, but this is LA. There are plenty of big name athletes around.”
“Anyone willing has already signed up. Noah, I need you. Please, you have to do this for me. And really, if you think about it, it’s for Zara. This auction is her baby.”
He sighed. “I don”t want to do this. I want my protest to be known.”
“Zara said you”d say that, and I completely understand that I”m ruining your weekend with her, but I promise I”ll make it up to you. I will find you a great sponsorship from some awesome company.”
“I already have great sponsorships.” Thanks to her being a fantastic agent. “What I want is to spend time with Zara.”
“I can make that happen. She”s my best friend. I can easily fix it so that you can have all the time in the world with her wherever you want.”
“If that were a promise I remotely thought you could deliver on, I’d give you whatever you wanted.” He laughed even though he felt like crying. He was losing his night with Zara.
His weekend of doing nothing but fucking her between games was gone.
“Zara”s going to call you and give you all the details. She’s just as annoyed as you are and says I’m losing my position as her best friend. Only you can smooth this over.”
“You are going to owe me.”
“Listen, if Edwin lets me, I’ll name this baby after you.”
He stopped walking, unsure if he’d heard her correctly. “What? What baby?”
“Shit. I am horrible at keeping a secret.”
“Are you pregnant?” All his anger over joining the bachelor auction was gone.
“Yes, but you can not tell anyone. It”s supposed to be a secret, and so far, I’ve told about a half dozen people. Apparently, pregnancy brain makes me tell the truth.”
Noah laughed. “My lips are sealed. You will be a great mom, Hannah.”
“I”m glad you think so because I still have my doubts.”
His phone beeped, and when he pulled it away from his ear, he saw it was Zara. “Your co-conspirator is calling.”
“Take it, and don”t tell anybody that I told you I’m pregnant. Act surprised when you hear the news.”
He laughed, saying goodbye and answering Zara’s call. “I hear I”m doing a bachelor auction tomorrow night.” No use in beating around the bush.
“I know, I know. It sucks, and you have every right to hate me, but I don”t know what else to do. I helped facilitate this with the animal shelter, and I sort of feel like I have to make it work. Hannah had taken over for me so that I could come to see you, and now it”s all falling apart, and you”re my only option. Please don”t hate me.” He could hear the desperation in her voice.
“I don”t hate you. It just sucks that I will lose the whole night with you. I had plans. Ones that involve you in my bed naked except for maybe some handcuffs strapped to your wrists.”
“We can do it. I promise. I”ll make up for all the plans you had. I”ll let you handcuff me to the bed the whole night if you want. Plus, if you think about it, I”ll be with you at the auction, so really it”ll be like we”re together.” She was working hard to sell it to him even when he could tell she was just as unhappy about the situation.
He chuckled. “I highly doubt it”ll be like we”re together when I”m being auctioned off to some random woman for a date.”
“First, it could be a guy who bids on you. You have no idea, and second, I”m not really happy about the ‘you being auctioned off’ part of the night, but everybody knows going into it that these are platonic dates. It”s for charity. I”ve done these before in the past with other organizations, and nobody thinks they”re real dates. If that were the case, I wouldn”t be letting you do this.”
“Letting me do this?” The thought of her being a little possessive turned him on.
“Yes, letting you do this. Girlfriends don”t let their boyfriends go to bachelor auctions to sleep with other women.”
“Or men,” he added, trying to lighten the mood.
“Can you be serious for a second,” she said, the annoyance in her voice evident. “Is this okay? Are you okay with doing this? I would never make you do something that you don”t want to do or that you can”t do. If this is too much for you, I will figure out a way to make it work without you.”
He knew she was asking about his panic attacks, and he put her mind at ease immediately. “This would not cause a panic attack. They don”t come from being in the public eye. I”m good at it. I like being around people, talking to them, and....”
“Letting women ogle you,” she finished for him.
“That too.”
“I”m going to owe you big time for this. Anything you want, it”s yours.”
He stayed silent because the only thing he wanted was her, forever. He was pretty sure this was not the right moment to let that slip.
“Heath is going to give me so much shit for this. I want you to know that. All he did this morning was bitch about it during our run.”
“He”s being a giant baby about it, and I don’t know why. He usually likes this sort of stuff.”
“I sort of got the impression that he”s sick of being single. Although I’ve never pegged him as a guy who wanted to settle down.”
“He has layers,” Zara said. “Something I’m only now realizing after knowing him for over ten years.”
“I have full faith that you’ll peel those layers back and figure out what his deal is.” She was tenacious if she was anything. That was one of her best qualities.
The line went quiet for a few seconds. “I can”t wait to see you tonight.” Her voice was soft, breathy, and full of honesty.
“It’s going to be hard as hell playing that game knowing that you”ll be at my house waiting for me.”
“Just keep remembering what you’ll find when you get home. I”ll be naked in your bed. Maybe I”ll even use those handcuffs you were talking about.”
He swore, his cock growing in his shorts. “Do not put that mental image in my head. I’ll never make it through the game.”
She laughed, deep and sexy. “You don’t want me to wait for you naked, handcuffed to your bed?”
“Fuck yeah, I do. I just don’t want to have a boner when I’m wearing a cup. That is not comfortable.”
They switched back to talking about the auction, Zara giving him several more details about how the night would go. He would have loved to stay on the phone with her, but she had to get back to work, and he needed to make himself lunch. After lunch, he double-checked that he had a tuxedo in his closet and that it was clean. He’d purchased one a couple of years ago because buying was more accessible than renting, and he never knew when he would unexpectedly need one.
This was a prime example.
In the back of his closet, he also found the box that housed his handcuffs and a few other toys he’d purchased over the last year. He’d never used any of them, but had purchased them on a whim, with Zara in mind. Deciding to see just how far she”d go, he set the box on his bed with the lid open.
He couldn”t fucking wait to get home tonight.