by Paige Tyler
He took the ceramic pot from its heating element, glancing at Peyton as he set it on a metal trey in the shape of a chicken. “Hope I didn’t scare you with all that talk of moving you to someplace you couldn’t be found. I would never do that unless I really had to, if it means keeping you safe.”
She reached out and put her hand on his arm, feeling the corded muscles beneath her fingers. It was difficult to describe the comfort she felt having him this close. “You didn’t scare me. The opposite in fact. It’s nice knowing I have somebody who’d do anything necessary to keep me safe.”
He gazed down at her warmly, and for a moment, Peyton thought he was going to kiss her. And despite the belief that they were two different to ever get together, she was more than ready to let him. Even if it was right in the middle of his mom’s kitchen.
But then Laurissa and Tabitha were calling out from the table, telling them to hurry up with the food, and the moment was gone.
“You ready to have dinner with Tabitha, the super fan?” Noah asked, a grin replacing the intense look that had been there mere seconds before as he picked up the tray. “Something tells me she’s going to talk your ear off tonight.”
Peyton laughed. “I’m not too worried about that. There’s a reason I have two of them.”
CHAPTER SIX
IT WAS WELL after ten by the time Noah pulled his SUV into the driveway of Peyton’s home and turned off the engine. It was only then that he realized how tired he was. And that his ears were actually ringing a little bit. Turns out Tabitha could be really loud when she was excited about something.
“Are all fans like that?” he asked as they sat there in the vehicle.
Peyton leaned back in her seat, stretching like a cat. “Like what?”
He grinned. “As intense as Tabitha. I’m surprised you had a chance to eat, the way she kept bombarding you with questions.”
“Oh!” Peyton laughed. “Most of them are exactly like that. But those are the best kind of fans. I love meeting people like Tabitha, people who are as excited about my characters as I am. It lets me know they’re invested completely in the story, and that’s what it’s all about.”
He gave her a sidelong glance, his hands still resting on the steering wheel. “But it’s a story. They know that, right?”
“Sure. But the very best books are those that grab the readers and pull them in anyway. It gives them characters they care about and fall in love with. It’s a total escape from the rest of the world.”
Noah considered that. When Peyton put it that way, he supposed it made sense. Tabitha had looked like it was Christmas morning when she’d recognized Peyton standing in the kitchen. And even Laurissa’s eyes had been shining bright as the three of them talked about the characters and plot lines in Peyton’s books. Hell, even his mom joined in a few times, which shocked the crap out of Noah. He had no idea she even read, much less books about young adults. He found himself smiling at the thought. The whole evening had definitely been a learning experience, but he had to admit he enjoyed himself.
In the beginning, he’d been half afraid his mother would pull out photos of him as a baby or something equally horrifying. But thankfully, she was on her best behavior. Just as importantly, she also didn’t bring up the topic of Peyton being in danger or Noah being her bodyguard. That was something he didn’t want to discuss in front of Tabitha.
Instead, Tabitha begged for spoilers about what was going to happen next in the series. Spoilers that Peyton refused to give her. Laurissa’s friend had been totally bummed by that until Peyton promised to get her into the release party on Saturday and a signed copy of the new book coming out. Tabitha pretty much lost her mind. Five minutes later, she was on her phone excitedly texting all her friends. He guessed it didn’t take much to make a super fan happy.
“Come on. Time to get you inside.”
Stepping out of the SUV, he quickly walked around to open the passenger door before she could do it herself. Not only did he like being a gentleman, but he didn’t want her outside by herself with him on the other side of the vehicle. The chances of there being someone lurking around waiting for a moment like that was slim, but he wasn’t ready to take any chances.
“Stay here while I check the rest of the house,” he said once they were in the living room with the front door locked and all the first-floor lights on. The look Peyton gave him told him she didn’t think it was necessary, but she didn’t say anything as he headed up the stairs.
He checked each room quickly, slipping from Peyton’s bedroom to the guest room, workout room, then finishing up with the home office. Her laptop was exactly where she’d left it and there wasn’t any indication that anything had been touched.
As he headed down the stairs, Noah replayed the conversation he had with his mom before they left. The one where she’d once again tried her hand at playing matchmaker.
“Peyton is a very attractive woman,” his mom had pointed out while filling a plastic container with leftover chili for them. “She has a good head on her shoulders, too. You could do worse.”
Noah sighed. “That’s all true, but right now, she’s depending on me to keep her safe. That’s what I’m focused on.”
“As you should be,” his mother agreed. “But this bodyguard thing isn’t going to last forever. When she’s safe, there’s no reason you can’t continue to see her. Unless you’re worried about there being some other man in her life.”
He couldn’t help but chuckle as he took the container from his mom, wondering if she already knew the answer to that. “Peyton doesn’t have a boyfriend.”
His mother beamed. “I knew you liked her. And don’t try to deny it. If you didn’t like her, you wouldn’t bother finding out if she had a boyfriend or not. So, when this is situation is taken care of, I’ll be expecting to see you two spending time together.”
Noah had opened his mouth to tell his mother there was no reason to assume Peyton had any interest in a man whose job pulled him off to one hellhole after another with little or no warning, but before he got the words out, she walked away, leaving him with nothing to do but to shake his head in amusement at how simple she made the world out to be sometimes.
When he got downstairs, Noah found Peyton standing in the living room in the same exact spot he’d left her.
“Everything looks good,” he said.
Peyton might like to claim she wasn’t in any danger, but there was no mistaking the relief in her eyes.
“I should get to bed then,” she said. “I had a great time tonight.”
“Me, too,” he said, and realized he meant it.
Best damn date-that-wasn’t-a-date he’d ever been on.
Noah watched Peyton disappear upstairs, then took a quick walk around the property outside before coming back in to check the doors and windows. Then he grabbed his toiletry kit from his bag over behind the couch, dropped his phone, wallet, and keys on the coffee table and headed for the downstairs bathroom. Slipping inside, he left the door open just enough to be able to hear anything while he showered, then took off his clothes. He stepped into the shower just as the water turned on upstairs.
The thought of Peyton standing naked in the shower had his cock springing to attention. He groaned and reached for the all-in-one shampoo/shower gel he’d brought from home, then squeezed some into his hand and lathered it fiercely into his hair, hoping it would get the image of a very sexy, very naked Peyton out of his head.
It didn’t help.
As the suds ran down his chest, he imagined Peyton standing in the shower with him so close they were almost touching. He pictured her creamy skin slick with water, her nipples peeking out through the soap bubbles. In his mind’s eye, he cupped her breasts, wiping the foam away with his thumbs and revealing the rosy tips underneath to give them a squeeze. In the fantasy, his hands moved downward, gliding over her hips and around to cup that perfect butt so he could get a grip and pull her against him. From there, he could do so many things.
The possibilities were limited only by his imagination, and while he might not be a writer, he had a very good imagination when it came to making love to beautiful women.
His shaft throbbed between his legs, sending a tremor through him.
Noah cursed and rinsed the last of the soap away, then turned off the hot water and turned on the cold full force, gritting his teeth as the icy spray washed over his body.
An hour ago, he’d been telling his mother he couldn’t think about anything but keeping Peyton safe. So why was he torturing himself with fantasies of something he couldn’t have? Maybe because he was a glutton for punishment.
Turning off the water, he climbed out of the shower and grabbed a towel from the rack. He dried off, then wrapped the towel around his waist and pushed open the partially closed door only to walk right into Peyton when he stepped into the hallway. She was wearing a tiny pair of shorts and a tank top that cupped her breasts the same way he’d imagined his hands doing earlier. He swallowed hard and tried not to look at all that expanse of skin.
He mumbled something he hoped sounded intelligible and moved to step around her as Peyton did the same. Their feet tangled and she stumbled. He caught her arms to steady her at the same time she put her hands on his bare chest. She gazed up at him with mesmerizing eyes, her lips parting ever so slightly.
Before he could even process why this wasn’t a good idea, he bent his head and kissed her. Her lips were soft and sweet under his, and he buried his fingers in her long hair, wanting—needing—more. She tasted like minty toothpaste and strawberries, and the combination almost brought him to his knees.
Peyton moaned against his mouth, gliding her hands up his chest to grip his shoulders and hold on tight as she kissed him back. The realization she wanted him as much as he wanted her was like an intoxicating drug sending desire surging through his blood, and he let out a groan of his own as her tongue played a sexy game of hide-and-seek with his.
Under the towel, his cock pitched a tent, all set to make camp for the night.
Noah was sliding his other hand down to cup her ass so he could pull her closer when a high-pitched noise filled the house. It took him a minute to realize it was his cell phone ringing. As much as he wanted to say the hell with it, years of being a SEAL made him drag his mouth away from Peyton’s. Business before pleasure.
“I have to get that.”
She pulled back, looking a tad bit dazed as she nodded her head, even swaying a little on her feet as he hurried into the living room to grab his phone off the coffee table where he’d left it earlier.
“Bradley,” he said without looking at the name on the screen, too focused on getting his breathing back under control.
“Hey, Noah, it’s Sam. I didn’t wake you up, did I?”
Noah cleared his throat as he looked down at the towel covering his crotch and almost laughed. “No. What’s up?”
Your cock, a smartass voice sounded off in his head. Fortunately, that voice wasn’t capable of talking to his Teammate at the moment.
“We just sat through another intel brief with Agent Woods,” Sam said. “He said some stuff I thought you might want to know about. Nothing earth shattering, but definitely interesting.”
Noah took a deep breath and let it out slowly, using the distraction of Sam’s voice to get himself back under control. He was only partially successful, but at least his bath towel wasn’t tenting as badly as before.
“According to Woods, Magpie and his organization are under tremendous pressure to come through with alternative sources of funding for their terrorist network. We’re talking huge amounts of money in a very short period of time. If he doesn’t come up with it, he may not live long enough to regret it.”
Noah snorted. “I guess the world of terrorists is one of those what-have-you-done-for-me lately kind of deals. Does Woods think you guys will get called out to go after him soon?”
There was a moment of hesitation before Sam answered. “Actually, Woods thinks Magpie might be somewhere in the U.S. involved personally in a quick score to get the heat off himself.”
It took less than a second for the implications of Sam’s words to sink in. Noah suddenly understood exactly why his buddy had called so late. He tried to tell himself the odds Magpie was here in southern California were slim. Somewhere in the U.S. wasn’t exactly very definitive and there were thousands of other places the man could go looking for a quick score.
Still, Sam was calling for a reason.
“You think Magpie may have been behind the break-in at Peyton’s house, don’t you?” Noah asked, praying he was wrong.
There was another long pause. “I don’t know, but as soon as Woods said that crap about Magpie possibly being in the country, Wes and Lane both looked at me. We were all thinking the same thing. And you were the one who pointed out how much money her book would be worth on the open market. Something like that might be enough to draw Magpie out of hiding.”
“You didn’t say anything about this to Woods, did you?” Noah asked.
He wasn’t sure if he was more worried about the information getting back to Chasen and headquarters or because they wouldn’t let him keep protecting Peyton.
“No way,” Sam said. “Not on just a hunch. And not when you’re personally invested in keeping Peyton safe.”
He was tempted to say it wasn’t like that, to insist there was no personal investment. But the kiss that had happened a few minutes ago made that a lie.
“But just because we didn’t say anything doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be extra careful,” Sam added. “The second you get the slightest hint this is anything more than some random book thief, call us for backup, okay?”
After promising he’d call if anything happened and making sure Sam would let him know if anything more definitive turned up with Magpie, Noah hung up. Then he stood there, worrying what the hell he should do next.
There was a part of him—located south of his belly button—that urged him to run after Peyton and get back to what they’d been doing a little while ago. Preferably on the nearest horizontal surface. But at the same time, a more intelligent part suggested that maybe he needed to slow down a little. Some of it had to do with this latest concern over Magpie and that the man might be behind the effort to steal Peyton’s book. If so, he’d try again and would likely stop at nothing to get what he wanted. Violence was a given.
But while Noah accepted that getting sexually—and probably emotionally—involved with the woman you were trying to keep safe wasn’t the brightest idea, he also accepted that wasn’t the thing making him hesitate at the moment. As insane as it sounded, there was something else going on between him and Peyton. Something he didn’t want to screw up. For the first time ever, he found himself wanting more from a woman than a good time. It was one of those stop-the-presses kind of moment. He liked Peyton—a lot—and he couldn’t help but wonder if that meant he needed to take things slowly with her.
He found Peyton standing at the counter in the kitchen, her back to him as she squirted whipped cream into two mugs of hot chocolate. He stopped, watching her from behind as she worked. The sight of those sexy little shorts and the tank top bunched up just enough to reveal a little glimpse of skin at her waist almost made him groan. It was scary that he could be so attracted and aroused by a simple flash of flesh like that. The urge to step forward and run his fingers across that tiny sliver of perfection was damn near impossible to resist.
But he did. Because he wanted this to work out. And he doubted it would if they ended up naked on the kitchen floor.
“Sprinkles?” she asked suddenly.
Noah looked up to see her looking at him over her shoulder, her eyes warm and playful. The smile curving her lips was
sensual, making him question his decision-making process.
“In your cocoa,” she added.
He jerked his gaze from those sinful lips down to the mugs, trying to comprehend what the hell she was talking about. It took a second for his mind to recalibrate and finally notice the little plastic shaker bottle of chocolate flakes in her hand.
“No. Thanks,” he finally managed to answer. “I prefer my hot chocolate straight.”
Peyton laughed, taking a moment to shake a few of the chocolate sprinkles onto the top of one of the whipped cream covered mugs of cocoa before handing him the other one. She took a quick sip, leaving the most adorable trace of cream on her upper lip.
Regardless of his earlier plan, he didn’t try and stop himself. He merely set his cocoa on the counter and bent his head to swipe the whipped cream away with his tongue. The taste was so sweet he groaned out loud. And the delicious favor had absolutely nothing to do with the topping.
Peyton’s mug joined his on the counter and then her arms were around his neck, dragging him down for a deeper kiss.
The sounds she made as they kissed, the feel of her breasts pressing against his chest through the thin material of her tank top, and the wiggle of her tongue had Noah hard as a rock all over again and ready to tear the towel aside and take her right there in the kitchen.
That’s why he broke the kiss and stepped back.
Seeing the confusion and disappointment on Peyton’s face was a like a punch to the gut, but he took a deep breath and steeled himself.
You’re a SEAL, dammit. Stand up and say something before you ruin this.
“Why did you stop?” she asked softly.
“I didn’t want to stop.” Mouth twitching, he glanced down at the hard-on fighting to push its way through the towel wrapped around his waist. “I think that much is obvious.”
Peyton looked down, a smile curving up the corners of her lips, but only for the barest fraction of a second. Then she was frowning, looking more confused than ever.