by S. K. Ervin
"You won't make it."
His statement gave her pause...just for a moment, before she sprinted as fast as she could toward her room. She had planned to give herself and him a moment to calm down, the look on his face scared her. But he wouldn’t hurt me. He just needed time. I needed time.
But, she didn't make it far.
He grabbed her around the waist and tossed her over his shoulder and turned toward the couch, pulling her shirt off in the process.
"You have a very smart mouth, Alexis." He told her as he sat down, bringing her face down across his legs.
"I do?" She asked nervously, squirming to sit up. She barely budged, one of his legs locked over both of her legs and one of his large hands held her back firm as he pulled her Victoria’s secret shorts off. She wore no underwear.
"Mm...Ms. Alexis Monroe, such a beautiful view." He murmured, an edge to his words. "We will play a game of honesty. If you are honest, then you will be rewarded."
"And if I am not?" She breathed.
He palmed her ass with his free hand, kneading it and then lifted his hand, bringing it down...hard.
She yelped in surprise.
"And if you are not, you will be punished." His voice becoming husky.
Oh! "And how will you know if I’m being honest or if I’m lying?" Alexis smarted.
He leaned down to her ear and whispered, "I know you very well, Ms. Monroe. The way you think, your body language, even the amount of honey in your tea."
She gasped. "How do you know...?”
"I know many things about you, Alexis. And I would know when you are lying to me. It's my job." He answered swiftly.
She tried to sit up once more, but he wouldn’t let her. She was feeling self-conscience, her ass was fully bared to his eyes.
"Noah...”
"First question. Do you like Ryan in any way other than a brother or friend?"
Does that really bother him? "No, he is my brother. Maybe not by blood, but by soul."
He rewarded her, leaning down and slowly licking from the back of her neck, down her spine to the crack of her ass. She squirmed, arching for more.
He grunted, "Do you trust Ryan?"
"With my life." She answered without hesitation. But, she didn't want to talk about Ryan at the moment. She didn't want to think of anything. She just wanted to continue feeling his wicked tongue.
And he gave it to her. This time starting from the back of her left knee, giving open mouthed kisses up to the junction of her thighs.
"Mmmm" She moaned.
"Did you invite me to the 5k as a last resort?"
Mulling that question over in her passion filled brain, she wasn't sure if she wanted him to know the answer to that question, "Yes."
She felt the heat of his hand leave the globe of her ass and then felt the sting when it came down again. Harder. She flinched with the searing pain. Yet, it was very erotic. Being bent over and having this sexy man dominate her was such a turn on.
"Pain and pleasure walks along a very thin line. Now, let's answer that again, more truthfully this time, Ms. Monroe."
She shook her head, "No, you were my first choice."
He grunted again, before repeating the open mouthed kisses up her right leg.
"Do you trust me?" He asked nonchalantly when he finished.
"I do trust you." She confided, squirming for more.
She felt his nod, more than she saw it. And for a moment, she wasn't sure whether he was going to spank her or kiss her.
He did neither.
He spun her 90 degrees, in a vertical 69, her hands flat on the floor, her ass in his face and both thighs over his shoulders. She felt him spread her open, heard him smell her deeply, his throat groaning in appreciation right before he dived in.
Oh, my god!
His tongue, his mouth, his fingers, caused her to melt into honey in his hands. She felt every stroke of his powerful tongue and every crazed suckle of his lips; every groan in his throat went straight to her core, vibrating against her. Noah ate her like she was the last meal before the end of the world. His sinful mouth devoured her like his favorite dessert on thanksgiving. And oh, his fingers...they teased and tortured until she felt she was going to burst into flames.
"Please, Noah." Alexis panted. She was close, so close. She wanted him inside her. Now.
But he kept up his sensuous assault, holding nothing back. When she thought she was going to shatter from pleasure, he would slow down, allowing her pending orgasm to hover, barely there, just to bring it right back a moment later. He play her like a pianist would his piano; passionately, intense, demanding. He forced her to the brink of her orgasm, more times than she could keep count of, but refused to let her plunge into ecstasy.
He took his pent up frustrations out on her poor body, letting her know just how much he hung on to his sanity, when it came to her. How much he could take from her, make her mindless to everything but this…but him.
"Noah...I'm going to...please." She begged.
She was going to explode…and he was going to allow it. Finally! His mouth suckled her, pulling the sweet nectar out of her hungrily, as his tongue stroked her insides, causing her to whimper with need. His fingers stroked fast circles around her clit, which sent her overboard.
"Ahh...ahhh! Noahhh!" She screamed, as an earth-shattering orgasm rocked her world, draining every ounce of her strength.
He growled when he tasted her saltiness, his mouth soaked in her juices. He savored every drop.
Kissing both globes of her ass, as he lifted her into his arms and headed for her bed, kicking her door open as he went through. Noah placed her in the center of and laid down next to her, wet clothes and all.
"Alexis?" He called to her softly, brushing her hair away from her face after a moment.
"Hmm?" Was all that she got out. She was drifting into a sated sleep.
"You taste exquisite." He whispered, staring down at her, caressing her skin in a hypnotic rhythm.
She smiled and mumbled something he couldn't decipher. Moments later, she was asleep.
Noah watched her for what seemed like an eternity to him.
And then he slowly got up so he wouldn't wake her and headed for the door.
Doing the only thing he felt was right…
He left her, with her damned innocence intact.
Chapter Eleven
Alexis rolled in her bed, her body feeling languid, wonderfully sated and sensitive. She didn't ever remember feeling this way…so fulfilled. Then images of Noah played behind her eyes.
Noah!
Her eyes shot open with a start. Did Noah really do that? Was that why she felt the way she did? Blushing, she didn't know how she was going to be able to face him this morning. Finally peeping around, she realized that he wasn't there. And by the looks of the bed, he didn't sleep with her.
Maybe he slept on the couch.
Throwing the covers off, Alexis marched into the living room. But Noah wasn't there either.
Frowning, she thought back, he didn't even try to have sex with her!
Did he even want me?
Her feelings hurt, she heard her phone beep. A text.
She went to see who it was. One message was from the 5k coordinators, saying the run had been moved to another date, because of the rain.
The other was from Noah.
She frowned.
Noah: Good morning beautiful!
Good Morning my ass!
Alexis: Morning.
He replied back immediately.
Noah: How are feeling?
Extremely aggravated.
Alexis: Fine. You?
Noah: Just great. Nothing a cold shower couldn’t take care of. -_-
Alexis: You didn’t need to take a cold shower…
You could’ve stayed. I wanted you to stay!
Noah: Oh, Ms. Monroe, I needed a plunge in the Arctic Ocean, but, a shower had to do.
Alexis: Why didn’t you stay? I wanted you to.
>
Noah didn’t respond back immediately.
Not waiting for his reply, Alexis slipped into the shower and then started getting ready for breakfast with Ryan and then work. As Alexis headed out, she noticed her phone light up.
Another message from Noah.
Noah: I know. But under the circumstances, I didn't want to take advantage. I did put you to sleep. Besides, I want you wide awake when I finally make you mine. *wink*
Alexis rolled her eyes at his cockiness and tried not to think about how he became a master at oral sex. She wondered if he was just as good with the rest of his body. Shaking her head to clear her sex-filled mind, she replied.
Alexis: Yea, yea. I gotta go. Duty calls. Ttyl.
Noah: Have a magnificent day, Alexis. Think about me when you’re at your breakfast with your ‘brother’. ;)
Alexis didn’t reply back. She was irritated.
"Soo…tell me what last night was about." Alexis demanded, reaching for her lemon poppy seed muffin.
Across from Alexis, Ryan sat peering at her with an unreadable expression. "You tell me. Is he forcing you to be with him in any way? He's not the type of guy you should mess around with Alexis. He's..."
"Like you? Too much money, too many girls, blah, blah." She chirped. His eyes narrowed just a bit, "Alexis, I'm serious. He's well known for his ability to shrug off females he's been with. He’s a coldhearted bastard. At least I talk with some of the ones I've been with."
"Ry..." She began.
"Just be careful, Lexi. Know what you are getting yourself into, that's all I ask. I don't want to have to take him down for hurting you, but I will if I have to." Ryan warned.
"I'll be careful." She promised. But her insides were jelly. Her nerves were shot. She felt as if her heart was being forcefully squeezed under a thousand pound anvil and her insides were being soaked in a salt bath. Torture, that’s what she was going through. Do I really know what I’m getting myself into?
Pushing that unwelcoming thought aside, Alexis asked, "So what did you want to tell me last night?"
Ryan was holding something back. He looked very uneasy. And he was never uneasy, especially with her.
"Ry, tell me. What did you find out?" Her voice calming. That tone worked best with Ryan, she knew; it took the fight right out of him.
He cleared his throat, "Lexi, there's so much the public doesn't know about Mr. Noah Kane." He said, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one was around.
They always sat in the very back corner, his back to the wall so he could see out. Alexis never really understood why until this moment. He seemed on alert. Her pulse picked up and her hair stood on end. Was someone watching them?
"Are we ok? Should I worry?" She whispered.
Ryan looked at her and smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes.
"Ryan, what's going on? What do you mean there are things about Noah that the public doesn't know?"
"Lexi, I don't know if I should tell you. I just don't want you around him until I figure this out. He could be dangerous." He pleaded to her.
She let out a startled laugh, "Noah? Dangerous how?"
His mouth is dangerous, the little red devil on her shoulder snickered.
"Trust me in this Lexi." Ryan said, breaking her from her amusing thoughts.
"Ry, I love you like we were in the same womb at the same time. You know that. And you also know that I’m not going to just sit here while you take care of things. Tell me or I will find out myself. But I'd rather I find out from you." Or him rather...
Ryan sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair, much like Noah did when he was frustrated with her.
"Fine. Don't tell me I didn't warn you." He told her.
She nodded and waited for him to start.
"I had to dig through the classified, cold case files and found the case about his parents’ death. His father Nathan Kane was killed in a car accident when Noah was just 5. A hit and run. No one was able to find out who did it. A month later, Elizabeth Kane, Noah's mother was found in her tub... electrocuted."
Alexis gasped, her hand flying to her mouth as her eyes widened, "She killed herself?"
Ryan shook his head sadly and whispered lowly, "The files says it was a homicide."
Alexis's brain was imagining the incident and how Noah must've felt. Both parents dead within a month of each other, “Where was Noah?" Poor Noah.
Ryan took a deep breath and looked right into her eyes, "Holding the blow dryer."
Alexis blinked.
And blinked again. She couldn't wrap her mind around what Ryan was telling her. "You mean he was trying to save her, he took the blow dryer out of the water?"
Ryan shook his head, "Noah admitted to putting the blow dryer in the bath, while his mother was in it."
"I don't believe that, Ryan. I don't believe he could do something like that...a 5 year old. He wouldn't know what he was doing. How could he?"
Ryan gave her a look that was born of pity and understanding. "Here."
He handed her a small cassette tape. "This was with the file. I listened to it already and maybe this will help you believe it."
She knew what it was. A confession. Noah's confession. She didn't want to hear it or believe it.
But something inside her made her push her discomforts aside and took the tape.
Ryan reached beside him and pulled an old recorder out with a set of earphones and handed it to her. Alexis slid the cassette in and inserted both earphones and pushed play.
∞
"What is your name, son?" A male voice began.
"My name is Noah Kristopher Kane." A little boy's voice came through, very clear and arrogant.
A small smile touched Alexis's lips. The arrogance obviously never left him.
"And Mr. Noah Kristopher Kane, can you tell me how old you are?" The man asked.
There was silence and Noah must've showed him with his fingers because the man asked, "And how old is that?"
"Five." The young Noah stated with a "duh" tone.
"Thank you Noah. And can you tell me what happened tonight with your mommy?" The man coaxed softly.
"I was playing with my superman and batman toys in my room..." the boy articulated and halted.
"And what else...?" The man questioned lightly.
"And I thought my daddy came in. But he wasn't my daddy. My daddy's dead, from a car. I don't like cars anymore." The young Noah whispered.
"I know, son. Can you tell me what the man wanted?" The detective asked soothingly.
A long silence followed and then the boy spoke, "He wanted me to put mommy's hair blower in the tub with her. He said it would make her warm because the water was cold."
Alexis heard the detective take a deep breath before asking,
"And did you put the hair blower in the tub?"
After a brief moment, the boy answered, "Mommy was really cold and the water was too. I tried to wake her up, but, she was sleeping. I put the hair blower in to keep her warm while she was sleeping. Is mommy awake now? Is she warm again? Can I see her?"
The innocence of his voice pulled at Alexis's heart. He didn't know what he was doing! Pulling the earphones out, Alexis didn't realize she was crying until Ryan reached over and brushed her tears away.
"It's sad, I know." He offered as he returned the cassette and recorder to his briefcase.
She nodded, "But why do you think he's dangerous Ry? He obviously didn't know what he was doing and then there was the guy he thought was his father."
"I know Lexi and I don't want to believe it, but I researched this, his father did die and was buried. He had no brothers, no sons other than Noah. In the file, it says that Noah suffered from traumatic stress after his father died and that he was seeing and hearing things that weren't there. He blamed his mother for his father's accident because they argued right before his father left in the car, so that could be reason enough for him to do what he did."
But he was only 5! He couldn’t have known wh
at he was doing!
Alexis couldn't believe it. She wouldn't.
“And if he didn’t do it…then someone might be trying to harm him. Either way it’s dangerous Lexi.”
Alexis shook her head. She didn’t believe Noah was dangerous; she had to find out the truth.
And that brought up another thought.
No wonder he didn’t want to get close to anyone.
That was a huge secret to keep from everyone.
Walking into Beautiful Me Spa, Alexis hardly noticed her staff decorating until Katie asked her if she liked it.
Looking up, she quickly saw the decorations.
Damn.
She forgot it was Halloween in two days.
“It’s looks…spooky.” She said, eyes wide. Halloween wasn’t her thing, but, she had to admit that the spa looked rather festive. There was a skeleton in the corner, fake cob webs with spiders in the windows and on the front desk held two large candy bowls on it.
“I’m glad you approve Ms. Monroe,” Tasha, another one of her massage therapists beamed.
Alexis grinned at her and continued forward when Katie came over to her.
“Is everything alright, Alexis? You don’t look very happy.” She asked her.
Alexis summoned the best smile she could.
“Everything’s fine. I’ll be in my office if you need me. Are all of the shifts covered?”
“All’s covered.” Katie frowned. She was worried about Alexis.
“Ok, good. Schedule an inventory check and make sure to order anything we are running low on. And Katie, thank you.”
“Sure thing, Ms. Monroe.”
Alexis walked to her office and stepped inside. It wasn’t a huge office and it kind of reminded her of Noah’s office. There was her cherry wood desk with her black leather chair behind it and two regular chairs on the opposite side for her clients. She had a sitting area with a leather sectional and coffee table to the right, a small refrigerator with a glass door, off to the side filled with waters, and a plush black and white rug. On the walls, there were decoratively styled art, all abstract. On her desk was her iMac, pens in a holder, a folder bin, a phone and pictures. A family picture and one of each of her parents.
Alexis often sat at her desk staring at the picture of her mother. It was taken a few days before she died. Her mother’s smile was as bright as the sun and she could close her eyes and see it, as if she’d just witnessed it. And that thought brought her to the current situation.