Round & Ravishing

by Mary E Thompson

  “Where is your brother now?”

  “He’s in Florida with our parents. He just finished a job in South America and stopped there to relax before his next assignment.”

  “Where is he going next?”

  Noah shook his head. “I don’t know. He usually leaves within a day or two of finding out where he’s needed. As of now, he’s with our parents and will be there until he gets a call from someone, or he gets the bug to go.”

  “Does he like to travel a lot?”

  Noah’s eyes narrowed. “I guess. He’s always wanted to live in Hawaii, but he isn’t ever really stable with the way his job works. I think if he could get a permanent job in Hawaii he’d move there. For now, I guess he’s enjoying the travel. Is there a reason you’re asking so many questions about my brother?”

  I shook my head, but I was still concerned. If his brother was a paparazzo, he would recognize me. I liked Noah not knowing who I was. Not being after me for anything other than because he enjoyed spending time with me. Granted, we slept together the first night we met, but that only meant he liked me better naked, like most men. It didn’t mean he was trying to get a story on me.

  I hoped.

  “I’m sorry. I’m just a little unsure about people I don’t know. And the media bothers me. So many of the stories published aren’t true and I don’t like that they hurt people because they’re careless and more interested in selling copies than revealing the truth.”

  “I’ve told my brother that so many times I think it’s tattooed on my forehead. I don’t even have social media accounts because of all the bad shit out there. I see enough of it when I go to work every day. I don’t need a reminder of how horrible people can be when I’m trying to relax.”

  I nodded, realizing I hadn’t been checking any of my social media accounts lately. I was paying less and less attention to the outside world the longer I was in Winterville. Instead of feeling like I was missing something, I found myself letting more go. Feeling more calm. Enjoying life more.

  Noah might be on to something.

  “I have all the social media accounts, but I don’t use them much anymore.”

  “I don’t have time for it. I know it’s important to a lot of people, but I’ve never seen the point. If I want to find out how someone is, I’ll call them, not check online to see if they’ve posted anything.”

  “I never kept up with any real friends on there. I think that’s why it’s been so easy to walk away from.”

  Noah grinned. “Well then. Since neither of us are on social media, how about you tell me how the date is going so far. If you were going to, what is it? Hashtag?”

  I nodded and rolled my eyes.

  “If you were going to give this date a hashtag, what would it be?”

  “Seriously?”

  He shrugged. “Sure, why not?”

  “I’m going to need to think about that one.”

  “Deal. Let’s go play Pacman.”

  I thought about his question while we played a few rounds of Pacman with our last tokens. A lot of words popped into my head when thinking about the date. Fun. Unique. Entertaining. Amusing. None seemed enough to describe how much I enjoyed spending time with Noah.

  With all our tokens gone, Noah led me to the counter where a display of cheap, plastic toys waited behind a glass case.

  “We have 173 tickets. What do you want?”

  I lifted an eyebrow at him, wondering if he thought I was actually going to choose something. He leaned in close when the man behind the counter walked away, realizing we weren’t ready to choose.

  “I’d avoid the candy. There’s no telling how long it’s been down there.”

  I laughed, but the feel of his breath on my ear was more than a little distracting. I wanted to pick a few things so I could get him away from all the teenage boys and show him what my hashtag would be for the date.

  Because I was an actress. I was a lot better at showing than I was at telling.

  “A pink diamond ring, a slinky, two of those friendship bracelets, a bouncy ball, ooh, and a tattoo.”

  Noah eyed me carefully then burst out laughing. “You’re an interesting woman.” He called the guy over and traded our tickets for my stuff. I wrapped one of the friendship bracelets around his wrist and he groaned. “Damn. I didn’t want to be in the friend zone.”

  I gave him a saucy look and started for the door. “I was thinking it could be a friends-with-benefits bracelet instead.”

  “Oh, really?” he asked with raised eyebrows. “Does that mean there are benefits to our friendship?”

  I gave him my best come-hither look and walked away, knowing he would follow.

  Noah caught up to me just outside the arcade. He pressed me to the brick wall just to the side of the front window and out of sight of the kids inside. His body met mine the same moment his lips did. My arms were already sliding around his neck, tugging him closer. He didn’t waste any time slipping him tongue into my mouth, or his hands down to my ass. I groaned when I felt him hard against my stomach.

  “So we’re friends-with-benefits?” he asked, his lips still touching mine. “Because I was sort of hoping for something more.”

  I smirked. “I told you I don’t do relationships. You said you don’t either.”

  He shrugged. “I don’t. But friends-with-benefits sounds like we’ll hook up when it’s convenient. I should warn you, I don’t share well. It’s a product of having an older brother who always stole my toys. When I want something, I’m not going to let anyone else have it. And I want you, Tara.”

  I pushed him away slightly so I could watch his eyes. “Are you saying I’m some kind of property?”

  His eyes didn’t show me what I’d feared. Instead, they lit with amusement. “Not even a little. But I do think you’re my new favorite toy.”

  I tried not to laugh, but couldn’t stop it.

  “Come on. I need to eat. I plan to stay up late tonight playing with my favorite toy. And kissing. And licking. And tasting. And touching. I need a good dinner to give me energy.”

  He ran his tongue down my neck and nipped my collarbone. I was ready to skip dinner and get right to play time, but my stomach growled loudly. Noah laughed and tugged me down the street back to Wine & Dine.

  Katie led us to a table that looked out onto Blustery Road. The candle between us lit the darkness that had fallen outside and made Noah look even more handsome. He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles with a wink.

  When he released my hand I lifted my menu. “What’s good here?”

  “Everything,” he said with a groan. “I love coming here because the food is so good, but I rarely have a reason to. It’s not exactly a place you go by yourself.”

  I glanced around at the other tables of couples. “Yeah, it’s a pretty romantic place.”

  “Is that okay with you?” he asked cautiously.

  I nodded. “It’s been a while since I’ve been on a date. Even with a… friend.”

  Before he could say anything, a woman approached our table. She rested her hand on his shoulder, capturing his attention. He stood and embraced her. She was tiny in his arms, nearly a foot shorter than he was. I could tell she was anything but frail though. Heels gave her added height and nice, black pants elongated her legs. She wore a rich, plum sweater that dipped to reveal a diamond heart necklace. When she and Noah broke apart, I saw tears in the corners of her brown eyes. She ran a nervous hand through her chocolate locks, a touch of gray revealed with the shifting of her hair as it caught the candlelight.

  “It’s so good to see you,” she said. “Why haven’t you been here lately?”

  Noah shrugged. “You know how I am. Work has kept me busy.”

  “Not too busy, I see,” she teased. “Who’s this?”

  “This is my friend, Tara. Tara, this is Mrs. Shell. Katie’s mom.”

  Mrs. Shell extended her hand to me. “Nice to meet you. You have a very nice man here. I hope you’re smart enough
to make sure you don’t stay in the friend zone with him.”

  I laughed at her use of Noah’s exact words, but he groaned. “Mrs. Shell,” he said in a warning tone. “You don’t have to embarrass me.”

  “Oh, but I do. Besides, she’s a smart woman. She won’t let you slip away.”

  I laughed again, hoping I was half as smart as she assumed I was. Noah was definitely a hell of a catch. I just wasn’t sure if he wanted to be caught, or if I wanted to chase him.

  “How’s Jalen?” Noah asked before Mrs. Shell could embarrass him any further.

  Mrs. Shell’s eyes lit up. “He’s well, thanks to you.”

  “I just administered the medicine. It was the doctors who set his course of treatment.”

  “He’s too humble, this one,” she said to me. “If it weren’t for him, my son wouldn’t be at college right now and studying to be an engineer and planning to become a firefighter. He’d be in the ground and I’d be a miserable mama.”

  “That’s not true,” Noah protested, confirming Mrs. Shell’s words.

  “It is true. Jalen didn’t want to go through it. He was ready to give up after the first round. You were the one who convinced him to do the trial. It saved his life. You promised you’d be there for him through all of it. He wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t stepped in and gotten permission. I owe you. We all do.”

  Noah shook his head. “I was just doing my job.”

  Mrs. Shell raised a disbelieving eyebrow at him. “We both know you go above and beyond the job. The other nurses there are great, but your patients are lucky people. My friend’s daughter had another nurse and she never got house visits or phone calls to check on her daughter. You are a special man, Noah Carpenter.”

  “Thank you,” he said quietly.

  I could tell she’d embarrassed him, but only because he didn’t do any of those extra things because he wanted the credit. Noah was a guy who went above and beyond because he cared that much. Because he wanted to know his patients were doing well. He probably saw his cousin in every single one of them, and keeping another family from going through what he’d been through had to drive him.

  He was way too good for me.

  But he made me want to do more with my life. To be a better person. Even though I’d only known him a week, and not well, he sparked something inside me that I couldn’t walk away from.

  I wanted to help those kids, too. I had no idea how I could, but I wanted to bring awareness and help to the kids who didn’t have a nurse like Noah. Who didn’t have someone checking on them. Maybe who didn’t have a mother like Mrs. Shell. Kids who were hurting and alone. Kids who wanted to live but didn’t have the support to push for it.

  “What can I get you?”

  Mrs. Shell’s voice interrupted my thoughts. I turned to her and asked to start with a glass of water.

  “Get the woman some wine,” she said to Noah. “You can’t come here and not have wine.”

  “She’s right, you know,” Noah said with a pointed look at me. “Red or white?”

  “I don’t know what I’m eating yet. I haven’t had a chance to look through the menu.”

  “I’ll bring both,” Mrs. Shell said decidedly. “You can try a red and a white and see which you like better. I never match my wine to my food the right way. I drink it all.”

  I laughed at her honesty. She walked away, leaving Noah and I alone again.

  “She’s very sweet. And she’s a huge fan of yours.”

  Noah waved his hand dismissively. “She exaggerates.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t think she does, Noah. You’re an amazing nurse. You shouldn’t be ashamed of that.”

  He nodded, as if trying to accept my words. “I’m not ashamed of what I do. I love it. But…”

  “You don’t do it for the credit. You do it because you love it.”

  He held my eyes for a long moment. “Yeah. Exactly.”

  “I can tell. And she’s right. I’d be a fool to let you slip away.”

  “I thought you didn’t do relationships.”

  I shrugged. “I also thought I was smart.”

  Chapter 9

  Dinner was amazing. Seriously, the best food I’d ever had. And I liked food. I could honestly say I’d never had pork schnitzel or spaetzle. It was so well cooked that I ate every single bite. I did offer to share with Noah, but he wisely declined.

  And the wine. Oh, wow, the wine. I’d always thought of Germans and beer, but the Riesling Mrs. Shell brought out for us was the best I’d ever had. Of course, she explained to me that some of the best Riesling in the world were from Germany but that the Finger Lakes had been overtaking some of the German growers in recent years. And here I’d thought all wine came from California.

  Noah insisted on paying for dinner even though I offered. “I invited you out. That means I pay.”

  I appreciated his chivalry and told him he’d get rewarded for it later. He rushed me out of the restaurant as soon as the check was signed. After a quick goodbye to Mrs. Shell and Katie.

  “This is why you should have let me pick you up. Now you have your car.”

  “Is that a problem?”

  “Only because I’d love to have my hands on you while I drive home. I’ll just drive fast.”

  “From what I remember, you don’t do much fast.”

  He growled and leaned in to kiss me. “I think you enjoyed that last weekend. Have your tastes changed that much?”

  I shook my head. “Nope. You know tonight is going to be different though. It’s not just sex anymore.”

  He sobered at my words, taking a step back. “Are you okay with that?”

  I shrugged. “I’m not staying here forever. You are. I want us both going into this with our eyes open.”

  He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “We’ve only just met. Granted last weekend was a very different way of getting to know a person, I like you, Tara. Just because we slept together already does not mean we have to again. We can say goodnight right now if that’s what you want.”

  Talk about mixed signals. He’d been telling me all night he wanted me and when the moment came he was putting all the pressure on me to decide if we should sleep together or not. I knew men. I’d worked with enough in Hollywood to know they found women more valuable when they were naked. Especially women like me.

  I wasn’t one of the ones most men wanted as arm candy. I wasn’t the size zero who made all the other men jealous. I wasn’t the woman with high cheekbones and ribs you could count. I had more meat on my ribs than most restaurants. It was hard living in a place like California and knowing that was the way people looked at me. When I’d tell someone I wanted to be an actress, the judgement was clear. They knew I’d never make it because I was too big.

  I knew Noah was different. Or I wanted to believe he was. He hadn’t given me any reason to think he only liked me if I was naked. Aside from the fact that the first time we met we had sex. But he didn’t rush through sex. He never made me feel like he was with me because he had no other options.

  He wanted me.

  And I wanted him.

  “Do you want to say goodnight now?” I asked, needing to know for sure.

  “Hell no. I want to lock you away for the weekend and ravish you.”

  “Then let’s go.”

  His eyes lit up and he pulled me in for a quick kiss, his tongue dancing through mine in a rush of pleasure and anticipation. He pulled back and nodded to his SUV. “Follow me?”

  I nodded, biting back the sappy words that drifted to my tongue.

  In five minutes, we were in his driveway. Two minutes later, we were in his bedroom. Naked.

  “I have to say… I’m happy you decided to send your mom flowers for her birthday.”

  He groaned. “Can we not talk about my mother right now? I have another woman on my mind.” He kissed my neck.

  “Oh, yeah? Should I be jealous?”

  He shook his head. “Not even a little bit. She reminds
me of you. Perfectly round breasts that fill my hands just right.” He cupped my breasts. “Skin that tastes like sugar cookies.” He licked my neck. “And a sassy mouth that keeps me on my toes and brings me to my knees.” He sealed my laughter in with a kiss, one hand dipping to my waist, the other continuing to play with my nipple.

  Not to be outdone, I stroked his erection. He moaned, tightening his fingers in my flesh. I knew he was good with his hands and it wouldn’t take long for him to start using them, but I wanted to make him feel good. I wanted to know that he was as lost when we were together as I was.

  Noah pulled back, his eyes dark and full of lust. “I’ve wished you were here all week whenever I took myself into my hand. I feel like I was just practice waiting for you.”

  “I bet you can’t do this,” I teased, then dropped to my knees in front of him.

  With a cheeky grin, I ran my tongue up the underside of his length. His hands dove into my hair and he sighed heavily. “Oh, Jesus,” he moaned.

  I risked a glance up at him and found him watching me. His eyes held more emotion that I was ready to handle, so I closed my lips around his erection and sucked hard. His eyes rolled back in his head and his fingers tightened in my hair.

  Perfect.

  I took him in as deep as I could, my lips still an inch from his base. I dragged my teeth lightly against him as I pulled back out, then parted my lips and sucked him back into my mouth.

  He allowed me to be in control for a minute or two, then his need to come overtook him. He guided my head, gently, until I met his desired pace. I cupped his ass cheeks and ran my nails down the backs of his legs. He groaned, growled my name, and moved his hips in beat with my head. He was getting close.

  Before he could blow, he tugged at my hair to get me to stand. I didn’t budge, swatting his hands away and continuing to move at the pace he set.

  “Tara. I want to come inside you,” he said harshly, his attempt to control thick in his voice.

  I pulled back slightly and looked up at him. “We have all night. I want to taste you, Noah.”

  I didn’t give him another chance to protest, just wrapped my lips around him again and went back to work. Within two strokes of my lips, his hands were back in my hair, guiding me, controlling me.