by Annie Rains
Krista forced herself to stop thinking. She wanted to feel every bit of this kiss. Noah leaned his body into hers, pressing her against the arm of the swing. Judging by the hard protrusion against her belly, he was clearly thinking of her as more than one of the guys in this moment, and it excited her.
His hands traveled down her body and cupped her bottom.
She moaned as need rumbled and quaked inside her. Opening her mouth, she allowed the kiss to go deeper. She moved her hands under his shirt and let her fingers slide over his chest. Then she tugged softly on the thin layer of hair coating his muscles.
Noah groaned. “Let’s move this inside,” he whispered, tugging her off the swing with him.
Krista didn’t resist.
What am I doing? She’d committed to moving past her crush on him and within just a few hours of being here, her willpower was shamelessly shattered. They were making out on the porch and moving things inside where a slew of possibilities awaited her—one of which was a pink, jiggly vibrating mystery from Sweet and Spicy.
“Noah,” she said, half in lust and half in the slightest resistance.
His brown eyes were dark with lust. For her. Holding her hands, he pulled her body flush with his, and that hardness poking into her belly button spared no question as to what he wanted. “Do you want to go inside with me?” His mouth crashed over hers again, kissing her and giving her time to think on her answer.
Her body’s answer was a loud and clear YES! Her mind was slower, though. Going inside with Noah would change things irrevocably.
“What are we doing?” She pulled away and blinked blurrily at him.
“What do you want to do? This is completely up to you, Kris. I know what I want to do,” he said.
The desire in his eyes sent shivers down her spine. “What is it you want to do?” she said, her voice coming out in a trembling whisper—because good heavens, she wanted this man. Needed this man.
He looked at her, long and hard. Then his desire seemed to cool right in front of her eyes. As if someone had poured a cold bucket of ice over their chemistry. He loosened his grip and stepped away, just a few inches, but it might as well have been a mile. Clearing his throat, he said, “I want to cook you dinner.” He flicked the pad of his thumb over his lips, as if knocking their kiss across a football field. And Goal!—the kiss was gone.
Krista watched Noah move past her, leaving her on the porch, turned on, confused, and rattled. Embarrassed and…pissed off.
What just happened?
She stood there dumbfounded a moment. Then headed inside and slammed the front door behind her. The night and the rest of the weekend didn’t look like such a vacation anymore. She just wanted to tidy this place up and get the heck out of here—even if it was a small paradise tucked away in the mountain foothills.
She frowned at Noah with his back to her in the kitchen. He was busy preparing something and ignoring her.
Well, two could play at that game. She stomped off to the master bedroom and closed the door behind her. Reaching for the lock, she saw that it didn’t have one. The bathroom door didn’t have one, either. What kind of place didn’t have locks on the doors?
Krista took an exaggerated breath that did nothing to calm her nerves. She took another breath and then another. Then she went into the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. She stopped and stared at the garden tub inside. That would definitely help calm her down. She glanced over her shoulder. Noah was too busy ignoring her right now to come in and bother her, at least if he was smart.
She closed the bathroom door behind her and started stripping off her clothing. She ran the hot water and slid inside, letting out a deep sigh. Closing her eyes, she hoped the hot water would dissolve away all of her tension and frustration. Instead, the kiss she’d just experienced with Noah came slamming back into her memory. Well, she intended to stay right here until she got it out of her brain. And Noah out of her brain, too. They had a job to do here and needed to be civil to one another. Once she got herself together, she’d go out there and tell him that the kiss had been a mistake. That they’d gotten swept up in the romance that they were trying to create here for Grace and Jack. That it never should’ve happened, and wouldn’t happen again.
Yes, that’s exactly what I’ll do. The plan made her feel a slight bit better if not for the ache in her heart. She’d wanted that kiss to lead to something more. She wanted to be in that bed right now with Noah ravaging her body.
With a sigh, she opened her eyes, and promptly screamed at the top of her lungs. Just over the faucet was a mammoth-sized cockroach. She screamed again and shot upright in the water to distance herself from the scurrying creature.
“Kris?”
The door to the bathroom flew open and Krista shrieked again, sliding back down in the tub, her eyes darting between the roach and Noah. “What are you doing in here?” she shouted.
“You screamed.”
She was naked in the water and he wasn’t turning away.
“There’s a roach! Turn around! Don’t look at me!”
Noah promptly turned his back, but continued to talk to her. “I thought you were in trouble. The way you were screaming, there might’ve been a bear in here.”
Krista searched for a towel. Why hadn’t she laid one out before climbing into the bath? Crap, crap, double crap! “Can you give me some privacy please?”
“You sure you don’t want me to get that roach before I go?” he asked, a small laugh outlining his voice. “You sound like you’re about to have a heart attack about it.”
“Go!” she said, not finding any humor in this situation.
“Have it your way.” He headed out and closed the bathroom door behind him. But it still wasn’t locked, so she kept one eye there and the other on the ghastly critter which was now halfway up the shower wall. She hated roaches. Between her warring hormones and bugs, this was definitely going to be one of the longest weekends of her life.
Chapter 10
Noah pressed his forehead against the wall outside of Krista’s bathroom. He’d just seen more of her skin than he ever had with her in a bikini. Skin shimmering under a veil of lacelike bubbles. Soft, touchable skin. And the way her blue eyes had looked lazily at him with that unmistakable look of lust. He was so screwed.
The bathroom door opened and Krista poked her head out, straightening when she saw him standing there. Her chin lifted.
“Sorry,” he said, a little sheepishly.
“It’s okay. You were just coming to my rescue.” She hugged a towel over her chest and body. Her breasts refused to be hidden, though. Her cleavage pressed up and Good lord.
“You are a total knockout,” he said.
Her lips parted.
“I mean I always knew you were pretty. Any guy in their right mind can see that.”
Her gaze fell, a soft pink color flooding her cheeks. He turned toward her, his gaze running the course of her body for a moment. “You’re more than a pretty woman, though. I just never let myself go there until…”
Krista looked up. “Until when?”
“Until, uh…”
“Until I kissed you the other night?” she asked.
His brows lifted. “You remember that?”
She kicked one corner of her mouth up. “I’ve had flashes of it. I guess I drank too much.”
He nodded. “I figured it was a lapse of judgment.”
“Right. I guess we had another lapse out there on the porch.”
His gaze fell to her hand clinching the towel at her breasts. And he was having another lapse of judgment right now because all he wanted to do was step toward her and yank her towel down off her body. Let it fall to the floor. He might follow it down and work his way back up from her toes.
As if reading him, she tightened her hold on the covering. “So, uh, we agree? It was a lapse of judgment and it won’t happen again. We’re here to make this place into a honeymoon suite for my friend and your brother.”
Noah nodded. She was giving him an out. He should be thankful. “Yeah. So you get dressed and then you can eat the meal I’m preparing and tell me what an amazing chef I am.”
Krista cocked her head. “I’ve known you since we were kids. I know everything about you, which means I know the truth. You absolutely suck at cooking.”
He shrugged. “I’m sure you can turn my mess into something edible.”
Krista pointed out of her bedroom. “I’ll join you in the kitchen in just a minute.”
“Don’t you need me to go in there and get that monster bug first?”
A frown settled over her mouth. “It ran away. But if I see it again…”
“Then I’ll come to your rescue, assuming you’re clothed next time.”
“Next time, you knock.”
“I promise.” He left her room and exhaled as she closed the door behind him. Then he headed into the kitchen to pour them both a glass of wine. What the heck, their judgment already appeared to be impaired. What could a little fruit of the vine hurt?
A few minutes later, Krista reappeared wearing a pair of fitted jeans and an equally fitted cotton top. The tips of her hair were wet from where she’d sunk into the bubble bath. She held up a finger. “Don’t even think about apologizing again. We’re just going to forget that ever happened. Including the kiss.”
“Sounds good.” Not that he’d be able to forget either of those things. He’d be thinking about this last half hour, whether he wanted to or not, for a long time to come. Releasing a pent-up breath, he made a show of his stew. “If it tastes as good as it looks, you’ll be eating those comments you made about my cooking.”
Krista stepped toward his pot and took a whiff—giving him a chance to get a whiff of her. She smelled clean and fruity, and he absolutely wanted to eat her up.
She opened her eyes and looked at him. “You’re right. It smells and looks delicious. I guess you don’t need me.”
He handed her a glass of wine. “You’re cut off after one glass tonight.”
She took it and brought it to her lips. Before sipping, she said, “Why? You afraid I might do something crazy?”
More afraid that he might do something crazy. He’d walked away from her kisses twice now. Given a third chance, he wouldn’t be able to resist sweeping this woman off her feet and carrying her straight to that king-sized bed down the hall.
He cleared his throat and avoided the question. “It’ll be ready in about twenty minutes. I want to let the vegetables get a little softer.”
Krista nodded, taking another sip from her wine. “I could start cleaning.”
“Let’s save that for tomorrow. It’s been a long day. You should enjoy your first night in the Sawyer cabin.”
She leaned against the counter where he worked. “I guess I won’t argue with that.”
“So how’s that kid?” he asked, needing a neutral, non-sexual subject to latch onto.
“Adam? He’s doing well right now. I’m going to babysit him sometime soon for his mom. It’s gotta be tough being a single parent. And I don’t mind. I love that little guy. He’s been in and out of my floor since he was in diapers. I think his immune system just can’t take this world.”
Noah leaned against the counter beside her. “You know what I think?”
She lifted her brows in question. “Hmm?”
“I think the hospital would be crazy not to promote you to head nurse. You’d be a natural leader. I know you would.”
She blushed with the compliment. “Thanks for saying so. We’ll see what happens. If I don’t get it, well, I’ll be devastated, but I’ll still get a chance to work with the kids, which is all I’ve ever really wanted to do anyway.”
“Why kids?” he asked, realizing there were actually some things he still didn’t know about his lifelong best friend.
Krista set her half-empty wineglass on the counter beside her. Her hand absently wandered to the charm around her neck as she thought on her response. “I guess because the only thing they expect is love. I have that to offer in spades. They’re not as easily disappointed as adults. I like that.” She met his gaze. “Okay, your turn. Jack left the family fishing business last year. What makes you stay?”
“Hmm.” He tipped his glass back and finished off its contents. He was enjoying this game of twenty questions. “I like the thrill of not knowing what’s out there and when it’ll bite my line.”
She grinned. “I totally knew that would be your answer.”
“Yeah?” All he wanted was to lean in and take Krista into his arms again right now. What the heck was wrong with him?
“There’ll always be something bigger and better, and you’ll always keep looking for it,” she said.
That comment set uneasy with him. Mainly because it was true, and he didn’t like that about himself. Why couldn’t he be satisfied?
The timer beeped behind them. Noah turned to lift the lid off the pot and inspect his creation. Krista stepped up beside him and leaned in, too.
“Yum.” She tapped her belly, luring his eyes there. Her cotton shirt was slim-fit, showing off her narrow waist.
He wanted to anchor his hands there, one on each side, and tug her over. Forget the stew, it could keep on stewing. “Okay. I’ll grab the bowls and you get the silverware,” he instructed, pointing her to a drawer. “Then we’ll sample the goods.”
He mentally talked himself down all the way to his seat at the small wooden table. He’d been good not to sample the goods all these years. He’d kept his hands and his thoughts off the brunette seated across from him, and now suddenly each second that passed seemed like a small feat. The romance of the cabin and the way the woman in front of him looked and smelled and tasted was going straight to his head.
“Noah?” Krista tapped the table and he snapped his gaze up. “Did you hear me?”
He shook his head. “Did you say something?”
Humor twinkled in her eyes. “You’re either thinking about that kiss or me in the bathtub. Which is it?”
He cleared his throat again. He could deny it if he wanted to, but what was the point? “Both,” he answered honestly.
Her chest lifted as she sucked in a breath. He guessed she’d expected him to pretend that wasn’t the case. He was tired of pretending not to be attracted to each other, though. “Oh. Well.” She giggled nervously, casting her gaze down to the table in front of her.
“I’m also thinking about kissing you again and not stopping this time.”
Now the skin along her chest and neck bloomed a fleshy pink. “Oh,” she said again, stealing an upward glance at him.
“I’m thinking about tasting more than just your lips.” There was more he didn’t know about his best friend. He didn’t know what she liked in bed or what kind of noises she made when someone was making love to her. He didn’t know if she liked her lovers rough or gentle. He wanted to know these things, though. He needed to know these things. Screw ruining their friendship. It was going to be ruined if he kept having these persistent thoughts anyway. He couldn’t be around Krista and continue to feel this way. Hell, he had a hard-on sitting across from her at the dining room table right now.
She stared at him. Apparently speechless.
“Sorry,” he said, for lack of anything better, but he didn’t mean it. The only thing he was sorry about was not pulling Krista into the bedroom an hour earlier.
“I told you to stop apologizing.” Her voice was soft, nearly a whisper. There was a raspy edge to it that he’d rarely heard from her. Had she liked what he’d said? Was she as turned-on right now as he was?
“That’s why you’re cut off after one glass of wine tonight. I can’t promise to behave myself around you anymore.”
“Well, I can’t promise to behave myself tonight either, with or without the wine.”
His erection was painfully hard now. “So, uh, it’d probably be a bad idea if I got up and took you to that bed back there right now.”
The muscles in her throa
t constricted as she swallowed.
Say yes. Say no. Say something because he was about to explode.
“It’s a horrible idea,” she conceded.
Disappointment poured over him, starting from his head and working down his body.
“But—”
His gaze cut to hers. “But?”
“But if you don’t take me to bed right now, I’m taking you,” she said.
Oh, hell.
Noah stood, nearly knocking his chair back behind him. He walked around and pulled Krista to her feet. Her body came up flush against his, and by the little noise that caught in her throat, he could tell she felt his hardness. He wanted her to feel it, to know exactly where this was headed. So she could stop him right now if she didn’t want to go any further.
He crushed his mouth over hers, loving how she clung to him. Her lips parted, allowing his tongue to sweep against hers. And those little noises she made were about to drive him absolutely insane.
“I want you, Noah,” she said between kisses as her chest pressed into his.
“You sure?” he asked, holding her against him, wanting her to be even closer. The only way to be closer, though, was to be inside her. He needed to get those clothes off her ASAP.
“Positive,” she said, her breathing quick and shallow.
He didn’t hesitate. He was done hesitating. Hurried and hard as granite, he swept her off her feet and carried her to the bedroom.
—
This had to be a dream because Noah would never carry her to the bedroom like this. Only in her wildest fantasies.
And she’d had this fantasy quite a few times before.
Krista toppled over him on the bed in the master bedroom. She laughed as her hair spilled down over his cheek, then she kissed him with abandon. Because if they were going to do this, they were going to do it all the way. No stopping or starting this time. No apologizing. This had been a long time coming, too long, and she couldn’t wait to explore his body with her hands the way only her eyes had been able to in secret.