The Truth About Lennon

by K. L. Grayson

  “Neighbor,” I offer.

  Charlotte gives me the side-eye, but I do my best to ignore it.

  All of the tension drains from Kalyn’s face, her shoulders sagging with relief. What the hell is that about? It’s like Penny all over again.

  “Oh good, because I was about to ask Noah out, and that could’ve gotten weird really quick,” she says, laughing awkwardly.

  My jaw drops to the floor, along with Noah’s.

  “You what?” he asks.

  “Well, yeah,” she says. “We’re both single. We get along great, and our daughters are best friends.” She shrugs. “I figured, why not?”

  I have to give this woman credit for having the balls to not just ask him out, but ask him out in front of two other women. I also want to shove her away, position myself between the two of them, and make it known that Noah is mine, but I won’t do that.

  And not because of Nova but because of the look on Kalyn’s face.

  “What do you say?” she asks with a little less certainty.

  Noah runs a hand through his hair, glancing at me apologetically before turning to Kalyn, who seems to have lost her resolve. “I’m flattered—I really am—but there’s something you should know.”

  Kalyn glances at Charlotte and me uncomfortably, and it’s clear she doesn’t want to have this conversation in front of us.

  Rejection is a bitch and hard to weather alone, much less with an audience, so I grab Charlotte’s arm.

  “You know what? We’ll leave you two alone. We’ve got somewhere to be anyway.”

  Charlotte shrugs my arm off and sticks another Starburst in her mouth. “I’ve got nowhere to be.”

  “Yes, you do. We’ve got that thing.”

  “What thing?” Charlotte asks.

  I quickly scoop up our lawn chairs and nudge her toward the car. “See ya later, Noah. Bye, Kalyn. It was a pleasure meeting you.”

  Noah waves, his eyes begging me not to leave, and Kalyn smiles half-heartedly.

  “I take back what I said earlier,” Charlotte says, taking one of the lawn chairs from my arms. “That was awkward.”

  Later that night, I’m crawling into bed, my sketch pad in hand, when my phone rings. Brenna’s name flashes across the screen.

  Shit.

  I don’t want to answer, because I already know we’ll end up in another fight. And I’m sick of fighting. I push the button to ignore the call.

  I’ve enjoyed my short time here in Heaven, and it isn’t necessarily because of Nova and Noah—although they play a big part. But I’ve enjoyed the quieter life. I’ve enjoyed exploring the little shops in town, getting to know the friendly locals, and seeing the potential all around me. I’m doing what I want when I want without having to answer to anyone. No publicist watching my every move, and no looking over my shoulder everywhere I go, wondering if the paparazzi are hiding around the corner, just waiting for me to screw something up. And I haven’t screwed anything up. I’ve made some mighty fine decisions—both business and personal—since I’ve been here, if I do say so myself.

  My phone vibrates again, but this time when I look down, I smile.

  Noah: How is your night going?

  Me: Better now that I’m talking to you.

  I snuggle into my covers, waiting for him to respond.

  Noah: I was going to call, but I didn’t want to wake you up.

  Me: I’m in bed, but you didn’t wake me up.

  Noah: Now we’re getting somewhere. Bed, huh? What are you wearing?

  I can’t help it, I grin.

  Me: Am I supposed to be wearing something?

  Noah: Fuuuuuuck

  Me: I can think of a few ways for you to come warm me up ; )

  A few seconds later, my phone rings, and I pull it to my ear. “Hello?”

  Noah growls. “You’re killing me.”

  The sound of his voice is enough to send my body into overdrive. “In the best possible way though, right?” Because you’re killing me, too.

  “You have no idea.”

  I hear the sheets rustling, and I know he’s in bed. Oh, what I wouldn’t give to be there next to him.

  “I think I have an idea.”

  “Are you really naked?”

  “Do you want me to be?”

  “Damn,” he mumbles. “I would kill to be over there right now. You know that, don’t you? You know that if I didn’t have Nova here, I’d be there in a heartbeat.”

  “I know.” My heart melts at his sweet words.

  “I haven’t been inside of you in days.” His voice is low and raspy, his drawl much more prominent, something that happens when he’s turned on.

  “Soon.”

  “Really?” he admonishes. “Because I’m beginning to think it’ll never happen again.”

  I chuckle. “You miss my body that much, huh?”

  He’s silent for a few beats, and then he takes a deep breath and blows me away with his words.

  “It’s more than your body, Lennon. It’s your scent and the way it wraps itself around me. It’s the way your eyes sparkle when you smile and the sound of your laughter throughout my house. And how you are with my daughter. You’re amazing with her. You’re gentle and kind and loving and… it’s everything. It’s you. I miss you.”

  “Noah?”

  “What?”

  “Unlock your door.”

  I end the call, and two seconds later, I’m hauling ass out the front door in my pajamas. When I hit the bottom step of his porch and find Noah half-naked in front of his open door, wearing nothing but a pair of low-slung sweats, I nearly lose my breath. I’m not sure if it’s the tattoos crawling up his arms, or the way he’s hanging on to the top of the door frame—it could even be his warm, brown eyes, which are eating me from top to bottom—but he looks different.

  “What took you so long?” His slow, sexy grin pulls me in, and I walk straight into his open arms.

  I pull my bottom lip between my teeth and smile. “I had to put clothes on.”

  In an instant, Noah scoops me up, kicks the door shut, and is moving down his hall.

  “Why the hell would you do something like that?”

  Noah strides through his house, not stopping until we’re in his room. There he slowly sets me down, but he doesn’t let me go. His arms stay wrapped around my body, his chest moving gently against mine. I wasn’t imagining it earlier; there is definitely something different about him. As I stand here trying to figure out what it is, Noah begins tugging at my clothes.

  “Let’s get you out of these.”

  My top goes first, followed by my shorts, and Noah grins when he finds me sans panties.

  “I told you I was naked.”

  “What’s it mean?” he asks, looking at my hip. “Nosce ti ipsum.”

  Brushing a finger over the three words inked on my left hip, I smile wistfully. “Know thyself.”

  “And do you? Know yourself?”

  “I’m getting there.”

  My eyes roam his body, taking in all of his ink. Three stars—one over his heart, one under his left pec, and the other just above his left hip. Clouds cover his left shoulder, traveling down his arm. I reach out, tracing the dove that flies through the sky.

  “Are the stars for Nova?”

  Noah nods, watching my finger skate over his body. “Yes.”

  “Why three?”

  “One for Nova and one each for my mom and dad.”

  “The three people you love the most.” It isn’t a question, and Noah doesn’t take it as one.

  Wrapping his fingers around my wrist, he pulls my hand to the star over his heart.

  “This one is for Nova. I want to add to it. Maybe when I get married, or have more children, it’ll be a cluster.”

  “It’ll be beautiful.” Maybe someday there will be a star there for me. “What’s the dove for?”

  “Kim.”

  I look up.

  “She’s the mother of my child. She hurt me, but I hope she found
peace.” The kindness in his voice says volumes about the man he is.

  “You gave her wings.”

  “Someone had to. Now, no more words, baby. I need you.”

  Before I can reach for Noah’s pants, he nudges me toward the bed, and I crawl under the soft, warm covers, watching as he moves across the room, flicks the lock on his door, and pulls off his pants and boxers.

  My mouth waters at the sight of his gorgeous body, and I hold the covers up for him to come join me.

  Noah crawls into bed beside me, not on top of me as I had hoped. He studies me momentarily and then captures my lips in a slow, gentle kiss.

  “We need to talk.”

  Uh-oh. No conversation that starts with those four words can be good.

  “Okay,” I say. “About what?” My mind flashes back to when I left him standing on the soccer field with Kalyn, and my heart rate kicks up. “Does it have to do with Kalyn?”

  Crinkling his nose, Noah shakes his head. “Not at all.” He pulls back a couple of inches so he can get a good look at me. “Is that what you think?”

  The tightness around my chest relaxes. “No, but I wasn’t sure, and—”

  Capturing my lips again, Noah cuts me off. He kisses me once, twice, and a third time before releasing my mouth. “I told Kalyn about us.”

  My eyes bounce between his. “What exactly did you tell her?”

  “Well,” he says, wrapping a corded arm around my waist, “that’s the part I wanted to talk to you about.”

  “You have my attention.”

  “That’s good.” Noah runs his fingers along the side of my face, brushing my hair back. “Your attention is a start, but I want everything else.”

  The look on his face reveals far more than his words. He needs me just as much as I need him, but it’s more than that. It’s affection and vulnerability and that spark of something I saw when I first walked up.

  “What do you want?” I want to hear him say it. I want the words.

  “You, Lennon.”

  A swarm of butterflies takes flight in my stomach. “You already have me.”

  Noah shakes his head. “It’s not enough. I want what we represent. I want it all.” He takes a deep breath. “When I told Kalyn about us, it felt good. Better than I ever thought it would. And do you know why it felt good?”

  I shake my head.

  “Because this feels right. I want this, Lennon.” Noah hauls my body in close. “I want every single part of you. I’m ready for it. I didn’t think I was ready for someone like you, but I am.”

  My heart stops.

  “Someone like me?”

  “Yes. Someone I can spend my days with. Someone who will love Nova just as much as I do. I want you with us for dinner not just occasionally, but all the time. I don’t want to hide you. You’re not a secret. If there’s a soccer game, I want you there—not as my neighbor, as my girlfriend.”

  “You want a relationship.”

  Noah meets my gaze. “I do. I’m ready. Whatever this is growing between us, I want it to keep growing. I want to watch it turn into something big and beautiful, and I don’t want to hide it.”

  Needing to be closer to him, I roll on top of Noah. With my hair as a curtain, I look down at him. “I want that too,” I whisper, moved by his words.

  “You do?” Noah asks, his eyes wide. When I nod, his body relaxes beneath me. “You’ve always been so open, and I love that about you, but you’ve never asked me to define us.”

  “This has all happened so fast,” I say. His hands tighten around my hips, silently urging me to give him more. “When I moved here, I wasn’t looking for love. If anything, I was running from it…fast. You came out of nowhere and blindsided me.”

  Noah laughs. “I think it was you who blindsided me.”

  A smile tugs at the corner of my mouth. “Best damn day of my life.”

  “I want us to tell Nova.”

  Now it’s my turn to say, “You do?”

  Noah runs a hand up my spine. He cups the back of my head and guides my mouth to his. “I want to tell the whole world.”

  My emotions are all over the place, and right now I just need Noah. I need to feel him move inside of me.

  Straddling his hips, I rub myself against his hard cock, sliding back and forth. “Let’s talk more later. Right now, I need you.”

  “What do you need, baby?”

  I grind my hips, applying more pressure and friction. “This. And I want you bare. I want to feel every glorious inch of you.”

  “Fuck yes, I want that, too. I’m clean. So you don’t have to worry about that.”

  “Me too. And I wasn’t worried. I know you wouldn’t do anything to put me at risk.”

  I don’t know how I know, but I do. I feel it deep in my soul. This man would walk through fire before he’d hurt me, or anyone else for that matter.

  Lifting my hips, Noah slides into me. His eyes widen at the connection, and I begin to move, showing Noah with my body what I failed to say.

  Lacing our fingers together, Noah pulls me forward. He captures my mouth with his. “Nothing has ever felt as good as this, as good as you.”

  With his words lingering in the air, Noah takes control of my body. Every stroke of his tongue, every touch of his hands—he makes love to me like no man ever has.

  Our hips rock over and over again in a slow, sensual pace, our bodies forging a silent promise of a future. I came to Heaven to escape, but what happened is even better.

  I’ve been found.

  It’s so ironic and insane, and I know it’s crazy how fast we’re falling, but once you jump, there’s really no turning back.

  A burn builds low in my belly, my impending orgasm resting on the brink.

  “Noah.”

  “I know, baby.” His thrusts get harder, deeper, and less controlled as we both slip into that wonderful oblivion we’re chasing.

  Noah’s gaze is steadfast, his eyes refusing to leave mine as he brings both of us to climax. We lose ourselves at the same time, with moans of pleasure and promises of more.

  And to think, this is only the beginning.

  Sated and completely out of breath, I collapse on Noah’s chest. It takes several minutes to regain my strength, but when I finally do, I kiss his warm skin and meet his gaze.

  “Thank you.”

  Noah palms my ass. “You don’t ever have to thank me for that.”

  “I wasn’t.” I brush my thumb along his lower lip, loving how plump it is from my mouth. “Thank you for being on the road that day,” I say. “Thank you for being so kind and compassionate and open to my crazy ways. But mostly, thank you for showing me what it’s like to be with a real man.”

  Noah’s eyes smolder, his hard cock—still inside of me—quickly regaining strength. And just when I expect him to say something, his mouth claims mine. The next second he has me flipped over, his strong, warm body pressing me into the mattress.

  Nirvana.

  This right here is my nirvana.

  The sound of my phone alarm startles me awake. Reaching for the nightstand, I quickly shut it off. Yawning, I stretch my arms and look over at the alarm clock. 6:00 a.m. Way too early for me to get up, but I want to make Noah and Nova breakfast.

  Arching my back, I roll over and come face to face with the most spectacular view. Noah is next to me, flat on his stomach, one arm tucked under his head, the other draped around a pillow. The sheet is bunched around his hips, and I already know that if I raise the blanket, I will find him naked as the day he was born.

  His skin looks so smooth and soft in the morning light that I can’t resist reaching out and touching him. I run a finger along his bicep, tracing the outline of one of his tattoos. He stirs at my touch, but doesn’t wake up, and I kiss the spot my finger touched before slipping out of bed. I don’t make it far because a big, strong arm wraps around my waist, pulling me backward into an equally hard chest.

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Noah’s voice is raspy
from sleep, and it wakes up all of my lady parts.

  “I was going to make you and Nova breakfast,” I say, wriggling my ass against his erection, which is pressed against me and growing by the second. “There’s something poking me.”

  Noah’s grip around my waist tightens. “What the hell do you expect? My girl is naked and rubbing all up on me and oh look—” Noah’s hand slides up. “There’s a boob.”

  My eyes nearly roll back in my head when he massages me.

  “Are they always this soft in the morning?”

  “I wouldn’t know—” My words break off into a moan when Noah flicks my nipple. “If you keep doing that, you won’t get breakfast.”

  “Are you on the menu?” Next thing I know, Noah has my back pinned against the bed and is shouldering his way between my thighs. “Now this is what I call breakfast.”

  With the first pass of his tongue up my slit, I arch off the bed.

  Driving my fingers into his hair, I grip it tight, ensuring that his face stays right where I need it. “Noah.”

  “Hold on, baby. This’ll only take a minute.”

  Six minutes later, I slide out of bed with a stupid-ass grin on my face. Noah is relaxed against the pillows, arms tucked behind his head with a smug smile.

  “Stop looking at me like that.” I toss a pillow at him.

  He laughs, catching it mid-air. “What?” He tosses the pillow to the side and holds his hands out. “A guy can’t smile after eating his girlfriend’s pussy? Breakfast of champions, if you ask me.”

  I roll my eyes, grab my pajamas off the floor, and tug them on. “What do you think Nova would like for breakfast?”

  “She’ll be good with a bowl of cereal.”

  “No,” I scoff. “The first breakfast I make her can’t be a bowl of cereal. How about pancakes?”

  Noah’s shit-eating grin fades into a gentle smile. “She loves pancakes.”

  “Pancakes it is.”

  I tiptoe out of Noah’s room and move quietly down the hall. I’ve maneuvered around his kitchen enough to know right where the pots and pans are. I grab a skillet and heat it up on the stove while I whip up enough pancake batter for the three of us.