by Tori Fox
I hear a car door slam and glance out the window to see a black SUV barely visible through the tall beach grass. I blink a few times, swearing I am hallucinating when I see the top of Noah’s head.
There is no way he could have found me. Is there? Did I even tell him about this place?
I search my memories as I recall the conversation we had about sanctuaries. But I know I never told him exactly where it was.
My mind must be playing tricks on me.
Maybe I do need him more than I think I do.
I grab my coffee cup and head back to the porch, choosing to sit on the rail instead of the old rocker I pulled out of the storage shed next to the cottage.
I sip my coffee as I glance back and forth from the water to the path that leads to the road. My mind and my heart battling. My heart wanting the glimpse of a man I saw to be the man I am falling for. While my mind is telling me I am a crazy person and hallucinating.
I look back out to the ocean and take a deep breath as my hands go back to the necklace around my neck. Today is the day I am letting go of every piece of my past.
The sound of footsteps on the worn-out boardwalk my great-uncle built pulls my eyes back toward the road.
My heart clenches when I see a man wearing a Beaufort County PD shirt. Not the police officer I want to see. I bite my lip in worry. Who would be looking for me here? My parents didn’t even know that Great-Aunt Sheila left this place to me, they weren’t close to her at all. Even my sister doesn’t know and she spent almost as much time with me here as a kid.
A soft breeze floats through the porch as a shiver rolls down my spine. I pull my cardigan over my bare shoulder and stand, scared of whatever news might be coming to me.
But then I see what I thought I was for sure dreaming about.
Behind the officer is a tall, husky man with light brown hair and blindingly blue eyes. And those eyes are focused right on me.
My stomach flips and my heart seizes.
I drop my coffee cup on the deck, not caring about the shattered ceramic as I skip down the few steps to the boardwalk.
I ignore the police officer as he tries to ask me a question and throw myself into Noah’s arms. He lifts me up as I wrap my legs around his waist, burying my head in his neck. Tears flood my eyes as I grip him as hard as I can.
I didn’t know I needed this.
Needed him.
“I never should have run like that,” I murmur into his neck.
“Shh… you did what you needed,” he says as one of his large hands strokes my back, the other holding tight to the wild curls in my hair.
“I’m sorry… I’m so—”
He cuts me off before I can apologize, pulling my face to meet his, his forehead resting against mine. “You needed space. You needed—”
“I needed you. I didn’t know. I didn’t know,” I whisper just as his lips find mine.
That fire and crackle that’s always been between us increases tenfold with this kiss. Two days apart and it’s like my heart forgot how to beat without him around.
My hands find their way into his hair, pulling him as close to me as I can get him. His hand slides down to cup my ass as his other holds me possessively in the back of my hair. One swipe of his tongue against my lips and I come undone, moaning into him, clawing at his back. I can feel his hard erection against my center and I want nothing more than to drag him into the cottage and show him how much I truly need him.
But the clearing of a throat behind us causes us both to stop. I slowly slide down Noah’s body, a blush flooding my cheeks, forgetting there was a police officer with him.
Noah speaks, a raspiness to his voice as he slides me in front of him, my back to his chest, hiding the erection I now feel pressed into my back. “Sorry Tyler, I forgot—”
The man, Tyler, holds his hand up to stop Noah from speaking. “Don’t worry. I know how the feeling is. I just wanted to stop you before I arrested you both for public indecency.”
Noah chuckles at that. “Don’t think that would look too good on my record.”
“Not if you want to make detective this year,” Tyler says with a laugh.
I look between the two of them confused because they clearly know each other.
Noah looks down at me and presses a kiss to my forehead. “Anna, this is Hunter’s friend, Tyler. He’s a detective out here in Beaufort County.”
“Hi, nice to meet you.” I wave at Tyler, still embarrassed I was practically humping Noah in front of him. I look up at Noah, wondering if he sent a search party out for me.
He must see the question in my eyes because he starts explaining. “I’ll explain it all later. Luckily, Tyler knew this cottage.”
I nod and turn back to Tyler.
“Well, I am glad he wasn’t here to murder you or kidnap you. I’ll just be on my way.”
Noah’s chuckle against my back sends a warmth through me as we both say our goodbyes.
I turn in his arms as soon as Tyler is out of view.
I go to speak but Noah’s lips come crashing down on mine. The fire that was there minutes ago flaming to intense degrees. “Not now,” he says against my lips. “I just need to feel you. Know you are okay.”
“I’m okay now,” I say before sucking his lip into my mouth. He grunts as he lifts me back into his arms and carries me up the stairs of the cottage.
“You made a mess.” He laughs against my lips before pulling away to look down and avoid the broken ceramic mug. “It’s unlike you.”
I pull his face back toward mine. “When I saw you, you were the only thing I cared about.”
That statement alone turns him into the dominant man I know him to be. He slams through the cottage door, kicking it shut behind him. He carries me down the hall that leads to the bedrooms but only gets as far as the wall before he slams me against it, his lips devouring my neck, my collarbone, slipping low to brush against the tops of my breasts.
“Fuck, I need you, Mayberry. I need to be inside you now.”
Before I can even respond, he uses the wall as leverage to hold me up as he pulls my sweats down with one hand and unzips his jeans with the other.
I don’t even have time to respond to his need before he is slamming into me. My back pressing hard into the wall as he pounds with heated force, taking everything I can give him. His lips are sloppy moving from my mouth to my ear to my neck but I don’t care. The heat between us has me just as needy and desperate as he is. I claw at his back, pulling his t-shirt over his head.
He growls as I grind hard on to his hips. He bites my neck, my shoulder. Every thrust getting more powerful as we both cry out in feral passion.
His hands move to my hips and before I know it he is slamming me down on his hard cock with such an intense pace, the pictures my aunt had hanging on the wall crash to the floor.
My need for Noah emotionally outweighs my need for him sexually but with every thrust I feel more connected to him than I ever felt before. This is what makes us work, what makes us need each other so badly. Our physical connection makes our emotional connection even stronger.
And with every lick of flame from his body and every moan from my mouth, we are both saying the things we are too scared to say out loud.
I watch him as he watches himself slide into me. My fingers trail up his abs, outlining each one before making their way up his chest. I circle his nipples with my nails causing him to say indiscernible words as he works us both to the edge. I finally make my way to his jaw and cup his face, forcing him to look into my eyes as I come apart in his hands. He follows at the same time, our gaze never breaking as we both ride out the wave of pleasure.
Only when he finally stops pumping and the pulses of my body slow, does he break our gaze as his lips find mine.
He hoists me back up around his waist, away from the wall as he carries me toward my bedroom. I nod in the direction of the last room.
He lays me down on the bed, pulling out of me, and I moan at the loss of him
. He chuckles as he stands up. Pulling his jeans and briefs off. I go to take my clothes off but he tsks me.
His hands find their way back to my body, slowly pulling my pajama bottoms off. He pulls the cardigan off next before making his way to my tank top. He slides his hands over the tops of my breasts, squeezing my nipples firmly. He moves his hands under the tank as he straddles my thighs. His hands caress my stomach and sides before dipping between my thighs, dragging a finger in the mixture of my wetness and his juices. That’s when I realize we didn’t use a condom.
“Noah,” I moan as he works me into another moan.
“Hmm?” he asks with a grin.
“We didn’t use anything.”
He smiles up at me. “I know.”
My eyes bulge out of my head and I try to pull away from him but his muscular thighs keep me trapped in my position.
“I needed you, babe. I needed to feel all of you.”
“But…”
He takes his other hand and slides it from my breasts up to my neck before brushing his thumb over my lip. “We already talked about it. We’re both clean.”
We talked about it but never agreed to take the risk yet. But before I can remind him of that fact, he hooks his finger inside of me, pressing firmly into my G-spot. My entire body trembles as I feel a gush of heat between my legs.
I whine when he removes his fingers from me and slowly pulls my tank up my body, caressing my breasts, before pulling it over my head.
He leans forward and presses a kiss to the side of my mouth. “Are you upset?” he asks as his growing erection presses into the mound above my soaking pussy.
I shake my head, unable to form any words as he grinds his hips into mine at the same time he pinches my nipple hard between his fingers.
“Good,” he says against my lips. “Then I’m taking what’s mine again.”
I gasp as he slams home, my body crashing quickly into an orgasm with just one intense thrust from him.
He chuckles as I pulse around him, catching my breath from the surprise release I didn’t know was there.
He pulls back slowly before driving into me again. My eyelids flutter closed at the intense sensations pulsing through my entire body. Fuck condoms. This right here feels amazing.
I grip the sheets under me as he slowly pulls out. I wait in anticipation for him to use force again but he slowly slides back in. The pleasure is intense as I whisper his name over and over. But I need more, I need to feel his need, not this teasing that is driving me wild.
I attempt to spread my legs wider, to feel him deeper, but he has me caged in. He bends down and laughs in my ear before whispering, “Getting greedy, Anna May?”
The sound of my full name on his lips turns me into Jell-O. My body won’t stop radiating pleasure but for some reason it isn’t enough. I need more.
I wrap my hands around his ass, pushing him deeper inside of me but he’s too strong and holds off on the rhythm, his laughter filling the room.
“This isn’t funny,” I groan.
“Oh yes it is. You are such a minx. Trying to get more, my wildflower.”
“I need it, baby.”
“Is that right? You want me deeper?”
I groan in response as he rotates his hips causing the pulsing inside of me to intensify.
“Please,” I beg, trying whatever I can to feel more of him.
He sucks my lower lip into his mouth before biting hard. “You asked for it.” He chuckles.
Before I can comprehend what he means, he pulls out of me, flipping me onto my stomach. I turn to look at him but within seconds he pulls my hips up while using his palm to press my chest into the bed at the same time he slams into me from behind.
I scream. He is relentless, filling me hard and fast, just the way I was begging him. It doesn’t take long for me to find another orgasm. My entire body convulsing with pleasure. I know he is close too by the grip he has on my hip and the groans coming out of his mouth, my name a prayer on his lips. Before he finds his release, he takes his other hand and presses hard into my clit. I nearly black out from the pleasure just as he comes hard inside of me.
He collapses on top of me, his heart beating hard against my back, his breathing erratic.
He kisses me slowly, peppering kisses up my spine before he pulls off me and flips me over, gathering me in his arms to lay across his chest.
“That was…” he says out of breath.
I prop myself on my elbow and look into his eyes. “Perfect.”
His lips crash into mine for a short, intense kiss before he pulls away.
“Was that okay?”
I scrunch my brow. “What do you mean?”
“I was… a little… uh—”
“Rough.” I finish his sentence.
“Yeah,” he answers as he cups my jaw, his eyes staring into mine.
I trace my finger along his chest. “We’ve done it before.”
“Never like that.”
He’s right. This time definitely felt different. “I think it’s what we needed.”
He nods his head as he strokes my back. “I’ll be gentler next time.”
“Only if I want you to be.”
The look in his eyes change to hunger again and I can’t help but laugh. “But I think you might need to give my vagina a rest for a few hours.”
“Are you hurt?”
I shake my head. “No, but I feel like you’re still inside of me.”
He presses a kiss to my forehead. “That’s how I want you to feel.”
We lay there for what feels like hours, enjoying each other’s company, feeling at peace. Until my stomach growls and Noah’s laugh fills the room.
“I think we need to get you fed.”
“What did you have in mind?” I joke.
He shakes his head as he stands from the bed. “Real food.”
He hands me my clothes before he pulls on his briefs and jeans. The letter falls out of my cardigan pocket and he scoops it up before I can take it from him.
“Don’t read—” I try to snatch it from him but he pulls away from me and holds it above my head. Asshole.
“Is this the letter Jed gave you?”
I stop trying to reach for it, stunned he knew what it was. “Jed told you?”
He shrugs. “He told me he gave you a letter from Kyle. That’s it. And from the looks of the paper, I would say it’s pretty old, not a song you wrote recently.”
I sit back on the bed and look down at my feet. He has no idea what’s in that letter. Hell, he probably thinks it’s some beautiful apology and love letter. “It’s not what you think.”
“What do you mean?”
I shrug and brush back tears that threaten to spill out of my eyes. “It doesn’t change anything. Yet it changes everything.”
“I’m confused. Is it not closure?”
I shake my head before looking up at him. God, he is so beautiful. Inside and out. I can see and feel how he cares about me. How was I so stupid not to see that with Kyle?
Noah kneels in front of me. “That ghost is in your eyes again, Mayberry.”
I try to look away from him but he won’t let me. I have no idea how to explain that letter to him. How to tell him I was a fool from the get-go. How all that letter did was make me feel like I wasted years on a man who was never worth my time.
“Baby.” Noah grabs me off the bed and settles me into his lap. He wraps his arms around me, holding me as tight to his chest as he can. “Talk to me.”
I take a deep breath before speaking. “That letter… that… it let me see him.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m not crying over him,” I manage to get out. “I’m crying over the time I lost mourning him.”
I can feel the tension in Noah’s body. His need to protect me from everything is tangible and I know when he reads that letter he won’t be happy.
“Let’s eat,” he says with unease in his voice.
We walk into the ti
ny kitchen that barely fits us both. I pull some cold cuts from the fridge I picked up yesterday and make us each a sandwich. We sit at the tiny dining table by the window that looks out over the sand dune. We eat in silence, the letter sitting on the table between us. I know he is brewing from the few words I said about the letter. And I am just waiting for him to ask about it. But I really don’t know what there is to say.
The only reason I’ve reread the letter so many times was to find some kind of redeeming quality about Kyle. But with each read-through, my hatred only got worse. His apology was a cop-out. An excuse to get me back.
I don’t know how to tell Noah what the letter says. I can’t summarize the awful shit inside of it. “Read it.”
He looks at me with surprise.
“I can’t tell you what’s inside. It’s just better if you read it.”
“Are you sure?”
I nod and look out the window watching a storm cloud move in. Rain sprinkles the windowpane and I watch the drops fall as Noah reads the letter. I don’t dare look at him. Don’t want to see the rage I know will be on his face.
His chair scrapes against the linoleum floor as he stands. He walks out the front door, slamming it behind him. I look out the window and watch as he storms across the dune and down to the beach. I can see lightning in the distance. Idiot just ran out on to the beach in a damn lightning storm.
I knock my chair over as I run after him. I grab an umbrella from the stand by the door before I run into the rain and down to the beach.
The letter is in his hand as he falls to his knees on the beach, screaming at the top of his lungs. Thank God for the storm. There are no people out here to watch his crazy.
I run up to him, pulling on his arm as he finally quiets down. “Noah, you need to get off the beach. You could get struck by lightning.”
He looks at me and stands, towering over me as I fail to cover us both with the umbrella and let it fall to the ground. “If he was alive right now, I would kill him.”
“Noah.”
“That asshole does not get the final word.”
“Noah.”
“I don’t like that he can still hurt you even when he isn’t here.”
“Noah, please,” I urge, gripping on to his wrist for dear life.
