by Anne, Melody
The desire to take the afternoon off and do just that was so damn tempting Noah found himself close to saying yes.
He shook his head.
“I have too much work to get done right now to play hooky today, but it’s tempting. Some of us can’t live like bums and sit around the house in ripped-up clothes,” Noah said. Finn just smiled, not seeming offended at all. “Besides,” he added before his brother could say anything, “I have nothing to prove to anyone.”
“Come on, little brother. We’ll have a blast, and we haven’t had a day like that in a long time,” Finn pushed.
“Yeah, your adventures usually end up with someone in the ER, and I can’t afford a week off of work,” Noah pointed out.
“That only happens once in a while,” Finn told him with a laugh.
Brooke was watching the two of them with a smile. She didn’t have any family left and had told them several times she loved that by marrying Finn, she’d inherited an entire new one. Noah was glad to call her his sister.
“You two enjoy the rest of lunch. I just got paged to the clinic,” Brooke said after her phone went off.
“It’s Saturday,” Finn said with a pout that cracked Noah up. His brother wasn’t normally the pouting kind.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” she told her husband. “You hold down the fort until I’m back.”
“Deal,” he said before kissing her so intimately Noah once again felt like an intruder.
“Don’t let the children escape,” she warned before stepping out of the room.
“Where are my nieces?” Noah asked. He was a lot in love with them.
“Sleeping. It’s a rare event,” Finn said with another laugh.
“Brooke trusts you on your own with them?” Noah questioned.
“I’m a hell of a dad,” Finn said as he puffed out his chest. “But those little girls do give me a run for my money,” he admitted. “And with Brooke back to work part time, we’ve hired a nanny. Not that she doesn’t trust me,” he quickly added, “but because we both realized sleep deprivation was beginning to make us slowly lose our minds.”
Noah laughed some more. “You’re getting outwitted by a couple of infants. I love it.”
“You just wait,” Finn warned. “You’ll be on this side of life before you know it. Then my girls will be sleeping through the night, and I’ll be laughing at you,” he promised.
A shudder ran through Noah. “No way. I’m not that dumb,” he said.
“Mm-hmm. That’s what I thought. Now I can’t even imagine how lonely I’d be without Brooke and those girls. They’re my world.”
“Damn straight they are,” Noah said. “And my nieces.”
“Yeah, we’re all pretty blessed.”
There weren’t more true words spoken. They’d always been a blessed family. Some people might forget that, but Noah vowed to always remember and always be grateful. His mother had reminded them too often of how fortunate they were for him to dishonor her by forgetting.
He said goodbye to his brother after another hour. It was time to go find Sarah. He wasn’t even going to pretend he didn’t want to see her. And he had some soul-searching to do. Maybe it truly was time to trade in the suit and look at life like an adventure. Maybe if he could do that, he could do anything.
CHAPTER SIX
Dreaming was essential to the human existence. If people spent more time with their dreams and less time in reality, the world would be a happier place. Sarah firmly believed this. Why was it so damn important to grow up? Why did she feel she had to always be in control of her life and her experiences? She didn’t want to grow up, didn’t want to be responsible. Yet even knowing this and having a desire for freedom, she couldn’t seem to let her hair down and let it all go.
She wanted to be one of those people who decided to be in Neverland forever and think to hell with anyone who had a problem with it. But no matter how much she desired that, she couldn’t seem to get herself to act on her own wishes.
Sarah had spent so much time in school in uptight clothing with glasses on and her brain active while trying to portray a person who had it all together that she hadn’t known anything about life. She was beginning to figure that out, but she was still a little lost. Now she was twenty-seven and just now starting to know who she was.
On her days off she lived in a favorite pair of sweatpants and a camisole. But she wouldn’t dare show up in public like that. While working, she often wore a pencil skirt and cotton blouse. She wanted nothing to do with silk or satin or any clothing that would take too much time to coordinate. The more time she spent on grooming, the less time she had to do her actual work.
She did have a love of fitness, though, and there was always a gym bag in the back of her car, because she never knew when she’d need to go for a run. Her brain never stopped working, so sometimes the only way she could begin to shut down was to push her body to the breaking point and then go a little farther. Just because she could. She loved the Cam Hanes saying of “Nobody cares. Work harder.”
Being an architect was about the greatest job a person could have. She’d always been a creative person, but there were so many fields she could’ve gone into with her love of design. When she’d looked at the architectural degree, there’d been no more looking. She’d found her passion, and she couldn’t wait to see her creations all around the world. But it was still a predominantly male-driven field, which made her feel the need to work that much harder.
As much as Sarah did love dreams, there was a time and place to feel them. This wasn’t it. Right now she had a lot of work to get done. She sat in her small office and tried to focus on the design she was working on. This project was difficult because it was the first one that her name would be attached to that the world was going to be critical of. Whenever the Anderson name went behind something, it became a media sensation.
She had to force herself not to panic as she erased another line and fought herself not to throw the entire paper into the garbage can. It wasn’t only that this was an Anderson project; it was also the fact that she was working with Noah Anderson, who was driving her and her hormones absolutely crazy.
She’d been more than willing to take her time making a name for herself, but now she wasn’t going to be able to do that. This job could make or break her career. That was a lot of pressure for someone who already was so critical of themselves. She wanted to be a superstar in this world of art and creation. But she wasn’t sure she’d ever feel she was good enough, because there was always something she could do to make it better.
She lost track of time as she continued working, so when someone tapped on her door, she about jumped out of her seat. Then she was annoyed with herself. There was no reason to be jumpy or irritated at a distraction. Maybe it would refresh her mind enough to finish this dang drawing.
When her door opened and she found Noah standing there looking far too sexy as he took up the entire width of the doorframe, she felt her heart stutter. His sparkling blue eyes gazed at her so intensely she had to force herself not to look away. She didn’t want him to realize the power he had with nothing more than a look.
There were days she wished she never had to see him again. And then there were moments she wanted to find reasons to be with him, to hear the sexy smooth sound of his voice, to feel his hot breath on the back of her neck as he looked over a drawing she was doing, to feel the touch of his fingers against her skin in a casual brush. She was a hot mess, and she knew it, but there didn’t seem to be a whole lot she could do about the situation.
She was working with the man, whether she wanted to or not, and he wasn’t the type of guy to be easily intimidated or back off from what he wanted. And he’d made it more than clear he wanted her—at least for now.
“How are you today, sexy?” he asked in a voice so smooth and hot he could melt butter with it, even on a cold day.
It drove her absolutely insane how he took her voice away with a few simple nondescript words. But all the man had
to do was be in the same room with her, and she was a mess. That alone was a reason not to date him—or sleep with him anymore.
“My name is Sarah, not sexy, not darling, not any other pet name you think of to annoy me,” she said in the haughtiest voice she could come up with. The smirk he gave her made her want to jump from her chair and get in his face. Sarah had never been a violent person, but the emotions this one man raised in her were insane.
“You have a very beautiful name; I can assure you, though, that I have many nicknames that suit you just as well,” he said with a wink.
“Look, Noah, I’ve been sitting at this desk all day with no breaks. I don’t have time to have a verbal spar with you. What do you need?” she asked. She hated being this girl—so uptight and to the point. Life was too short to live it stressed. But this one man made her so out of control she couldn’t help herself around him.
He took his time sauntering forward, and she tried not to watch. He moved with grace and beauty, which was odd, since he was such a large man. But then again, there wasn’t a single thing she’d found wrong with him so far, so of course his movements would be utter perfection, just like the rest of him.
He stopped right in front of her desk, leaving the most appealing parts of him very visible and very nearby. Her fingers were practically shaking with the need to reach out and touch him. She clenched them into fists and prayed she’d get through this impromptu meeting quickly and with her brain fully functioning.
He didn’t say anything for a long time, just caressed her face with his beautiful eyes, making her breath come out in short little pants. He looked at her with such familiarity she felt as if they’d known each other their entire lives instead of only a year. There were just some people in life you clicked with right away. Apparently she’d clicked with him, though she would continue to fight it.
“I haven’t spoken to you all week. How are you doing?” he asked. The words came out with sincerity, as if he really did care how her week had gone.
Sarah had spent an afternoon once thinking about all the things people said to one another. People greeted each other, asking how they were doing, asking about their families, dates, lives, and careers. But most people asking those questions didn’t really care about the answer you gave. It was just so ingrained in people to be polite they went through the motions.
But that made no sense to Sarah. Why pretend to care when you didn’t? When she asked a question of people, it was because she truly wanted the answer. One thing she’d stopped asking many years ago was “How are you?” because it only took seconds of reading someone’s body language or facial expressions to get your own answer to that question. Something she liked to ask a lot more that came with some fun answers was “Is there anything new going on in your life?”
Sarah tried to do something new and exciting once a year. That way she didn’t feel guilty about being so in control the rest of the time. Plus, she needed a thrill once in a while, when her job was so dang sedentary. Her favorite part of working was when she got to be out in the field. That got her off her butt and doing something she truly loved.
“I’m bored with sitting all day long,” she answered honestly. “I love what I do, but there are times I wonder why I didn’t go into archaeology or medicine, something that would stimulate my mind and body.”
At her last words his lips turned up, and her stomach clenched. Of course the man was thinking about how capable he was of stimulating her body. She had to admit, if only to herself, he was very, very good at stimulating her in all sorts of exciting ways.
His body leaned forward as if he wanted to make contact, and she pulled back. If the man touched her, she was a goner. She knew she’d melt in his arms and not only let him do anything he wanted to her but be an active participant, even going so far as to beg him to never stop. She craved this man like a runner desired water.
“Anytime you want an adventure, I’m more than willing to give you one,” he told her as he leaned against her desk. At least he wasn’t looking as if he was going to touch her again.
“What are you doing here, Noah? I have a lot of work to get done, and it’s not going as well as I’d like,” she reminded him. He obviously wasn’t in a hurry to get to the point, so she’d have to lead him in that direction.
“We need to do something completely different,” he said with a long pause that had her intrigued. “I’m stumped,” he finally admitted.
“Is that true?” She didn’t take him as a man to get stumped, and if he did, she really didn’t take him as the type of person to admit it. She wondered if this was another ploy of some sort on his part. She might not know him really well, but she had never taken him for the type of person to lie, though.
Noah stepped back and pulled a chair forward. He had this cute way of sitting on chairs. He never sat in them correctly. This one he plopped down on sideways so he could lean his right arm over the back, as if he had all the time in the world to sit there and lounge about.
He pulled out a folded paper from his pocket and plopped it on her desk. She gazed at it for a moment before looking at him again. She waited, but he didn’t say anything. Finally she sighed and pulled it toward her.
“What is this?” she asked.
“It’s our first layout. I made a few changes, but I don’t like how it’s going. I haven’t been in the field in a while, and I think we need to explore. Maybe go to the site, maybe somewhere else. But this isn’t working. I’m thinking about taking a couple of trips to look at other facilities. Yes, there’s a lot wrong with the services and buildings provided for our vets, but there’s some things that are being done right. We need to figure out which is which and put all the good into this one place. We need to set the standard for the rest of the buildings created in the future.”
Sarah’s curiosity was now officially piqued. She loved how much thought and effort he was putting into this. And it wasn’t just because he was now one of the famous Andersons. It was because he truly did care about veterans services and wanted to give them an absolutely beautiful place to spend their time when they were recovering from one injury or another.
She opened the paper and looked at it. Yes, they’d done a fairly good job, but she agreed with him that more could be done. They had time. Joseph wasn’t rushing them. Noah’s brother was anxious to get going on other stuff, but the main facility had been designed first, and he was building that now. They could make sure and get the rest of it right and not make Hudson fall behind on his work.
Noah rose from his chair, too active to stay sitting for long. When she looked up, his eyes met hers, and her breath caught again. There was fire in his gaze, and she had a feeling he was doing all he could not to close the small gap between them and lay his lips against hers. She wasn’t surprised at how much she wanted to close that distance herself.
Instead of doing just that, she broke away from the intense look and scooted back, placing her gaze safely on the paper in front of her. It was much smarter to do that than play with fire.
“I don’t know if we should take so much time away from the actual drawings to go exploring,” she told him.
He smiled at her, that impish look back in his eyes. Noah didn’t ever take no for an answer. Normally, neither did she.
“Let’s meet tonight for dinner and go over it. Then the next day we’ll get in the field,” he said, as if it was a done deal. Technically he was the senior architect and therefore in charge. She’d be a fool not to listen and learn from him—at least professionally.
“I don’t know . . . ,” she said, feeling as if she was getting tricked into something.
“Yes, you do. We’ve got this,” he said. He gave her one scorching look, then turned and began walking from her office. Part of her wanted to call out to him and tell him she was her own person, and he couldn’t tell her what to do. But the rest of her wanted to go on an adventure with him. But she’d already been on some adventures with him, and it hadn’t gone well at all—it
had been downright dangerous.
But one thing she could almost guarantee by working with Noah Anderson was that she’d never be bored. And Sarah despised being bored.
She let out a sigh as he left her office without turning back. It looked like the next step in her adventure with the Anderson family was starting. Maybe she should just accept it and go along for the ride.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Noah couldn’t keep the smile from his face as he kicked his motorcycle into full throttle and flew through the back roads, taking a corner a bit too fast. His laughter rang out as he felt more free than he had in a long time. There was nothing better than a sunny day and speed. Well, maybe that wasn’t true. A good woman beneath a man was pretty damn amazing, too.
He’d decided to go back to his youth and loosen up. And he never did anything at half measure. Why do it halfway when you could go all the way?
From the time he’d been about twelve, he’d had a need for speed. They hadn’t had the money then to buy recreational vehicles, but he’d found friends with them. By the time he was sixteen, he’d been an expert at driving. The adventure had only just begun then. He’d never lost the need for a good thrill; he’d just put it on hold for a while. But he truly didn’t want to settle in life. Why should he, when there was so much adventure to be had? He was always in control, so driving too fast was a release he greatly needed.
And now that he was working on this project, for the first time in years he and his brothers were all in close proximity to each other. It didn’t get much better than that. He loved his family. It was easy to let life get in the way and to let too much time pass with little communication. He loved being together again. Life was falling into place exactly how it was supposed to.
Of course thinking like that had him thinking of Sarah. She’d stormed into his life like a summer hurricane. And he wasn’t afraid. That shocked him. He’d always loved women. What was there not to love? They were soft to his hardness, kind to his sarcasm, and beautiful to his ruggedness. He loved how they felt in his arms, loved how they made him smile, and loved how silky they felt against him.
