by Anne, Melody
“I’m sorry. This project really is consuming me, and working with Noah isn’t exactly a picnic,” Sarah admitted.
“I know, and I totally get it, but if I go too long without seeing each other, I get cranky,” Chloe told her. “And you do realize our souls are aligned, and the light begins to fade if we don’t see each other’s faces?” She was laughing as she said this, but there was actually some truth to her words.
“I know. I need to do better at multitasking. I can do my job and not fall off the face of the earth,” Sarah assured her bestie.
“Good. Now that we have that settled, there’s a reason I asked you to come to this particular location,” Chloe said with barely concealed excitement.
“What’s happening?” Sarah asked, feeling the excitement flow from her friend through her. It was always that way with Chloe and Brooke.
“This is mine,” Chloe told her as she jumped up and down. “The name will change when we come up with a good one, but I signed the papers this morning. Brooke was supposed to come, too, but those babies weren’t cooperating, so she has to wait to know. I finally have my own place! And what makes it even better is we used to come down here when we were kids. It’s now all mine to do with whatever I decide.”
“You bought it?”
“Yep. It’s mine, all mine,” she repeated, looking more like a teenager in her excitement than a woman. “And it will do amazing. I know it’s completely meant to be,” Chloe said.
“Oh my gosh, Chloe, I couldn’t be more happy for you,” Sarah said. She looked around the room with new eyes, excited for the possibilities. “Are you going to change it up in here or keep it the same?”
“Of course I’ll make changes,” Chloe said, as if she were crazy to suggest otherwise.
“I’m so proud of you for taking this step. I know it’s going to be amazing because anything you put your touch to turns to gold.”
“Thank you. I’m a little proud, too, and the reason things turn to gold is because I have the best people in my life to support me, encourage me, and help me every step of the way.” She then turned toward the hovering waiter. “We have a special guest tonight. Give her anything she wants.”
“Don’t be intimidated by her. I’m low maintenance,” Sarah assured the man, who smiled.
“She’s lying to you,” Chloe told the waiter, who was fighting not to chuckle. “But she might try to be on good behavior tonight. We’ll see.” Chloe turned back to Sarah. “I’m assuming you’ll want our best wine.” The waiter handed her a menu as soon as the words were out of Chloe’s mouth. Wine sounded pretty perfect after the day she’d had.
“How about a nice glass of cabernet?” a deep male voice said from behind them, making a shiver run down Sarah’s spine. Slowly, she turned and found her gaze locked with a seemingly amused Noah, who winked at her before smiling at the waiter.
“Of course, Mr. Anderson,” the waiter said before he turned to go and get a bottle without waiting to see if she was going to confirm that choice or not. It was just another reminder of the power the Andersons carried.
“I don’t need wine,” Sarah tried to call out, but it was too late. She’d just been thinking that was exactly what she needed, but she didn’t like Noah having the power he had, and she really didn’t like him taking over and ordering for her, even if that would’ve been exactly what she would’ve ordered. He was observant, that was for sure. And they had spent enough time together for him to know exactly what drinks she preferred.
“Live a little,” Chloe said with a smile as she turned her head to look back and forth between her and Noah. The restaurant might as well have been empty, as alone as she suddenly felt with the man she’d been avoiding all day. She wasn’t supposed to see him until tomorrow. She’d been counting on the night to work up her courage. She could remain professional with him if she gave herself enough pep talks—and read some more self-help books as well.
“Are you making my help run for you?” Chloe asked before she leaned in and gave Noah a side hug. “It’s good to see you.”
“I always enjoy a visit with a beautiful lady, and it’s good to make people run. It keeps them in shape. Did I hear correctly that you’re the official owner of this place now?” Noah asked.
“You heard right,” Chloe said, her smile so big she almost looked like a clown.
“How did you hear?” Sarah asked. “I just found out.”
“Good news travels fast,” Noah told them.
“Yes, it does, especially in a small town,” Chloe said. “But I do have to run into the kitchen for a little bit. We’re going to be closing down in about a week for the remodel, but I want to have people excited this week, so everything needs to run smoothly. All the staff has agreed to stay on. I can’t wait.”
“Well, I’m starving, so feed me something great,” Noah said.
“Mmm, go with the pasta primavera. The cook made a special sauce that’s amazing,” Chloe suggested.
“Don’t be gone too long,” Sarah said, a bit of desperation in her tone. She was now avoiding looking into Noah’s eyes.
“I’ll hurry, but I’m sure Noah will be more than happy to keep you company in the meantime,” Chloe said.
Sarah wanted to call the woman a traitor, but since she hadn’t been around much, she couldn’t be mean. Chloe turned and left, leaving her standing there with Noah. She didn’t even want to sit. She was trying to decide if she should turn and walk away. Feeling awkward, Sarah finally did sit, and Noah smiled before taking the seat across from her.
“You, Chloe, and Brooke have a special bond not many other people share,” Noah pointed out.
“Yes, we really do,” she said. “But I haven’t been around enough lately, and I’m missing my friends. You don’t need to sit here and eat with me. I’m fine with being on my own until Chloe gets back,” she added.
“I need to eat, too, and I’ve always liked this place.” The smile he gave her was enough to make her knees weak again. The waiter returned with the bottle of wine, and Noah took it from him. “I’ll pour.” The man left, and he filled both their glasses.
“Thank you,” she murmured, picking up the glass and taking a big gulp.
“I have a suggestion,” he told her with a wink. “Why don’t we play a little game?”
The wine was perfection, but if she wasn’t careful, she was going to start talking too much. Alcohol did strange things to her, and though she was always an honest person, alcohol made her a freaking open book.
“What are you talking about?” she asked as she stupidly took another big swallow of the delicious red.
“If we are going to have an adventure, we’re gonna spend a lot of time together. Let’s see if we can get through a single meal first,” he challenged.
“That’s a game?” she asked.
“Life is a game,” he replied with a smile before he sipped again while his eyes trailed down the V of her neck. That made her breathing instantly deepen.
“I don’t believe that,” she said sadly.
There had been times in her life she’d laughed a heck of a lot more. Growing up really sucked sometimes. Being responsible wasn’t a barrel of fun, but it was what you had to do—or so she’d been told.
“So you aren’t willing to bend?” he asked, challenge in his eyes.
That made her hackles rise. He was challenging her, and it wasn’t easy for her to walk away from a challenge. She knew he was doing it on purpose, knew he wanted a reaction from her, but even logically knowing this, she couldn’t seem to stop herself from playing right into his hands.
“I can sit here and behave just fine. It’s you who can’t,” she told him, lifting her glass only to realize it was empty. She’d polished that off way too quickly. Still, she didn’t complain when Noah reached out and refilled the glass. Maybe it would take the edge off. Maybe she could learn a bit of control and keep the zipper closed on her lips.
“To mutual understanding,” Noah said as he lifted his gla
ss. She only hesitated a moment before she clinked hers against his, almost feeling as if she were making a deal with the devil. She probably had done that the first time she’d met this man.
Noah leaned a bit closer, and Sarah felt that urge to run again, but at the same time she wasn’t sure if she wanted to run to him or away from him. It was killing her not knowing what to do.
“I failed to mention how sexy you look,” he said, his eyes stripping her dress away, making her feel as if she were waking up in one of those nightmares where you’re nude in front of the entire school. “You look as good clothed as naked.”
There was no doubt her next sip went down wrong, making her choke. Noah’s low growl and hooded eyes were causing her to shiver and sweat at the same time. He didn’t know the meaning of playing fair. He did know how to send her into a puddle at his feet.
But she was an adult, and she should be able to stop him with nothing more than a look. She’d laid out the ground rules, and she needed to enforce what she’d said the night before. If she allowed him to continue in this train of thought, he’d think it was acceptable the entire time they were on this adventure she’d come up with. She still wasn’t quite sure how that had happened. She’d gone to the house more determined than ever to keep things professional, and then in the blink of an eye, she was asking him to go on a treasure hunt with her.
The man was good. He was so smooth she wasn’t even sure anymore which were her ideas and which ones were his. He had a way of getting her to do something she hadn’t wanted to do without her realizing she was not only doing it but doing so with a smile on her face. Was this what it was like to have the kind of power he had? She couldn’t imagine how good the man must feel every single day of his life. She wondered if he’d ever been told no with emphasis and meaning behind it. She’d rather walk through fire ants than tell him any of the thoughts she was having. Luckily the waiter returned, giving Sarah a few extra moments to figure out what to do next.
“Have you decided on dinner?” the waiter asked.
Sarah tried to reply but found her voice gone. That was something she might be grateful for soon, but not at this particular moment. Not once Noah began speaking.
“We’re both going to have the pasta primavera, thanks to the suggestion of Chloe. We’ll also have salads with house dressing, stuffed mushrooms for an appetizer, and the house-made bread, please.”
The waiter looked at Sarah, and she thought about ordering something completely different from what he’d just said just to assert her independence, but what he’d ordered actually sounded pretty great. She just gave the man a nod so he’d know it was okay.
Once they were alone again, Sarah looked over and got caught in Noah’s gaze. She wanted to correct him for ordering for her, but she could only call him out on so much before she felt like she was always complaining. She didn’t want to be that person. Besides, the smirk he was wearing told her he was waiting for just that. She refused to be predictable, so she simply picked up her glass and took another sip and tried to let her irritation with the man fade.
It was time for a conversation not involving anything to do with the two of them, though. She didn’t mind finding more out about the man. He had an interesting story to be told.
“So did you stay in contact with your family over the years before this project?” Sarah asked. Maybe a change of subject was just what they needed. She was going to prove just how civil the two of them could act around each other. The fact that they’d slept together didn’t need to dictate how they now behaved.
“We’ve always been close, but there were times we went too long without talking. I’ve vowed to never let that happen again. The past year has been too great to let that feeling go again.”
“That’s good,” Sarah said, meaning it. “How do you like being an uncle?”
“Those girls are amazing!” he said with a brilliant smile. “I wouldn’t mind a few like them, but that would require me staying in one place for a very long time, and I’m not sure I have that in me,” he told her.
His words shocked her. Sarah didn’t know how to respond. She decided it was nothing more than words. He didn’t at all seem like the fatherly type. She didn’t take him as the marrying type, either. Of course, that was what she’d always assumed about herself as well, but the older she was getting, the more she was thinking about her future. Did she really want to be alone the rest of her life? Did she want to watch her best friends get married and have perfect little families while she remained the crazy aunt who made the kids kiss her on the cheek? Was she going to be that cat lady the town folks talked about? A shudder ran through her. She didn’t generally care what people thought about her, but she was beginning to wonder if her independence was so valuable to her that it was worth the loneliness that ensued.
“You seem too adventurous to settle down and have kids,” she finally said. She wasn’t quite sure how long the silence had lasted that time. She could get lost in her own head for hours on end.
“I love adventure,” he admitted. “Which is why we’re going to have fun on this treasure hunt. I think you need and want some thrills of your own. You’re trying to hide it, but the more I look into your eyes, the more I see how much you want it. I promise you that’s not a bad thing.”
“Maybe I do want to do something I haven’t done before,” she said almost defiantly. “That doesn’t mean I don’t love what I do or my day-to-day life.”
“So you’ve come to me for adventure?”
“You came to me,” she pointed out.
“But you chose to stay,” he said with such intensity she felt glued to her seat. “And the treasure hunt was your idea. I was just planning on hanging out at the construction site. I like your idea much, much better.”
The waiter set down the bread, salads, and mushrooms before quickly disappearing again. She took the opportunity to compose herself and take a few needed breaths and a couple more sips of wine. She was trying to slow down, but it was having the effect she wanted, and her nerves were calming. She just needed to find the sweet spot where she wasn’t so nervous, but she wasn’t so over the top Noah would be able to draw any information he wanted out of her.
“I did choose to stay, Noah, because I like the idea of creating something that’s never been created before. And I am inspired by things around me. I don’t think anyone can do a creative job by sitting in an office. I think it dulls our brains and, even worse, our hearts, which we need to do art. But this has nothing to do with wanting an adventure, and it really doesn’t have to do with a need to spend time with you,” she scolded.
Feeling much better at getting that off her chest, she lifted her fork, forced herself to spear some lettuce and tomato, and took a bite. She was sure it tasted amazing. Right now she was having a hard time enjoying the meal, though.
“I think you’re protesting an awful lot for someone who came up with the idea,” Noah said, his posture lazy, his eyes crinkling as he smiled before taking a bite of his food and sighing. “This place has never disappointed. It will get even better with Chloe here. She’s a perfectionist in the best way possible.”
It was unmanageable for Sarah to stay irritated with the man when he was complimenting one of her two best friends. If a person wanted to get close to her, loving her besties was a good way to do it. If she was being perfectly honest with herself, she would have to admit there were some pretty great qualities about Noah. He was a positive person who treated others pretty dang well. But that didn’t mean he was a good mate to have. It was just an excellent quality he possessed.
“You don’t look like you eat too much,” she said, not able to keep her eyes from scanning his hard chest and flat abs. He might enjoy food, but he was obviously incredibly active as well.
“Baby, I know exactly how to burn off my meals,” he said, giving her another wink. She glared at him.
“Stop turning everything I say into a sexual innuendo,” she said. She speared a mushroom and stuffed it in
her mouth. It was a bit too hot, and she wanted to open her mouth right away, but there wasn’t a chance she was giving him that satisfaction. She just chewed and tried not to concentrate on the burning heat on her tongue.
For a moment Noah’s eyes narrowed the slightest bit, and she saw an edge of temper in his expression. That was fascinating. It took her mind off her hot food as she finally swallowed and waited to hear whatever was on his mind.
“We have something. I just want you to quit fighting it,” he said.
“I agree there’s chemistry between us. But our time came and went. I want it made clear we’re no longer lovers.”
“Maybe we haven’t been in a long time, but we’ve definitely burned up some sheets,” he told her. She looked around as her cheeks flamed. No one appeared to have overheard him. She wasn’t sure why she was letting it embarrass her. They were single people who’d done nothing wrong in sleeping together. But it wasn’t something she wanted announced to the world, either.
“Can you act a bit more professional?” she asked. His smile grew.
“You’re allowed to let go and act a bit unprofessional,” he countered. “I’d be more than happy to help you with it. It’s a new lesson in life I’ve been embracing, and I don’t think I have any desire to go back to who I was. I’m having a lot more fun with this new philosophy in life.”
She took his words seriously. She chewed on them for a few moments as she considered what he was saying. She didn’t want to be so stubborn that she wouldn’t hear good advice even if she considered the person giving it to be the enemy.
“I do let go sometimes,” she said. Then it was her turn to give him a sassy smile. “But I’m very picky who I do it with.” Her smile grew bigger. “It won’t be you.”
“I think I’ll change your mind. There’s a tigress inside you that’s begging to be set free. I’m making it my mission to be the one to release it.”
Surprisingly, Sarah found herself chuckling. “Is that a line you’ve used before?” she asked. Maybe it was the wine, and maybe he was simply wearing her down. She was beginning to find this conversation amusing. Yes, he turned her on, but he also intrigued her and challenged her. She was beginning to like that a whole lot. She never had been able to resist a challenge.
