Conflict of Interest_A Mustang Prairie Romance

by N. D. Jackson

  “Let me get you some water,” Noel said, rising quickly and disappearing into the kitchen.

  “I need to call the police,” she said into her hands.

  Noel returned with her water. “I already called them, they should be here any minute.”

  She smiled at him gratefully as he took his seat next to her. “I appreciate Noel, even if I don’t deserve it.”

  “Don’t worry about it Shellie. Just because we’re enemies doesn’t mean we can’t be nice to each other.” He smiled at her, squeezing her shoulder.

  Tears began to fall again. “You’re not my enemy Noel, it’s just--,” she couldn’t finish her thought because she didn’t know what it was.

  He pulled her close and kissed the top of her head, sending an electrical current through them both. “We can worry about what we are tomorrow. Tonight we have enough to deal with. Deal?”

  “Deal.”

  An hour later the police had come to take their statements and gone, leaving them alone again in the silence of Shellie’s living room. Exhausted she threw herself back on the sofa and let out a guttural scream.

  “Feel better?” Noel looked at her, amusement dancing in his eyes.

  “A little. And hungry…have you eaten?”

  Noel shook his head and she picked up the phone and placed a quick order before tossing the phone onto a nearby chair. “At least I can feed you.”

  “Actually you can do a lot more for me than that.”

  She rolled her eyes, “Are we back there again?”

  Noel laughed. “I never left there, but that’s not what I meant.”

  She stared, waiting for him to continue.

  He cleared his throat and sat up, resting his elbows on his thighs. “The thing is, I need a place to stay for a while.”

  “Can’t you afford a hotel? Doesn’t KitchenMart pay you handsomely?” Her pulse quickened as it became clear what he wanted.

  “They do, but the time it would take me to relocate would cut into my work.”

  She smiled.

  “And while I’m sure that pleases you, I need to work so I figured I could stay with you until this is all cleared up.”

  She shot up from her spot, “No way Noel, don’t even think about it!” She began to pace in front of him. “I mean things are already complicated enough between us, and living under the same roof wouldn’t be fair --,” she tried to change her train of thought but couldn’t. Maybe it was the shock or the alcohol. “Look I just can’t let you stay here, Noel. I’m sorry.”

  “Why not? I mean you said there was nothing between us and you think I’m such a cliché that I’m sleeping with my assistant. You could never have complicated feelings for someone like that, right?” It hurt him to say those words but they were her words.

  Shellie’s shoulders slumped visibly. She had said those things to him, but they were to protect her more than repel him. “That doesn’t mean this is a good idea, even you can see that.”

  “Maybe,” he shrugged. “But I’m here asking anyway. Please say yes Shellie.” His emerald eyes pleaded with her.

  The desire she saw in his darkened eyes was exactly why she had to say no. She wouldn’t last a week with him in her space, showering in her bathroom, sleeping just a few feet from her. It just wouldn’t work. “No I’m sorry, I can’t.” You can’t or you won’t, her conscience pleaded with her.

  Noel stood, resigned. “Fine Shellie. Just return the remainder of my deposit so I can get a hotel until I find something else.”

  Damn, she was caught there. That money was spent make up for the money she didn’t get from her clients and she couldn’t afford to return it. Shellie sighed deeply several times, obviously deep in thought and Noel stood watching her eyes dart left to right as the gears of decision were grinding. He smiled down, watching her face fall as she reached her decision.

  “Fine, let me show you to your room.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Shellie flung herself down and stretched across her large canopy bed staring into space while fingering the thick midnight blue fabric surrounding her, thinking about what she could have possibly done in a past life to deserve the bittersweet punishment of shacking up with Noel. Sure there were things she’d done in this life that she regretted, sorely regretted if she were being honest, but this punishment did not seem to fit any of her past deeds. After trying for two and a half hours to pretend as though she was perfectly unaffected by his newfound nearness, she decided it was best to spend the rest of the night in her room. I did have a really long day, she justified to herself when his sad eyes descended upon her willing her to stay in his company for a little while longer.

  It wasn’t as though she was trying to avoid him, but each time she needed to venture out of her room she remembered a very good reason to stay inside. After dinner she removed her flowing black dress and matching black underclothes into a dark pool around her feet thinking that a scalding hot shower would remove the day from her and cleanse her memory of Noel’s soft touch and sweet kisses. But as she tightened the belt of her dark silk robe she heard the familiar beat of water against tile across the hall, and the thought of him being naked on one side of the door and her naked on the other side could, somehow, lead them down a path she deeply desired but had no intention of exploring. First they would be naked with her bedroom door and the bathroom door between them, then he’d be in the hall and just one door would separate them. Soon, she thought, they would be just a sweaty pile of limbs twisted and sated in her bed. As nice as thought sounded to her and as much as her body responded to those ideas, she knew it would only lead one place. Her hurt and heartbroken. Again.

  She knew just the thing to help her get her mind of her current situation. A glass of water to wash down the tall glass of wine she planned to have to help her sleep and forget Noel’s proximity. But, yet again there was a very good reason to confine herself to her room. Fear of running into Noel. Slowly turning the knob, she opened the door listening for sounds of Noel. Hearing nothing and seeing even less in the darkened hallway, she touched one foot in carpeted hall and instantly Noel flung open the bathroom door, one of her thick yellow bath towels wrapped around his narrow waist. Catching a quick glimpse of his broad shoulders and sculpted chest, Shellie dared to look lower to his flat but not overworked midsection, gasped and slammed the door. Still thirsty. A prisoner in my own home, that’s what I am, she fumed and flung herself back onto the large king size bed that took up most of her room. If she could just somehow not be attracted to him she knew this time together would be much easier to handle. But she did have a weakness for wavy haired blondes with piercing green eyes and sculpted muscles, and Noel was that and more. Oh so much more, she thought breathlessly.

  Her last attempt to break free from the bedroom had been more than an hour ago and surely, she thought, he had to be fast asleep by now. After all he was used to getting up early and he had a long day, thanks to me, she smiled at that thought. She stood, righting her robe to make sure everything was sufficiently covered before pressing her ear against the door for any signs of movement on the other side of the door. Releasing a breath she didn’t realize she was holding Shellie grabbed the knob of her door and turned carefully to avoid making any noises that would alert Noel to her presence. She stuck her head into the hall looking left towards the black living room and the kitchen beyond, squinting to adjust quickly to the dark, then right towards Noel’s room, and quietly stepped out when she noticed darkness at both ends of the hall.

  Calm now, Shellie tiptoed down the hall through the living room and into the kitchen without turning on any lights, using the walls to guide her down the familiar path. Inside the kitchen she relied on the fridge light to help her pull down a red wine glass before reaching for a half empty bottle of Burgundy and a bottle of water for later. Nudging the fridge closed with her hips, she paused for a brief moment remembering a box of Girl Scout Cookies stashed in the freezer. “Damn, not enough hands,” she swore and glided across t
he floor in her bare feet to avoid making noise.

  Minutes later she blew out a sigh of relief as she pressed her back against the inside of the bathroom door letting her head fall back. Allowing her breathing to return to normal as water began to fill the tub she was struck by a familiar scent permeating the air. “Rosemary and mint,” she accused. She then shrugged, thinking it better to take in his scent this way than any other, more carnal ways, and closed her eyes to fully enjoy his masculine scent.

  She added lavender bath salts and bubble bath as she reached under the running water to check the temperature. Satisfied with the temperature, she poured a glass of wine and set it on the edge of the porcelain tub against the wall and lit the vanilla candles that sat on nearly every flat surface of the bathroom. Turning out the lights so she could bathe in dim candlelight, she finally removed her robe and hung it on the oversized gold hook on the back of the door, where she noticed a rather large, obviously male and expensive, striped silk robe hung. “We’ll talk about that tomorrow,” she said and casually tossed her robe over his. Sinking slowly into the hot water she released a sensual sigh of pleasure, but covered her mouth before her new roommate got any ideas about joining her. Leaning her head against the soft green bath pillow Alexis was kind enough to get for her last birthday, Shellie finally allowed her body and her mind to relax.

  She inhaled deeply and exhaled deliberately to slow her breathing and clear her mind. Unfortunately without worrying about the fate of Mustang Prairie, the ruined upstairs unit and Noel’s close proximity all she could think about was the way her body responded to his mouth and the way it hummed as he stared at her like he thought she was perfect. Even though it had been awhile since any man had touched her the way Noel had her body have never responded so quickly to a new lover. She paused at the thought of Noel being a new lover. Is that what he was or a one-time tryst? She couldn’t think about that with the thoughts of his tongue dancing across her body, and the vision of him in nothing but a bath towel fresh on her mind.

  “Mmmmmm,” she allowed a moan to escape as she slid down deeper into the claw foot tub and allowed her now warm hands to wander over her body, exploring the way thoughts of Noel made her nipples peak and her center to moisten. Her breathing became ragged and labored as her thoughts flashed to him buried between her legs and her fingers gravitated toward the heat between her legs and she called out, “Noel,” her legs thrashing wildly in the water. Nearing her peak, Shellie had no other thoughts in her mind other than of Noel wrapped in her too small towel, water glistening over his golden torso making his muscles appear even more defined. She was so wrapped up in her sensual nightly ritual, she didn’t hear the knob turn slowly as she panted, “Oh god! Oh god!”

  She didn’t hear the click of the latch releasing as the door opened and her body tensed indicating her release was imminent. Her hands worked furiously under layers of bubbles and water, forcing her to summit that mountain, when an uncharacteristically cool breeze swept over her, moments before she was certain she would have slept like a baby. She looked up into a pair of heavy lidded green eyes staring hungrily down at her.

  ##

  Noel could tell that having him in her home was making Shellie uncomfortable but his desire to be near her outweighed any guilt he felt over her discomfort. In fact he found it amusing that she was reacting to him in a way that indicated she was as sorry about their current situation as he was. So rather than push the issue and beg her to keep him company, he simply waited. She’d have to come out of her room. Eventually.

  He cleaned up the few dinner dishes there were, just a few flower patterned plates and wine glasses since they’d had pizza and wine. Just like their first date, he thought, only without those delicious cupcakes. He was hopeful that she’d come out in search of a glass of wine or bottle of water before bed, so he prolong his time in the kitchen by wiping down the countertops and even taking the time to place her wine bottles and pizza box in the designated recycling bins on her back porch. Waiting until the dishwasher cycle was complete, Noel put them all away to kill more time for a chance encounter with her.

  What’s wrong with me, he wondered to himself. He wasn’t used to chasing a woman with so much determination, not even that reality show star turned model he’d arranged bumping into at the hottest new bistro in the city. Now here he was cleaning just to spend a few more moments with a woman who hated his guts, or at least put on a really good show of hating his guts. It wasn’t that Noel didn’t clean, he just never had to clean really. At home and at the office he made sure that his trash went into the little receptacles strategically placed all around him, but it was the responsibility of the cleaning crew or his maid to make sure the trash disappeared each day. He hadn’t actually cleaned up after himself like this since, well since college, he was sure.

  After exhausting himself further with sweeping nonexistent crumbs, he realized that she probably wouldn’t come out until she was certain he was no longer around.

  Noel decided that a hot shower, or perhaps a cold shower, was just what he needed to put an end to his hellish day and even worse week. Making his way down the dark hallway he made a stop in front of Shellie’s door on his way back to his temporary quarters hoping to hear sounds that said she was still awake. A telltale squeak of the floor gave her away. A broad smile spread across his face as he continued on to his room, where he was relieved to find his bathrobe intact. It was one of the few items of his that had been spared. Must get new clothes tomorrow, he reminded himself.

  He shoved his slacks and underwear over his narrow hips and pushed them over his calves with his feet and stepped out of them along with his socks before unbuttoning his now none too crisp work shirt and letting it fall on top of the growing heap on the floor. He dug out the blue and white silk robe his niece and nephew gave him last Christmas. It made him smile every time he put the robe on, thinking back to that Christmas morning when they squealed with delight as he tried it on. They swore to him they had chosen that robe and even paid for it, which he doubted since it was a designer robe that cost at least a few hundred dollars. He would never tell them that though, his little doppelgangers that he loved more than he thought he would. He took the robe with him on all his travels, and he was relieved and pleased that it hadn’t been destroyed.

  He slid the robe on over his towering frame and tightened it around his narrow waist, grabbed a few bathroom items and walked slowly to the bathroom hoping to bump into Shellie. Hearing no movement on the other side of her door, he closed the bathroom door behind him with a quiet but pronounced click.

  He climbed into the surprisingly modern shower cornered between a wall and an oversized bath tub. The steaming hot water rushed over his head and streamed down his peaks and valleys of his muscled body like a river rushing out to the ocean, washing away everything that had happened not just this week, but all the craziness since he’d set foot in the town of Mustang Prairie. He wished the water could wash away the scent of Shellie that he couldn’t escape at work, at home or even in his car. Since he couldn’t get her or her scent out of his mind, Noel settled for allowing the water to wash away the dirt, filth and stress of the past week. He threw his head back and enjoyed the feel of the water beating over his tired body, wishing that there was something he could do or say to get Shellie to let down the walls she erected around herself. He was no stranger to women with issues, but Shellie was unaffected, or seemingly unaffected, by his charms.

  If he were being honest, he’d realize that he hadn’t even really tried to be charming with Shellie. She wasn’t his type but for some reason he wanted to make her smile, make her blush, make her moan and scream his name. Whoa, he didn’t like how quickly his mind went there. He knew if he put on his best big city charm, he’d ruin any chance he had with her. So he would just have to let her get to know him, the real him, and she could judge for herself.

  Feeling cleansed and relaxed Noel pushed on the silver lever to stop the water and stepped out of the shower
onto Shellie’s plush yellow bathmat. He wrapped a matching towel around his waist and reached into his leather travel bag to remove his shaving kit. Using the shave brush he received from his grandfather, Noel applied organic rosemary shave cream around his cheeks, chin and neck after filling the sink with warm water. With the precision with which he was taught Noel removed the hair from his face and neck in straight lines until he was smooth and clean. Finishing with a dollop of mint aftershave he wet a towel with hot water and removed the excess shaving cream.

  Since he would be here for awhile he hoped, Noel placed his shaving kit into the only empty shelf inside Shellie’s medicine cabinet. He knew she’d have something to say about his presumptuousness when she noticed, but it was a fight he’d willingly have. Satisfied that his face was clean shaven, Noel opened the door and stepped into the carpeted hallway where he was met by a thoroughly shocked Shellie, eating up his nearly naked body with her eyes. He smiled, enjoying the way she sized him up and the look of satisfaction and if he wasn’t mistaken, lust, in her eyes as she made her way back up to his face. Noticing his smile, she gasped and darted quickly backed into her room, slamming the door behind her.

  Still smiling, Noel continued down the hall and into his room where he rubbed moisturizer onto his face, elbows and knees. Since his pajamas were among the many casualties in his apartment, Noel removed the towel and slid between the flower printed sheets and turned the small television on the dresser on low, hoping the dull murmur would lull him quickly to sleep as it often had.