“Finley,” he argues but he doesn’t get far.
“You heard the lady,” Noah mutters, before shutting the door in his face.
Allen immediately starts knocking on the door again.
“Was he always like that?” Noah asks.
My eyes are on the door. “I never saw it before, but yes, yes he was.”
He moves in front of me, breaking my eye contact with the door and presses his lips to mine. For a brief, blissful, moment, everything else fades away, including Allen’s incessant knocking.
When Noah breaks our kiss, he says, “Babe, you rebounded up.”
“You are not a rebound,” I snap.
He grins, his smile quickly fading as Allen continues to knock. “Can I kick his ass now?”
I have no love lost for Allen but it’s been a long time since I wished him physical harm. “Is there another way we can get him to leave?”
Noah pulls his phone from his back pocket and moves his thumb over the screen before lifting it to his ear. “Hey Marc. Got time to do me a favor?”
I listen as he explains our situation and then rattles off my address to whoever is on the other end.
“Who was that?” I ask.
“A buddy of mine is a sheriff,” he replies.
My eyes widen.
He shrugs. “Marc’s a good guy. We went to high school together.”
“Will he arrest Allen?” I ask.
He smirks, shaking his head. “Only if he’s an idiot and doesn’t leave after Marc asks.”
“I can’t believe he came here,” I grumble.
“He’s figuring out he made a mistake letting you go. Too bad for him that’s not a mistake I’ll make.”
“How are you so sure?” I ask, stepping closer to him.
He frames my face with his hands, his warm gaze consuming me. “I was never expecting to meet the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen when Abby sent me here that day. You intrigued me from the start. Then you worked your way under my skin. We spend hours together everyday and our time together is always the best part of my day.”
“Really?” I breathe.
He kisses me, dropping his hands from my face to wrap his arms around me.
“You called the police?” Allen shouts.
“Sounds like Marc is here,” Noah remarks, lifting his head.
I press my lips together. He surprises me by not moving away.
“Should we go?” I ask.
He frowns, before releasing me. When he turns, he offers me his hand. Slipping my hand into his I wonder how long he’ll have to keep cleaning up my messes.
“You’re presence is not needed,” Allen argues, his back to us.
It gives me a chance to check out Noah’s friend. Marc’s name has come up more than once as we got to know each other. Noah even showed me a picture of the baby his wife just had.
“Yo Noah,” Marc greets, lifting his chin. He then directs his attention to Allen. “Sir, the owner of this property has asked you to leave. If you refuse to, I will arrest you for trespassing.”
Allen turns to me. “Trespassing? Is this truly necessary Finley?”
“It is. She told you she never wanted to see you again so yeah, since you didn’t leave and have been banging on her door and shouting.”
“I wasn’t talking to you,” Allen huffs.
“I want you to leave,” I say and they all look at me.
Allen takes a step toward me and both Noah and Marc jump into action. Noah shifts in front of me blocking Allen from reaching for me as Marc comes up behind him and pulls him away.
“Alright buddy. It’s time for you to leave.” As he leads Allen away, he looks over his shoulder. “Noah, you and Finley go inside.”
“Are you sure we shouldn’t stay out here?” I ask.
Noah shakes his head. “Marc’s got this.”
My brows furrow as I look back to see Allen gesturing toward me. Trusting Noah, I let him guide me back inside.
As soon as the door closes behind us, I start to pace. “I cannot believe this.”
“He’s a dick.”
“Still want to kick his ass?” I joke.
That makes him smile. “I bet I could get Marc to look the other way.”
“Yeah?” I ask.
He nods, taking my hand and tugging me toward the kitchen. “Yep, I introduced him to his wife.”
“You did?” I laugh.
He nods. “She knows Abby. Marc saw them out and asked about her. I got Abby to give me a heads up the next time they went out and Marc and I just happened to show up at the same place.”
“You’re a good friend,” I reply.
He opens the fridge and pulls out a beer, opening it and passing it to me before grabbing another for himself. “Marc’s a good guy. I’m glad things worked out for them.”
I take a sip of my beer. It dawns on me then that I’d still be trying to get rid of Allen if Noah had not shown up when he had. The way Allen wouldn’t let me close the door makes me wonder if he would have forced his way inside. Just the thought of him inside this place turns my stomach.
It’s funny how much has changed.
“Are you okay?” Noah asked.
I bob my head. “Yes. Confused, but okay.”
His eyebrows furrow. “Just confused?”
I shrug.
He shakes his head. “He shows up here unexpectedly and doesn’t leave when you ask him to, that’s not normal.”
He’s right, my lips part and he cups the back of my head.
“Was he, did he—“ He pulls in a breath. “Did he ever hurt you?”
I shake my head. “No. No, never.” I pause and then amend, “physically.”
I watch as his eyes slowly close, the weight of my words a blow. His chest rises and falls three times before his eyes open and he reaches for me, pulling me into a hug.
I melt into him, letting his familiar scent and hold sooth me. “Not all abuse is physical.”
He stiffens his arms squeezing me tightly before he asks. “What did he do?”
With my cheek pressed to his chest, my arms folding up between us, still holding my beer, I reply, “I never did anything right. I never looked right, said the right things, or cared about the things he thought were important. It was like he was emotionally poisoning me.”
“Finley,” he whispers, feeling in his tone.
My name on his lips is a balm. Since I’ve met Noah I’ve been nothing but myself. He likes me for me, and not what I look like on his arm at a party. He gets that I’m happier at home cuddled up on the couch watching a movie with him than I’ll ever be out at a fancy club.
He likes that I want to take care of myself and renovate this place. Even if I had tons of money I would have wanted to do the work myself. He not only gets that, he’s the same way. Not once has he tried to change me or judged me for the things that interest me. No, all he did was offer me his help.
There’s a knock on the door.
“Stay here,” Noah orders.
I ignore him and move with him toward the hallway to the front door. He stops, frowning down at me before accepting me for who I am again and offering me his hand.
It’s Marc. I peer around him and see no Allen.
“Can I come in?” Marc asks.
“Sure,” I reply and then offer, “would you like something to drink?”
“A glass of water would be great. Thanks,” he replies.
Noah shows him to the den while I get his drink and Noah’s beer.
“Noah’s been texting me pictures of all the work you two have done on this place. Seeing it in person makes it even more impressive. Don’t take it personal if I ban Brianna from coming over here. She sees this place she’ll have me knocking down walls.”
I reach across my milk crate coffee table to pass him his glass. “Thank you, and thank you for your help today.”
Reaching behind me to feel for the sofa, I slowly sit beside Noah. “What did he say to you?”
“He seems convinced you’ll take him back.”
“He’s the one who left me,” I argue, my eyes moving to Noah’s.
His arm moves around my shoulders, pulling me close. “He’s messed up in the head.”
“I haven’t even heard anything from him in months.”
“Nothing?” Marc asks. “No emails, letters, texts, or phone calls?”
I shake my head. “Nothing.”
“Did you change your telephone number when you moved?”
I shake my head again. “I didn’t”
“What about your parents? Has he been in touch with them at all?” He asks.
“I don’t think so but I can call my mom and ask,” I offer.
He nods. “You should do that now.”
My eyes widen. “Okay.”
My phone is in my purse, which is currently sitting on the kitchen countertop. I feel their eyes on my back as I walk away. Once I’m in the kitchen, with my phone to my ear, I take another drink of my beer and I listen to it ring.
“Hey honey,” my mom greets. “How’s my girl?”
“Um, Allen was just here,” I reply.
“What?” She shrieks.
“Yeah,” I reply. “Noah is here. One of his friends is a sheriff and asked if Allen has been in touch with you or dad recently.”
She doesn’t reply and I tap the outside edge of my fist onto my concrete countertop.
“Mom?”
“We didn’t want to worry you,” she cries.
“Tell me everything,” I reply and then jump when I feel Noah’s arms wrap around me from behind.
My free hand comes up to hug his arms to me as I listen to my mom.
“He started coming around after we got home. He wanted to speak to you. Was saying that he made a mistake and it was his fault you left Texas. He thought we would want his help in convincing you to move back home.”
“Mom,” I groan. “Why did you keep this from me?”
“Your father and I didn’t want you to worry. We never imagined he would come out there.”
“How did he find me?” I ask.
“I don’t know honey. Maybe he found out from your boss,” she replies.
“Can you think of anything else that he said?”
There’s another pause before she admits, “He sent your dad some emails.”
“Mom,” I sigh. “Can you please forward them to me?”
“I will honey. I’m so sorry.”
“I love you mom.”
After she echoes her love, I end the call and set my phone down.
“So, your ex has been in touch with them,” Noah remarks.
“In person, over the phone and emails,” I answer.
He kisses the top of my head. “I’d be more comfortable if you stay at my place until he’s back in Texas.”
I turn in his arms and hug him.
“Come on,” Noah encourages. “We should tell Marc what your mom said.
After relaying the conversation to Marc, I add, “I asked her to forward the emails to me.”
“I’ll grab your laptop,” Noah replies.
16
Noah
“Come here,” I mutter, opening my arms.
She approaches the edge of the bed, and puts a knee to it before making her way to me. As soon as she’s close, she crawls into my arms.
“I want to go home,” she murmurs, and then pulls back to look me in the eyes. “Not that I don’t appreciate everything that you’re doing for me.”
“Shut up,” I laugh, putting my hand to the back of her neck and pulling her lips down to mine.
She settles back against me, sinking into our kiss. As far as I’m concerned, I owe her ex. The emails he sent her mom and dad made him sound completely unhinged. He talked about Fin like their divorce had never happened, as though she was still his wife and he couldn’t understand why her parents weren’t helping him find her.
What Fin’s parents had also kept from her was the fact that they had been in touch with Allen’s parents. They were going to get him the help he needed to stop fixating on Finley. As good as that all sounded, as long as he was here and not in Texas, I wasn’t letting her out of my sight.
Since there wasn’t anything threatening in the emails there wasn’t much we could do. After talking it through, Finley didn’t argue with staying with me. She also didn’t blink when I asked her to sleep with me in my room, rather than the spare.
Ever since we got back to my house, she’s been down. She brought a glass of wine with her into the bathroom and took a long time getting ready for bed. I heard her crying through the door. She’s letting that asshole mess with her head.
That ends now.
I’ve done everything I can think of to cheer her up.
Well, almost everything.
It’s time to kick things up a notch.
She’s here, in my arms and I’m once and for all making her forget about her asshole ex.
I turn, flipping her onto her back. She blinks up at me and then presses her lips together, instantly parting them when I kiss her again. She smells like fresh picked flowers and tastes like wine.
Her arms coil around my neck as I deepen our kiss, her tongue brushing against mine. Her hips press up against mine and I grind into her.
She tugs at my shirt and I lean back to pull it off. Before I can cover her with my body again, her hands glide over my chest. They rest on my pecs for a few beats, and then continue to roam.
My gaze is on her face. Her eyes are locked on her hands, watching them as they move over my skin.
“I’ve thought about doing this so many times,” she murmurs.
Her touch is delicate, her fingers warming my skin. There’s an addictive quality to the way her hands move over me. I never want her to stop.
She moves them around my waist to my back. I lean closer, hovering over her. With her hands on my back, she pulls me even closer. Then her hands travel up my back and into my hair. I take her lips again, and again.
Bracing myself on one forearm, I do some exploring myself, my free hand moving to stroke the side of her waist.
My lips move to her jaw and then down her neck. Her pulse ripples against my tongue. I continue downward, to the V-neck of her cotton sleep shirt.
The swell of her breasts is a temptation I can no longer resist. My hand moves up from her waist, my thumb brushing the underside of her breast. Her back arches as I kiss her nipple through the fabric of her shirt.
With her hands in my hair, she holds me to her breast. I suck her nipple into my mouth, my other hand moving to palm her other breast.
“Noah,” she groans, the sound of her need going straight to my cock. It strains against my boxers, pulsing with need.
My thumb strokes her nipple and it tightens into a hard bud. My mouth moves to her other breast, taking it into my mouth as my other hand moves to the hem of her shirt. I want to feel her skin against mine.
Her hands leave my hair as she helps me uncover her. I’ve seen her skin before; a bare shoulder here, a glimpse of her waist there, never this much.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” I breathe.
Then I drop my mouth to her. She writhes beneath me, her back arching, her hips undulating, her hands going to the waist of my pajama bottoms. Her skin is silken; the feel of it against mine has my nerves tingling with pleasure.
I shift away. I plan to give her plenty of time to explore me.
Later.
Now, it’s my turn.
Her skin is so soft, I kiss my way down her stomach, lingering over her belly button as I undress her.
As soon as I drop her clothes to the floor, I spread her legs and look at her. Shifting on the bed she tries to close her legs, blush tingeing her cheeks as she looks away.
“Trust me?” I ask.
Slowly, her gaze moves to lock with mine before she nods, letting her legs fall open for me. She’s completely bare and so beautiful my chest aches just looking at her. Her fi
ngers nervously grab and twist at the sheets.
I hold her gaze, assuring her with my eyes. Her eyes drop to my mouth and she lets out a small surprised laugh when I blow a raspberry on her thigh. That’s all the warning I give her before I lower my head and finally taste her. As I take her with my tongue, I watch her reaction.
Her laughter quickly shifts to moans of pleasure. With parted lips, her hands go to her breasts where she begins to squeeze them and tug at her nipples. She isn’t just beautiful; she is the absolute sexiest woman I have ever seen.
“Noah,” she cries out through her orgasm, right before her legs begin to tremble around my head.
I continue to lap at her. Her chest rises and falls as she struggles to catch her breath. Licking my lips I lift my head. She sits up, her hands coming to either side of my face and she pulls my mouth to hers.
She moans against my lips as she tastes herself on my tongue. I sit up as well, tugging her and flipping us over so she can straddle my lap, my arms banding around her waist. My chest tightens as she peers down at me.
Her hands push between us and into my pants, wrapping her hand around my hard length.
“I need you,” she pleads as we kiss, her hand stroking me.
I reach past her to my bedside table. Tugging open the drawer, I pull out a box of condoms. Behind her back I rip the box in half and quickly open the first packet I grasp.
Finley moves her hand as I sheath myself. Once it’s on, I shift my pants as far as I can down my thighs. While I do this, she takes me in her hand again, lines herself above me and then lowers herself onto me.
“Fuck,” I growl as I sink into her.
Even through the condom, her heat coats me. My heart thunders wildly in my chest as I stare at her. I’ve wanted her for so long. Spent night after night wrapping my hand around my cock imagining what it would feel like to finally be inside her.
She’s a goddess, all pink from my touch with her dark hair falling around her. My hands go to her ass, raising her, immediately pulling her back down to fill her again, and again, and again.
Our mouths fuse, her hands in my hair, her breasts pressed to my chest. Lifting her, I roll her to her back before covering her body with mine. Our eyes lock, her hand reaching up to stroke my face as I ease into her. God, she feels so fucking good, the best I’ve ever had.
Fix Her Up (The Fix Book 1) Page 16
