Too bad Noah did. For a moment tonight Layla thought she’d actually gotten past his iron-clad will and connected. Her body was still pouting when a knock sounded at her door.
Noah?
She rushed to answer, even though she knew better than to expect his sexy, broad body on the other side. When she opened the door she found…Noah’s sexy, broad body on the other side.
“I changed my mind.” He gripped her hips and gently pushed her backward so he could step inside and close the door. “I hope that’s okay.”
She smiled and ran her hands up his chest. “So okay.”
“Good.” He hauled her close. “I don’t want to fight this anymore, either.” Heat smoldered in his brown eyes and warm breath hit her face as his mouth hovered just above her lips. “But you need to be really sure about this, Layla.”
She frowned, sure that if he didn’t kiss her soon, she was going to start vibrating from the need rushing through her body.
“Once we do, there’s no turning back, and we’re practically family.” A muscle jumped in his jaw. “Just tell me to go, and I’m gone. No questions asked.”
Go?
“No. I don’t want you to go.” She wanted him to do the opposite. With her. Now. Clenching the fabric of his shirt in her hands, she pulled him closer. “I want to be with you, Noah. Real bad.”
With a groan, his mouth covered hers, nipping, tasting, devouring until Layla could barely think straight. This was finally happening. No obstacles, no well-meaning promises in their way. Just them.
At last.
He shoved his hands in her hair and tipped her head to his liking before he slid his tongue into her mouth to sweep around. She moaned as a delicious thrill shot down to her toes, pebbling her nipples in a shock of need.
Yeah, she needed him to keep doing that.
Releasing her grip on his shirt, she slid her hands up over his broad shoulders to lace behind his neck and pressed her sensitive breasts against his hard chest. So good. They wanted—needed his exquisite attention.
Noah drew back and stared down at her with such hunger she shook. “Every damn time.” He grazed his teeth down her jaw, his stubble deliciously rough against her skin. “You drive me crazy. I’ve never wanted anyone”—he bit her earlobe and she gasped—“as much as I want you.”
In a heartbeat, his mouth was on hers again, tasting, devouring, annihilating her strength. She lost herself in his deep, thorough, mind-numbing kiss and trembled at the shockingly sensuous feel of his tongue stroking hers.
So good.
“I’ve thought of nothing but this since yesterday,” he murmured against her lips. “Every damn second.”
“Me, too.” She shook against him.
In a swift move, he lifted her up, and she gasped at his unexpected, but oh-so-welcome move.
“Time to take this to your room.” His voice was raw with the same need burning her from the inside out.
“Yes, please.” Since he already knew the location, she used her mouth to nip playfully at his jaw while he carried her down the hall in record time.
Once inside her bedroom where Rescue napped on her pillow, Noah kicked the door closed with his foot, and let her slide slowly down his hot, hard body. Very hard. “Nice,” she breathed. He was hot and killing her again. She stepped back, grasped the hem of her dress and yanked it up over her head before dropping it on the floor, giving him full view of her matching light blue lace bra and panties.
“Damn, Layla, you’re so beautiful.” Need glittered in his dark gaze as he stalked her to the bed, removing his shirt, exposing a slew of muscles and ridges her lips and fingers longed to explore.
Her throat dried and heat spread low when her gaze snagged on the thick, mouthwatering bulge behind his zipper. “And you make me ache.”
He sucked in a breath. “If you keep looking at me like that I’m going to burst.” He followed her down when she fell backward onto the mattress. “And take you with me,” he said against her neck, his lips sucking and nipping, making her shiver as his hands found hers and raised her arms above her head.
“Mmm…” She arched into him. He felt so good on top of her. So damn good.
Kissing a path over her cleavage, he groaned while his hands trailed down her raised arms to cup her aching breasts. As if sensing her needs, he pulled the lace aside to expose her beaded nipples. “Gorgeous,” he uttered before he took one into his mouth and brushed the other with his thumb.
A needy moan rippled up her throat and echoed around them, while he switch sides and slowly drove her mad.
“Lift up,” he said, then slipped his hands behind her back, unhooked her bra, and tossed it on the floor.
She dropped back onto the mattress and his gaze darkened, devouring her bouncing breasts before his mouth and hands took over, driving her out of her ever-loving mind. Moaning, she clutched the back of his head and thrust her fingers through his thick hair the color of delicious dark chocolate.
A sexy, low sound rumbled deep in his chest while his teeth nibbled and nipped, causing her breath to catch. Man, he was good. So good. She freaking lost a few brain cells when he sucked a nipple into his mouth, then a few more disappeared when his fingers circled and pinched her tight peak. “Noah.” She felt the pull between her legs, right where she ached for him the most.
His head lifted and eyes blazed with the same heat and need she knew must be mirrored in her own. “You like that?”
“Only a lot.” She wiggled. “You got more?”
A sinful expression curved his lips before he captured her nipples and proved he most certainly did. Layla gasped and an exquisite liquid heat rushed through her veins. The talented man had her squirming and trembling with so much need Layla thought she might break. Hot and bothered with only the top half of them naked made her feel a whole lot of naughty.
Then his hand skimmed over her quivering belly to brush over the lace between her legs. His indrawn curse cooled the air between them as he lifted his head and stared at her through smoldering dark eyes. “You’re wet.”
Before she could reply, he slid the pad of his finger under the edge of her panties to trace her center. Her heart rocked in her chest and she let out a low, needy moan, nearly seeing stars when he slid his finger inside. “Noah.”
“Yes. Tell me. What do you want?”
She tried to catch her breath, wanting to tell him, but his movements, oh, those movements…they were exquisite and her panting increased. Unable to hold back, she thrust her hips, and gripped the arm he used for leverage on the bed. “That…Noah…I…want…that,” she managed between breaths.
Holding her gaze, he added another finger, sliding in and out at just the right angle, just the right pace. How? How could he know her rhythm? But he did, and he took her to that blissful edge so fast her head was spinning. “Noah…I…” and when his thumb brushed the outside of her folds, she burst into the million-and-one pieces as his touch prolonged the best orgasm of her life. After several moments, minutes, millennia…she finally came back to herself, feeling wonderfully boneless and relaxed.
“Wow…Noah.” She smiled as he stood at the foot of the bed, wicked grin tilting his mouth. “That was the best I ever had.”
“I’m only getting started. Trust me, I can do much better than that.” He stared at her laying there on top of the sheets in just her blue lace panties, and she trembled at the heat in his eyes and conviction in his tone.
With his gaze still on her, he quickly shed the rest of his clothes, and her insides ached with need at the sight of his thick erection jutting out long and proud as he dug a condom from his discarded jeans and set it on the bed. “So much better.” He bent to trail kisses up her legs to her inner thighs then back down as he peeled off her panties.
Anticipation swirled through her body and the breath caught in her throat when he spread her legs and stood there just staring down at her. “Noah…”
Chapter Six
“God, Layla, you’re even m
ore beautiful than I ever imagined.” Noah’s chest was tight and his body ached with a fierce need to take her and make her his. Finally.
But slowly.
He bent down and brushed open-mouthed kisses up her leg again, wanting her with him, wanting her pent-up and panting his name again, ready to take that plunge over the edge with him. Wedging his shoulders between her legs, he stared at the promise land a breathtaking moment before brushing his mouth over her still tender flesh.
She jerked with a gasp.
“I’ve got you.” He set his palm on her belly and gently held her in place, while he returned his mouth to temptation and licked.
“Noah.” Her hands gripped his head but didn’t pull him away, and he took it as a sign to do it again.
So he did, adding a twirl. A sexy little mewl sounded in her throat, and damn, it made him nuts. He swirled his tongue a few more times, feeling her body relax and tremble with need.
Exactly where he wanted her. He drew back to grab the condom, and she sat up, her gaze dark with heat, devouring him while she licked her lips, his erection pulsing in response. Ah, hell, she was killing him.
Before he even opened the packet, she pounced, shoving him onto his back with a grin. “My turn.” She gently gripped his hard-on and took his tip into her mouth to deliver some of her own swirling tongue action.
Holy hell.
Swallowing a curse, he closed his eyes and gripped the damn sheets. Ah…hell, her mouth was amazing. His muscles bunched tight as all his focus centered on the exquisite glide of her lips and swirling of her tongue. “So damn good.” His neck and shoulders strained as he fought to hold on while she worked him in and out of her mouth. He opened his eyes to find a fierce, triumphant, possessive gaze on him and a sharp thrill gripped tight at the knowledge she enjoyed taking him to the edge.
Way too close to that edge.
A second later, he grasped her shoulders and pulled her up his body. “Not this time.” He flipped her onto her back and smiled at her protest. “You can put your mouth on me all you want, sweetheart, but not now. Not our first time.” He opened the condom and rolled it on. “I’ve been thinking of this day for over a decade.” No way was he going to blow the chance to finally take her, go in balls-deep and make her his.
“Me, too,” she whispered, spreading her legs in an open invitation. “I’m all yours, Noah.”
Holy…he nearly lost it. She was saying and doing all the things he’d fantasized over the years. Gaze glued to hers, he positioned himself between her legs and pushed in with the tip.
Their twin gasps of pleasure woke Rescue up from his nap on a pillow, but Noah’s focus returned to Layla and the hunger in her gaze. She moaned and clutched his hips as he slid all the way inside.
“I knew it,” he murmured, working to catch his breath. “I knew you’d feel amazing wrapped around me.” But damn, he didn’t think it’d feel this great. The heat and need from before paled in comparison to the raw, pure pleasure burning him from the inside out.
Then he began to move, and he lost all coherent thought. Only the slide of their bodies, their heat, and pleasure mattered. He had them on the fast train, building the need to reach that blissful edge. God, she was addicting. The hunger, and raw primal need she awoke within him, consumed until all Noah could feel was Layla in the blood roaring through his ears, the heavy thud of her heart as it beat wildly beneath him, the unrivaled heat scorching his veins as he thrust in and out of her slick heat.
Dipping down, he captured her mouth, kissing her frantic and hot, sliding his tongue against hers as he upped their pace. He wanted to prolong their first time, tried like hell to hang on, to savor every sensation, all her gasps, moans and clutching for as long as possible, but the extraordinary feel of driving his throbbing length inside her hot, sweet curves was too much.
And when she broke the kiss and called out his name as her walls tightened around him, he slowed to thrust one long, last, deep thrust and followed her over the edge, her name falling from his lips during a release so strong it stole every last ounce of his strength.
He collapsed on top of her, breathing heavy against her shoulder as he worked to regain enough energy to roll his ass off and not crush the incredible woman. But, heaven help him, her body was still trembling with aftershocks that kept clutching him with exquisite little grasps.
God, he’d never felt anything so damn incredible.
Drawing on his fledgling reserves, he kissed her shoulder before lifting up to stare down in her face. “You okay?” He hoped he didn’t hurt her, or scare her with his out-of-control need.
She smiled and reached up to trace his jaw, her gaze warm with a satiated expression. “So okay,” she repeated her reply from earlier. “I’ve no idea what just happened, but wow, Noah…when can we do that again?”
***
Streaks of sun spliced through a crack in the curtain, highlighting the sexy freckles on the soft skin of Layla’s shoulder as she slept naked with him, entwined in the sheets after a night of incredible sex. Noah knew it was probably a bad idea to stay until morning. If the guys at the station found out, it would undoubtedly get back to the captain. But when he’d tried to leave last night, she’d pinned him to the mattress, straddling him with those hot, lush body of hers, and hell, he just wasn’t strong enough to resist the heat between her thighs. Another round ensued, ending with them both extremely satisfied and exhausted.
Noah had fallen asleep with the sweet woman and her equally sweet curves in his arms, and he’d never been more satisfied or content in his life. She belonged with him. He belonged with her. All these years apart hadn’t changed that fact. A fact he’d known since before he’d pledged his life to Uncle Sam.
Being with Layla exceeded his expectations. The woman’s touch, her kisses, her moans and sexy little mewls sparked feelings and responses that scared the hell out of Noah and spurred a protectiveness he couldn’t explain. He wasn’t sure what it meant, other than he couldn’t let her go, couldn’t let her get hurt, couldn’t let her godfather find out, nor could he let Layla find out his promise to her godfather. If either happened, he was screwed. Becoming physically involved with the sweet woman had been a stupid move for either scenario, but God, he’d been too weak to resist the attraction any longer.
He inhaled and closed his eyes. The faint, flowery perfume of the woman curled around him mixed with the scent of their lovemaking to form a heady fragrance he wasn’t likely to forget.
As if he’d ever forget his time with this special woman.
“Mmm…” Her warm sigh washed over his skin as her hold on his hip tightened. “You’re still here.”
He smiled and rolled her onto her back, pleased to find need drifting through her sleepy gaze. “I’m not done with you yet…”
Her smile grew as wicked as the hand that found and stroked his already throbbing erection. “Glad to hear that, Mr. Fireman, because I need more of your hose.”
“It’s all yours,” he choked out, dipping down to nibble her earlobe, then bite the soft spot on her neck that made her squirm and grip him tighter.
On her indrawn breath, her gorgeous breasts brushed his chest, and he groaned as her beaded nipples scraped his skin, capturing attention he was more than happy to give.
A moment later, he had a beauty in his mouth and the other between his forefinger and thumb when the ringtone of the phone in his discarded jeans on the floor echoed through the room.
Shit.
He drew back, then rolled off the bed to fish his cell from his pocket. One glance at the caller ID had his back stiffening. Captain Stewart. While it wasn’t unusual for the man to call, his timing sucked. “Donovan.”
“Sorry to bother you so early, just wanted to check in. Any more notes or prank calls?”
“No. It’s been quiet.” He chose his words carefully, hoping his tone didn’t convey his anxiety to either the captain or Layla as he kept his back to the bed and fought the urge to leave the room. That would ma
ke her suspicious, so he stood by his discarded clothes in the middle of the room.
“Does she suspect you?”
“No. Everything’s been good.” So incredibly good. But, damn he felt like such a dick. He couldn’t even look at her right now.
“I know you don’t like lying to her, but it’s important. She’s damn stubborn and if she ever found out you were there to guard her, she’d either send you packing, or move out and put herself in more danger because we don’t know where this threat is coming from.”
Noah blew out a breath and nodded. “I know.”
“You just need to hang in there until this punk screws up and leaves evidence, or you catch him in the act.”
Christ. In the act of what?
“I’d better go. If my wife overheard she’d have my balls for supper,” the captain said before hanging up.
And if Layla knew, she’d absolutely send Noah packing.
Dammit.
How the hell did this get out of hand? Why couldn’t everyone let him be so he could just love the woman he was in love with?
Shit.
He sank down onto the bed and tightly gripped the silent phone still pressed to his ear.
He was in love with Layla?
Yes, he was…of course he was.
That’s why he’d gone away, and exactly why he returned. He loved her and didn’t want to see her hurt.
Not the best time to realize it, but that wasn’t the problem. He had to figure a way to salvage whatever was starting between them before she pulled the plug because of his deceit.
“Okay,” he said into his dead phone, taking pains to keep the aggravation from his voice. “Keep me posted.” Shoving his phone back in his discarded jeans, he hoped she wouldn’t ask too many questions which might force him to lie.
“Noah?” A warm hand ran up his back to lightly grip his shoulder. “Everything okay?”
He place a hand over hers. “Yeah. Just a buddy checking in.” He tried to keep it as truthful as possible.
Dallas Fire & Rescue: Whine and Rescue (Kindle Worlds Novella) (Citizen Soldier Series Book 5) Page 6
