by Claire Adams
We headed upstairs. The hallway split into two sides, one side leading to the master suite and the others to the other three bedrooms. Two of the bedrooms faced the street. It still had a fantastic view of the neighborhood. But the two rooms that were going to be mine and Gina’s faced the ocean.
I smiled, thinking of how amazing Gina’s life was going to be from here on out. She would have two parents and live in the most beautiful place.
Jess and I walked through all the rooms, leaving the master for last. We talked about what we were going to do with Gina’s room and the possibility of making one of the bedrooms into an office.
“You didn’t know there was a third floor?” I asked. I wanted this house to be the place where people from my life visited, not somewhere to squish everyone in. I wanted a proper home that could accommodate as many people as we wanted.
“No,” she said.
“It’s a smaller floor but perfect for an office for me. There’s another room up there as well for you to do what you want. Maybe a sewing room?”
Her eyes sparkled at the idea.
“I think of everything,” I said.
She chewed on her lower lip and took my hands in hers. “I want to see the bedroom.”
I walked into the room first, going to the balcony overlooking the ocean. “This view. You can’t beat it.”
I turned, but Jess wasn’t next to me. I walked inside, and she stood in the middle of the bedroom, but her eyes were locked on mine.
“Is everything okay? Do you like it? We can decorate it with whatever you want.”
“What I want to know is where the bed is going to be?”
I scanned the room. “Well, probably over here,” I said.
“Show me.”
Her voice was lower and her eyes danced. I cocked my head, not fully understanding what she wanted.
I stood at the spot where I thought the bed should go.
Jess slid her hands up my chest and clasped them behind my neck. “So, at night, we’d come in here and lie down together?”
“Yes,” I said, my breath hitching.
She lifted onto her toes and placed a kiss on my lips. Her tongue darted into my mouth, deepening the kiss.
“And then what?” she asked.
My hands fell to her waist. “How about I show you?”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jess
I stared into the depths of Noah’s eyes, waiting for his reaction. Asking me to move in with him and Gina was a huge step. And I wanted nothing more than to show him how grateful I was for him to take the relationship further. It had been a whirlwind of emotions since we met, and I finally felt we were on the right path. If Noah wanted this place to be the location of his next home, I wanted to christen it properly.
Noah tugged at the straps of my dress and pulled each one down slowly. “First, I would do this.”
My skin lit up at his touch. “Yeah?”
“Then this,” he said, kissing my shoulder while his hand worked the other strap down.
I hadn’t worn a bra that day, so when he pulled the fabric down, my breasts popped out, exposing themselves to him. My nipples were hard, ready for his touch.
Noah’s eyes widened as they glanced down at my chest. He cupped one of them, his thumb moving slowly around the peak. With his other hand, he pulled me closer to him, resting his fingers on the back of my neck. He twirled his fingers into my hair, getting a better grip on me. His kissed were slow and deliberate as if he were taking the time to taste every single tantalizing drop of me. Tingles moved down my entire body until they reached the tips of my toes.
I pushed myself against him, wanting to feel more of his hands on me. My hands wandered to his hips, and I quickly unbuckled his belt and popped open the button.
I shoved my hand inside his pants and was pleasantly surprised that he was ready for me.
He broke the kiss, only for a moment. Our eyes met, and the heat behind his eyes made me even wetter than I already was.
I lifted the edge of his shirt, and he reached back to fist the fabric and tug it over his head. My fingers splayed against his chest, which appeared much tanner than it had when we’d made love last. Days at the beach made his skin a beautiful shade of bronze.
Thinking of the beach made me think of us having sex on the beach during our last date night before everything went wrong then perfectly right again. Now I had a chance to show him how right we were together.
His hands rested on my waist, and he slowly turned me around. He hiked up the skirt of my dress and rubbed himself against me.
I glanced over my shoulder and met his mouth with mine.
He kneaded my breast while trailing the other hand down to between my thighs.
I gasped when his fingers found my clit.
“I love how wet you get for me,” he said against my lips.
I fell against him, my legs turning to jelly.
He shoved a finger inside of me, and I moaned loudly.
He slowly moved in and out of me. As good as it felt to have him touching me, I yearned for his cock to mimic the movements.
I bumped my butt against him, rubbing against his hardness.
“You want more?” he asked.
I nodded my head, trapping my lower lip under my teeth.
Noah glanced around, and then his eyes flashed.
He took my hand and led me outside onto the terrace. I looked around at the other two houses next door. Sami informed us earlier that they were rentals, so a majority of the year we’d have the space to ourselves.
But the way that Noah made me feel, I wouldn’t have cared if anyone was home. I was wrapped up in him and couldn’t care less if anyone saw. Thinking of that stirred my stomach.
Noah placed my hands on the railing and lifted my skirt again, shoving it to the side. He quickly rolled a condom on himself then pushed aside my panties and positioned his tip against my opening.
He entered me, incredibly slowly, stretching me.
I pushed myself against him, and he let out a small grunt.
I grinned and moved around his cock, wanting to please him as much as he pleased me.
He pumped inside of me, building me up, before slowing back down to a teasingly slow pace.
“This is fucking perfect,” he said. “I picked a good house. With a fantastic view.”
“Uh-huh,” I said between thrusts.
“I want to fuck you every night, right here.”
“I wouldn’t be opposed to that.”
“God, Jess, you’re fucking amazing. You feel so good.” And as if he needed to test this theory, he reached around and started rubbing his fingers over my clit while he fucked me from behind.
I lifted up onto my toes to angle him into the perfect position.
My hands gripped the railing, and I locked my elbows, pressing as much as I could against him. I wanted to feel every single inch of him. He ground against me harder and harder. My breath caught in my throat, and I squeezed myself around him, tightening and loosening as he slid in and out of me over and over again. We found our rhythm and just as I thought he was going to let go inside of me, he started to slow down.
“I don’t want this to end yet,” he said as if he was reading my thoughts.
I had other ideas for how I wanted to finish this.
“I want to look at you when I come,” I said, twisting around.
Noah came out of me. His slick cock was dripping with my wetness. I shoved the rest of my dress down, feeling deliciously wicked standing outside butt-naked and incredibly turned on. The breeze over the ocean danced across my skin, making all the hair on my body stand on end.
I grabbed onto Noah’s cock and started to stroke it. I wanted to take off the condom and touch his silky skin, but I wasn’t sure if he had another one. And I definitely wanted him to come inside of me. So, I stroked him with the latex on and cupped his balls in my hand, gently rolling them in my palm.
Noah moaned and sagged a little. But
when his tongue touched my breast, I realized that was his goal. My breasts ached for his touch from his hands or his mouth. It didn’t matter. The combination of him kneading my breast or sucking the peak built me up again.
As if he felt the same way, he suddenly stopped and grabbed my ass, lifting me in the air.
“Oh!” I cried.
“I can’t wait any longer for you, Jess,” he said with hunger in his eyes.
He pressed me against the wall, and I held onto the railing for balance as he entered me again. I tilted my head back toward the sky, closing my eyes and feeling the swell of my lips as his cock pushed inside of me once more.
“Oh, God! Noah, keep going,” I said, unable to allow him to stop. I needed to come. I wanted it so badly.
He held me against him and then started to thrust quicker until my entire body rocked against his. He touched my sweet spot over and over until I reached the top of my peak. I cried out. My voice swallowed up by the ocean crashing to shore behind me.
Noah’s head dipped down, and his chin touched his chest. His hands gripped my waist until it almost hurt, but I knew he was close so I didn’t say anything. I rode the wave down as he came inside of me. Those final thrusts were slow as he finished, milking the feeling for all he could.
Once he was done, he helped me down from the railing.
Pins-and-needles prickled up my legs as I found my dress and slipped it back on. The fabric was harsh against my sensitive skin.
Noah pulled on his boxer briefs and pants, leaving his chest exposed.
Since there wasn’t any furniture, after we caught our breath, we sat on the terrace with our backs against the edge. Noah twined his fingers in mine, and I dropped my head to his shoulder. The after-effects of our lovemaking were delicious, and ripples of pleasure continued to course through me. I loved the touch of his hands on me. And I regretted that it was over too soon.
We sat there for a few moments, listening to the waves.
“That was fun,” he said and smiled against my hair.
“Mmhmm,” I said.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“Nothing,” I said.
He tilted my head up toward him. “Your eyes are far away; tell me,” he said. “You don’t regret doing this?”
“No!” I said quickly. “Of course not. I just want to make sure that you really want to move down here. For good.”
“I do,” he said without hesitation. “I want nothing more than to be here with you. If you were living in Antarctica, Gina and I would live in an igloo to be there. I want to be anywhere if you are there too.”
His words spread warmth throughout my body. I knew I had strong feelings for Noah, but for the first time, I admitted to myself that I actually loved him. Saying the words was a whole other thing, but I felt the same way about him as he did me. Even though I ran away from them, I didn’t care where we lived, just as a long as we were together.
We sat there for some time in silence, taking in the space and the future that was just starting between us.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Noah
I expedited the paperwork for the house so that we were able to move in a week later. Jess and I chose our interior designer and the motif we wanted for the house. By the time Friday came around, most of the furniture had already been delivered and placed. It was nice to sleep in a king-sized bed again, even though Jess and I spooned together in the middle of it. Her full-sized mattress at Chloe’s was a little stiff for me.
The rest of the decorations would be placed and hung later next week. I couldn’t wait for all of it to come together.
In the meantime, we brought our meager belongings to the house. When Gina and I left St. Paul, we only took what we needed. All of the furniture stayed in the house for the next owners to do as they pleased with it. I wanted us to have a fresh start, so besides clothes and some of our treasured possessions, we left the rest behind. I would never forget Wendy, and I didn’t want Gina to, but this was something I needed to do for a while. Moving to Australia was a big step, but now we were with Jess, and it was time to get started on that relationship together.
Chloe had the day off work to help us but made sure we had our television set up for that afternoon when she’d watch her soap operas. She didn’t mention it, but I knew it would keep me in her good graces. Besides, it helped distract Gina while Jess and I worked around the house.
That morning, Chloe and Gina worked in Gina’s room, setting up her closet and toys. I loved seeing the relationship between Gina and Chloe grow. Chloe was the closest thing Gina ever had to a grandparent and Chloe was happy to be one to Gina.
While they worked upstairs, Jess and I drove the boxes from my storage unit to the house, then unloaded everything into the foyer. In Minnesota, I’d hired a company to move all of our things, and they color coded the boxes, which made it much easier to sort. Everything we had was for our living spaces.
Earlier in the week, Jess and I made lists of other things we needed. Using two-day shipping, we had everything delivered quickly, and those were stacked in the foyer, ready to be opened. The items were staples for our home, such as utensils and other necessities that Jess and I ordered online.
It took her some time to get over asking me if it was okay that she was spending the amount she was on items for the house.
“It’s our place, remember?” I’d said. “And my money is your money now. Don’t worry about it. We need forks.”
“Not sure we need forks that are this expensive,” she muttered.
I kissed her cheek. “Buy whatever you like, no matter if they are cheap or costly.”
Chloe and Gina were finished with Gina’s room less than two hours later. While Jess and I sorted where everything went in the kitchen, Gina and Chloe cooked us lunch. Gina was getting good at keeping her hands steady for a lot of the tasks, and she improved daily, soaking in the cooking wisdom from anyone who would offer it.
We all ate while we were completing other tasks, wanting to get as much done as we could. The sooner we finished, the sooner we’d be able to live in a house without boxes everywhere.
Jess and I completed the kitchen by late afternoon and decided to take a break. Gina sat down with Chloe in front of the television. Chloe’s routine quickly became Gina’s as Gina now tended to take her afternoon nap with Chloe while she watched television. I wasn’t sure it was a healthy habit for Gina, but I didn’t say anything for the time being.
Besides, neither of them minded, and it gave them some bonding time as well, even though Gina was sleeping for most of it.
The coffee maker was the first thing Jess set up when we started working that morning. Even though we already had two cups that morning, it was later in the day, and I wasn’t the only one who needed a caffeine boost.
Jess made a carafe and poured three mugs.
I brought one to Chloe, and she carefully placed it on the side table.
“You two should take a break,” Chloe said. “Go enjoy the view.”
She didn’t have to tell me twice. Jess and I went outside to sit on the terrace facing the ocean.
Even though the inside of the house was a mess, we could forget it all by closing the door and leaving it behind for a few minutes. The crash of the waves on the shore created a gentle rhythmic lullaby that eased any and all tension in my body.
Jess sipped her coffee before placing the mug down on the ledge below the railing. She leaned over and stared out at the water.
“I don’t even care that we have a million things to do,” Jess said. “How about we forget all of it and live out here? There’s plenty of room.”
“I can always use the grill cover for a blanket for us. Though I’m sure our backs will be out of commission soon enough.”
Jess smiled. “When I was a little girl, I used to keep my windows open at night and let the sound of the waves help me get to sleep. So, when I moved to the States, I had to get one of those sound machines.”
“You never had issues sleeping at my house,” I said.
She bumped my arm. “Well, you exhausted me each night.”
I chuckled. “Well for those nights that my lovemaking isn’t exhausting enough, you can open the windows. Or keep them open whenever you want. I like the sound too.”
She threaded her fingers with mine. “Are you happy?”
“Implicitly,” I said without hesitation. “I’m getting used to being retired. I actually don’t remember the last time I checked my phone. “Actually,” I turned to look inside, “where is my phone? I’m serious. I have no idea.”
“I bet that is freeing,” she said with a smile.
I sighed. It was. Being with Jess relaxed me to more than I’d ever been, but having work off my shoulders and seeing Gina’s smile each morning at breakfast was worth it.
“I’m happy for you,” she said. “And I’m thankful for what you’ve done for us. Gina will have amazing memories of you when she’s older. She might not realize it for a while, but someday.”
A wave of sadness moved through me. Jess grew up never knowing her father. It was the opposite situation from Gina. I never thought about how that might affect Jess. Maybe that’s why she was so persistent with me to spend time with Gina. For me, I knew Gina needed a mother type in her life. I never thought of it the other way around. She needed a father too, which was why it was so important for me to retire. I had the means. There was no reason I had to keep working as much as I did. If I’d continued on that track, Gina might have lost the opportunity for both a mother and a father.
Even though Jess was the exception, I knew deep down she missed a huge chunk of her life because of that. And even though I couldn’t buy her happiness, I could try to be the man that Gina and Jess needed for the rest of their lives.
I put my arm around Jess and pulled her close, trying to convey the love I had for her through one single gesture. Her head dropped to my shoulder, and she yawned.
