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NOAH
God, she was so cute when she blushed. I hadn’t even thought about it when I kissed her on the cheek, because we hadn’t really talked about if I was allowed to kiss her in public. I wanted to, I wanted to show the world how much I loved her, even if she didn’t love me. She didn’t flinch away or laugh it off, she just blushed and hugged me back even tighter. I shamelessly nuzzled her neck and breathed in the vanilla scent of her perfume. I had missed that when I was on the road, so when I woke up in her bed this morning I realized I was in way deeper than I realized. And we hadn’t even had sex last night, even though I knew she wanted to.
From behind her back I saw TJ making the motion of a “V” with his two fingers over his mouth and he waggled his tongue in-between them. Riley laughed and I gave TJ the finger.
“Hey, I saw that,” she called him out for it. I loved that she didn’t take any of our shit.
I pulled away from her. TJ laughed and gave her a hug too. “Hey, D. You see this guy’s sick-ass goal?”
I ran a hand down my face and blushed now.
She nodded at TJ. “It was awesome. And here I thought I was such a jinx.”
Hallsy was in deep conversation with Mia now, and Riley had sidled up to the bar to talk to some leggy blonde. I turned back to my two best friends in the entire world, who were now looking at me expectantly. “What?” I asked.
They both just laughed.
“Nothing,” Dinah said with the shake of her head.
“Hey, how’s the editing going?” I asked her.
She groaned and dropped her head into her chest. “Don’t remind me. I have a lot of rewriting to do.”
“On your book?” TJ asked. “Will you let us read it?”
I bit my lip, and she just stared at me. TJ looked back and forth between us. He put a hand over his heart and looked offended. “You wound me, D. You gave it to this dummy, before me?”
She waved her hand at him. “You wouldn’t like it.”
“Why not?”
“Not enough sex in it,” I joked.
Dinah laughed that hearty laugh of hers and tipped her head back. Her long dark hair whipped back and forth in the ponytail she had put it up in tonight. My eyes roamed over her outfit, she looked way too good in that tight stripped dress, black tights, and heeled boots. She must have come straight from work, but I didn’t mind because she looked good. I had showered after our game and was back in my suit. I straightened my tie nervously. She glanced up at me with a questioning look, and I realized I had been staring.
TJ jabbed me in the elbow. “Dude,” was all he said.
I shook my head, my long hair getting messed up. TJ shook his head at me and went over to talk to Riley. Dinah wrapped her arms around herself.
Nervously I pushed my hair out of my eyes, and she smiled up at me sweetly. This woman had no idea what she did to me. “I’m really glad you came,” I told her.
“Me too. It was a really good goal.”
I eyed her suspiciously. “But?”
She sighed. “You guys kind of pulled that win out of your asses.”
I barked out a laugh and she just shrugged. “What? Am I not supposed to tell you the truth anymore?”
I just shook my head. “No, you can. I like when you call me on my shit.”
She smiled and sipped down the rest of her beer. She checked the time on her phone and stifled a yawn behind her hand.
“You look really tired.”
She nodded. “I am. I should have taken tomorrow off, but now I have a meeting first thing. COOL!”
“Why don’t I take you home?” I offered. I waved TJ over, but he shook his head. Now he was talking to the leggy blonde at the bar. More power to him. I wondered what happened with Riley, she seemed like his type. He was a little too engrossed in his phone, so maybe he was just oblivious.
She paid out her tab, and I slipped my hand in hers while we walked out the door. When she had looked at me when I got to the bar, her eyes had this shining look in them. Like they had lit up when she saw me, but maybe it was just the alcohol. Maybe she didn’t feel about me the way I felt about her. Because as much as I wanted to take her to bed again, I also wanted to just hold her in my arms and tell her I loved her.
She ended up falling asleep in my car on the way back home. I had to shake her awake in the parking garage. “Hey,” I said softly.
Her eyes fluttered open sleepily. “Hmm?”
“Come on, you fell asleep in the car. Let’s get you upstairs and to bed.”
Her lips curled into a smile. “Is that the line you use on all the girls?”
I laughed and ran a hand through my shaggy long hair. “Why, did that work on you?”
She laughed, but let me put my arm around her shoulder as we walked to the elevator that took us to our floor. We stopped at her door where she fished around for her keys in her purse.
I put my hands in my pockets nervously, and then removed them, pushing my hair out of my eyes again. After I took her to lunch, we hadn’t had a chance to go on another date, and I wanted one so badly. I had to push down my nerves and just ask her out again. But then she smiled at me and was pulling on my tie to pull me down to her level, and the next thing I knew we were making out against her front door. My hands were gripping her waist, and her small hands were threading through my hair. I kind of liked how aggressive she got and pulled my hair to get me closer to her.
“Ew, get a room you two,” I heard TJ say from behind me.
We pulled away suddenly. I straightened my tie, and Dinah smoothed down her hair, but the blush wasn’t leaving her face. TJ just laughed and shook his head before heading into our shared condo.
“Do you want to come inside?” she asked.
The tightening in my pants was screaming yes, but my heart was screaming no. I had stayed over her place last night, but we just talked and held each other until I passed out from jet lag. She must have snuck away when I fell asleep because when I woke up an hour later I pried her away from her desk and made her go to sleep.
“Um, it’s late,” I explained.
Her face fell, and the look of disappointment nearly broke my heart in two.
“I mean, you have work in the morning. I don’t want to keep you up late.”
She nodded and smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes, so I knew she was faking it. I saw the turmoil in her eyes.
“What’s tomorrow like for you?” I asked.
She checked her phone. “You mean after I get done work?”
“Yeah, I want to take you out to dinner.”
“Like a second date?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean.”
Her cute mouth made a little “O”. Oh no, she was going to say no, she just wanted this to be physical. She was going to tell me she didn’t feel the same way I did, even when I had laid all my cards on the table for her to see.
But then she smiled big and nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay?” I asked surprised.
She rolled her eyes at me. She leaned up and I bent my head down again so she could kiss my cheek. “Yes, Noah. I am saying yes to another date with you.”
I moved my mouth, so it was on her’s again. She sighed into the kiss, and I just wanted to pull her legs around my waist and ravish her right here, but I could wait until tomorrow night. She said yes! She actually would let me take her out again, that had to mean something. That had to mean that she liked me more than she liked my dick. At least I hoped so.
She pulled away from me, her hands pushed lightly on my chest. “You better get out of here now, or else I’m going to drag you into my bed, and as much as I want to do that, I’m really tired.”
I smiled down at her. “Goodnight, Dinah.”
“Goodnight, Noah,” she called back as she opened her front door. I waited for the click of the lock before opening my own door.
I walked inside and TJ was sitting on the couch with a beer in hand and a game controller in the other. He looked up at me with a confused look. “The sex must be bad if you’re that quick.”
I gave him the finger, and flopped down on the couch beside him. I loosened my tie enough so I could take it off and threw it on the couch next to me. I kicked off my shoes and watched him play on our gaming console.
“So, this thing with D, is it serious?” he asked.
I shrugged. “I want it to be. I asked her to dinner.”
“She said yes?”
I nodded.
“Where are you going to take her?”
I leaned my head back on the couch and stretched out my impossibly long legs. “I hadn’t even thought it through yet. I was more worried she would say no. I should call Rox, she’d know what to do.”
He raised an eyebrow at me. “Aren’t you two already fucking? Why would she said no?”
“Yeah, but I don’t want it to just be physical. I want her to know that.”
He shook his head at me and rubbed his two fingers between his eyes. “Kens, you’re so done for.”
I punched him in the shoulder. “Is it so wrong to want love?”
He shrugged. “I don’t think I’m wired that way.”
I clapped him on the shoulder. “Maybe one day. How are things with Taylor?”
He groaned. “Don’t change the subject!”
“I’m not, just how are things?”
“Done with her.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “She wants what you want, and I don’t want that. Unlike you, I don’t want to be tied down.”
I ran a hand down my jaw at the beard that was starting to come through. I was debating if I should shave it off tomorrow, but Dinah did like beards. “You think I should shave?”
He eyed me. “I was kind of wondering why you hadn’t in a few days. Is it because D likes beards?”
“Yes,” I grumbled under my breath.
He cackled. “Then keep it. I have to ask, what’s she like in bed?”
“NOPE! Some secrets belong behind closed doors,” I urged and stood up from the couch.
I heard him still asking inappropriate questions as I walked into my bedroom and started getting ready for bed. I couldn’t believe it, Dinah was actually going to go out with me again.