Callie nodded and smiled as a tear slid down her cheek. Noah swiped it away with the pad of his thumb.
“I trust you.”
She slid her arms around his neck and toyed with the ends of his hair. His hands spanned her waist as he pulled her fully against him.
“I want you,” he murmured. “In my house, with the sunset coming in that window. I want you, Callie.”
Shivers slid over and through her body at his honest, raw words. “Then have me.”
Noah captured her mouth again and walked her back to the living area, where he eased her down onto the cushy chaise. Noah pulled his polo off, flinging it to the side.
Callie stared up at him in all his golden, muscular glory. As he finished undressing, her heart picked up just a bit faster and her body quivered with anticipation. Each time they were intimate, each time they took their relationship to another level, she wanted to know where this was headed. But right now she only wanted one thing. Noah.
With ease, she took off her halter top, exposing her bare breasts to his appraisal, and tossed the unwanted garment to the floor with his clothes. Noah held his hand out and she took it as he helped her to her feet. After sliding out of her shorts and flicking them off to the side with her toe, she moved to mold her body against his. She never got used to how amazing that initial contact felt. Never got over that first feeling of how right it was being with Noah.
Callie threaded her hands through his hair and pulled his mouth down to hers. Noah’s strong hands covered her back, his fingertips gripping her. Her breasts flattened against his chest, her hips bumped his. And it was still not enough. Not close enough, not emotional enough. She wanted more.
“Noah,” she whispered against his lips. “I need you to know—”
“S
hh.” He nipped at her lips again. “Later.”
Callie wasn’t sure if she should tell him she was in love with him or if fate had just saved her from making a fool of herself. But when his hands came down to grip her rear and lift her off the floor, she didn’t care.
Noah eased a knee onto the chaise and he slowly laid her down, never breaking their contact. He didn’t want to break this bond, didn’t want to ruin this perfection. If he could crawl inside this moment in time and live here forever, he would. Right now, at this second, he was happier than he’d been in a long, long time. He owed Callie so much for showing him how to live again. This little trip to the old house wasn’t just an eye-opening experience for her; reality had also slapped him in the face. He’d come to the conclusion that no matter what he’d lost, he could still make that decision to move forward or let the past consume him.
And right now he was making the decision to make love to Callie in his living room.
“I want you. Here. Now.”
And that was all Noah needed to hear before he slid into her, without the barrier, without anything between them, just like the past two times.
But this time was different. He’d laid his heart out there for her to see and that vulnerability could get him hurt again. But he couldn’t stop this emotional spiral he was on when it came to Callie and her sweet, sometimes innocent ways.
His body moved over hers, but he was careful to hold himself up on his elbows. He didn’t want to crush her, but seeing her look up at him, with all the trust and love in her eyes…
Love?
Yes. When he looked at her, he saw love. And if he were honest with himself, he’d seen it in Kansas, too.
Noah kissed her, unable to look into those expressive eyes for another moment, because what if she could read his? What would she see?
His tongue mimicked their bodies as he increased the pace and her ankles locked together behind his back.
Before he could think too much about what he’d seen, her body tightened around him, causing him to lose control and give in to the pleasure that only Callie could provide.
As his body settled half on hers, half off, he tried to shut out the fact that every time he closed his eyes and thought of a woman in his life, Malinda wasn’t even in the mental picture. Callie filled his mind. She was filling his bed, his house, and he feared she’d fill his heart if he let her.
Fifteen
Callie ran her fingertips up Noah’s back, but she had a feeling he’d fallen asleep. His breathing had slowed and his body had relaxed against hers some time ago. And even though her belly growled, she didn’t care. The sun had set and they were lying in the dark, completely naked, and she finally saw a sliver of hope in this darkness she’d been living in. Could they have a future together? He seemed to not even worry about her looks, the scarring.
Admitting to herself that she was in love with Noah didn’t frighten her or make her wonder about their future. He might not admit he had feelings for her, but she knew in her heart that he felt something beyond friendship or he wouldn’t be so giving, so patient and caring with her. He’d totally put all her needs first for the past several weeks, even choosing to take care of her over going into the office.
The man who was known for dating a different woman nearly every night and during the day making his clients perfectly beautiful was now devoting all of his time to her. Callie knew he had deep feelings for her, but she also figured that past, and that photo in his room, kept him from moving forward. She only hoped he’d open up to her, let her further into this world of his she so desperately wanted to be part of.
But she wouldn’t be that clingy woman, wouldn’t be the one who put her heart out there with the possibility it could get stomped into unrecognizable pieces.