Chapter 36: Chapter 35

NOAH

He moved from behind his desk to stand behind her.

“I’m an asshole,” he admitted, not expecting her to deny it.

She glanced at him over her shoulder, her eyebrow raised.

“That’s common knowledge,” she retorted.

“And yet,” he said, placing his hands on her shoulders, “you’re fond of me, just as I am of you.”

“Yes, but unlike you, I’m not an asshole. I’ve always been seen as a freak.”

“That was just a facade. You’re not a freak, and pushing you away wasn’t my brightest idea. I can admit that now.”

“Is this your way of admitting you were wrong?”

“Maybe, but don’t expect more than that.”

“Still too proud to give a proper apology,” she teased.

“One thing I admired about you was that you never expected me to change,” he said, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

“You understood me, and I’d like to think I understood you.”

“Just because I understand you doesn’t mean I can always tolerate you, Noah,” she sighed.

She shrugged her shoulders, signaling she wanted his hands off her. She moved around him and sat in one of his armchairs.

He followed her but remained standing.

“Sometimes, I can’t even stand myself, Lillian. So, I’ve learned to accept that others might tolerate me even less. But I did grow fond of you.”

“By fond, you mean…” she began, but her voice trailed off as she saw him kneel before her.

With a mischievous grin, he spread her knees apart.

“You should’ve worn a skirt,” he chided.

She tried to close her legs, but he blocked her.

“I don’t like skirts.”

“But you like dresses,” he said, his hands moving up and down her thighs.

“Only in the summer.”

“It’s spring now.”

“It’s still too cold, and please stand up. You’re not getting out of this conversation.”

That was exactly what he was trying to do. Avoid the conversation. He wasn’t one for declarations of love. It was absurd. He didn’t mean anything like that. He was just fond of her…attached to her…nothing more… Well, there was the sex, and he had missed that.

“Nope,” he said casually, despite her resistance.

“Noah.”

“I can lock the door if you want, but we won’t be disturbed, I promise.”

“Is it a tradition to sleep with women in your office?” she asked sarcastically, trying to push his hands away but failing.

“I’ve never slept with a woman in my office,” he assured her.

She gave him a skeptical look, and he rolled his eyes. He’d rather sleep with her than explain, but he did it anyway.

“I usually keep my affairs to hotels. Not that I haven’t been inappropriate in the office, but I thought it would be distasteful to get caught.”

“You could lock the door like you suggested earlier.”

“And then whoever’s outside would know what’s happening inside. If it was a cleaner or an employee, I wouldn’t care. But if it was my father or a client… I didn’t want to lose clients or investors over a fling. However…”

He unbuttoned her jeans and pulled the zipper down.

“There are no clients or investors here right now.”

He pulled her jeans down, and she lifted her hips to help him. He had expected more resistance, but it seemed she wanted this as much as he did. That was good. Very good.

“You should take off my shoes too,” she smirked.

“As you wish,” he agreed, doing as she asked because it would make things easier.

“And you should really rent out the rest of the building. You only need this floor and maybe the one below it, along with the parking.”

He pulled her jeans off completely and tossed them aside.

“The other two floors, you could rent out to fund your project and…”

He kissed her left calf.

“Make it successful,” she finished.

He stood up and pulled his T-shirt over his head.

“You didn’t listen to a word I said, did you?” she laughed.

“I heard every word, and you’re right. But right now, I want to sleep with you because I missed you. We can talk about work later.”

He knelt back down and looked up at her.

“Do you want me to take off your panties, or are you going to do it yourself?” he asked.

She didn’t say a word, just slipped out of her underwear and tossed it in the direction of her jeans.

He grinned, pleased.

“Now, rest your legs on the armrests,” he instructed gently.

She raised an eyebrow but complied. He knew she was only following his orders because she knew she’d enjoy it, and he liked that. He didn’t want her to be naturally submissive.

He bent down and began to plant kisses from her knee up to her thigh. He paused at her folds, placed a teasing kiss, and then dove right in.

Her moans were all the confirmation he needed that he was doing a good job, and he relished it as much as she did.

***

She laid her head on his shoulder. The last position they’d had sex in was with him sitting behind his desk and Lillian straddling him. She hadn’t been quiet, so he was pretty sure the people in the building had heard her.

He didn’t mind. He was okay. He had missed her, and he was in desperate need of a few rounds of fantastic sex.

He kissed the top of her head. He knew she had missed him too. They were similar in how they expressed their emotions, so he knew she wouldn’t say it outright, but he didn’t need her to. After all, he couldn’t ask her for something he couldn’t give himself.

“Do you want to work for me?” he whispered into her hair.

“No,” she mumbled.

“Why not?”

“Because at some point you’re going to have clients and we won’t be able to fuck like rabbits in here.”

“I’ll keep my hands to myself during work hours,” he promised, knowing full well he was lying.

She knew it too, because she snorted.

“Just at the beginning then,” he suggested. “I’m drowning in paperwork and tasks that need to be done, and I’ve always had people to handle that stuff. I’ve never done it myself.”

“I’m not going to do your paperwork for you, Noah.”

“I don’t want you to do it. I want you to help me do it.”

“I told you, I have a job.”

“At a coffee shop?” he scoffed.

“Tea shop, you jerk,” she corrected him.

“It’s only temporary though, right?”

She didn’t respond right away. Then she sighed.

“It started out that way, but honestly, I really love it there. It pays well for a part-time job, and I’m happy from the moment I walk in to the moment I leave. I haven’t been happy going to work in a long time.”

“But it’s supposed to be temporary,” he insisted.

“I’m not sure yet. I still check my emails to see if anyone’s responded to my applications, but I don’t care as much anymore. I like working for Hikaru. He’s a kind, gentle man who puts his heart into his work to honor his wife’s memory.”

“I didn’t peg you as the romantic type,” he teased.

“I value loyalty, that’s all.”

He stroked her back thoughtfully. Loyalty was important. In a way, Lillian had been loyal to him, and in a way, he had been loyal to her.

He kissed her head again.

“Are you hungry?” he asked softly.

“I am, yes.”

“Do you want to order in or should I take you out?”

“Can you afford to take me out?” she joked. “Your expenses are through the roof.”

“I can afford it. Don’t worry. So, in or out?”

“Is there a proper bathroom here?”

“The previous owner was very particular about it. I didn’t even have to renovate it. I think he was fucking his assistants in here too. Either that, or he had to stay for long hours.”

“I’m more interested in whether there’s a shower stall in it right now.”

“There’s a shower stall and towels ready to be used. Get up, my legs are going numb.”

“Are you calling me fat?”

“I’m saying you’re heavy, which isn’t necessarily the same thing. You’ve been sitting on me for a while now.”

“You didn’t seem to mind my weight when I was riding you,” she reminded him.

“And I won’t complain if you ride me again.”

He wasn’t joking. He was getting hard again, and he made sure she felt it.

She stood up quickly and looked down at him, surprised. He suppressed a chuckle.

“Are you going to shower too?” she asked.

“I’ll have to. I got pretty sweaty.”

“And you were well prepared for it,” she replied.

“Ready for what?”

“You know, the condoms.”

He shrugged, a casual lift of his shoulders. “Guess it’s just an old habit.”

“An old habit of what? Sleeping around?” She turned on her heel, her voice laced with scorn.

“You told me you weren’t the jealous type.”

“I’m not.”

“They were just in my back pocket. Probably been there since the last time we were together.”

Her face twisted in distaste. “That’s kind of gross, you know.”

He frowned, confusion etching lines into his forehead. “What do you mean?”

“It means you don’t wash your clothes nearly as often as you should.”

His laughter echoed around them—a sudden burst of sound.

***

After lunch, he took a moment to check on the workers’ progress before dismissing them for the day. It wasn’t that he was trying to overwork them or rush the project.

It was more about the budget. He’d crunched the numbers and knew exactly how many hours he could afford to pay them each week. It wasn’t as much as he’d like, but it was what it was.

“Want to check out where I’m staying?” he asked Lillian.

“Are you going to brag about your fancy penthouse?” she shot back, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

“It’s not mine to brag about. I just thought it might be a nice way to thank you for your hospitality. Plus, the view is pretty amazing.”

“Getting a little full of yourself, are we?”

“Not at all. But you can’t turn me down. You already said you had the day off.”

“I can say no if I don’t want to,” she replied, her voice soft and sweet.

“Come on, you know you want to. You loved the villa. There’s no way you won’t love the penthouse. Plus, now that we’re back together, there are so many more places we can explore.”

“You sure have a lot of energy for a guy your age.”

“Say one more thing about my age and I’ll show you just how much energy I have.”

“You can’t. You’re out of condoms.”