“You don’t mind, right?” I asked as I settled on his lap. The scent of rain tickled my nose in the most pleasing of ways.
Noah’s smile was slow to take, but his hand reached out until it was grasping the back of my neck before he pulled my lips down to his.
Good answer.
I melted against him, struggling to stifle a triumphant smile at the success of my seduction technique. I’d come a long way since my first boy-girl party in middle school.
Noah’s mouth moved confidently against mine, and I delighted in the feel of his free hand sliding up my thigh before his hold tightened in a way that had me pressing my chest flat against his with my hands happily sandwiched in between us. His chest was warm and firm beneath the dress shirt.
Noah’s hand grew bolder, sneaking up inside my top and flattening against my stomach in a way that short-circuited my brain. His other hand slid down from my neck to wrap around my back.
Fire ignited in my veins at his touch, and all my focus zeroed in on his hand against my bare skin as he explored higher. I kissed him harder in response, grabbing on to his tie for leverage.
When his fingers brushed the underside of my bra, I might’ve accidentally bitten his lip—but when he groaned deep in his chest and his arm around my back pulled me closer, I decided to pretend it was totally intentional.
I was rewarded when his hand moved higher to my breast, sending a warmth skittering over my skin.
The sound of a key unlocking the door had us both freezing as time slowed. But then I heard the doorknob turning, and I jerked back—Noah’s grip the only thing that stopped me from falling to the floor. His arm tensed around my back, and my eyes widened to the size of saucers as the front door swung open.
A tall guy around Noah’s age strolled in before using his foot to shut the door behind him. His light-brown hair bounced as he hummed a quiet tune, both hands stuffed in the pockets of bright teal medical scrubs. He stopped midhum when he spotted us, eyes widening behind rectangular dark glasses.
I stared back.
“What are you doing here?” Noah spoke first, recovering from our make-out session shockingly quick. My eyes widened further at the sharpness to his tone. There was also the fact that I was still perched on his lap and straddling his thighs in what was no longer a private spit-swapping moment. Thankfully—or maybe not—his hand quickly let go of my breast, as if it’d burned him, and my shirt was once again an Emma’s-limbs-only zone.
My cheeks burned, and I wanted to crawl under the couch and disappear.
One of the stranger’s brows rose effortlessly—something I was officially jealous of—and his eyes flitted to mine in surprise before darting back to Noah. “Well, hello to you, too. Talk about compromising positions. Who’s this?”
“I thought you were coming over for dinnertomorrownight?” Noah asked, fingers gripping my side firmly enough that I muffled a squeak.
I fidgeted in Noah’s hold as silence fell. Noah looked at the stranger, who stared right back, and the silence stretched to such an uncomfortable length that I briefly wondered if they were either telepathic or deeply in love.
I took advantage of their distraction to slowly slide off Noah’s lap—painfully aware of every awkward movement of my body since it was the only motion happening in the quiet room—gripping my skirt to make sure I didn’t flash the new arrival as I settled on the couch beside Noah. He didn’t seem in a rush to let go of my waist, so I stayed close.
The stranger’s lips twisted into an exaggerated frown. “But wealwayshave dinner on Sundays.”
“Yes, but today is Saturday,” Noah said.
My brows knit together as I fought to figure out what the heck was going on.
“Ah, you’re right.” The new arrival glanced my way. “My apologies. I can be a little scatterbrained when exams are coming up.”
“Not a problem. I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” Noah said as he paused the documentary. I blinked at him. Was he seriously not introducing me to someone who was obviously a friend of his?
“Oh, but I just got here. Although it does look like you’re busy with…” The new guy trailed off, and his calculating gaze darted between me and Noah before lingering on me.
Noah’s grip tightened around my waist, and all I could do was sit there and look back and forth between the two men. I still hadn’t ruled out the possibility that this guy was romantically involved with my boyfriend.
“… date night?” the stranger asked as he pushed up his glasses.
“Julian…” Noah’s voice was laced with warning.
“This is Julian?” I asked Noah, finally finding my voice. “Your friend? That Julian?”
Noah muttered under his breath, but Julian perked up. “You’ve heard of me? I can’t say I’ve been extended the same courtesy, but yes, I’m Julian Carmichael. At your service.”
“Julian,” Noah repeated, but his friend waved him off.
