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This is it.
A quick check of the doorbell camera confirmed her visitor’s identity. “Just breathe,” she murmured before pulling the door open.
Caught partially between the glow of moonlight and porch light, a half-dozen long stem yellow roses in his hand, Noah looked like a fallen angel, beautiful, otherworldly, and a bit dangerous—and that sinful angel was looking at her as if he were as bewitched with her as she was with him.
He wore slate gray slacks and a tie the same hue. His button-down shirt bore the identical shade of her robe. She didn’t know why the coordinating colors made her feel so ridiculously giddy, but they did.
He eased the back of his free hand along her cheek, his gaze tracking up and down her body. “Dear God, Emma,” he finally said. “I think you broke me.”
“Mission accomplished then.” She took a handful of his shirt and tugged him toward her, but he didn’t budge.
“I feel like this is arguing against my own self-interest here, but once I step in there, I doubt I’ll be able to hold back. So I need you to beverysure you want this.”
“I am,” she said without hesitation. “I want this, Noah. I wantyou.”
Strong arms banded around her middle, and he crushed his mouth to hers. In his embrace, she felt small and deliciously desired. Somewhere in the distance, a bird called out into the night, and interstate traffic hummed. Otherwise, nothing existed but him, them, this moment, and the allure of the darkness.
He eased her inside, lifting her so that her toes barely brushed the ground. The click of the front door shutting was like an explosion in her head.
She rested her forehead against his. “My heart’s racing. Is yours?”
“You mean you can’t feel it?”
She tightened her hold on him. “This is not me wanting to back out. This is just me asking you to bear with me. I’m gonna try my hardest to keep my mind from getting in the way tonight, but—”
“But a lifetime of negative thoughts don’t just go away because you want them to.”
“Yeah.” He understood. She didn’t have to explain. He just got her.
“How about this? We take a teeny baby step back so that I can give you these?” He held out the roses. The stems didn’t have those tiny flower tubes on the end, which made her suspect he’d picked them right from his garden oasis, which made the gift more special.
She drew the blooms to her nose and inhaled deeply. “Thank you. They’re beautiful.”
At her kitchen table, she trimmed the roses and placed them in a crystal blue bud vase. When the arrangement was perfect, she set it on the windowsill.
Taking his hand, she admired the new splash of color in her kitchen. “I love them.”
“Then I’ll make sure you have them whenever you want.”
After moving to the sofa, she poured two glasses of the hibiscus water. “How did your day go?” While she wanted to know, she also wanted to find her footing again. The lingering heat of their kiss still had her blood on a low boil.
“Frustrating.” He told her of arguing with Ethan again about their upcoming fundraiser. Then, he surprised her by asking forheropinion on the idea.
“I think it’s a great concept for a noble cause.” She tucked her legs underneath her as she faced him. “I volunteer a bit of time each month at a local immigration service. It’s not as much time as I wish I could, but there are only so many hours in the day, ya know?”
“I do.” He fed her a strawberry covered in whipped cream.
“If you want,” she said after swallowing, “I can reach out to that immigration service, as well as some legal firms to see if I can’t set something up. I’m picturing something like attorneys pledging X number of pro bono hours for every X number of dollars raised.”
“So, something like they’d be paid for two hours of service and then throw in one or two pro bono?”
“Something like that, yeah. Larger firms are always looking to be seen as altruistic, and smaller firms are always looking for new ways to network. Could be a win-win for everyone.”
“I agree. Have you heard anything from or about Bishop since his meltdown in court?”
“Judge Hutchinson released him from lockup today. Aside from that, I don’t know anything more.”
“I feel like the media is holding its breath on the entire situation, as if they don’t know which way to swing. Are they on our side, or do they want to burn us?”
