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His head turns to me. “What do you mean?”
I laugh. “After this, I’ll never want another man again, Noah. You have screwed me, so just remember that.”
My head falls to the bed, and I continue to try and catch my breath. I didn’t know why I came over to Noah’s, but good thing I did. Adam would have never treated me this way. I’ll put that on the list as one of the worst first dates ever, but I did get a good ending to the night.
He pulls me into his chest, and kisses the top of my head. Cuddling isn’t something I’m used to, since most men are a hit it and then do something else type, but Noah is being sweet. I like this, and can’t wait to do it more often.
Are we really going to do this? Is he really ready to take on being in a relationship with one of his students? We will be careful, and never go out in public around here where we can be seen, but sometimes you can never be too careful. It only takes one person to see or interpret something wrong, and his reputation goes down the drain. That’s a lot of pressure.
“What’s on your mind?”
I don’t respond.
“Listen, you’re too quiet. I might not have known you very long, but it’s abnormal, so talk to me, please.”
I turn over and balance myself on my elbows. “Don’t get me wrong; I want to be with you, but are you sure you are ready to take the risk? There are so many things that could go wrong, and I don’t want you to resent me if something happens.”
His finger lingers down my chest. “If anything, tonight has cemented my decision. The loneliness has been depressing, and for the first time in years, I have a light. You.”
I blush.
“No, seriously. You make me feel alive, like I haven’t felt in a long time, and you gave me the confidence to almost finish my novel. That’s a huge accomplishment. So, yes Leslie Haddon, I’m sure I want to embark on this adventure with you by my side. Stop questioning it and just enjoy.”
My chest rises and falls as his lips touch mine, and everything seems to be coming together nicely. The universe brought us together, and there has to be a reason. He must be the man I’m meant to be with, and I can’t run away. He is my addiction.
14
NOAH
Her silk skin feels like heaven against my chest, and I want to know everything about this woman. What was her childhood like? What is her family like? These are things that are important in a relationship and family can be an obstacle. Not that I’m thinking about meeting her parents today, but mine, for example, are not easy people. My mother is highly protective and my father doesn’t trust anybody. He’s more of a conspiracy theorist and my mother, well, she doesn’t think I should be with anyone else.
Janet wanted me to move on and find someone. These last few years since her death, I have done everything but find happiness. Instead, I put the focus on my career and tried to finish my novel, but everything seemed to be stagnant. I miss the way I used to feel when we would come home after long day’s work and snuggle on the couch. A partnership is about having someone to share the good and hard times with and with her gone, I have been taking on everything by myself. Depression hit me like a ton of bricks, and seeing a therapist did help, but even she suggested I try to get back out there.
When I met Leslie at the bar, it was like something clicked and I knew I liked this girl. Not everybody can hold a conversation with me, especially about literature, and she did. To find someone that shares the taste of classics is hard these days.
“Do you have anywhere you need to be?” I ask.
“No, I don’t work until tomorrow night.”
How are we going to get to see each other if she’s working overnight? She will be working while I’m asleep and then spend most of her day at the University. I’m not one to run away from a challenge. Relationships take work, and as long as we both put forth the effort, we should be fine. After this semester, she plans on doing freelance work anyway, so she won’t be working overnights anymore, and we won’t have to sneak around.
Leslie stays quiet, and for a minute I think she might have fallen asleep, until she starts to rub my chest.
“What’s on your mind now?”
“This might be weird for you, but I’m curious about your wife, Noah,” she says, admiring the picture of us on our wedding day on the nightstand next to the bed.
This isn’t something I usually talk about, but with her I feel comfortable. Would anyone else be okay with the fact that I still have pictures of her on my nightstand? The point is, Leslie is, and that’s why I’m so intrigued. She understands that just because my wife has passed doesn’t mean that she is not still in my heart.
“She was an amazing woman. Extraordinary. Very driven and focused on her career. Basically, picture me but the female version. We had big plans for our retirement. Travel all over the world and do all the things we had always talked about.”
Leslie sits up on her elbows, and stares at me.
“How long were you guys together?”
I stroke my chin. “Almost ten years.”
The thing is they went by so fast. We were twenty-years-old when we got together and got married within two years. I’m not typically the one that believes in love at first sight, but that’s definitely what happened.
