Noah's Journey (Sawyer Brothers #3) (10 page)

Chapter Twenty

Noah

After dropping Austin off at Stacey’s parents’ place, I drove out to the ranch. Months after the loss of my father, it still felt strange visiting. I always expected to see his truck sitting in the driveway, but Momma had given it to Ryan. With Olivia finally getting her license, they felt Dad’s 1999 Ford was the best fit for her, especially with how her face lit up with the idea of inheriting her grandad’s truck. We all agreed Liv deserved it. She was a respectful girl who would treasure the gift and its significance.

Hell, to this day she washed and polished it as if it was a brand-new BMW. At times, Ryan said he would find her just sitting in the truck in the driveway listening to the radio. She had no desire to go anywhere, but being inside somehow made her feel closer to the old man, and that too confirmed our Liv was one special girl.

Jackson was still here, finishing his daily tasks. At times I wondered how my little brother handled this place. I loved the ranch, but it never truly had the hold on me it appeared to have on Jack. It was his baby now, and he had no problem running it as smoothly as Dad did.

When I entered the barn, I checked each stall as I passed in search of Jackson. As I reached the end stall, I began thinking maybe he had just left his truck here when I heard a loud groan—a groan of pleasure that had my ass freezing in place, terrified I was about to see something that would forever be etched in my mind. And sure as shit, as I turned to the left, I was blindsided by Jack’s naked ass as he went to town on Bailey.

“Motherfuck,” I said as I covered my eyes and began walking backward. “What the hell is with you two? I could have been Momma walking in on this shit.”

I heard Bailey’s squeals and a deep chuckle from my brother while I continued to back away. Cocky asshole had no shame. He thought being caught was funny.

When I was far enough that I would no long be subjected to the sight of my brother’s bare ass, I removed my hand from my eyes and rushed from the barn, craving the safety of my momma’s house.

I would leave what I had just witnessed behind, sparing Ma any details. If she knew the two of them were screwing in the barn, she’d beat them with the broom for sure.

“Hey, son.” She looked up from the kitchen table as I entered the back door. She and dad used to sit there for hours working on crosswords puzzles. I swear they bought them in bulk.

“Hey, Momma,” I replied as I leaned over and kissed the top of her head.

“What are you up to? And where is my grandson?” She spoke without looking away from her puzzle.

“Just stopping by to visit. Alena has another hour or so at the shop before she’s meeting me at my place. Austin, I assume, is in bed by now or getting ready for it.” I sat down in the chair across from her and leaned back, crossing my ankles out before me. “I picked him up after work for dinner and dessert. Then I took him back. It’s too hard to keep him on the nights I have to be at the station so early the next day.”

“Well, I wouldn’t mind seeing him a little more.” She arched an eyebrow at me, daring me to argue.

I instantly felt guilty. I did need to bring him around my family more. It wasn’t only me that had missed out on him. They had too.

“Sorry, Ma. How about tomorrow night we bring you dinner? Just Austin and me, with the best woman I know.” I smiled when her eyes glossed over.

“Still a charmer, I see,” she said as she sniffled. “But I think your ma has got a little competition now. Seems you have a liking for a certain fashion-store owner.” She winked playfully, and warmth spread over me.

“Competition? No, never. You’ll always be my number-one, momma. But you are right, Alena has snuck in and found a special place.”

“And that knowledge makes me happy. Love looks good on you,” she added before looking back down at her crossword. “Why don’t you bring her tomorrow too? I think it’s time we made her feel like part of the family.”

I waited for her to look up, and when she did, I smiled, assuring her that her gesture meant a lot.

I stood from the table and took a step toward her. Leaning over once more, I kissed the top of her head. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Ma. Love you.”

“Love you too, son, and will you do me a favor?” she asked as she patted the top of my hand.

“Sure, anything for you,” I assured her.

She looked up at me with an expression on her face that made me realize I would regret agreeing to do whatever it was she was about to ask. “Could you make those two horny-ass fools go home?” I froze, wondering if she was upset or if she found their random sex acts as funny as the rest of us. “I went out earlier to check on feed for the horses before I ordered the next shipment. I didn’t even make it two steps in the damn barn when I turned right around and came back inside. I swear it is a miracle they can even function with their clothes on. They’re naked more times than not.”

She shook her head and then laughed lightly. That’s when I knew she was just being her old ornery self.

“Momma, I would do just about anything you ask me to do,” I began, “except go back in that barn and see any more than I already have.”

I turned and walked out the back door, leaving her laughter fading behind me.

Just as I reached my truck, my cell phone chirped with an incoming message, and I quickly swiped my finger across the screen.

Alena: I’m leaving now, is there anything I need to bring?

The excitement of seeing Alena made me feel like a damn teenage boy all over again.

I sent a quick reply before crawling into the cab of my truck and hurrying home.

Me: Just you darlin’. You’re all I need right now.

***

I sat on the steps leading up to my front door, resting my elbows on my knees as I watched as she walked up the driveway. She smiled sweetly, stopping only a few feet from where I sat. “Hey, cowboy,” she cooed.

Instantly, I was twitching with desire. Alena had quickly become something I craved. “Hey, sweetheart,” I replied, only making her smile grow wider. “First things first, what are you doing tomorrow night?”

She shrugged. “Nothing that I know of.”

“Well, now you’re having dinner with me and Austin at my ma’s. She insists I bring the woman that has brought back my smile.” Alena bit her lower lip, nodding in agreement. “Now about tonight, are you hungry?”

She shook her head, still watching me closely.

I stood, and her stare followed me, though she remained standing in the same spot. I stepped up to her, wrapped my arm around her waist, and pulled her body close to mine. “We could give Jackson and Bailey some outdoor competition.”

I tried not to laugh at Alena’s look of surprise. She arched an eyebrow at me, only making it harder not to react. “I think as long as I’m outdoors, I’d prefer keeping my clothes on.”

“I bet I could change your mind,” I assured her and lowered my hand to cup her ass.

“I’m sure you could,” she said breathlessly. “But I prefer taking things inside.”

I honestly didn’t want to take a move from Jackson’s playbook, but I sure loved seeing Alena get all worked up and needy. It did animalistic things to me. Without any further words, I gripped the backs of her thighs and lifted her into my arms. She willingly wrapped herself around me, staring at me with matching desire.

As I stepped inside, I kicked the door shut and carried her toward the countertop that separated the kitchen and living room. I lowered her onto it and began sliding my hands up her sides, taking her shirt with me along the way, allowing myself a few minutes to take in her beauty.

“I don’t think I tell you enough just how beautiful you are.” Her cheeks reddened, and she ducked her head. “Hey.” I placed my finger under her chin, forcing her to look up at me. “Why you hiding?”

She shook her head in disagreement.

“Yes, you are, gorgeous,” I insisted, not allowing her to continue this charade. “I still remember that first night you rolled into town. High heels taller than any damn set of heels I had ever seen.”

Alena smiled as she closed her eyes, as if she was remembering the moment too.

I inched a little closer between her parted thighs and slid my hands over her legs. “You had on that tight little red dress that showed off every curve of your body. A perfect body I have not stopped thinking about since. I don’t just say shit I don’t mean, Alena.”

Our eyes locked, and I began to close the distance between us. “From that moment, a lot of things have happened in my life, but never once have I not craved you. I just have really great discipline, but sweetheart, it’s never been easy.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Alena

There I sat on the countertop, Noah tucked safely between my thighs and a huge emotional knot lodged in my throat. His stare bored into me, as if trying to force me to accept his words.

“For the first time in a very long time, I’m not afraid of moving forward. I want this, Alena. I want it all.” I swallowed, trying to moisten my throat, because right now it felt like sandpaper. “I want the fights and the making up. I want the cold nights and snuggling up together to stay warm. I want those times when we annoy each other so badly, yet we can’t stomach the idea of being apart.”

He needed to stop talking, because at this rate, there would never be any hope of me holding back the tears fighting against me.

“I want to know at the end of a shitty day that I have you to make me feel whole again,” he added, and that was all it took. I blinked rapidly, still trying to control my emotions, but the moment the first tear fell, it was all downhill from there.

“Tell me you want those things too,” he whispered.

“Yes,” I replied as I shuddered.

Everything shifted in that moment as his lips crashed against mine and he fed his hands through my hair and fisted it tightly. Our tongues tangled in a heated kiss.

After nipping at my lip, he pulled back and began working his way down my neck. The rough feel of his whiskers rubbing against my skin was amazing. Each place he made contact remained sensitive, not letting me forget where he had been. My heart raced as my mind screamed for more. God, I just wanted more, I wanted everything, I needed it.

When his lips settled at the dip between my breasts, I held my breath, begging for him to continue. “These are amazing,” he groaned as he cupped my breasts. The heat rose in my neck as he pushed my tits up and trailed his tongue along the edge of my bra.

I reached around, unclasped the hook, and let the lacy material fall away to pool at my waist. A deep moan escaped him as he descended on me like a starving man.

I felt like I was going to explode with need.

“I’m gonna take you to bed now, baby—” Noah’s voice was a husky whisper, “—where I plan on making love to you all night long.”

I shivered as he lifted me from the counter and carefully led us to his bedroom down the hall. Once inside, he lowered me to the bed and began to undress. His eyes remained locked on mine in a heated stare.

Before he crawled onto the bed, he removed not one, but three condoms from his bedside table and tossed them at my side. A smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth when I looked from the foil packages back to him. Cocking an eyebrow in question, I licked my lips.

“You up for it?” he asked as he placed one knee on the edge of the bed and began crawling toward me. “Because I have all kinds of plans for us.”

“I’m more than ready to feel all those plans.”

With my submitting to his desires, he beamed brightly and lowered his body over mine. As we made contact, it felt as if a switch flipped. My sweet cowboy with his loving words had now morphed into a hungry man. He was driven by lust as he ground his erection against me.

“You feel so damn good beneath me. So fucking good, Alena,” he growled in my ear.

Noah held true to his word. For the next five hours, he explored every curve of my body. We only allowed ourselves small breaks in between as he held me close, my head resting just above his heart.

When I woke the next morning, my body screamed with the achy aftereffects of our night of passion.

***

My phone chimed with yet another message from my father. For some unknown reason, he felt the need to call me at least once a month and express his disapproval of my life choices.

“You could have had the world, Alena. Expensive cars, the biggest house on the block, and envious onlookers wishing they could live for just one day the lifestyle you were given.”

His words, not mine.

But along with all the fancy cars and houses, the life he envisioned for me was a lonely one. My parents had a loveless marriage, and I refused to repeat their choices. I made my own, and I would not let my father, or mother for that matter, dictate who I became. He disagreed when I chose to travel the world, but in reality I just wanted the chance to be away from them. I wanted to take time to figure out what I wanted to do with my life without them hovering.

He also disagreed when I chose to move to Montana, telling me he would no longer be there to support my idiotic choices. No daughter of his was going to spoil his image.

I didn’t need him. I found ways to make it on my own. During my travels right out of college, I met people and made contacts that truly supported my choices. Those people were my family now. So I chose to ignore his monthly bashing. I didn’t want him tainting my world. Not anymore.

Over the last few weeks, things had really developed between Noah and me. Ever since the night we stayed up making love and confessing our desire for one another, our relationship shifted, and that closeness only continued to grow.

Noah had become just another piece of my newfound world—the world where I chose to be, with or without the consent of my parents.