Confiscating Charlie (4 page)

“
My problem is that my sister has never spent much time thinking about mine,
”
Charlie confessed with downcast eyes.
“
Maybe having an overly concerned parent is not such a bad thing.
”

Noah shifted his weight back and forth a few times.
“
I don
’
t know about that. Something tells me if we managed to mash up Darla and my dad together, we
’
d both be better off, but since we can
’
t do that, let
’
s hope they rub off on each other the more time they spend together.
”

Charlie agreed softly, momentarily forgetting what they were supposed to be doing. She no longer felt like play-acting.

“
If you don
’
t mind, do you think we can forget the redo? I should get some more studying done before I go to bed.
”

Noah looked baffled.
“
On a Friday night?
”

Charlie nodded but didn
’
t explain. How could she tell him that she was too worried that her sister
’
s new marriage was going to fall apart and she would be pulled out of school again? She needed to take advantage of the education she was getting for as long as she could.

Her faux escort shrugged off her change of heart.
“
Well, milady, allow me to escort you home,
”
he said, offering his arm in an old fashioned gesture.

Charlie smiled despite herself. Noah
’
s charm was lethal. She was going to have to be careful when they saw each other in the future. It would be unfortunate if she developed any real feelings for him. She didn
’
t want to be the girl with a pathetic crush.

She took his arm, and they walked inside her room. The glaring pink of the walls made her terribly self-conscious as she removed her hand from his muscled arm.

He caught her looking at them.
“
If you want, I can have some painters sent.
”

Charlie laughed.
“
No. Better leave it this way, or I
’
ll never hear the end of it from Darla.
”

Noah cocked his head to one side.
“
She would mind that much?
”

Charlie bit her lip. She was suddenly worried. The last thing she wanted to do was create friction in her new family, but she might have inadvertently done that already.

You shouldn
’
t have said anything about Darla!

She hadn
’
t meant to throw her sister under the bus, but Charlie had spoken without thinking while trying to find common ground with Noah. Darla would kill her if he had a bad impression of her before they even met.

“
No, of course not. I don
’
t want to give you the wrong idea. Darla wants me to have everything she didn
’
t
—
the big bed and the pink room. It
’
s her favorite color,
”
she said, backtracking.
“
My little complaints don
’
t have anything in common with what a husband might think. Henry is very important to my sister.
”

Noah studied her face quietly as if he was understanding a different meaning from her words.

“
Of course he is,
”
he said softly. His expression changed suddenly.
“
We forgot to dance!
”

“
What?
”

“
No wonder our date was a failure. We forgot to go dancing.
”

He took her in his arms and swept her into an impromptu waltz. Before she had a chance to protest, he spun her in a fast circle, his left hand warm on her hip.

With a dazzling grin, Noah waltzed her in a series of concentric circles before abruptly stopping. Still carried by the momentum, Charlie crashed into Noah.

“
Sorry.
”
He laughed before his face grew serious.

He was panting slightly as he looked down at her face curiously. Slowly, he lowered his head, not stopping until his lips were a hairsbreadth from hers.

With her heart pounding loudly in her ears, Charlie leaned forward, closing the distance between them.

His lips came down on hers, the pressure light and sweet. Her eyes drifted closed as his right hand dropped to join the other on her waist. He tugged her forward until her body was flush against him.

The full body contact was unexpected. Startled, Charlie parted her lips. His tongue touched hers briefly before drawing back as if he was hesitating. But she didn
’
t. Before she could chicken out she gave his tongue a quick stroke with hers.

His uncertainty melted away. In the next heartbeat, he slipped his tongue into her mouth, taking possession with a hard, aggressive kiss.

Noah lost his mind. One moment it was there, and the next it was gone, trampled in a rush of heat so intense his vision darkened.

Charlie was pressing against him, her tongue trying to match the movements of his own as her hands dug into his shoulders. He could tell she didn
’
t know what she was doing
—
she was too hesitant. But it didn
’
t matter. There was something here, something stronger than he had ever felt.

He inhaled through his nose deeply and moved his hands to cup Charlie
’
s curvy little rear end to bring her closer. His entire body tightened in pleasure, but it was too intense. He felt like a bowstring about to snap.

When Charlie moaned in pleasure, the little control he had splintered. Grabbing her ass, he lifted her feet clear off the ground, pressing her against the wall next to the bathroom door. Her arms wrapped around his neck, one small hand clutching at his hair. Blindly, he moved against her, his shaft hard and hot as it made contact with her softness. Only a few thin layers of cotton separated them.

Charlie
’
s mouth was so sweet. Her taste was like a drug, an addictive substance that was starting to seep into his blood. He could smell her arousal as she grew wetter and hotter in his arms.

Unable to think, Noah began to grind against her, squeezing and cupping her ass as he instinctively fought to bring them together.

Her head fell to one side, breaking their kiss so she could gasp for breath. Noah lifted her higher in his arms so his mouth could flame up and down her neck. He let one of her legs down for extra support, freeing one of his hands. Before he could stop to think about it, he was pulling her dress up higher so he could reach under her panties.

Noah froze when he touched the scalding heat of her wet center.
“
Fuck
. What am I doing?
”

Trying to be gentle
—
but quick
—
he let her go and stepped away.

Without his support, Charlie could barely stand. Trembling slightly, she leaned against the wall for support.

They were both panting for breath. She moved one shaky hand to her breasts. The other pressed between her legs, tightening the plain cotton gown over her pussy.

The look on her face was one of anguish.

“
Oh, god,
”
she whispered as her eyes rolled back. A shudder passed over her.
“
Why does it hurt?
”

Holy fuck
.

That was the last thing he needed to hear. A surge of lust swept through him
—
his body
’
s answering cry to her siren
’
s call. Grimacing, he slammed his fist into the wall above her head as he pressed his eyes tightly shut.

His voice sounded like gravel when he answered.
“
It
’
s sometimes like that,
”
he said eventually, trying to explain.
“
Desire
—
real desire
—
sometimes hurts.
”

Intellectually, he knew his words were true, but he wasn
’
t speaking from experience. Noah had never experienced a heat like this. Nothing about what he was feeling was normal. Even his hands were shaking.

“
I have to leave,
”
he whispered.

Noah backed away from Charlie as if she were dangerous. And she was
—
at least when he was near her. He took one last look at her small form, still slumped against the wall, and then he turned and left. He bypassed his bedroom, stopping only long enough to pick up his keys and wallet from the kitchen downstairs.

His feet were unsteady as he made it to his car. He drove away to find a hotel room for the night. There was no way in hell he could trust himself under the same roof as Charlie.

****

For a long time she couldn't seem to catch her breath. Charlie didn't know how long she stayed leaning against the wall for support. It was longer than she cared to admit. Slowly she picked herself and stood up straight. She wanted to go and find Noah, but she'd heard his car outside. He was gone.

She knew he had done the right thing by leaving, but she couldn't help wishing he hadn't. Which was slightly insane. But she couldn't help herself. Her skin was still hot and her mind kept flashing back to those moments when he had touched her.

It had been so much more than a first kiss.

Eventually Charlie turned off the lights and got into bed. There was no way she could focus on her books tonight. For a split second she thought about washing up, but immediately dismissed the idea.

She could still smell Noah on her. And she didn't want to wash his scent off of her.

****

Noah spent a restless night at the Caislean Hampton
’
s hotel. Despite the soft bed, he
’
d lain awake most of the night, shifting back and forth. Two cold showers had done nothing to cool down the fire burning inside him. He
’
d finally passed out somewhere near dawn. When he woke up the next morning, his head hurt as if he had a hangover.

But it wasn
’
t a hangover. It was withdrawal.

He couldn
’
t get Charlie out of his head. And not only the physical stuff. He
’
d gone over every word she
’
d said to him about her life and her interests. She liked to read and write poetry, but wanted to work in an art museum someday. And there had been her sense of humor. That crack about the unicorn and other little ways she phrased things
—
she was genuinely funny in a slightly off-kilter cerebral kind of way.

This was crazy. Twenty-four hours ago, he
’
d never laid eyes on her. Now he could feel her in his blood. What was happening to him? He
’
d only meant to give her a quick peck on the lips to make up for what Sammy had done. It should have been easy to charm her and go about his business.

Women had never been a problem. He
’
d always had a comfortable relationship with them. It was true they came in and out of his life with great regularity. His relationships tended to be short, but that was because he stayed on the move most of the time. He liked to think a stable, monogamous relationship would be doable if he ever settled down in one place.

But that wasn
’
t possible with Charlie. She was a part of his family now
—
completely off limits. And even if she was over eighteen
—
almost nineteen
—
she was still in high school.

Wait,
why
was she still in school? Henry had said she had been sick, but Charlie hadn
’
t mentioned any illness during their conversation. Of course, it could have been a while ago. There was no real reason for her to bring it up.
Hell, he never talked about his accident.

But if Charlie was okay, then why was she spending a Friday night at home alone? She
’
d dressed for bed, too, in what could have easily passed for a vintage hospital gown. It hadn
’
t even been nine o
’
clock yet. Had the thing with Sammy upset her that much?