After the Storm (14 page)

Finally the emcee came out and tapped Noah on the shoulder. “Sorry to interrupt, but the show must go on.”

Lexi tried to back away from Noah but he kept hold of her hand. Grinning to the crowd, he took a bow and gestured towards Lexi, who also bowed. He pulled her off stage and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

“Lexi-love, that was so beautiful. Why didn’t you tell me you could sing like that?”

“Gee, I don’t know Mr. Big Rock Star.”

“It was so beautiful,
you
are so beautiful. God, you made my heart turn over in my chest.”

Lexi and Noah were pushed apart and Leigh walked through them. “Okay, okay, move it. We’re on. You don’t want to miss this.”

They watched as the three ladies moved toward center stage. Lexi turned to Noah with a shocked look on her face. “Do you see what they are wearing? What are they going to do?” They had tight tank tops on, leggings and a shirt tied around their hips. There were three chairs on the stage and the ladies lined up by them with Leigh in the front. When the opening notes of the song started she looked at Noah. “Oh, no, they’re not.”

He was laughing. “Oh, yes they are.”

They watched transfixed as ‘The Dolls’ performed a song and dance routine that matched perfectly with the video from The Pussycat Dolls,
Don’t Cha
. Lexi stood there, shaking her head as the trio danced around the stage, shaking their asses and rolling their hips to the crowd. Lexi held her breath as all three ladies quickly dropped down to a crouch, wondering if they’d be able to get back up. She let her breath out as they straightened their legs sticking their ass up and out. They arched their backs and stood up straight and slapped their asses, winking at the crowd.

She knew that Leigh had the background for this, but she was surprised at how well the other two did singing and dancing. They were in great shape.

Noah put his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly. Marie looked over at him and winked. Lexi looked out into the crowd to see how the performance was being received. The younger people thought it was great, she could see them dancing in their seats and clapping, but the older crowd seemed to be split. Most of the women looked like they’d eaten something sour while the men looked like they wanted to see if the moves translated into the bedroom.

When the song was over, the applause was overwhelming. Lexi looked over at the Trio and saw their huge smiles while they took a bow. She knew it couldn’t have been easy doing all that singing and dancing at their age and gave them huge hugs when they got off the stage.

“Now listen to me, young lady,” Evelyne said. “You go out there, have some refreshments, then get your ass home. You’ve done enough here. The rest of us can clean up.”

“But…” Lexi started.

“No buts, you go. Now.” Leigh crossed her arms.

“Are you sure, because we could…”

“Lexi honey, please. Let us do this. You’ve done so much for us. Really, it’s nothing. There are plenty of single men out there I’m willing to bet would do anything we ask now. So shoo.” Marie pushed them out the door.

Noah shrugged at her, unhelpfully, so Lexi went to grab her stuff and changed back into her jeans for the ride home.

“Why don’t you go home and get back into that dress, then meet me at my house for dinner in an hour?” asked Noah.

“I could do that. Should I bring anything else?”

“Just your beautiful self, Lexi-Love. Just you.”

He watched as she went to her house and made himself drive slowly to his. As soon as he parked, he was out of the car, racing up the stairs, yelling for Sam and Martha.

When they were all assembled in the kitchen, he laid out his plan with Martha taking care of the food so he and Sam could concentrate on setting the scene on the terrace.

“You sure are going to a lot of trouble young man. She worth it?”

Noah gave him a look, knew he was fishing, and decided to let him reel one in, for once. “I can’t see my life without her.”

“’Bout damn time,” Sam mumbled. “Have you thought about what is going to happen when your little vacation is over?”

“I’ve given it a lot of thought. We can make this work.”

“You know she’s not made for the world you’ve grown used to. She’s a small-town girl.”

“I know, Sam. That’s one of the things I’ve been thinking about.”

“Are you going to share?”

“Nope. Now if we don’t hurry, we won’t be done in time. And I want tonight to be perfect.”

~*~

Lexi didn’t know why she was so nervous. It was just Noah. They’d spent endless hours together. She had her heels in her hand while she walked across the beach to his home. When she got to the edge of the bricked path in his garden she stopped and put them on, keeping an eye on where she walked, not looking up until she got to the top.

She gasped.

There he was in a dark suit, the top three buttons of his white button-down shirt undone, standing like the Lord of the manor, though his hands were in his pockets. She’d never seen him look so dashing. It took her breath away, especially knowing all the tattoos hidden beneath the respectable suit.

He walked over to her and held out his hand. “My love, you look ravishing.” He kissed her hand. “Come sit down, dinner is ready.”

He held a chair out for her and after she was seated, he leaned down and brushed her hair away from her neck. Shivers chased down her spine and she tilted her head so that he could have easier access to her skin. She was breathless as he softly kissed down her neck and across her bare shoulders.

It took everything she had not to whimper when he straightened and walked over to his own chair.

“Would you like some wine?” He held the bottle up for her to see.

“Yes, please.” Maybe a glass of wine would help calm her nerves. She took a moment to look around. There were no lights on except the soft light from the garden path and he’d staged lit candles everywhere. In the center of the terrace, a queen-sized cushion was piled with small pillows and was surrounded by flowers. To keep her mind from wandering in that direction, she looked back over at Noah. “Everything looks so elegant.”

“No, you look elegant. Do you know what I was thinking as I watched you walk across the beach to me? I wished I was a photographer, a sculptor, a story teller, a director. Something, anything, so that I could keep that moment for all time somewhere besides my memory. You looked like a goddess and I wanted to fall to my knees before you and offer you everything that I have, everything that I am.”

“I’m no Goddess, Noah. I’m not even a Victoria’s Secret model.”

“No, you’re not, you’re better. Do you know how many models and actresses I’ve met? By society’s standards, they’re beautiful. But what I can tell you is no matter how beautiful they are on the outside, inside is empty and black. They’re a shell. Not all of them, but most of them only think of themselves and selfish pursuits. From the first moment I saw you, I realized not only are you beautiful on the outside, but inside. Inside, love, you are remarkably beautiful.”

She ducked her head. “You really are a charmer.”

“I speak from my heart to yours. No charm intended.”

He had her favorite meal ready for her, chicken franchaise with steamed vegetables and wild rice. They kept a light conversation about the talent show while eating and she noticed that Noah took the opportunity to touch her every chance he got.

Lexi sat there and stared into Noah’s eyes and wondered why they were waiting to make love. She loved him, no matter what the future held, he knew all of her scars and she knew his. It became clear. Now it was time, tonight was the night. There was no reason to wait any longer.

She took a deep breath, stood and walked over to him. Never taking her eyes from his, she lifted her dress high enough so she could straddle his lap and fisted her fingers in his hair. “I love you.” Before he could respond she pulled him in for a kiss, pouring all of her love and passion into the act. His hands came up to her waist and squeezed as their passion intensified, then moved around to cup her ass and pull her in closer. Her legs spread further and the heat between them flamed higher.

Noah grabbed her and stood up, forcing Lexi to wrap her legs tighter around his waist as she lifted herself up so that her head was higher than his. With their gazes locked, he walked over to the cushion on the ground. Laying her down gently, he ran his hand down the side of her face. She closed her eyes at the gesture and leaned her head into his hand.

“Are you sure?” Noah whispered.

Lexi looked at him, her eyes almost completely black with burning passion. “Yes. I love you. I want to feel you inside of me. I want us to reach for the stars. I want you to show me how you feel. It’s time.”

Noah looked at her for a moment then rested his forehead on hers. “How come I suddenly feel like a teenager? I guess because it means that much to me. You mean that much to me. I’ll take you to heaven and back, Alexia. Just lay back and let me worship your body.”

~*~

Noah leaned in and kissed the side of her face, moving down her neck and to the swell of her breasts. Lexi’s breathing increased. He moved his hand up her side and around the curve of her breast. She shuddered as he slowly and gently started to run his fingernails around in circles, getting closer to her nipple, and whimpered when he switched to her other breast before he had touched her nipple. His teasing was driving her crazy.

He shifted position so both hands were free to start roaming her body, leaning down to take off her sandals, and running a hot finger up the inside of her ankle to the back of her slightly bent knee. Her dress moved higher as his finger moved along the inside of her thigh. He switched direction and moved up along the crease between her leg and body to her hip. Lexi shivered, goosebumps erupting on her body.

Noah picked up her hand and turned it over, gently licking the inside of her wrist. His tongue swirled a path up to the crook of her elbow. He was used to women worshiping him—it felt good to think of someone else, for a change.

He spent a considerable amount of time discovering her body, spending time undressing her, making her feel as special as she made him feel.

He drew away from her when she tried to touch him, “Just sit back and enjoy, this is all about you. I am planning on taking my time.”

“But I want to touch you, you’re driving me crazy. I don’t know how much more I can take.”

“I’m just getting started, and we’ve got all night.” He took his clothes off, watching her watch him. His cock throbbed for release but he tried to ignore the pressure building and think only of her. He unbuckled his belt and left his pants open at the waist but didn’t take them off.

Keeping himself in check while Lexi shook with anticipation was a test to his strength. He wanted to make this last, be perfect for her. He slowly lowered himself down. Their eyes never breaking contact until his tongue started flicking between her legs. He smiled as she arched back and moaned.

He brought her higher and higher until she couldn’t move. Only then, did he completely undress. He watched her half-closed eyes grow large as he slowly rolled on the condom and lowered himself to her, pausing right before he entered her.

“I love you.” Their gazes locked as he slowly slid into her with one long thrust.

With the pressure building, their moves became more frantic, their hands and mouths capturing everything they could. She tumbled over the edge first, screaming out his name as he fell after her.

~*~

They lay wrapped in each other’s arms, relaxed and satisfied. Listening as her breathing became heavier and her body completely melted into his. Smiling to himself. He’d had a lot of sex before, some good, some bad, but that’s all it had been and he was amazed at how different it was when you were in love with the woman. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever get enough. Slowly he disengaged from her and got up. Looking down at her, his heart skipped a beat. He never wanted this to end. It was time to seriously think of their future together.

Most of the candles had burned out, so he blew the rest out and went up to his bedroom. He turned down the bed and got everything ready for the night, pausing for a moment to look down on her from his bedroom.
So beautiful
.

He quickly went back down and gathered her up into his arms. When he lifted her, she mumbled that she loved him and she was too heavy. Chuckling, he kissed her forehead, carried her upstairs anyway, laid her down, and covered her up, settling in next to her for a long night of thinking.

~*~

He sat on the rocks, staring at where they had been. The rage ebbed and flowed through him. He couldn’t believe that she had given herself to that stupid rocker. She was his. No other man should touch her like that. Only he had the right. But she looked so beautiful lying naked in the moonlight. He closed his eyes remembering the flickering candlelight on her soft smooth skin. He wanted to take those candles and drip wax all over her sensitive skin watching her squirm when the hot liquid touched it. He wanted to be the one to taste her, to keep drinking from her even when she lay spent and couldn’t take another orgasm. He wanted to be the one that plunged deep inside of her, feeling her walls quicken around his cock. He wanted to spill his seed in her and not the rocks before him. He was angry at himself that it turned him on watching them together. It should have been him down there.