Page 43 of Noah

He couldn’t be angry with her when she ate like she was in a trance. Each move was precise despite being preoccupied, and she didn’t miss a spoonful. While Noah sat at one end of the table scowling, Adrienne either ignored him or didn’t notice him.

Frustrated, he fisted his hands, his blood racing.

Violence…always violence.

Violence has always been part of him. It was now ready to tear and rip, to get out. It took all his limited control to keep himself from raging. Being free had that effect.

He didn’t think anyone had thought about what it was like for him to be free. He frowned deeply as he stared up at the sky from the porch. There was no doubt that freedom should feel…freeing.

When Numbers were freed, they had a goal, something to put their energy and passion into…building their home.

In a cruel and open world, they had to protect one another and build walls quickly without feeling like they were enclosing themselves. To build a city, they had to trust humans to help them.

Noah was puzzled by the fact that their release had been secured by the tiny blonde-haired nurse, according to their descriptions—spectacularly, he was told—helicopters, explosions, and fights.

Noah knew why Numbers admired her, even though his mind was filled with only one female.

Noah couldn’t deny that what they accomplished was breathtaking, but it left him feeling lost.

What did he have? Nothing.

Sadly, it was the truth. His inner voice sounded too dark and sombre, but it was also true. No significant tasks were available for him, no vulnerable needed to be guarded, no tasks he could perform that Numbers weren’t already capable of.

His hands were empty, and he wanted to use them. Anything that would relieve the restless energy would be appreciated.

It was another reason he wanted Adrienne—he pinched the bridge of his nose. It was not just the possessive part of him that thought it could provide for her, it was the need to do something and care for someone.

The splatters of paint, her loose clothing, and her distant appearance made her beauty clearer.

Was she aware of how tempting she looked with her normally straight golden hair in wild disarray? As if she had just tumbled out of her bed.

There was a part of him that wished she had done. There was a ravenous animal inside him. There was almost a feral quality to its need. A push under his skin demanded that he pounce on her.

The animal wanted to play and offered suggestions for finding her and hunting her down. It was no surprise that the images that followed were sexual as well. The game of catch was as old as time.

Even as a child, he knew that chasing another playmate and catching her in a game would be fun. As he grew older, he understood what catching his prey if it was a female meant.

It was the ultimate predator and prey lure for the primal lusting heart of his beast.

He realised he couldn’t just run her down. If he tried, he’d be hospitalised and never released.

“I’ve given you and Adrienne the green light to visit the storage unit. Sorry for the delay,” Drey said as he appeared from the forest.

He grunted in acknowledgement. Rather than glance at the male, he concentrated on the endless sky and saw a void that would swallow him whole. A life without her.

Drey cleared his throat. It was clear that the male was not leaving without a reply.

“I doubt she would notice. She’s been…” Noah paused watching a bird make swift sure movements across the sky, riding invisible air currents. “She has been preoccupied.”

Drey laughed. “You don’t seem happy about that?”

“I don’t know what I am.”

“What’s wrong? Whenever I’ve seen you looking into the distance or lost in thought, I’ve sensed something.”

He had been claimed by Drey. If it was possible to claim a wild tiger. “There’s nothing. I have been freed and now there’s nothing.”

“There are tons of things you can do here. The best thing you can do is explore your options. Don’t wander. Let’s go to the hub together. Visit the office, security, or any other part of Moon that interests you. You can try any job you want.”