Page 29 of Bond Strength

I peeled myself off from Noah, the crust on my chest a reminder I’d never cleaned up after we’d had sex. He let go of me, and I hated the lack of pressure and warmth. I popped my glasses on and snagged my phone. Eighty percent still. Good.

“I’ll go try to call my boss.” Noah pushed up off the mattress with a creak. He headed out the door, probably to find his cell.

I sent a quick email to my job, which was more efficient than any other route. The Brannon text chain had blown up, but I popped in to state “I’m alive” and then didn’t bother reading the rest of the messages. That lot could chatter for a century.

Noah reappeared in the doorway. “Good news and bad news.”

I heaved a sigh. “Good news first?”

“Your power is back on. The tree out front must not have been what disrupted the lines. Just your driveway.”

“The bad news?”

His lips twitched. “There’s still a tree in your driveway.”

“Oh, is that all?” I shifted to place my phone on the nightstand. “Well, I have brothers who have connections.”

“You know I can place a quick call too.” He approached me. The more the distance between us closed, the more I craved him plastered against me again.

“You should do that.” My gaze roamed from his defined chest, tan and smooth with the occasional bump of whitened skin from scars, to the dip of his hips, the trail of darker blond fuzz leading to his…fully erect cock.

Ngh.

Noah’s eyes met mine, and his lips tilted in a sexy smirk. “Hungry?”

“Famished,” I croaked out, and he closed the distance between us. My cock was hard and heavy between my legs, an insistent throb in my balls I didn’t want to ignore. His lips descended on mine, and I moaned into his mouth. He gripped my hip with the surety that his movements held, and I free-fell into sensation.

He kissed me with a desperation that matched my own, and I ground my cock against his thigh. His nudged against mine, a little wetness from pre-cum imprinting on my skin. A full-body shiver traveled through me. He kissed like we had all the time in the world, like he wanted nothing more than to savor every second, yet the depth of those kisses, the hint of wildness, was what I craved the most.

Noah and I had wasted so much time already. I didn’t want to miss more.

Except, what if our parameters were just this encounter? We hadn’t discussed anything beyond clearing up our earlier misunderstandings.

I drew away first, unable to stop the thoughts from circling through my brain like a record stuck on repeat. As much as I wanted to chase the sensations emerging with abandon, I couldn’t shake the question that had emerged, and I needed clarity.

“How are we moving forward past today? What sort of relationship are you looking for?”

Noah blinked at me and then blinked again. “Holy fuck, I…” He swallowed hard. “I love how direct you are.”

I didn’t feel like I offered anything groundbreaking, simply getting clarity, but Noah’s stare grew more intense. Oh right, he’d mentioned this was what he struggled with. So much so he’d tweaked my hair for years rather than telling me he liked me.

“If it helps, I can start,” I said.

He let out a sigh of relief. “Yes, please.”

“I’m interested in continuing to fuck for sure. As for more, I’ve never been in a relationship, so I’m not sure how I’ll be as a boyfriend. I tend to need a lot of alone time.”

Noah shook his head, a giddy laugh escaping him. “Declan, you’re perfect.”

I lifted a brow. “I’m definitely not.”

“For me, you are. I avoided relationships for years because I’m always getting pulled in too many directions and there are too many demands on my time. And…because they weren’t you.”

I tilted my head. “Well, I’ve been here the whole time.”

“I’m aware.” Noah groaned and scrubbed his face.

His statement didn’t clarify the entire situation, but I had a better idea of the parameters.

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